A/N: Hey everyone! ZareEraz here! Guys, I can't believe that we're almost done! Gah! I only have one more chapter to write and then I've finished the XxxHolic series proper. I'm still up in the air on whether or not I'm going to incorporate the OVAs somehow, but Yuko's gone in some and I want to keep this story a happy one. Well, now that I've given you fair warning, I hope that you enjoy this chapter! Let me know your thoughts and any reviews and support is greatly appreciated! Enjoy!

Chapter Nineteen: The Fall and The Truth

It was a beautiful afternoon on the cusp of fall when Watanuki and Wari were walking home together after school. The leaves on the trees were still green, but they were getting yellowish and the weather was starting to cool down. It was a nice day for a leisurely walk, and the pair weren't in a hurry and they were slowly ambled down the streets.

"Oh? So you can make potato croquet cream at home?" Wari asked. They were deep into a discussion about sweets, something the both of them were quite passionate about.

"Yep! And I can make mayonnaise too," Watanuki replied cheerfully.

"Watanuki, you're so amazing!" Wari gave the girl his wonderful, bright.

"Nah, it's nothing!" She scratched her cheek, blushing in embarrassment at his flattery. "Hey, I can teach you next time we both have a free day! How does that sound?"

"Really?"

"Of course!"

"Thanks!"

I'm so happy that I could die! Watanuki grinned from ear to ear, still blushing. Even if Doumeki was her boyfriend, the girl still had affectionate feels for friend. Not romantic ones, of course, but very loving feelings in a friendly sort of way. It was similar to the way she felt about Kohane, so any time spent with Wari was precious to her.

And then her bubbled got popped when Wari piped up again. "Will you teach Doumeki too?" Watanuki stumbled, her body flailing for a moment as the teen mentioned her boyfriend. So, much for alone time with Wari…but then again, Wari has always included Doumeki in things so I shouldn't be surprised. She smiled a bit awkwardly, but perked back up in no time. "I doubt that Shizuka would be interested in making food…he usually just likes to eat it."

"You think so? Well even so, the more the merrier." Wari's smile was back and it was just so cute! "I think it's super adorable that you call Doumeki by his first name now," he commented, practically sparkling.

"You do?" Watanuki was blushing again. Ever since she and Shizuka had made love, he'd wanted to do more couple-y things and Watanuki had agreed that she'd call him by his first name if they were among close friends in addition to already doing so when they were alone. He would also always try to hold her hand whenever they were together now – whether she wanted him to or not – and sometimes he'd try to kiss her in public, but she shove his face away, mortified that he'd try to make out with her on the street. She was more comfortable when they were alone and tried to get him to limit the kisses until they were at the temple, in her apartment or in a completely empty park. There were other small things that they would do like getting together frequently for actual dates instead of just running errands for Yuko, and sometimes he'd sleepover at her apartment and vise versa. So far, things were good. Life was good.

"Yeah, you two look nice together." By this point, the pair had come to a crossroads and this is where they usually said goodbye when walking home together. Watanuki was sad that they had to part, but she'd see Wari tomorrow. "Well, I'm headed this way." Wari pointed down the street (as if Watanuki didn't already know which direction he was going).

"Alright, see you tomorrow."

"Get home safe, Watanuki! See you!"

"You too!" Wari turned and began walking down the street. The raven waved and watched him go until he was out of sight. Her smile slipped off her face and she lowered her arm. She was about to turn towards Yuko's shop when her right pinky flared up in pain.

"Ow!" She flinched, her hand spasming involuntarily. She brought her hand up to her face to check it, but there weren't any visible wounds. She stared at her hand, trying to figure out what was wrong, when she suddenly got an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something was definently wrong…but she didn't know what it was…however, she had an inkling of how it started. Maybe. She squeezed her hand together a few times and the pain was soon gone. While she was looking at her hand, she took a second to look at her watch as well, and realized that she was going to be late. She quickly spun around and dashed off to the store before running to Yuko's shop.

Yuko was sitting on the porch in the back of the shop, serenely smoking her kiseru pipe when Watanuki showed up. She was wearing a simple pink kimono today with lily pad and lotus embroidery, a purple obi and had her hair pinned up with a beautiful lotus flower. After calling a hello and having instructions called back to her, the girl dashed off to the kitchen to get snack ready.

"Thanks for waiting!" She called, bringing the food out onto the porch twenty minutes later. "The sake and snacks are ready!"

"Thank you," the witch replied as the raven knelt down and fixed her skirt and apron. The sake set she used today was a beautiful blue and white porcelain with lotus designs that just so happened to match Yuko's outfit. Funny how that worked out. She didn't even purposefully pick that particular set.

"I got some good flounder today," she explained. "And it was at a great price. "The fishmonger recommended it saying that it was freshest out of everything he had today." Watanuki picked up Yuko's cup and the bottle of sake, getting ready to pour her first of what would become many glasses of the night, when pain shot through her hand, causing her to drop the cup. "Ouch!" It fell and shattered, porcelain scattering on the floor, what little sake that had been pour it is splashing as well. The raven gasped in surprise, apologizing for breaking the cup. "Yuko, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Are you alright, Watanuki?" Yuko remained calm while the raven had her little panic.

"Ah, y-yes, I'm fine!" She set the bottle down and reached for the shattered pieces on the floor. They clinked in her hand as she dropped the pieces in her palm. "I'll clean this up quickly! Please wait a secon – ow!" She dropped the shard she was holding as it cut into her skin, blood welling up from the wound on her pinky.

"What's wrong?" The witch asked, noticing her little slave was staring at her hand.

"Nothing…it's just that all of a sudden my little finger…" she trailed off.

"Your little finger?" Yuko raised and elegant eyebrow, beginning to comprehend what was going on.

"It started hurting, and then…" she trailed off again.

"Did you do anything with that little finger?" The witch prompted.

"No, not that I can think of."

"Really?" The way Yuko said it was kind of ominous. Watanuki looked at her and found the witch's cranberry eyes almost boring into her…like she knew something that the raven did. (Like, that was usually the case but this time it was kind of scary!) The seer took a moment to think hard, not coming up with anything for a while…until her brain snagged on to the day when she and Wari had made a pinky promise. That was one of the days that she and Doumeki were stuck dragging water out of the mansion well. When she hooked pinkies with Wari…she had felt something…but it hadn't been that big of a deal. What that was Yuko was getting at?

"I made a pinky promise with Wari," she finally answered.

"I see," the woman answered back. "So, the finger you made a pinky promise with, with Wari, started hurting and that's why you dropped the cup, right?" It seemed like the smoke from Yuko's pipe was expanding and thickening, making the area around the witch hazy and mysterious. Her eyes were dead serious as she asked her next question, seemingly seeing right into and through the girl. "I wonder…has anything else like that happened?"

The question sparked a flood of memories, each instance of her hand hurting and causing trouble flashing through her mind. The time when the carrying cloth flew up into the window and then they found the dead woman at the mansion, the time Watanuki was carrying a thermos of tea and she dropped the container, causing it to splash on the floor, the incidents that had occurred that day, the stiffness in her hand, the ominous feelings she got before these things happened. It was strange; each of these events was so meaningless in and of themselves, but connected together and they started to…

"But that was…" Watanuki fumbled over her words, still panicking a little and not fully understanding what was happening. Her voice came out uneasy and frantic. "It's a coincidence –" she cut herself off abruptly, realizing what he had just uttered.

There is no such thing as coincidence…only inevitability.

How many times had she heard that? How many times had Yuko proven that many things in the world were not coincidence? How many times had Watanuki been pulled into and then pulled out of situations that no one should've survived? How many times had Doumeki saved her butt just because they'd been in the same class at the beginning of the year? She could go on and on…but what it boiled down to was that coincidence rarely occurred, if at all. So what did this mean for the young woman kneeling on Yuko's porch? She was beginning to realize that she was going to find out.

That night Watanuki was sure that she'd corralled the twins into their room and fed Mokona its fourth midnight snack (it wasn't even midnight!) and she was sure that she'd left Yuko to watch the moon on the porch before she'd flopped down on her futon and passed out. And yet…here she was standing in Doumeki's yard staring up at the moon while the crickets chirped around her. Besides the night chorus, the evening was still with only the lightest of breezes. Deep shadows lingered in the trees in the temple courtyard where the full moon didn't cast its light and the stone lanterns lining the paths were dark. The girl was standing near the stairs that led into the temple, wearing her dark blue yukata which made the experience a little stranger because she had definitely put that on at Yuko's shop.

"What a great moon." The cheerful masculine voice came from the raven's left, and things began to make sense again. Doumeki was standing next to her wearing a checkerboard green and navy yukata.

"Doumeki!" She started, but then she caught herself. His guy is way to expressive to be Shizuka. "…no…you're his grandfather, right?"

"Nope." The man stared at her for a moment, an amused smile on his face. He was clearly waiting for something. Oh, that's right.

"You're Haruka." The man gave her a nice smile, and it made Watanuki warm inside, but simultaneously weirded out because that was definitely Shizuka's face and Shizuka's face did not do that.

"I'm glad that you recognized me so quickly. You much have some important business for us if you're coming to our temple this late at night."

"Well…I wouldn't exactly call it business…" Watanuki didn't really know why she was meeting with Haruka, but she was going to figure this thing out.

"Shizuka is asleep." Haruka stated, looking towards the temple. "Should I go wake him?"

"Ah, no! It's fine! It's nothing big!" She put her hands up in front of her and waved them back and forth. Oh god, I can't even imagine having my grandfather coming into my dreams and telling me that my girlfriend was outside! How embarrassing! Watanuki was blushing as she then imagined what that might look like. Haruka would definitely tease him – he's the kind of man to tease and be sweet to his grandson – and he would totally be like, "Shizuka, you're girlfriend is here! Get up and get some!" Oh god no! Watanuki's face got even redder and Haruka started chuckling like he knew what was going on in her head. But then he did get serious again.

"If it wasn't important, I'd doubt that you'd be here like this." He was clearly referring to their shared dream. The man smiled again, and this time it wasn't so weird. Watanuki was sure that if she spent enough time around Haruka, she'd get used to the frequent smiles. That might be kind of nice. But then her brain got pulled back on track as he continued talking. "If it's something that's hard to talk to Shizuka about, then how about you try telling me about it?"

"Talk with you…?" The girl looked away, staring at the ground for a moment. When she began to speak, it all came flooding out. The pain in her little finger, the messes it got her into sometimes, her suspicion that something was wrong and the ominous presence that seems to linger around her friend along with the extremely bad luck that was now haunting her. The story went on for a while and the pair eventually found themselves needing a place to sit. Haruka sat down on a rock and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it up and taking a thoughtful drag while he listened. Watanuki leaned against a fence careful not to disturb the rock garden that was just inside said fence. Once the story was done, Haruka blew some smoke into the air before speaking.

"That must have put you in sticky situations more than once. At the mansion with the corpse in it when you went to gather water…why did you go into it?" Haruka asked after thinking for a minute.

"The cloth that Yuko gave me to carry the container in flew off."

"Why?" The question kind of startled the seer, because Haruka looked so serious, like he knew something she didn't.

"It was blown by the wind," she answered innocently.

"Just because of that?" The man was looking straight at her now, his knowing gaze so similar to Yuko's. Watanuki thought back to that day again, retracing her memories until she caught onto something.

"All of a sudden, my little finger started hurting and I let go of the cloth."

"The finger you made a pinky promise with, with Wari, right? What do you think of him?" Yuko said the exact same thing! Once again, Watanuki pondered her thoughts, her mind catching onto a few memories concerning Wari.

I don't think that Wari is exactly your lady luck. That one was the most important one that Yuko had said. And Watanuki was coming to find out that the witch might be right. Something was wrong with Wari.

"…Wari is kind and cute…" If the raven could've seen her face, she would've seen that she looked like a kicked dog.

"I imagine that is true…but when you start thinking back on it, the bad things got worse after you got involved with Wari," The man put it so bluntly that it was hard to argue against, Watanuki wouldn't be Watanuki if she didn't try.

"They're not so much bad things as coincidences-" And then she cut herself off again.

"Coincidences?" Haruka questioned, acting too much like Yuko in that moment. Watanuki's argument fell apart and her face fell as well.

"Yuko likes to say that there's no such thing as coincidence in the world; there's only inevitability."

"And what do you think?"

The seer put her hands on the little fence and leaned back a bit reminiscing about her time in the shop. "When I first heard that, I thought that there was no way that could be true. For everything that happens to be inevitable, and for everything to have a meaning…it's impossible."

"And now?" Haruka's voice was so gentle now, and comforting.

"Now, just a little…I've begun to think that maybe that's true. However…" she didn't know how to continue on. If everything had a meaning…would that take the meaning out of the small surprises life hands people? Did it mean that everyone walked a predestined path, unable to change their fate? What did inevitability really mean on such a grand scale?

Haruka took another drag of his cigarette and let the smoke drift form his mouth. "Everything that happens has a meaning. However, those who can notice it are rare, and to find meaning in everything that happens every day…well, just thinking about it is enough to give you a headache." And there he goes, reading my mind again. But the man wasn't quite done yet. "However, if you realize that there might be a meaning behind something, then there is value in that realization in and of itself. I think that there is meaning in questioning why something happens. What do you think?" He glanced over at her and gave her one of those happy smiles.

"The realization itself?"

"You've probably noticed, while being led along by the multitude of occurrences happening around you, and you've noticed them. That's why you can't return to the time when you hadn't noticed it. The rest is up to you to decide." Haruka stood up and tapped some ashes off of his cigarette, brushing off his yukata as well. Watanuki stood up too, ready to follow the man if he wanted to move somewhere else. "I'd recommend staying with Shizuka."

"With Shizuka?"

"Well, you two are pretty inseparable now being boyfriend and girlfriend, but stay with him tomorrow without fail, alright?" Haruka smiled at her again, his words sinking in deep, trying to imprint themselves on her soul. His words were so lighthearted, but at the same time, the girl felt that they were deadly serious.

And it was at that moment that the girl's eyes shot open. Light was streaming in from the window and she was lying in her room at Yuko's shop. "Just…another dream?" She groaned and turned over to bury her face in her pillow. Talking with Haruka was great, but she didn't feel that rested at all! And it totally showed when she stumbled out of her room in her uniform and went to find her crazy boss. She yawned hugely, and when she finally stopped yawning, she found the twins whispering to each other on the porch.

"Morning!" She called, getting their attention. The girls spun around, huge smiles on their faces, like seeing Watanuki was the best thing that ever happened to them, and ran over to give her big hugs.

"Good morning!~" Maru called.

"Good morning!~" Moro added. They joined hands after hugs and started to dance around the raven.

"Good morning, Watanuki!~" They sang happily.

"Where is Yuko? Is she still asleep?" Watanuki, lifted her arms up so she didn't accidently smack one of the girls and she asked her questions. Around and around they went, giggling the whole time.

"The mistress has a few errands to take care of, so she's in the storehouse!" Maru answered.

"She said that since you have school, you should leave before her!" Moro added.

"Oh, I see. Then about breakfast…" Suddenly the twins stopped dancing and yanked something over their heads, leaping in front of the seer. They were wearing sassy Yuko masks and answered in a chorus of Yuko impressions, "She said, 'You have to make it!'" They dissolved into giggles at their little joke, and Watanuki just sighed at the unfairness of her life.

"Geez, I got it! I'll make it!"

"Mokona's portion too!" Maru demanded.

"Don't forget the sake too!" Moro followed up.

"First thing in the morning?" Watanuki sighed again, watching the girls run off. Yuko should definitely be dead by now due to alcohol poisoning, but whatever. Her eyebrows pinched together in worry once the twins were out of sight. I wanted to talk to Yuko about the dream I had last night. With no other recourse, the girl headed to the kitchen to make everyone breakfast before she started her walk to school.

"Geez," she complained. "Because she told me to make breakfast, I did, but for her to not even show up to sit down and eat it is just rude." The girl trudged down the road and turned a corner. "Yuko is always so selfish!" Once around the corner, the raven got the best surprise of her life (and that was saying something because she'd had a lot of surprises in her life!): Kohan was standing on the side of the road! The girl was wearing a cute pink dress with a tan, ruffled sweater, and she broke into a small smile when she saw Watanuki. The raven ran up to the girl, calling out a greeting.

"Kohane! Long time no see!" She came to a stop in front of the young girl and gave her a bright smile. "What are you doing out this early in the morning?"

"I was waiting," came the reply. Watanuki was a little confused.

"For me?" She asked. Kohane nodded.

"Yeah, because I wanted to say thanks."

"For what?"

"For playing with me a while back."

"I had fun too! We should play together again soon." Kohane nodded back. "Oh, that's right!" Watanuki held up the second bag she was holding. "I made some French cream puffs today. Would you like to share some with me?"

The girl looked a little sad at the invitation. "I have to go home soon." But she really did look like she wanted to have cream puffs with Watanuki.

"Oh, I see." The raven was said too. "How about this? You can have this." She fished the cream puff bag out of the big bag with the rest of the lunches and offered it to the girl.

"Is it okay?" Kohane's eyes lit up.

"Of course!" She took the bag and smiled.

"Thank you!" She said quietly, and politely of course.

"Should I walk you back?" Watanuki offered.

"I'm okay."

"Alright then. I'll see you later, okay?" The seer smiled at her little friend, happy to see that she was much happier now. Kohane turned to go, but after taking a half a dozen steps, she stopped and looked back. "Hm?" Kohane had stopped being the cute little girl she was, and Watanuki saw the wise psychic in her come out.

"Um…that little finger…" Watanuki's breath caught in her throat and the air around both of them seemed to get heavy. "Who did you make a pinky promise with?" Watanuki's eyes widened and her heart nearly stopped at the question. What the hell was going on?! She couldn't answer the girl and just stood there. Having said what she'd needed to say, Kohane took off down the street again, leaving the seer horribly alone and confused. She walked the rest of the way to school in a daze. She barely paid attention to where she was going, but as she walked through the gate, she saw Shizuka at the outdoor spigots in his archery uniform. If anyone could make her feel stable, Shizuka could. She practically ran over to him and got a little distracted by how handsome he looked with water running down his face and hair. But she shook her head and got straight into telling her boyfriend about the strange dream she'd had last night.

"Grandfather appeared in your dreams again?" The brunette asked as he toweled his face off.

"Oh wow." Watanuki was amazed. "You really are the spitting image of Haruka. You're so similar that it always weirds me out because it looks like you're smoking when he's really the one smoking."

"It's true; I've heard that when Grandfather was younger he looked just like me." He said this with such a straight face that the girl didn't even know if he was joking or being serious.

"I told you that it's the other way around! You're the one that looks like him!" She shrieked. Then she calmed down again. "Your grandfather passed away, right?"

Doumeki nodded. "When I was in my fifth year of primary school."

Kimihiro groaned to herself, scratching her head in confusion. "Why the heck is he appearing so young in my dreams? Wait…more importantly, why is he appearing in my dreams at all?"

"There might be some reason," Shizuka answered. "Grandfather didn't just perform exorcisms and make charms and wards, but I've heard he had prophetic dreams too."

"He really was a mysterious person, wasn't he?" Haruka became more and more interesting all the time. "Speaking of being prophetic, he told me to stay with you today."

"In last night's dream?"

"Yeah, but what if I don't want to?" Kimihiro turned on her snark, wanting to mess with her boyfriend. "Even though we're together, Wari is still more cheerful and fun to talk to than you!"

Shizuka knew that the seer was messing with him (she didn't have many problems with him staying with her…especially if they made love), but her comment made him think. Something was going on with Wari, but the archer didn't quite know what, and this thing with Kimihiro's dreams was concerning. However, before he got too far in his contemplation, the seer interrupted him with talk of food.

"Oh yea, the cream puffs!" She looked a little sheepish as she continued on. "I met Kohane on the way here and gave the cream puffs to her. So there's no dessert today. "

The pair stared at each other for a good ten seconds before Kimihiro flipped out at his disapproving (but still very expressionless) stare.

"No matter what face you pull, what isn't here isn't here!" She got so mad that steam was literally coming off her. "You are such a dictator!" And then Shizuka turned the tables on her by going back to their previous topic of discussion.

"Wait for me until I finish my club activities today."

"Huh? Why?" Shizuka just walked away, knowing that if the girl was this dense she wasn't every going to get it. "I'm asking you why!?" She paused for a moment and then began steaming again. "Wait…no way! This is because you don't get cream puffs today, isn't it?! You don't' want me to make you something at your place, do you?! You're such a slave driver!" After that, she stomped into the school building in a huff.

"Geez! What an ego!" She growled, marching down the hallway to her classroom. "Nobody appreciates me around here! I do all the cooking for Yuko and Shizuka and what do I get?! More orders! I should be the one giving orders now!" Right in the middle of her rant, someone patted her right shoulder from behind. The girl felt that ominous presence for a moment, but when she turned around, it was just Wari.

"Good morning, Watanuki!" His smile was so perfect! But then the suspicions creeped in, causing her to stutter out a greeting. Yuko's face flashed in the girl's head, then Haruka's, then Kohane's.

That little finger…Who did you make a pinky promise with? Kohane's question lingered in her mind, echoing in her ears. Something was not right…something was not right…but what was it?! The seer couldn't quite grasp what this sinking feeling meant…she just knew that something was off.

"What's wrong?" Wari asked when his friend didn't give him her usual cheery greeting. "Are you not feeling well? You do look kind of pale."

"Ah…it's nothing." Watanuki shook off her bad feelings and tried to act normal. "Sorry for worrying you."

"Really? Are you sure you're not pushing yourself too hard?" Wari was so kind to worry about her, so kind and sweet.

"Nah, I'm fine!" The raven gave her friend the brightest smile she could muster at that moment, even if it wasn't very bright. "Come on, let's head to the classroom. "Oh, that's right! I saw Kohane this morning." She began telling the boy about Kohane.

"The spiritual seer?"

"That's right." Since Watanuki was walking ahead of Wari, she turned a bit to look back and continue speaking to him. "And then Doumeki stared at me coldly because I gave Kohane the cream puffs I made for dessert today." While she was talking, the girl wasn't paying too close of attention to where she was walking and she veered towards the windows on her right a bit when she took a wrong step. Her shoulder hit the window, the ominous presence around her swelling and it was at that moment that the seer knew she was fucked.

The panes popped out of the window sill as soon as the girl's shoulder hit them. Watanuki's eyes widened as she lost her balance, her upper body beginning to lean out over the two story drop. The window panes started to fall and Watanuki began to follow it, her hips levering over the sill, her feet flying into the air. Her heart stopped, her blood froze in her veins as the panic hit her. There was no way to stop this. She didn't have anything to hold on to, she didn't have the means to stop her fall. A scream choked her throat, unable to make its way out because she'd stopped breathing. For a few moments she was sick and then it all caught up to her. She heard the wind rush past her. She heard the window pane shattering mere moments before she heard her body hit the concrete.

And then she felt it. For one vivid moment, she felt her body scream in agony. Glass shredded her skin and pierced her muscles. Her blood ran freely onto the ground, cooling in the autumn air. Her back throbbed from the impact. Her ribs creaked and cracked under the strain. Her skull collided with the ground, the impact jarring her spine as well. For that one, infinite moment, her senses registered everything around her, every sensation her body felt before her brain was overwhelmed with torment and she slipped into blissful oblivion.

"WATANUKI!" If she could've heard it, Wari's scream would've broken her heart. The young man stumbled over to the window after she'd tipped out of it, hearing the crash and the shriek of twisted metal and dreaded the thud that quickly followed it. Watanuki was lying prone two stories below him, her limbs strewn in every direction, her body mangled and bloody. Wari couldn't believe what had just happened, what he'd just done. His heart throbbed painfully in his chest, staring at the carnage below him before wildly running for the stairs.

Doumeki heard the crash and Wari's scream as he was walking towards the archery range. Before he had even processed what had happened, he was already running towards the girl. His eyes widened in horror at seeing his love inert on the ground. His legs worked faster as he practically flew to her side. Kimihiro's body was lying on the twisted metal of the window pain and there was blood, so much blood. Her glasses lay shattered near her head and her bags and their contents were strewn all over the place, her notebooks and school work soaking in her blood. Shizuka's heart leapt into his throat, his stomach dropped and he began to panic. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, matching the rhythm that Kimihiro's body was pumping blood out of her body. What could he do? How could he help her? She was practically lifeless, bleeding out right in front of him. His trembling hands searched for a pulse at her neck – it was there, but it was so faint…so weak…so unlike his vibrant, energetic girlfriend. He was yelling for someone to call an ambulance, his own voice surprising him. It was like he was on auto pilot, desperately trying to keep some semblance of control when clearly everything was failing. Wari was kneeling next to him now, the teen's hands hovering just a few centimeters above the girl's body. He didn't dare touch her, but he looked like he really wanted to. They were both useless. Wari was screaming and crying for Watanuki to wake up, but the cries feel on deaf ears. Doumeki didn't know how much time had passed, but finally the sound of sirens was getting closer, but they weren't getting closer fast enough.

Suddenly, a big, yellow, glowing butterfly swooped in front of the archer. It seemed to glow and there was a strange eye looking pattern on its wings. The strangest thing was that the butterfly carried the voice of Yuko Ichihara with it.

Bring Watanuki to my shop.

"Your shop?" He asked, half listening to the witch and half listening to the ambulance screech around the corner and careen down the street towards the school. There was a glaring problem with Yuko's request…Doumeki couldn't even see the shop, let alone enter it. "But I-"

"You can enter…" the butterfly replied. "Wari can too." The insect fluttered in the air for a few beats before speaking again. "Bring her to my shop…I shall grant your wish." Doumeki's mind desperately grabbed onto that thought. My wish? Yes, I want her to survive; I wish for her to live! His heart yearned for that one thing, that one wish and if Yuko could grant it…he would pay any price.

There were people around them now; teachers, paramedics, other students, but Doumeki couldn't care less about them. He only cared about one thing: saving Kimihiro. And he would do anything to make that wish come true.

…

It was dark all around her. She knew that she was crying, her voice sounding so much younger than it currently was, but she didn't care. It hurt. All of it hurt. She could barely move as she lay face down on the ground. Her spine was in agony, her head pounded in pain, and her limbs felt heavy and useless. She sobbed, unable to do anything else beside wallow in her misery and try to call for help.

"It hurts!" She whimpered, her voice echoing in the blackness. "My whole body hurts! It won't move!" Tears streamed down her face as the young girl tried to push herself up on her hands and knees. She was trembling all over, her body so weak and tiny and fragile that she collapsed right back onto the ground. She sobbed harder, unable to control the fear and pain she was feeling. "It hurts…it hurts! Mom…Dad…where are you?!" She tried to push herself up again and succeeded in at least lifting her chest off the ground for a few moments.

"It hurts…I'm scared! Dad! Mom! I can't get up!" She kept crying, over and over again until something in the darkness changed. The girl looked up, seeing specks of light raining down on her. It was so beautiful compared to the agony she was feeling. As she watched the lights float down to her, two arms reached out towards her. She tried to get up again, grunting with effort as she slowly and painfully made herself kneel on the ground as best she could. The arm was near her face now and she recognized the bloody appendage and reached out for it. "Mom!" Another limb reached out, this one thicker and less dainty than the first, but still bloody. "Dad!" Both hands grabbed each of her arms and began to pull the girl upwards. They were taking her somewhere. She hoped that wherever that was, she wouldn't be in pain anymore.

As they ascended, the young girl's glasses slipped off her face, falling to the ground, the lenses shattering upon impact. All of a sudden, the darkness was filled with fragments of glass, all of them falling to the ground, the noise of the cracking echoing around the girl and her parents. Despite having floated higher from where she'd been lying before, when her parents let go of her, she instantly found something solid beneath her feet. They were stroking her head now, one had on each side of her head. Their touch was so gentle and loving despite the blood staining their skin. It felt so nice, being touched by them again. It had been so long. "Dad…Mom…" She was still crying, but she felt a little better.

We're sorry. We can't be with you anymore. A light female voice and a deeper male voice began echoing around her. We're sorry. They shouldn't be sorry, they were with her now! That was all that mattered. We've given you sad memories. We've given you painful memories…we're sorry. It was nothing, especially since she was with them now. But…you'll meet people…people who will wait for you. As your future unfolds, people will see you…people will talk to you…people will be with you. She didn't think too much about those people they were talking about; they were with her right now and that was the most important thing. Other people didn't really matter right now. There are people who will stay with you. So…don't let yourself vanish! You are our precious child…

Then the arms began pulling away from her again. They were leaving her! The child sat in stunned silence for a few moments before reached out for them, pleading for them to come back.

"Dad! Mom! Don't go!" Suddenly finding that her body was hurting a lot less, the girl stood up and started running towards them. With each step she took the pain diminished. She could go with them and the pain would stop. "I'm coming with you!" She shouted after the parents, ready to go wherever they were going, but then the unexpected happened. Someone else was there and they grabbed a hold of the girl's right arm as she was running. She whipped around to yell at whoever it was to let her go when she was confronted by a very familiar face.

A man was floating down next to her, his hand firmly gripping her arm, determined not to let her go. He was wearing an archery club uniform, his brown hair a little messy from his descent, but there was something different about him than what the girl was expecting. Before she could pinpoint what that was, he opened his mouth.

"I made it in time." That voice did not belong to the man she was thinking of, but it was one that she found familiar. He smiled at her, as his feet hit the ground. He was so tall compared to her and the girl had to crane her neck backwards to look at his face. "It was a good thing that I appear to be about the same age as Shizuka is now." What the hell was he talking about? "That boy cannot cross into dreams; however, if I hadn't appeared to you like this, then I wouldn't have been able to pull you back. The girl was still crying, tears running down her cheeks as she sniffled. The man was looking at her kindly and it finally clicked. It's Haruka.

Suddenly, the darkness rippled with some sort of sound…a call echoed all around them. One voice…two voices…no, three voices…maybe more. The pair listened for a moment, the wordless call resonating with their souls.

"See? They're calling for you." Haruka's smile got a little bigger. "You have to go back. Next time, we'll meet in your actual dreams." He smiled again, giving the child the softest look. The blackness was changing, becoming deeper and Haruka began to be swallowed up by it. But it wasn't scary. She was going to go back, and that was the way to go back.

Watanuki cracked open one of her eyes, her first glance latching onto the threads of smoke snaking through the air. Something smelled sweet…incense maybe? It smelled like sandalwood maybe…with coconut. She was surrounded by dim lantern light, cloud-like gauze and a sea of sheets and pillows. It would've been so comfortable, were it not for the tight bandages wrapped around every inch of her and the fact that her body felt like she'd been hit by a truck that backed up over her body and ran back over it again. A dozen times. She groaned, wishing she could go back to sleep.

"What's…this…?" The girl didn't quite know where she was as she began to speak. Her voice was very weak, barely above a whisper. She rolled her head to the left and found her cracked glasses stilling on a night stand with a paper lantern and a vase filled with incense. She also found out that she was not alone in the room.

"You fell." Yuko was standing near her bed, dressed in a navy kimono with a golden chrysanthemum pattern and a giant mahogany obi. A golden butterfly perched on her finger for a few moments before it disappeared. "You fell from the second floor of the school, along with the window panes." That's right, the seer remembered the shock of everything when she'd tipped out the window. She shouldn't be alive right now. "Doumeki was below you and saw the whole thing. He tried to call an ambulance as quickly as he could…but I instructed him to bring you to the shop instead. Your life was in the balance, after all. There wasn't a moment to spare. Really, if it had been any longer, it would have truly been too late." Yuko's normally playful eyes were very serious…but they were also kind and worried underneath, as if the witch's habit of hiding her emotions and intentions was slipping. "But…there was someone who stopped you right? In the border dream just before the darkness, yes?"

The image of Haruka floating down out of nowhere, of taking Watanuki's arm and holding her back flashed through the girl's head. That's why he'd been so happy to have made it in time. I didn't understand it then, but I do now. She nodded a little, her neck and head aching from the movement. "And then…you…"

"Yes." She saved my life.

A wry smile broke out onto the raven's face. "This is going to be expensive, isn't it? Your compensation…" Her debt was probably going to double and she'd be stuck as Yuko's lackey for the rest of her life.

"I have already received it." The seer's eyes widened at this; surprised that Yuko wasn't going to take anything from her this time. "I have already received payment from two people." Two people…? Who…? It was at the moment that Watanuk's (very blurry and tired) eyes focused on the person that was being Yuko. Someone she hadn't seen up until that point. Wari was standing by the closed door with one of his hands resting on the frame. The seer's heart clenched, shocked that her friend was here…in the shop.

"Wari…" She gasped, her stiff lungs short of breath. "Why…why are you in the shop, Wari?"

"Because it was necessary for him to be here." Yuko answered. Wari gave the witch a polite bow and, as if they shared a brain, they both walked towards the other at the same time, switching places. Yuko stood by the door now and Wari was next to Watanuki in Yuko's bed. The girl didn't quite know what to say considering the strange circumstances, but she gave her friend a soft smile (her shifting muscles and skin straining the bandages on her head in places.

"I'm sorry…I must've really scared you," she apologized weakly. "But I'm going to be alright."

Wari's face held none of his usual joviality as he replied. "This time, maybe." This statement shocked the girl – Wari was never this negative! But then, as she took another look at her friend, she realized that there was a strange, malevolent presence surrounding him.

"What's wrong, Watanuki?" Wari's voice was still very serious and very calm.

"It's…it's nothing." She tried to stay cheerful.

You can't return to a time when you didn't notice. Haruka's voice echoed in her head. She couldn't un-see what was happening around Wari but she didn't want to see it. However…she also needed to know if what she was beginning to realize was actually true.

"I'm sorry…" she started after being silent for a few moments. "You might get angry with me if I ask you this, but...there's something I've been thinking about lately. I probably shouldn't say anything, but if I hide it, it'll pretty much be like I'm lying to you."

"What is it?"

"After I met you…every now and then…but…"

"Have bad things happened?" Wari finished her question before she could. Watanuki stared at the young man, surprised that Wari seemed to know exactly where she was going with this, but she knew that they were on the edge of revealing everything. She couldn't back away now. "Today, when I tapped you on the shoulder, that shoulder hit the window pane, knocked it from the frame, and then you fell with it."

"Does that have anything to do with you, Wari?" Watanuki finally asked the question, afraid to know the answer, but even more afraid to be kept in the dark. How would this one question change them?

It was a few moments before a sweet smile broke out of the boy's face.

"So, you've finally noticed, huh?"

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

Watanuki was a bit shocked that Wari just came out and admitted that unfortunate things happen around him. He didn't try to hide anything and was very upfront and honest with the girl. "I was wondering when you were going to figure it out, but it really did take a while for you to get it." He was still smiling eve as he talked about something that was quite horrible. "It was like that when we first went home together, wasn't it? You invited me to go to a café with you, and we ended up witnessing a traffic accident right in front of us. And when we held the night of one hundred ghost stories at Doumeki's temple, scary things happened there too. You were attacked and had those bruises on your neck for days. And there was also that time when I asked you to investigate the Angel game, right? You almost fell of a building that night too. Good thing Doumeki was there to catch you." Watanuki remembered each and every one of these instances and felt sad and uneasy that Wari seemed to be so casual about it. He was so kind and sweet…surely he didn't want any of these things to happen.

"I thought that after all that, you'd come to me with questions, but you're the same old Watanuki, always thinking the best of people. Well…except for Doumeki." Wari chucked to himself before continuing. "Watanuki, you see scary things, right? Those spirits that you talk about, things that Yuko's taught you…but I'm not any of those. I'm a normal human. Well, kind of. But you know…for some reason, whenever people are with me, bad things happen to them." The seer listened quietly, but she could now see that ominous presence hovering around the young man. Now that she'd finally seen it, she couldn't un-see it anymore. It seemed like such a terrible thing to have to deal with, much like the raven's own affliction with seeing and attracting spirits. "My mother and father don't seem to be affected by me, but apart from them, there are no exceptions. I don't even know if it would affect my brothers and sisters, since I'm an only child."

"The first time I realized that I was bad luck was probably when I was about four years old. I went looking for my ball in my neighbor's garden, and the next day the house caught on fire. It was a total loss and they say that the fire started right where I had picked up my ball. After that, the children I was friendly with were always getting into accidents, and the lady in my neighborhood who doted on me attempted suicide. My homeroom teacher was stabbed by the man she was having an affair with and the whole thing ended up in court." The more the boy talked, the sadder Watanuki got, grieving over all the hardships that Wari had had to face at such a young age. He reminded her so much of herself. "I think that it was around my third year in primary school when my grandmother thought that I might be possessed by something evil and she took me to a shrine. The priest there said that I wasn't being possessed and that I wasn't being used by other powers. He said that I was just a normal little girl. My grandmother relaxed and asked the priest if it was all her imagination, but the priest looked at me with an enormous amount pity in his eyes and shook his head. He said, 'The girl makes others unhappy. She doesn't choose who it happens too. She'll do it to everyone with the exception of her parents who bore her.'"

Watanuki saw some of the light go out in Wari's eyes and the air around them felt charged and heavy. The boy looked like he was drowning in a sea of blood, even with a small smile on his face. He had no control over who he affected, and he couldn't stop the bad luck from spreading…he just had to endure the misfortune that followed him everywhere.

"He continued with, 'It really happens. With just a word or a touch, or even just being around a person, a person can lead others down the path of unhappiness. Even if they're human…no, because they are human.'" He paused for a moment here, his smile getting bigger, as if trying to hold back the sadness and pain that riddled his past. "Oh, he also said that the reason I don't affect my parents is that if I brought them bad luck, I probably wouldn't have been born."

"Wari…" The girl wanted to say something, anything, but the words wouldn't come. She didn't know what to say or how to help her precious friend. She didn't want to keep listening either, but did so because Wari seemed to want to express himself and have the whole ordeal out in the open.

"And then, on the next Thursday, my grandmother passed away. Sure, she was old and had several chronic illnesses, but I couldn't help but think that it was my fault. And that's why I was wondering when you'd come to the realization yourself, Watanuki."

"Wari…" She tried speaking again, but the words still wouldn't come. Wari's smile got a little brighter, and he turned to go.

"Well then, take care of yourself, Watanuki. And thank you for all of the lunches you made, they were delicious!" He fully turned around, his curls bouncing with the movement. He glanced back, still smiling. "Goodbye." He was saying a final goodbye, ready to leave her life completely. The girl's heart clenched as he began walking away, and she couldn't bear to see her friend so unhappy, but less have him walk out of her life.

"Wait, Wari!" She called out to time, raising her voice with as much strength as she could muster. Thankfully, he stopped. The words finally came. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" He didn't turn around to look at her.

"For surprising you, like I said. I fell so suddenly, it must've been very scary." She started smiling now too, even though her face stretched her bandages in funny places. "As an apology and after I get better, I'll make something special, just for you." She didn't get an answer right away, but when he replied, it went along the lines of what the seer had predicted.

"You did hear what I just said, didn't you?"

"Yeah," the raven sighed, "But you know, when you give me sweets, I feel like I'm on cloud nine. Just seeing you at school makes me happy for an entire day." Now that she was speaking, Watanuki felt like she couldn't stop. She felt like she had to tell this wonderful man just how much he meant to her. "When you speak to me and when you call out my name, I start smiling. When you laugh, I want to laugh too. There are so many nice things that happen when I'm with you." At this point, Watanuki was grinning like an idiot and she didn't care at all. "I'm so happy to have met you, Wari!"

He finally turned around to look at her. He seemed a little shocked by her words, but his face was mostly serious. "The next time…you might end up dead."

"I won't die."

"How can you say that?"

"I don't have any proof, but I'll survive through determination." Watatnuki's smile became a bit sarcastic. "I'm really stubborn…Shizuka can tell you that!" Wari still didn't look convinced, but Watanuki was sure that she could help him understand. "I love you, Wari. You're my precious friend, so I won't do anything that will make you cry." Wari's expression eventually softened and he sighed quietly.

"Watanuki…you're such a fool. A stupid fool."

"What a mean thing to say!" The retort didn't have the power or harshness that it normally would have, but then again, Watanuki didn't have the sass or the strength to make it so.

"I want a chiffon cake," the boy demanded with a smile. "A strawberry chiffon cake with pink cream filling too."

"Got it." Watanuki could see that his smile was real this time…Wari was happy.

"We'll keep it a secret from Doumeki and just the two of us will eat it, okay?"

"Of course!"

The boy's smile got a little bigger and he looked like a huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. "Well then, goodbye, Watanuki." Wari made it took the door and opened up a portal of light into the room.

"See you later," she called. The young man turned to look back one last time.

"See you soon." He looked so happy, haloed by the light in the hallway, before sliding the door shut behind him. That goodbye made the seer feel much better. She'd see Wari again and all was well. Well…except for the fact that she still felt like she'd been bit by a truck.

Wari leaned against the door, happy that he still had his friend. Watanuki really was too kind to him…she always had been. Something fluttered in the young man's chest…an emotion that he hadn't truly felt in a long time: hope. He could finally hope again because one of the dearest people in his heart still wanted him around even after all he'd done to her. Watanuki didn't hate him. She was happy to have me him and she wanted to keep seeing him. It was so strange to feel this again; that hope was the most precious thing that Watanuki had ever given him. More than all the meals and sweets and gifts and help and time spent together. The happiness he was feeling allowed him to truly hope for more meals with his friend, to share more sweets together, to give more gifts to each other, to help each other and to spend more time together. He smiled to himself, his chest light, as if the dark thorns around his heart were finally swept away.

After these quiet moments to himself, Wari eventually addressed his companion in the hallway. "Don't let Watanuki know about the fact that you know about the chiffon cake." He gave Doumeki as sideways glance to his left, knowing just how much the archer would hate to miss out of anything food coming from his girlfriend. "It's just a secret between Watanuki and me."

"Alright," Doumeki nodded. He had definitely seen better days. The archer was slumped against the wall panels in a puddle of his own blood, his kyudo uniform was soaked in blood as well and the young man had smudged the wall a few times. He was going to have to buy a new uniform for sure because this one was ruined. His knees were up, allowing him to rest his elbow against one and drape his arm on the other. His chin rested on his propped fist, but he did turn to look at Wari's face. "But we will be eating lunch together. All three of us." He didn't say it in many words, but he was right alongside with Kimihiro; he wasn't giving up his friend either.

Wari was surprised for just a moment, but then smiled again. "Yeah," he agreed, elated that he got to keep both of his friends.

After bidding the archer good night, the curly-haired boy walked through the shop and eventually found the door. He sat down to slip on his shoes and stood up, brushing off his pants before walking outside and shutting the door behind him. He was nearly down the cobblestone path by the he realized that he was crying. He stumbled to a stop, all the events of the day crashing down on him at once, and just let them fall. He'd felt fear, panic, sorrow, hope, despair, relief and joy all in such a short time. He cried for a quiet moment all alone in that courtyard before letting out a broken whisper.

"Watanuki, you liar," he half-chucked and half-sobbed, "You told me you wouldn't make me cry." The young man wiped at his eyes, but more tears kept rolling down his cheeks. "But…that was the first time that anyone had ever said that they were happy to meet me!" He turned around to look at the shop. "I'm so glad that you survived!" the teen's hand came up to touch the fresh marks that were carved into his back, stroking the deep ridges that came just up above his collar and extended all the way down his back.

"I'm so glad that I took your scars as payment." He smiled all the wider now. "Thank you…I'm also happy that I met you." Wari stood there for a few more moments, letting the last of his tears fall before wiping his eyes and heading home.

Inside Yuko's bedroom, the witch seemingly materialized out of whatever dark corner she'd been waiting in and walked towards the bed holding her dear, little worker. Watanuki started to ask her a question before she even made it to the side of the bed.

"Yuko…about Wari…" she started, but Yuko read her mind like she always did and began to speak.

"To cure her nature of bringing unhappiness to others, my price would be too expensive to pay. It would mean that I would have to trade it for all the happiness she would ever feel." Watanuki face fell, her crestfallen expression caused a pang in Yuko's heart as well. Poor, poor, Watanuki. She wanted so much to help everyone, even at the cost of her own happiness and even her life (thought Yuko hoped that she was getting better at seeing her own worth, even if only to others). However, Watanuki would never wish to deprive others of their own happiness…it just wasn't in her nature.

Before the conversation could continue on, the witch saw the struggle in Watanuki's body, the fight she was enduring to stay awake when her body clearly wanted to sleep. She smiled to herself. "Go back to sleep, Watanuki. It'll take a while for you to recover, and…you'll never fully heal." Watanuki noticed for the first time that her right hand was completely bandaged together; she couldn't even wiggle her fingers, while her left hand could move and bend (and it was painful, of course).

"You mean my pinky finger?"

"Yes. Even when all your other wounds heal, your little finger on your right hand will never move again." Watanuki grew pensive again, speaking after a pause.

"That's fine…But please…keep this a secret from Wari." Her eyes, though tired, looked at Yuko with a clear earnestness. "I like it best…when I can see…him smile." The young woman was losing the fight with her body as she began to fall asleep, each part of her sentence getting slower and quieter as it went on. But before she passed out, one more question slipped past her lips. "Who paid…the price…for my injuries?"

"Wari was one of them." Yuko answered truthfully.

"And the other?"

"It was Doumeki."

"What…did they…pay with?" It was at that moment that the girl's eyes slid shut, her breathing instantly evening out in the deep rhythm of sleep. Yuko gently reached out and stroked Watanuki's raven hair – the parts that were wrapped in bandages, of course. She'd had a rough day…they all had.

"I made a promise with the two of them that I wouldn't tell you," Yuko smiled softly, wishing her lovely, silly, little worker a good night's rest. She then turned to let the girl sleep in peace. However…the witch did decide that it wouldn't be breaking her promise if she told the girl what the prices were while she was konked out.

"The price that Doumeki paid was an offering of blood," she whispered. "The same amount of blood that you spilled. And Wari…well, Wari took your scars from you." Yuko reached the hallway and stepped out, sliding the door quietly shut behind her. She looked down at the exhausted Doumeki slumped on her floor. He was resting right now, having suffered considerable blood loss. She would get him a fresh change of clothes and make sure he cleaned up…in a little bit.

"Both you and Wari have both become my customers, in order to have your wishes granted." the witch mused.

Yuko let Doumeki doze for a while. In the meantime, she had gone to the storehouse and picked out a nice bottle of wine for herself. She enjoyed a few drinks to celebrate a job well done out on the porch, before going back inside and gently shaking her customer awake. The archer groaned, rousing himself from sleep, and looking up at Yuko with tired eyes.

"Doumeki, I'll draw a bath for you. Please come and clean up. Your body with thank you." Doumeki just looked up at her, not moving an inch, and Yuko read his mind in her Yuko fashion. "She's not going anywhere. She'll be fine if you take fifteen minutes for yourself." She smiled mischievously, "And then I'll let you be her knight in shining armor for as long as you want." He seemed to agree to this, and slowly pulled himself into a standing position. He stumbled once he was on his feet and Yuko had to hold his shoulders to steady him. She called for Maru and Moro to start the bath as she helped Doumeki drag himself down the hall. By the time they made it to the bathroom, the room was filled with steam and Doumeki was about ready to collapse. "Do you need help?" Yuko asked, feeling sorry for the shape he was in. However, it was necessary to exact such a price and Doumeki knew that as well.

He leaned heavily against the doorframe and shook his head.

"Alright, I'll go get you a change of clothes then." The woman shut the door as soon as Doumeki stepped fully into the bathroom. He stripped off his bloody clothes and dropped them in a heap on the floor. It was useless to even try and save them. He slumped onto the bath stool to rinse himself off and took a moment to check his body for wounds. Surprisingly enough, he didn't have any. Either he never had any wounds in the first place or they had closed up after the price of blood had been paid. Honestly, he had been in too much pain to remember, and then afterwards he'd been to out of it to pay attention to details like that. He washed himself quickly and slunk over to the bathtub to soak for a few minutes. He didn't want to stay in long…he wanted to get back to Kimihiro as quickly as possible. But, Yuko had been right: his body did thank him for the short soak. If his girlfriend wasn't in such a fragile state, he would've stayed in longer, but his worry and need to be with her eclipsed any desire his body might've had.

After several moments, the archer was out of the bath and drying himself off with one of many of Yuko's luxurious towels and poked his head outside the bathroom to see that a simple burgundy kimono had been set on the floor outside. He dressed quickly and stumbled back to Yuko's room. The witch was inside, silently watching over her ward, and she smiled when Doumeki came in.

"I told you she was going to be fine. She's sleeping peacefully." The witch had read his mind, answering his unasked questions. Doumeki nodded and made his way towards the bed holding his slumbering love. The two girls that seemed to have the run of the shop were peeking at Kimihiro from the foot of the bed, quietly murmuring to each other, "Poor Watanuki, poor Watanuki," as they gently patted her feet. Mokona was also there, perched atop the pink-haired girl's head. It was in a pensive mood, not at all like Doumeki remembered. Usually the little "pork bun" (as Watanuki would call it) was full of energy and sake, making jokes, playing around and eating enough for three people. It was sobering to see just how much Kimihiro's brush with death had affected them…but it also showed just how much they all cared about her.

Shizuka knelt down next to the bed and very carefully took the raven's bandaged hand in his own. It was difficult to outwardly confirm that she alive, as the young woman seemed to be more bandages than anything else at that moment, but he looked her over anyway, watching the weak rise and fall of her chest to confirm that she was alive.

"She will be fine, Doumeki." Yuko said, watching the young man watching his girlfriend. "My job is to grant wishes and I never fail to compensate for the price that has been paid." She took a deep breath, and then sighed. "However…I do understand your worry for her. I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't worried as well, in my own way." She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, lending what strength she could before beckoning for the girls to follow her out after having them place a futon out for the archer. Then, the two of them were alone as the door shut behind the residence of the shop.

Now that there was no one else around him, Shizuka felt the weight of everything that had happen come crashing down on him. He had been horrified to have seen Kimihiro fall from the second story, panicked and heartbroken when he saw her mangled body and all the blood splattered on the ground, and then he'd been sick with worry and grief for the past several hours while Yuko had patched her up. As he gazed upon her sleeping form, the fist that had been squeezing his heart finally loosened its grip. He was still worried, but Kimihiro was out of danger…and for the moment that was enough. Before he knew what was happening, a few tears had spilled onto his cheeks. He rested his forehead on the hand that he was holding, not wanting Kimihiro to see him cry. Several quiet sobs left his lips, his chest heaving as he leaned heavily on the bed, but he was ever so gentle to Kimihiro's hand.

"Dammit Kimihiro…you're such a fool…" he breathed, fighting to control himself. "Don't every do that to me again, dumbass." If she'd been awake, the raven would've ripped his head off for calling her that, but even if she'd smacked him silly, Shizuka would've put up with it just to have her back. He stood up to lean over her, kissing her bandaged forehead softly, moving to kiss each of her eyelids with even more gentleness before kissing her nose and then finally her lips. She didn't even stir under his touch, and he hazarded a few more soft kisses on her cheeks and hair before settling back down on his knees. Despite the inviting futon laid out behind him, the archer fell asleep slumped over the side of the bed, his tears drying on his cheeks as he refused to let go of her hand.

Kimihiro was asleep for six straight days, with periods of slight consciousness that eased things along. During that time, Shizuka and Yuko took it upon themselves to care for her, changing her bandages, carefully giving her water and small amounts of food that her body could handle. Wari visited a few times, but Shizuka could see how much it hurt and worried him. The curly-haired teen took it upon himself to continue to go to school, taking notes for his friend and giving Doumeki copies on the days when he missed school. Even after those few, short days, the girl's condition had improved vastly from the state she had been in. And it was around this time that she woke up.

Doumeki had stopped by for a short visit that morning before going to school. He told Yuko that he would be back after club activities and once he left, she got ready for the day. The rest of the morning was spent drinking a rose wine while watching a few of her TV programs before heading to Watanuki's temporary room to read a good book. The witch was wearing a short-sleeved maroon dress embroidered with light pink lotuses, accented with a wide choker and matching long gloves. She had kept her hair down with only a small bun at the crown of her head and decorated it with fake lotus petals. She had kept all the curtains and doors to the outside shut and the room was still only lit by the one lantern. It was murder on the eyes to focus in such dim light, but Yuko didn't want her ward to wake up unnecessarily because of bright lights.

She was camped out in that room for about 196 pages when she felt Watanuki stir in her sleep. She stashed the book away and re-lit the fading incense. It only took a few minutes and then Watanuki was blearily opening her eyes, blinking owlishly in the dim light.

"Yuko…" Watanuki muttered as she turned to see her boss sitting next to the bed. The seer's voice was crackly and weak, but after a few coughs and throat clears, she was able to speak somewhat properly. "How long was I out?"

"Six days." The girl snorted, astounded that she'd been asleep that long, but she did notice that her body felt much better and she was covered in substantially less bandages. Her torso and back were still bound tightly, but most of her head and some of her arms and legs were bandage-free.

"Yuko, what about Wari-"

"I've let him know about your progress. He knows that you're doing much better." Watanuki sighed, relieved that Wari was apparently up-to-date. "Of course Doumeki knows you're doing better…he's been the one helping me take care of you." Watanuki blushed, embarrassed that her boyfriend had to deal with her in such a compromising state. But like…she was very happy that he'd been around, even if she wasn't awake. "He'll be stopping by after club activities, and I'm sure you'll both be happy to visit." Yuko's smile stretched mischievously.

"What makes you say that?!" Watanuki huffed, her blush deepening.

"Oh, no reason!~" Yuko teased. The raven pouted for a few moments, and then became serious.

"Yuko…" She began to say something again, but stopped, as if mulling the words over in her brain.

"You're not going to say it?" Yuko asked, curious to know the answer to her question. She had a pretty good idea about what the girl was thinking about, it was in her nature, after all.

"Say what?"

"That you'll pay the price yourself to help out Wari." And by the look on the raven's face, the witch had hit the nail on the head.

"I thought of saying that, but…" The girl gently laid her arms on her stomach as she talked, "If I did something to pay for that, and if Wari found out about it…I wondered how he would feel." The raven picked at the bandages on the right hand, continuing on. "He probably wouldn't be happy with me, and it would probably hurt him immensely." There was a silent, Just like with Doumeki, hanging between them. The whole spider and eye incident had not been a pretty affair, and Watanuki had clearly learned from her experience. "Just like I don't want other people to get hurt because of me, Wari doesn't want to hurt anyone for his own sake."

"That's right," Yuko replied.

"That's why I'll try my best to make Wari laugh and smile, even the tiniest bit more. I'll do everything I can for him." The woman smiled affectionately. She has come such a long way, she thought, proud of how Watanuki had grown. She had a determined look in her eyes now, and the witch knew that once she set her mind to something, she wasn't backing down. Yuko got up from her chair and placed a gentle hand on the girl's head, stoking her hair softly. Watanuki's eyes widened, as if say "What are you doing?" as well as being surprised by her actions. Well…I do admit that I don't show her as much affection as I should…but I am always looking out for her.

"Good children should get a pat on the head," Yuko teased lovingly. She saw Watanuki blush as the raven's eyes softened.

"I'm not a child!" She retorted, but it had none of the annoyance and anger that her other retorts usually held. She was clearly enjoying the touch, and Yuko was inclined to keep stroking her hair. She could see the raven's eyes start to flutter closed again. "Huh…again?"

"Go to sleep for a few more hours," Yuko encouraged, "Sleep so that you can heal even just a little bit faster." Everything started to tilt and get blurry as the girl started to fall asleep. She had a hard time focusing on Yuko's face, but tried desperately to keep her eyes open. "You're going to see Wari soon. And Doumeki as well." Watanuki was already out before the witch even finished speaking, but she still kept caressing the girl's hair, hoping that her own love would show up in the girl's dreams.

"I know that I told you to sleep, but I do hope that you wake up for a visit with Doumeki," she chuckled. "I don't know how much longer that boy can wait for you…he's going to go crazy!" Yuko leaned over and softly kissed the girl's forehead before wishing her sweet dreams.

When Doumeki showed up at that shop, Yuko was 317 pages into her book and lounging in front of the TV. "Hello, Doumeki," she called, leaning her head back to stare up at the teen.

"Yo." He raised his hand in greeting.

"Would you like any refreshment?" She gestured vaguely towards the kitchen. Doumeki shook his head. He didn't really want anything if Kimihiro wasn't the one serving and complaining while she did it.

"How is Kimihiro?" He asked.

"She's fine," Yuko replied, "She woke up a little while ago." Doumeki's ears perked up at that. "Maybe she'll wake up again for a bit." The brunette nodded and instantly walked off towards Yuko's occupied room. The witch chuckled to herself, enjoying how much in love the young man was.

Doumeki slid open the door and peeked inside, hoping that Kimihiro would be awake, but she was still asleep on the bed. He sighed quietly and shut the door behind him, depositing his school bag on the ground and taking a seat in the chair Yuko had been in earlier. He scooted it closer to the bed and reached out to hold Kimihiro's hand. His bronze eyes looked her over, just as they had been doing for the last week. She looks better, even from just this morning. After he was done checking on her, the archer leaned over onto the bed, practically laying on it while still sitting in the chair. He was exhausted from pulling double duty, having spent the last week going to school and club activities while taking care of Kimihiro at night and dealing with the physical repercussions of his price. While his body wasn't physically hurt now, he still had bouts of dizziness and he was still working out kinks and sores. Before he could even really think about anything, the teen was dozing away.

Some time passed in relative silence as both teens slept, but as if she could sense that she was not alone, Kimihiro began to wake once again. Her left hand felt very warm and the bed fell uneven, she was leaning to the left a bit. She groaned and rolled her head to the left, prying her eyes open. Her view was blocked by something big. She reached up with her not-warm hand and rubbed her eyes. Finally she could see what it was: Shizuka. She made a noise of surprise and then smiled gently at him. Oh, Shizuka... In spite of her aches and pains, she managed to roll over onto her side and lifted up her free hand to stroke his hair. He must be so exhausted, she thought to herself, as she'd never seen her boyfriend sleep during the day. She continued to caress his hair, trying not to wake him up, as she studied his sleeping face. Each time she saw it, it really just looked like his normal face with his eyes closed (because of the stone-face, of course) but he seemed infinitely more vulnerable despite that. His face relaxed just a little bit when he was sleeping, the hard line of his mouth easing into a more gentle expression.

Her musing was cut short when her weakened arm got tired unexpectedly, causing her to drop her hand on his cheek harder than she expected. She quickly yanked her arm into her chest, wincing when something pulled, but it was too late. Shizuka's eyes snapped open and his head turned towards her. The pair stared at each other for a few seconds, the seer's apology for waking him up stuck in her throat as she met the man's intense gaze. When she tried to get some words out, they were stuck in her mouth as well…along with Shizuka's tongue. Relieved at finally seeing her awake, the archer's brain shut off for a moment and he moved purely on his desires. He kissed her, harder than either of them were prepared for, but he was just so happy that his love was finally awake. She made some surprised noises into his mouth but he didn't care. He didn't care about anything except feeling that she was alive and out of danger at last. His left hand squeezed hers tightly as his right hand came up to tangle into the raven's dark hair. He was going to continue the passionate kiss when the girl's noises of surprise turned into noises of pain. A little flustered and panicked at his actions, Shizuka instantly loosened his grip on both her hand and her hair, gentling his kiss in the process. He hid his distress well, but Kimihiro saw the way he backed off and understood that he hadn't meant to hurt her. The kiss ended when both of them gasped for air, each of their breaths ghosting over the skin of the other. Despite not kissing anymore, the archer kept his face close, resting his forehead on hers.

The girl's breaths were more labored than his, and her, "Geez ya idiot," came out as more of a whisper than a retort.

"Sorry," he murmured back, helping her sit up before kissing her forehead softly and then her hair. Kimihiro had this image in her mind of a sad puppy when she looked at his face (though it would look normal to anyone else) and she rolled her eyes.

"Kissing is fine," she grumped, "But just not so hard…my everything still hurts" She lifted her hand to caress his face again. "Just don't suffocate me, okay?" She gave him a teasing smile. Despite his face not changing, he didn't look like a sad puppy anymore.

"Can I try again?" He asked.

"Dummy," she blushed as she said that and refused to look him in the eye.

"I'll take that as a 'yes.'" That kiss was much softer and very, very sweet. Shizuka kissed her like she was going to break (and in all honesty, she had been broken and she still kind of felt that way). His lips were warm against her and so very gentle. This kiss felt even more intimate than the passionate kiss he'd given her…slow and sensual and made even better when he started caressing her hair. The kiss ended all too soon but that was okay. Especially since an entirely different matter soon presented itself.

Shizuka watched with curiosity as Kimihiro made an uncomfortable face, raising one eyebrow slightly. "What is it?" The blush that crept up her face was from embarrassment this time.

"I have to go to the bathroom." Her face was so disgusted, embarrassed and needy that the archer almost let out a chuckle…however he knew that even in her condition the raven would certainly smack him as hard as she could for making fun of her.

"I'll help you," the brunette went to pick her up, but the girl held up her hand.

"I want to do it!"

"I wouldn't recommend it-" The seer hauled her legs over the side of the bed as Shizuka tried to stop her. She managed to get her feet on the ground and stand up…for about two seconds before she started to collapse. The man caught her before she fell, supporting her under one arm and wrapping his other around her waist. He pulled her arm over his shoulder and hunched down enough that her feet were flat on the floor. He glanced at her face and found that she was not happy.

"Dammit!" She huffed, unsteady on her feet. She glared up at her boyfriend. "Don't tell me 'I told you so!'"

There was a pregnant pause.

"…I told you so."

"Asshole!" There's my Kimihiro. He suppressed another chuckle as the girl suffered. She started to walk forward on her shaky legs, already beginning to sweat from the effort. The archer let her struggle all the way to the door before he decided that she'd exerted herself enough for the time being and scooped her up into his arms.

"Hey!" She protested, but then she got shut up with a quick peck on the cheek.

"Next time."

They made it safely to the bathroom even though Kimihiro had to kick Shizuka out before he went in with her (that dork!) and then they made it safely back to bed afterwards. As Shizuka was setting his girlfriend down on the bed he had a thought, pausing halfway down and confusing the raven.

"What are you doing?" She asked, and then she got her answer when he leaned over further and deposited her on the far side of the bed before climbing in beside her.

"This." He bundled her up in his arms, ever conscious of her healing injuries, and pulled her into his chest. He finally felt like he could calm down. Even since she'd fallen out of the window, he'd been uneasy, stressed and worried. But now…Kimihiro was awake and on the mend; he could let himself relax a bit. He nuzzled her hair, breathing in her scent, along with the smell of ointment and bandages, his chest warming up as her body pressed against his.

Kimihiro tried to push his away when she heard him sniffing her hair. "Geez! Don't sniff me! I haven't bathed in a while!" The archer just squeezed her tighter.

"Doesn't matter," he mumbled. The raven was blushing again, wondering how she had any blood to spare in the first place to light up her face constantly.

"It matters to me!" She snapped, but after a few minutes of struggle (and failure), she relaxed into his arms again. I can never win with him, she sighed. She gently wrapped her right arm around his torso, her other sandwiched in between their chests, and held him back. It was so nice to be able to lay with him, even if it was until she fell asleep again. But while she was enjoying his presence, the girl began to feel something hot poking at her lower belly. She stiffened, but didn't dare glance down.

"Uh…Sh-Shizuka…?" She stuttered.

"Mn?" His response wasn't even a word; it was a noise.

"Uh there's…Well, you…" She couldn't get the words out and her blush was back in force. The man waited for her to finish her thought. "Um…you're…" She paused again but finally got out, "Uh, I feel…in your pants…!" He rolled his eyes as she buried her hot face into his chest. Honestly, it wasn't like he could hide it anyway, they were glued together at this point.

"Just ignore it." He replied, highly satisfied with just holding her.

"Ignore it!?" She squeaked, sounding like an embarrassed mouse.

"Yeah," he continued out, completely unfazed by his body and her reactions. "You can't do anything about it in your condition and I'm not going to force you to do anything about it, so we'll just ignore it. It'll go away."

"B-but y-you-" Aw shit! He's always so calm about these things and I'm so not! It makes me embarrassed!

"I'm happy that you're awake and that I can hold you," he stated earnestly. He kissed her hair again to emphasize his point. "Right now that's all I need." The raven wiggled in his arms a little (not helping the situation downstairs at all) but after a moment, she tipped her head up and kissed the boy on the lips. He looked down at her, his bronze eyes warm. She mumbled something quietly, her eyes flicking down and then back up several times bashfully.

"What?" He asked, not having caught what she'd said.

"I said…" she repeated a little louder. "…I'll make it up to you when I'm better. I'll make you feel good!" She buried her face in his chest again, appalled that she'd said something so bold. Shizuka (normally not one to blush), found that his ears were burning a bit, his brain jumping to scenarios where she would pleasure him. Oh, he wanted her now, of course, but that was completely out of the question. He kicked those kinds of thoughts out of his brain as best he could, and hugged the girl tighter.

"I'd like that." His monotone voice did not betray any emotion, but Kimihiro was pretty good at reading between the lines when it came to her boyfriend, and she knew that he was pleased with her.

"O-okay," she stammered, happy that he was happy (though she'd never say it to his face directly!). And then, in Doumeki fashion, the archer flipped the conversation around to this second favorite topic.

"Make me something yummy too."

"Oh god! You just had to bring up food!" The seer grumped. But she was slightly relieved that the conversation had moved back into familiar waters.

"I like your cooking. Make me Canalés de Bourdeaux." (Note 1)

"Fuck you. That's one of the hardest desserts to make." She grumbled, pissed at the request, but happy at the compliment.

"I know you can do it." He gave her lots of kisses on her hair and forehead, trying to make her happy again.

"You're as bad a Yuko…probably worse." She sighed, the kisses getting to her. "Fine…I'll make some for everyone."

"No." His blunt response caused her to raise an eyebrow. "Just for me."

"Just you?"

"Just me."

"Selfish bastard."

"Mn."

The girl rolled her eyes and chuckled at her greedy boyfriend and he gave her one of his rare smiles. They lay together for some time, taking about anything or not even talking at all, just enjoying the other's presence. Eventually, Shizuka needed to go home, and left his girlfriend in Yuko's hands, after he stole a few more kisses, of course. It was dark by the time he left and Kimihiro only had the energy to drink some simple broth before falling asleep again. A few more days passed like that: Kimihiro slept for most of the day but would wake up to visit with Shizuka, the twins and Mokona or Yuko before eating something light and going back to sleep.

It was around the time when she was almost all healed up when Yuko approached her. The raven was falling asleep despite it only being late afternoon. Shizuka couldn't make his usual visit, as he had a tournament coming up and needed to be with his club, so there was not much to keep the girl awake. She was yawning and her eyes started to drift shut. She made a noise of annoyance, wishing that she could be out of the bed and be with Wari and Shizuka.

"You're still tired, I see," Yuko remarked, reaching out to stroke her little servant's head.

"Yeah, but it seems like I'm sleeping all the time…and I have so much to do…there's a chiffon cake to make and an asshole wants a fancy French dessert as well…"

"And you want to see Wari and Doumeki at school, right?" Yuko teased. Her precious Watanuki was just itching to get back to her normal life, despite having been nearly fatally injured a short while ago. The raven pouted in response to the teasing.

"Well…yeah..." Watanuki yawned again, her eyes getting heavier by the second. Yuko smiled at her, and held up something in her hand.

"Then take this." The seer pried open her eyes to see what it was. The woman lowered her hand so that the girl could see the egg she was cradling in her palm. Watanuki gave her a confused look, her brain starting to shut down in preparation for sleep.

"What is it? The raven held up her bandaged left hand and Yuko placed the egg in it.

"It's the payment I received from when you and Doumeki drained the water from the well at the mansion," she explained. "That's why it's yours." Watanuki squeezed the egg gently and brought it close to her face, looking it over to see if there was something strange about it. It looked normal enough, but whatever was involved with Yuko was clearly not normal in the girl's experience. "Sleep with it tonight…if you do that, it will grow into what you wish it to be." Watanuki didn't understand what the witch meant, but she was too sleepy to care. Whatever Yuko had said would make more sense in the morning and the girl let herself slip into unconsciousness.

She dreamed that she was in the dark, cradling something close to her chest. Her eyes were closed, even in her dream, but she felt like there were lights all around her, floating gently upward as she floated down. How odd…She was protecting something, something so very small. Before she could open her eyes and see what she was protecting, a voice spoke in the darkness.

"So warm…so kind…" It was a soft voice and very gentle. It was coming from somewhere close by. The girl felt something in her hand, and delicately squeezed his fingers together to feel what it was. It was small and warm, and it felt as if it was fluttering in her hand. "It's like I'm being embraced by kindness…that's why I can become kind too…"

The darkness rippled around the raven, carrying the warmth that the voice was talking about. It was so pleasant, and Kimihiro wanted to feel more of it. "I'll grow up to be kind! I can do it now…I wonder what I'll become…What do you want me to become?"

Is the voice asking me? The seer pulled the object in her hand closer to her chest, feeling its warmth. Then she remembered: Yuko gave her something before she fell asleep…maybe that's what was talking to her. Yuko said that if would grow into what she wished it to be. What did she want that egg to become? I want him to be happy. I'm sure that he was lonely and I'm sure he was sad. Even the tiniest bit of joy is fine, because I want that boy who still laughs and smiles in spite of his sadness to feel that joy. She didn't speak with her mouth, but it was more like she was speaking with her heart. She was sure that the egg heard her and she felt a shift in her hand. The lights around them changed too, shifting from one shape to another. She cradled the egg with both hands now, wishing with all her might. I want him to be happy!

"I understand." The egg shifted one more time before setting into the girl's hand quietly. The lights around them gave off a golden glow, and even with her eyes shut, Kimihiro felt the warmth they gave off.

So that he can be happy…so that he can truly smile, she wished with all her heart that Wari could be happy, so that he could stop blaming himself for something that he couldn't control.

"I'm going to be born!" The voice called out one more time and then the girl's eyes snapped open to the morning sunlight. The first thing that she saw was her bandaged hand, empty.

"Oh…it's not here." She looked around, wondering where the egg that Yuko gave her had gone. She sat up, her search for the egg distracting her from the fact that she could sit up with barely any pain now. She looked to the left and then to the right. No egg. She looked over the side of the bed. No egg. She lifted up her sheet. Oh, there it was. The egg was resting on the mattress next to her right hip. It was still intact, thank god. Kimihiro leaned in to get a closer look at it. It was much bigger than it had been last night, at least twice its previous size.

"It got bigger," she mumbled, studying it. Suddenly, a tiny crack broke the shell, startling the raven. Another tap from inside the egg caused a circle of cracks to appear, marring the shell. Another tap…more cracks and a chip fell off. Another tap…and another and whatever was inside could be seen now. There was a tiny yellow face peering out of the shell and with a few more pecks, the top of the shell broke off and was resting on its head like an oversized hat. The creature wiggled and then threw the shell-hat off, revealing itself. It was a little, yellow bird! Kimihiro's mouth dropped open as a pair of mismatched eyes and black eyes gazed at one another. A long moment passed between the girl and the bird before the girl spoke up.

"Were you the one who was talking to me when I was asleep?" It seemed like an absurd question to ask a bird, but honestly, the raven was expecting anything and everything at this point in her life. The little creature wiggled and peeped, knocking itself and the eggshell over to the side. It squirmed out of the shell, revealing long, yellow tail feathers and flapping its wings once it got upright. The bird peeped happily, wiggling its bottom. It flapped its wings again and lifted into the air. Watanuki held up her left hand and the bird perched on her fingers, looking at her quizzically.

It was at that moment that Yuko decided to pipe up too.

"So, it hatched, huh?" She started the seer, but the panic was short-lived. The witch had a huge clip in the hair that looked like a red rose and paired it with a light yellow, shoulder-les dress with a light green shawl pinned together at the front and to the dress with an even bigger cloth rose. How did she always look so perfect in the morning?! The bird flew off of Kimihiro's fingers and flitted around the room for a moment before landing on the witch's hand. "I see…it turned out like that." Yuko smiled, "This bird won't be affected by Wari's affliction. In some ways, it's like Doumeki's resistance to spirits. That's why this little guy will be fine, even if he's with Wari." The bird chirped happily, seeming to understand the woman. "It's not like he can do anything for her, per say, but he can stay with the boy without anything happening. And to Wari, that will surely be something truly wonderful."

Kimihiro smiled, her expression so very gentle as she realized that her wish had come true. The bird lifted off of Yuko's hand and flew up above the girl's head, landing on her hair. The seer glanced up but was only able to see the little creature if he leaned over her bangs. But, the bird didn't stay there long and popped back down into the girl's hand.

Yuko continued speaking as the raven wondered at the new life in her palm, "Just as you have been involved with many people, and have changed through them, Wari has changed too. And from now on, you'll both keep changing. If you believe strongly in yourself, and has someone who will believe in you as well, you'll surely keep changing for the better." The bird peeped again, as if agreeing with Yuko. Kimihiro was inclined to as well.

"Yes, I think so too." Now that the philosophical discussion was over, Yuko said something that the girl had been waiting to hear:

"Now get up! You can go to school today."

"Yes!" The girl carefully set the bird down on the bed and rushed to get ready. Everything was a bit wobbly and difficult, but she managed to get ready for school (even if her pony tail was skewed) and had fresh bandages on the more troublesome wounds that refused to completely heal. She wasn't allow to cook yet, so lunch for everyone would have to wait until next time. Once everything was packed up she waved goodbye to the shop and its residents and began the walk to school. The bird took up perch on her head as she walked along and both Kimihiro and the bird stretched their arms (or wings) out happily.

"This is great weather! I am so happy to be outside!" She chuckled as her little passenger chirped in agreement. "My injuries are mostly healed now and for the first time in a while, I can go to school!~" The pair traveled together for a bit before the bird suddenly took off flying. Kimihiro stumbled into a run, trying to catch up as she didn't want to lose her little friend. "Hey! Wait up!" She called, nearly tripping. The bird zoomed down the street and around a corner, leaving the struggling girl behind. The raven stumbled around the corner, frantically searching for her little friend and breaking into a run again. Darn bird, this is hell on my body! "Hey! Wait!"

As she neared the next corner, she saw Shizuka and Wari talking by the intersection. When they heard her voice, both boys turned and smiled (well, Wari did at least).

"Wari!~" The girl called cheerfully, leaping over to her former crush. "And Shizuka…" she called, less cheerfully. Her boyfriend pinched her cheek and yanked on it hard for that less than enthusiastic greeting. Wari laughed at the couple, and Kimihiro smiled sheepishly before slapping the archer's hand away.

"Yuko told me that you'd be getting out of bed today, so I waited here with Doumeki," Wari said, happy to see that his friend had made a full recovery.

"Thank's Wari! That's so sweet of you!~" The bird had flow a few circles around the friends and then landed on Kimihiro's shoulder, peeping happily.

"What about me?" Shizuka asked in his monotone.

"You don't matter!" Kimihiro teased but then her boyfriend was pinching both of her cheeks in retaliation.

"Oh, Watanuki!" Wari laughed, "Be nicer to your boyfriend! We were all worried about you!" After that, Shizuka got really close to her face and stared at her seriously for several long moments. Kimihiro just stared back, trying to fathom what he was doing.

"What is it?" The raven asked, turning a little bashful as being studied so intently.

"It looks like it," the archer finally stated.

"Looks like what?!" The girl snapped back.

"He means that it looks like your injuries have all healed up, right Doumeki?" Wari interjected.

"Say it with your own mouth!" The girl snarled, getting right into her boyfriend's face. "Lord knows that you love doing other things with your mouth!" Having realized what she'd just said, the girl's face burst into flames, her blush creeping all the way up to her forehead and all the way down her neck. As if to make her more embarrassed, Shizuka leaned down to give her a quick peck on the lips while Wari laughed at their antics. Then, the bird, having gotten tired of being forgotten, peeped at the girl and poked her shoulder with his little beak.

"Oh, what a cutie!" Wari leaned down to look at the small bird, smiling happily.

Kimihiro smiled and brought her hand to her shoulder. "Wari, do you like birds?" The curly-haired boy nodded. "Then could you please take care of him?" The bird hopped up onto the girl's fingers and waited patiently (as much as a bird can be patient).

"Thank you…but…" Wari replied, understandably hesitant, but the raven interjected before he could get far into his excuse.

"This little guy was born just for you, Wari," she replied gently, holding out her little friend to the boy. The bird chirped happily again and flapped his wings as if in agreement.

"Huh?" The boy was understandably surprised, but the bird knew where he was supposed to go now, and he did so without hesitation. The little creature hopped over to Wari's shoulder and nuzzled the boy's face lovingly. The trio started walking to school after Wari had thanked Kimihiro for her lovely gift and the bird was chirping and flapping his wings joyfully as the boy watched him with a soft smile. Kimihiro then took it upon herself to explain where the heck the bird had come from, explaining how Yuko gave her the egg and the strange dream that she'd had.

"And that's why I was so surprised! When I woke up, he was there under the sheets!" She finished.

"So you gave birth to him?" Shizuka teased.

"I did not! I'm not some sort of freak!"

"That's debatable."

"Shut your mouth you jerkass!"

"Is it really a boy?" Shizuka asked.

"I don't really know…" came the honest reply. "But that's what Yuko said."

"Watanuki?" Wari spoke, putting himself in the conversation again.

"What is it?" The girl leaned forward a bit to look at the boy's face. What she saw there made all the trouble she'd been through worth it: Wari was happy.

"Thank you!" He gave her the most joyful smile and the girl's heart thumped loudly in her chest.

"Yeah, you're welcome!" She smiled back, just as happy.

"What are you going to name him?" Shizuka asked, butting in again.

"Yeah, what are you going to choose?" Kimihiro added.

"Uh…his chirp kind of sounds like 'Pi,' so how about that?"

"Um…" The seer didn't quite know what to say, but it was now clear that Wari sucked at naming things.

"Then how about 'Pa?'" And now Shizuka also knew that Wari sucked at naming things.

"That sounds like the baseball league," the archer pointed out. Kimihiro realized that he was talking about the professional Pashifikku Rigu or Pa League of Japan. That would not be a good name for the bird.

"Then how about 'Po?'"

Kimihiro had a sweat drop appear on her head as the names got more ridiculous. "Wari...I think it's okay to get away from the P's."

"Hey, I know! Why don't you give him a name, Watanuki?" Wari turned to look at the girl as his little friend hopped onto his hand, his eyes shining. And now Kimihiro was on the spot.

"Huh?! Me?!"

"You're the one who game him to me, after all!" And now that sweet smile was painting the girl into a corner. She'd better come up with a good name and fast! Even the bird's eyes looked all earnest and excited! Now the raven was really sweating!

"Then…" she looked at the bird's eager face, trying her hardest not to disappoint him or his owner. It took a moment, but something finally hit her over the head. "Then…Tanpopo." Tanpopo looked really happy with his new name and started chirping joyfully.

Shizuka was giving her look that on a normal person would've been described as disappointing or let down, but it was his face so it mostly looked the same as always except that his eyebrows had flattened out. Why the heck did she go with dandelion? "Why?" He asked.

"Because he's yellow." Kimihiro replied.

"You suck at naming things just like Wari." Knowing the explosion that was coming, the archer's ears were already plugged by the time the girl swerved around to yell at him.

"You are an idiot! How dare you take offense at my naming strategy!"

Wari ignored the argument breaking out near him and spoke only to Tanpopo. "The female version of my name means 'sunflower,' so you have a flower name just like me!" Tanpopo chirped again, seeming happy. "I think he likes it!" Wari called out to his friends and Kimihiro's rant ended abruptly. The bird flew into the air and make a few circles around the friends before returning to Wari's shoulder. "It's nice to meet you, Tanpopo!" The bird pecked him on the cheek, putting smiles on all the teens' faces (even if Shizuka's was barely discernible). They all started walking down the road again, but Shizuka couldn't help put push his girlfriend's buttons again.

"At least he's a forgiving bird because you suck at naming things."

"WHAT WAS THAT!?"

Wari laughed at the pair. "You two get along so well!"

"Don't let him fool you, he's an asshole!"

The walk to school was very lively and all three friends enjoyed themselves now that things were going back to normal. Wari's guilty feelings towards Watanuki's accident had all but disappeared, Kimihiro's joy for making her friend happy was strong and Shizuka's relief at seeing his girlfriend healed was immense. They talked together, argued together (in Kimihiro's and Shizuka's case), laughed together and Wari even made the other two kiss to make up for their many little fights. He even took each of their hands in his and held them tightly, as if he never wanted to let them go. The trio smiled at each other, happy to be together once again. (And afterwards, Wari made sure that Doumeki held the hand that he'd held to make sure that nothing else would happen to Watanuki and the girl make sure to stay away from all windows and had Shizuka walk her down any flight of stairs, just in case.) All the while, Tanpopo chirped and sang from Wari's shoulder, clearly pleased that he was with them all as well.

To be continued…

Note 1: Canalés de Bourdeaux is a French dessert that is a crispy custard cake. They are traditionally baked in special fluted molds, but muffin tins and the like can be used in a pinch. The cakes are basically milk, butter, sugar, flour and eggs (just like most cakes) but they also have dark rum in them, and split vanilla beans with scraped seeds. You first heat the milk and butter until they simmer, then add the vanilla bean and its seeds and set that mixture aside. Then you mix everthing else (except the rum) together and add the milk mixture to it afterwards, gently combining both together. Then the rum is added and the batter is covered and refrigerated. The refridgerating process takes at least two day or up to three, with the batter being stirred once daily. When it's time to bake, the oven is set at 450 degrees and the batteris mixed once more to redistribute any seeds or flour that's settled in the bottom of the bowl. The batter is poured into the molds and set in the oven. The oven temperature is then immediately lowered to 425 degrees for 15 minutes when the cakes go in, and then is lowered once again to 350 degrees to bake for an hour and 50 minutes. The cake are rotated once halfway through cooking. For the best texture, the cakes should be left to coo for 40-60 minutes. The resut (if everything goes well since getting the right consistency is an art) is that the cakes are crunchy and carmelized to a mahogany on the outside, moist and custardy on the inside, and are "deeply perfumed" with dark rum and vanilla bean. Yum!

A/N: I hope that you enjoyed that! Just a reminder that the next chapter is the last one (so sad)! Thanks for all the support! See you next time!