"Incubation"

Day 1

Watanuki came to school with three jumbo bento boxes the next day.

Doumeki and Himawari watched with slack jaws as the svelte seer devoured his entire bento in only a few minutes. Then he motioned to Himawari's half eaten one with his chopsticks and with a mouthful of rice asked: "Are you going to finish that?"

She shook her head and pushed it towards him. Watanuki took it and began ravenously gobbling up all of the remaining contents. He had been inexplicably consumed by the desire to stuff himself since Doumeki had found him the previous day.

Doumeki's expression had remained stuck in the same frown of consternation since then, too. He watched Watanuki guzzling knowing that it was not normal and wishing Watanuki was as worried as he was. He had nearly asked about Watanuki's conversation with Cho, and the - what he believed to be - kiss that the two of them shared but Watanuki seemed to have no recollection of any events in between leaving the classroom and Doumeki finding him a half hour later. So the endeavour seemed pointless. It would no doubt inspire an aggressive rant, anyway. Watanuki would be mortified if he thought Doumeki was snooping on his private moments, and he would no doubt push the archer away. Doumeki didn't need that right now. He needed to remain close to the seer, to keep him safe, until he could figure out what was going on.

"You should see Yuuko." he said finally.

Watanuki didn't stop eating but he did look up from the bento box to glare at Doumeki. "What for? She's given me the week off."

Doumeki sighed and folded his arms.

"Uh, Watanuki-Kun," Himawari tried instead. "It's just that...well...You were behaving strangely yesterday and now...this..."

"What?" he said through a huge mouthful.

The two friends exchanged looks. They both sighed and shook their heads. "Nevermind."

Day 2

The next day Doumeki found Watanuki in an empty classroom with his head pillowed in his arms.

"Oi." he said.

"My names not 'Oi'." Watanuki responded. He was decidedly less cheerful today and seemed grouchy. The very fact that he hadn't leapt up and shaken Doumeki by the collar for calling him 'Oi' sent off alarm bells.

"Are you alright?" Doumeki asked, his face looked a little peaky as if he had eaten too much and was now suffering for it.

Watanuki got to his feet. "Fine." he said starkly, and went to leave.

Doumeki caught his arm.

"Oi."

Watanuki pulled with no real conviction against his hand. He didn't say anything.

Doumeki opened his mouth to speak again but at that precise moment Cho walked by the open door of the classroom. His amber eyes flashed to Watanuki, an insidious, beckoning grin appearing on his face. He stopped and the two stared at each other as if exchanging a silent dialogue. Doumeki watched in jealousy and frustration.

The moment seemed to change Watanuki, he tore free of Doumeki's hand and glanced back at him with now heavy and misty eyes.

"I'll see you at lunch." he said, as though hypnotised.

Then he walked out to greet Cho, sliding the door shut behind him and leaving Doumeki to boil and seethe alone.

Shit...!

Cho led Watanuki to another secluded location in the school, making sure to maintain the physical contact which kept his control of the seer strong. He pulled him into the shadows of the stairwell just before the roof where students were prohibited from going.

"How have you been getting on?" Cho smiled, lifting Watanuki's chin with a single finger. He gazed into his face but Watanuki's expression remained blank and sedated. "Hmm," Cho mused. "Not quite there yet."

He had Watanuki place his hands on his shoulders and then Cho embraced him. He positioned his own hands at the small of Watanuki's back. He had such slim hips, Cho could practically touch thumbs when he bunched up Watanuki's uniform. He slipped both hands underneath Watanuki's shirt and slid them up to his shoulder blades, crossing at the wrists and groping the flesh - as if looking for something, like a surgeon feeling for a tumour.

They were flush against each other now and Watanuki was breathing in soft heated pants. His mind was still bewitched but his body was reacting to the touch. Cho smirked with amusement and arousal and he gripped Watanuki's shoulder blades hard enough to bruise.

"I wish I could see your face..." Cho burned a hot whisper into Watanuki's throat as he pulled down the collar of his shirt. "...when you finally get your wings."

Doumeki ran into Himawari in his search for Watanuki. He told her what happened and, after a quick look at the time, decided they might as well go to the canteen and let Watanuki come to them.

Sure enough, they hadn't been there five minutes when Watanuki walked in with a small smile and two regular sized bento boxes. He gave one to Himawari, and dropped the other gracelessly down in front of Doumeki.

"What about yours? Are you not having anything?" Himawari asked, a little pang of grief quieting her usually jubilant voice.

Watanuki smiled apologetically and waved his hand. "Oh, no. I'm not really hungry today. It's fine, Himawari-Chan. Dig in!"

"You did eat enough for a year yesterday." Doumeki chided, if only to test the reaction and not for humour.

Watanuki rounded on him, bubbling with his usual vigour. "What did you say, you big oaf? I'll have you know some of us are just trying to watch what they eat and be healthy! Not that you'd know anything about that! You great glutton!"

Himawari laughed and delicately patted her chopsticks against her lips. "You two are such good friends!"

Watanuki's jaw dropped. "I-It's not like that at all Himawari-Chan!" he moaned.

"Did you go and see Yuuko?" Doumeki asked, cutting through the light hearted atmosphere like a switchblade.

Watanuki blinked. "Oh, I forgot."

Doumeki's eye brows drew together in concern again.

"I'm just not hungry today. It's nothing." Watanuki defended, albeit softly.

Doumeki faced him. "What have you been doing for the last hour? Tell me." His eyes added a silent: if you can.

Watanuki recoiled, then thought. "I..." He thought harder. "I was..."

The last memory he had was of Doumeki gripping his arm in the classroom. He remembered it because lately whenever Doumeki had touched him his purifying energy has been stronger. As if Watanuki had been afflicted by something he hadn't been aware of until touched by someone who repelled it. He felt cleaner for a while after encounters with Doumeki. It was as if there was something sapping away parts of his spirit, like a parasite...

Eat. Fast. Sleep.

Watanuki suddenly burst out of his seat.

What was that? A sonorous voice in his head, half power, half pleasure.

Watanuki Kimihiro...

Who did it belong to? Watanuki couldn't attach it to a face.

Aah-hah...you are so delicious...

Images came with the words now, dark and shadowy visions, deepened by lusty crimson shades. An indecernable pleasure pit where someone was groping his flesh, kissing his body...and he was enjoying it. From the ether of his mind sprung echoey cries and gasps of pleasure. His voice reached octaves he didn't know he could hit. And a rumbling thunderous laugh not belonging to him undercut it all.

Watanuki stood confused and scared and his arms shook from where they were braced on the table.

Doumeki and Himawari watched in frightened awe and nursed confusion of their own.

"Watanuki."

"I..." Watanuki cast Doumeki a venomless glare. "I don't have to tell you anything."

Then he picked up his satchel and left.

Day 3

Stubbornness makes fools of men.

Watanuki was awoken the next day by a incessant tapping at his window. He glanced over from where he lay and saw the shadow of a butterfly bobbing behind the thin curtains of his bedroom. He sighed, feeling like he hadn't slept at all even though that wasn't the case. He had went to bed exceptionally early last night, not even having the energy to make everyone's bentos. He still had no desire to eat, and now wanted nothing more than to roll over and go back to sleep.

Listen to your body.

Watanuki felt his eyes dropping closed.

Do what your instincts tell you.

The pull of sleep was irresistible.

Just as the warm dark embrace of unconsciousness wrapped it's tendrils around him the jarring and unmercifully loud telephone began to ring. It startled Watanuki awake instantly and he gasped in fright.

Sitting up he reached over and lifted the receiver. It was Yuuko.

"Good Morning, Watanuki." Her velvet voice slid down the cord like melted chocolate. It did nothing but remind him of how tired he was.

"Yuuko-San, do you need me to come into the shop today?"

"No," she said. "I have a feeling you'll find your own way here anyway. I'm calling to tell you to go to school today. You were going to go back to sleep weren't you?"

Watanuki felt himself flush with embarrassment. "I wasn't! I was just...resting my eyes...It's creepy how you know these things, Yuuko-San."

She laughed, low and sultry. "I've sent Doumeki to pick you up."

"Whaaaat? Why, Yuuko-San? Are you punishing me for taking a week off? You gave me the week off!"

Watanuki heard a rap at his front door.

"That'll be your escort." Yuuko said, and he could hear the smirk in her voice. "Just think of it like a date!"

Watanuki nearly died right then and there! "A WHAAAT?" he bellowed down the phone, only to find that Yuuko had already hung up.

The knocking at the door was becoming more impatient. Begrudgingly, Watanuki got up and went to answer the door in his pjs.

"Yo."

Doumeki stood unassumingly on the landing, and Watanuki gnashed his teeth in directionless frustration.

"You should get dressed."

Watanuki erupted like an angry japanese volcano and flailed around in abject wordless rage. Doumeki plugged his ears and turned away as per usual. That was until Watanuki's rant suddenly cut off midstream and he seemed to quake with sudden loss of strength.

He clutched the doorframe as his knees buckled suddenly, managing to hold himself up.

"Oi!" Doumeki caught his arm as soon as he saw Watanuki sinking against the doorframe. "Watanuki!"

"Aah...haah..." Watanuki's breath came in startled pants as he leaned on the doorframe for support and pushed himself upright again.

"I-I'm fine, I just suddenly...felt kind of faint..."

Doumeki let his grip go slack as he watched his friend with unease and fear. Yuuko hadn't told him what was going to happen, only that it was crucial for him to stay by Watanuki's side today.

"It's your fault for making me lose my temper so early in the morning!" Watanuki barked without any bite to his words, turning around and stalking back into his flat. "Come in, come in, you're letting the heat out."

As Watanuki went back into his bedroom to change he noticed the butterfly was gone.

The rest of the day felt like the film Nightmare on Elm Street. Watanuki struggled hard to remain awake through his classes and lunch, taking any moment of silence to pillow his head in his arms and close his eyes against the uncomfortable daylight. He almost found himself nodding off on Doumeki's shoulder much to his horror. The moment was made all the more awkward by Doumeki's deadpan comment of "I don't mind." Cho had been lurking about, Doumeki noticed. Whenever he happened to catch a glimpse of him Doumeki did his best to steer Watanuki in the opposite direction. Watanuki was so woozy and out of it that it wasn't a hard task to maneuver him around the school.

They couldn't avoid Cho forever it seemed. Even after waiting until everyone had cleared the campus after last bell, Watanuki, Doumeki and Himawari found him waiting for them by the gates. They stopped about fifteen feet from where he stood surrounded by a haze of Monarch butterflies.

Doumeki moved to stand in front of Watanuki, blocking him with a protective arm. A deep glare cut harsh shadows in his face. He remembered that this had all started after Watanuki had seen that spirit butterfly. Seeing Cho surrounded by a tiny orange horde of them confirmed his suspicions: Cho was the one influencing Watanuki.

He faced the trio with his amber eyes blazing. Watanuki peeked over Doumeki's broad shoulders, confused by the sudden protective gesture and when his eyes met Cho's he felt himself become seized by an intense spiritual force which totally overcame his senses.

Watanuki sought out Doumeki's sleeve as he felt himself suddenly losing strength.

"...Dou...me...ki..." he moaned.

There was no fighting this. The spiritual power was much too strong for him to resist. He succumbed to sleep almost immediately.

Doumeki felt the seer's hand slip from his sleeve and turned just in time to see him tipping backwards.

A soft sigh of defeat escaped Watanuki's lips as he was caught by Doumeki, as if he were relinquishing himself over to the hands of whoever desired him most.

"Watanuki!"

"Watanuki-Kun!"

Doumeki shook him but was not surprised by the lack of response. He was too consumed by anger at letting this happen.

Even standing right beside him I was useless...

Cho strode up to them wearing a hungry sneer.

"It seems he is ready."

Doumeki barely contained a snarl, and shifted Watanuki over into the hands of Himawari. He stood and rounded on Cho, fisting a hand in his collar.

"Bastard...ready for what? What have you done to him?"

Cho just kept smiling and looking down on Doumeki. Incensed by this Doumeki brought back his free fist to punch Cho square in the jaw. Just as he was about to drive his knuckles home Himawari piped up.

"Doumeki-Kun, we should take him to the Infirmary." she said, trying to diffuse the violent atmosphere, oblivious to Doumeki's plight.

Doumeki reluctantly releases Cho's throat and stepped back.

"Get out of here." he ordered.

Cho smiled, "It's been nice knowing you Doumeki-Kun." he said before he disappeared in a torrent of butterflies.

Doumeki returned to Watanuki's side and with Himawari's help the two were able to pull Watanuki onto his back. He shrugged the seer up into a comfortable and easily to carry position so that Watanuki's head hung over his shoulder. Their cheeks were almost touching.

A black swallowtail butterfly suddenly flitted about in front of Doumeki's face and he snatched at it aggressively.

The edges of the creature glowed and a familiar voice came from the pulsing light. "Doumeki-Kun, please bring Watanuki to the Shop."

"Yuuko?"

"Of course."

Himawari had needed to return home much to her dismay but Doumeki had assured her he would look after Watanuki.

He was almost at the shop when a quiet voice breathed hot air onto his neck.

"Dou...me...ki..."

Doumeki stopped jogging and waited patiently for Watanuki to continue.

His eyes were cloudy, like a snake's before they shed their skin.

"...I...should have...listened...to you..," he mumbled. "...C-Cho...he's a..."

"I know." Doumeki said. "I'm taking you to Yuuko's."

"She's going to make me pay big time for this one." Watanuki smiled knowingly before sighing and fainting softly against Doumeki's cheek again.

Doumeki bowed his head in reserved acquiescence before he took off again jogging quicker than before towards Yuuko's shop.

Don't worry. I'll protect you. I promised myself I would never let you come to any harm.

He recited stubbornly inside his head.