Indiscriminate Happenings
Fandom: xxxHoLiC
Characters/Pairing: Kohane, Shizuka, Haruka, Yuuko, Kuro/Fai, Kimihiro, Mugetsu
Prompt:10:3- Sweat
Rating: K
Chapter Genre: A sad pass at Humour.
Summary: Of Udon, Gyoza, and Tamagoyaki. And overexcited demons.
I

Sweat dripped down his forehead as he slaved over the fire, tossing the appropriate amount of wood on to keep it burning at the right temperature. He stood up, his head hurting from the heat, and retreated to the tent, gingerly picking up all of his needed ingredients and tying them delicately in a blue, green, and white plaid cloth, stepping back and and closing his eyes, basking in the chilly air that cooled him and offered a brief reprieve from the overbearing heat. While he never completely stopped in the first place he had slowed down, trying to avoid tripping over anything, and when he reopened his eyes he froze, gaping at the three standing by his fire.

The man he communicated with in his dreams was standing there, a pipe in his mouth and a grin on his lips. A boy his age stood tall at one side of the older mans side and and a small, long-haired girl on the other. Both of them looked completely stoic in comparison to the cheerful man.

"H-Haruka-san?!" The man laughed, thumping his back with a good-natured aura and sitting on a log they had dragged in, generating heat between his hands and relighting his pipe.

"It's good to meet you in person," Haruka chuckled, waving back to the two youths still standing uselessly to the side. "Come Shizuka, Kohane-chan, sit. I'm sure that Watanuki-kun wouldn't mind whipping up a little something if the two of you are hungry."

"Of course!" He smiled, crouching and placing his burden on the ground, unwrapping it and sorting through his foodstuffs. "What would you like?"

Haruka pondered, tilting his head back and rubbing his chin, puffing out plumes of smoke as he thought. "That new recipe you were describing to me during our last chat, the Udon you were telling me you learned from an old friend of your dearest Empress."

"Ah, the Kitsune Udon." Watanuki sorted through his collections, picking out a chunk of Naruto, preprepared Atsuage, and a handful of leeks. "That's completely do-able. I just have to grab a few more things. Is there anything your companions would like specifically?"

Kohane looked to the dirt as she decided, softly making her request. "Do you know how to make Tamagoyaki?"

He smiled, nodding and picking out a few more ingredients for that, placing them in a separate heap, carefully arranging things so nothing would get squashed or broken. "Of course I can." His eyes turned to the absolutely silent boy sitting to the right. "And you?"

Intent golden eyes scrutinized him for a moment and Watanuki knew without a doubt that this young man was, somehow, directly related to Haruka. "Gyoza."

He twitched at the response but tried not to think of it too hard, mentally planning out his meal preparations as Haruka laughed quietly behind his pipe. Returning to the tent he piled everything he didn't have in his arms and began to cook, relaxing and breathing deeply, basking in the calm his meditation tool brought about. The three stayed mostly silent, opting to watch him instead of make conversation. Shizuka noted how, unlike when he himself first spoke, the boy showed no signs of irritation or annoyance.

The dough for the Gyoza covered and the udon noodles boiling he went about chopping the vegetables and preparing fixing the eggs. Soon enough the three found themselves served, Haruka making pleased noises, Kohane smiling minutely as she delicately nibbled, and Shizuka biting apathetically into his food, refraining from showing his enjoyment of the morsels. Watanuki, it seemed, happened to dislike the lack of feedback he was receiving and frowned until a loud, deep voice wailed his name and a tall, broad form hurl itself at him.

"Mugetsu!" Watanuki's protests were smothered by the loving sounds the man was making, coos and sniffles, and Watanuki himself was stifled by the man. Shizuka frowned, unfinished Gyoza in his hand as he observed the scene unfolding. "How many times have I told you not to pounce like that?"

"I'm sorry," Mugetsu sniffed, sitting up and bringing the smaller boy with him, situating him in his lap. Haruka snickered, catching Shizuka's glare. "I was worried when I couldn't feel you anymore and I missed you."

"You missed my scent," Watanuki retaliated, rolling his eyes, "not me."

"Not true!"

"And who might this pleasant being be?" Haruka interjected, motioning to the strange man. Watanuki stood, shaking him off and gathered up his used dishes and leftovers, handing them to an excited Mugetsu and motioning to the tent.

"His name is Mugetsu. He's a pipe fox demon." Mugetsu returned before Watanuki had finished his explanation, arms around the trim waist and nuzzling the pale neck. "They seem to be attracted to me, though no one knows why."

"Yes, I recall you mentioning a problem of that nature in passing once before," Haruka mused. Shizuka and Kohane watched the interaction silently, eyes swiveling between the two, Shizuka more focused on the stranger than his grandfather and Kohane dividing her attention equally between the three.

"Well, it's annoying, to say the least."

"Watanuki-kun!" The attention of all four individuals (Mugetsu didn't count because he was too enraptured by Watanuki to care about the appearance of another person) turned to the newcomers. A blond man approached (The Fool, Shizuka's mind supplied), tugging a tall, gruff Japanese man behind him, their fingers laced tightly together. "Sorry to bother you when you have company, but I'm looking for Yuuko-san and I thought that you may have seen her."

"Ah, I'm sorry Fai-san, but she hasn't stopped by yet," Watanuki said, tone apologetic. "Such a feat is miraculous, but true."

"Ah, Kimihiro-chan, whatever does that mean?" Watanuki tensed and Fai bounced on the spot, an excited grin on his face.

"Yuuko-san~!"
II
I go no further. Too.... tired. T.T So not a lot in this one, but I hope there's enough to at least slightly placate the lot of you. I know a couple wanted more of this, so here. I couldn't think of anything better. Really quick and probably not the best. By the way, Naruto is fish sausage for those of you who don't know, and Atsuage is baked tofu. Watanuki would've had to have access to an oven to make it, so it was pre-made from their last stop. This was supposed to take place in the, like, seventeenth or eighteenth century. I don't know which.