![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ciirceeWell, this is going up just because I'm bored AND exhausted. I wrote it in less than half an hour, so you know...the chances of this being GREAT are sort of slim. Still, it's fic. It's got the Zashiki-Warashi in it...so...you know.
"You're the Zashiki-Warashi, right?" Doumeki hazarded a guess, fairly certain that his mother wouldn't let just any teenage girl into his bedroom.
The girl--a tiny, cute little thing--nodded happily. "And you're Doumeki Shizuka!"
"Yes." He set his bow down on the stand he kept in his room and tossed the change in his pants pocket into the shallow glass dish he kept on his desk. And waited for the girl to speak. She was the one with the purpose, after all.
For her part, she stared at him unabashedly. It was only when he gave her an arch look that she blushed and clapped her hands over her face. "I'm sorry!" she apologized, dropping her clasped hands to just over her heart. "I wanted to see you." She blushed a little harder and her fingers tightened around each other. "Are you mad at me?"
Doumeki felt a frown wrinkle his forehead. "No. Should I be?"
"Because of me, Watanuki-sama was not able to get his eye returned to him. Because of me, Watanuki-sama now has half of one of your eyes." Tears glinted in her eyes. "It must have hurt very much."
She seemed so small and so sad that Doumeki did something he'd never have done with any other girl. He put a hand on her shoulder. "It didn't hurt." Though the pain had been agonizing. "And it wasn't because of you. It was my choice to give my eye for Watanuki. It was only for him."
A watery smile greeted those words. "Do you love Watanuki-sama, too?" Her hand came up and rested over his own when he would have withdrawn it.
Still, he saw no reason to deny it, since the only person who didn't seem to notice his feelings was the boy to whom they were connected. "Yes." He looked at the luck-sprite warily. "Will you make things hard for me?"
"Aaa?" she cocked her head prettily.
"Will you change my luck so that things go badly for me?"
She shook her head so hard that her hair whipped into her eyes. "No! I could never wish somebody ill fortune. And you're Watanuki-sama's friend, so even if I wanted that, I would never do it."
"But…we're rivals. You and I," he clarified when her head tipped slowly in the other direction.
"Oh! Are we really?" She seemed distressed. "I don't want a rival. I thought…I thought maybe we could be friends."
Doumeki blinked at her hopeful face. "The first time we encountered each other, you took my soul out."
Her face crumpled. "I didn't mean to," she said earnestly. "I didn't reach that far! I was really, really careful. But I didn't know that you treasured him so much that your soul would be bound up in his homemade chocolate."
"It was an accident."
"Yes! I was only looking for a special chocolate and that one was so special. A spirit-seer and a spirit-banisher together, and it looked so yummy…" she trailed off a little wistfully.
He considered that. "It was very good," he said after a moment. "If he makes them again, I'll tell him to set some aside for you."
She beamed at him, a bright happy gleam like the sun inside his room. "Then we are friends," she said happily. She took both of his hands in hers. "And we will cheer each other on and be happy for the other, like true friends."
"Cheer each other on?" He'd never, in his life, even heard of somebody so innocent as the girl sitting on his bed, clutching his hands.
Or maybe, just not somebody so lovely.
"I want to be his happiness," she said with a gentle smile. "But if I'm not, then I want that person who is to be with him. If I knew that Watanuki-sama was at his happiest, then I could be very happy, too. Isn't that the way you feel, sempai?"
He thought about Watanuki's all-to-rare moments of happiness, the way his face shone in those times, and realized that it didn't matter if that look were directed at himself or at the girl on his bed, as long as it was there. "I guess we're the same," he told the Zashiki-Warashi.
"I'm so glad!" She flung herself on him in a hug. She drew back, beaming again. "If you ever come near my home, you must come to visit for tea," she invited. "I can't really leave often, but friends should visit when they can."
Doumeki nodded. "You can come to the temple for tea on Saturdays, if you'd like," he offered. "It should be safe for you here."
"Really?" She hugged him again without waiting for his reply. "I'm so glad."
"I'll even invite Watanuki," Doumeki added, unable to keep himself from picturing the other boy's face when he found out about the newly formed friendship.
She laughed delightedly. "We'll be an unbeatable team for his happiness!" she said, stepping back and kicking up to float near his ceiling. "Good luck, sempai!" she threw her hands out, striking a pose that seemed like it would be at home in some action-filled shounen manga.
He returned the gesture anyhow, feeling foolish yet stupidly happy with it. "Good luck to you too…" behind her, her Tengu scrambled into shape. "Mizuko-san."
His unexpected visitors were gone in an eye blink and Doumeki shook his head, very wryly amused at the unexpected twists and turns his life had begun to take ever since he'd taken notice of Watanuki Kimihiro. Thinking of whom…he had a phone call to make an invitation to issue that the invitee would probably attempt to avoid accepting. Doumeki found he wasn't too worried about that prospect, however. He had a feeling luck was on his side.
"You're the Zashiki-Warashi, right?" Doumeki hazarded a guess, fairly certain that his mother wouldn't let just any teenage girl into his bedroom.
The girl--a tiny, cute little thing--nodded happily. "And you're Doumeki Shizuka!"
"Yes." He set his bow down on the stand he kept in his room and tossed the change in his pants pocket into the shallow glass dish he kept on his desk. And waited for the girl to speak. She was the one with the purpose, after all.
For her part, she stared at him unabashedly. It was only when he gave her an arch look that she blushed and clapped her hands over her face. "I'm sorry!" she apologized, dropping her clasped hands to just over her heart. "I wanted to see you." She blushed a little harder and her fingers tightened around each other. "Are you mad at me?"
Doumeki felt a frown wrinkle his forehead. "No. Should I be?"
"Because of me, Watanuki-sama was not able to get his eye returned to him. Because of me, Watanuki-sama now has half of one of your eyes." Tears glinted in her eyes. "It must have hurt very much."
She seemed so small and so sad that Doumeki did something he'd never have done with any other girl. He put a hand on her shoulder. "It didn't hurt." Though the pain had been agonizing. "And it wasn't because of you. It was my choice to give my eye for Watanuki. It was only for him."
A watery smile greeted those words. "Do you love Watanuki-sama, too?" Her hand came up and rested over his own when he would have withdrawn it.
Still, he saw no reason to deny it, since the only person who didn't seem to notice his feelings was the boy to whom they were connected. "Yes." He looked at the luck-sprite warily. "Will you make things hard for me?"
"Aaa?" she cocked her head prettily.
"Will you change my luck so that things go badly for me?"
She shook her head so hard that her hair whipped into her eyes. "No! I could never wish somebody ill fortune. And you're Watanuki-sama's friend, so even if I wanted that, I would never do it."
"But…we're rivals. You and I," he clarified when her head tipped slowly in the other direction.
"Oh! Are we really?" She seemed distressed. "I don't want a rival. I thought…I thought maybe we could be friends."
Doumeki blinked at her hopeful face. "The first time we encountered each other, you took my soul out."
Her face crumpled. "I didn't mean to," she said earnestly. "I didn't reach that far! I was really, really careful. But I didn't know that you treasured him so much that your soul would be bound up in his homemade chocolate."
"It was an accident."
"Yes! I was only looking for a special chocolate and that one was so special. A spirit-seer and a spirit-banisher together, and it looked so yummy…" she trailed off a little wistfully.
He considered that. "It was very good," he said after a moment. "If he makes them again, I'll tell him to set some aside for you."
She beamed at him, a bright happy gleam like the sun inside his room. "Then we are friends," she said happily. She took both of his hands in hers. "And we will cheer each other on and be happy for the other, like true friends."
"Cheer each other on?" He'd never, in his life, even heard of somebody so innocent as the girl sitting on his bed, clutching his hands.
Or maybe, just not somebody so lovely.
"I want to be his happiness," she said with a gentle smile. "But if I'm not, then I want that person who is to be with him. If I knew that Watanuki-sama was at his happiest, then I could be very happy, too. Isn't that the way you feel, sempai?"
He thought about Watanuki's all-to-rare moments of happiness, the way his face shone in those times, and realized that it didn't matter if that look were directed at himself or at the girl on his bed, as long as it was there. "I guess we're the same," he told the Zashiki-Warashi.
"I'm so glad!" She flung herself on him in a hug. She drew back, beaming again. "If you ever come near my home, you must come to visit for tea," she invited. "I can't really leave often, but friends should visit when they can."
Doumeki nodded. "You can come to the temple for tea on Saturdays, if you'd like," he offered. "It should be safe for you here."
"Really?" She hugged him again without waiting for his reply. "I'm so glad."
"I'll even invite Watanuki," Doumeki added, unable to keep himself from picturing the other boy's face when he found out about the newly formed friendship.
She laughed delightedly. "We'll be an unbeatable team for his happiness!" she said, stepping back and kicking up to float near his ceiling. "Good luck, sempai!" she threw her hands out, striking a pose that seemed like it would be at home in some action-filled shounen manga.
He returned the gesture anyhow, feeling foolish yet stupidly happy with it. "Good luck to you too…" behind her, her Tengu scrambled into shape. "Mizuko-san."
His unexpected visitors were gone in an eye blink and Doumeki shook his head, very wryly amused at the unexpected twists and turns his life had begun to take ever since he'd taken notice of Watanuki Kimihiro. Thinking of whom…he had a phone call to make an invitation to issue that the invitee would probably attempt to avoid accepting. Doumeki found he wasn't too worried about that prospect, however. He had a feeling luck was on his side.
