When time stood still for love (4/6)
Title: When time stood still for love (4/6) [LOST HEART]
Pairing: Watanuki/Doumeki
Rating: PG-13
Author’s note: AU-ish because of an established relationship. Set during Watanuki’s ownership of the shop. Thanks for reading and enjoy! ^_^ After a long hiatus, I’m back with the continuation of this story! I think the sudden spurt of inspiration came from reading new donuts fic and looking at gorgeous donuts fanart.
Thanks for reading and enjoy!
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Watanuki stared at the lacquered rose wood box as if it were something ominous. Well, not the box itself but its contents, though why he should feel anxious about it, Watanuki had no idea. What he did know was that he couldn’t touch it and that was why he had sent Kohane to get the egg that Yuuko had given to Doumeki.
He gave the box a last long hard look before getting up and shuffling out of the room. The house was silent, even if it was only just past sunset. The cicadas that made a comforting buzz were nowhere to be heard. Perhaps they too felt the sadness that had enveloped this place? Even Maru and Moro had grown quiet, plaintive at times. They spoke in whispers and their gait had lost its sprightly spring.
Watanuki made his way down a corridor, pausing two doors from his room. He reached out and placed a hand on the delicate screen but made no move to open the door. He didn’t have to open it to know that Doumeki was sitting in the middle of the room, meditating. Doumeki did that almost the whole day. In fact, it was the first thing that Doumeki did the day after his arrival at the shop and he refused to spend time with Watanuki.
Which, if Watanuki was forced to admit, hurt him so much he had almost wished Doumeki would just go already and leave him in peace because, if anything, Doumeki’s arrival at the shop in the state that he was in disturbed Watanuki, made him feel a rage that he had never felt before.
Because Watanuki knew...
He knew now that Doumeki’s death was not natural.
===
The only other time that he had seen Doumeki was the first night after his arrival. He had been doing his usual rounds of the shop grounds when he had spotted Doumeki standing under a wisteria tree in full bloom. Despite the breeze that made the flowers and branches sway, Doumeki’s clothes remained still, a sure sign that though he was there, he was detached from the physical world.
He had quickly made his way to Doumeki but when Doumeki became aware of his presence, the archer had started towards the shop. Watanuki had quickened his pace and had gotten to Doumeki just in time to grab the edge of his sleeve.
“Doumeki, please.” He had said, not knowing what he was asking of Doumeki.
The taller man had stared down at him before pulling his sleeve out of Watanuki’s grasp, “Good night, Watanuki.”
And those three words broke Watanuki’s heart because they had been said with such finality it was like they were farewells. Watanuki wasn’t going to have any of that. There had to be a way. There must be a way! If he had to keep Doumeki here until he found a way to restore him, he would. But Doumeki had to help him! He couldn’t just keep pushing Watanuki away.
Doumeki must have sense his agitation because he turned to Watanuki and cupped his cheek. Despite the utter lack of warmth, Watanuki held his hand closer to his cheek and sighed just as tears rolled down from his eyes.
“Watanuki, the dead and the living don’t mingle. They cannot.” Doumeki whispered.
Watanuki’s closed his eyes and pressed Doumeki’s hand even closer, “Then why did you come here?”
Doumeki placed his other hand on Watanuki’s shoulder and pulled him closer. Then suddenly, Watanuki felt Doumeki’s lips on his, a soft kiss that barely gave any comfort.
“You know the answer to that.”
Despite himself, Watanuki grabbed Doumeki by his shoulders and kissed him hard, willing his body heat to seep into Doumeki and give him life. The archer let out a small gasp and, abandoning what he had said earlier about the dead and the living, he began to reciprocate earnestly.
At first it was a shock for Watanuki to feel a cold tongue mingle with his own warm one but he didn’t break off the kiss. This was Doumeki and Doumeki in any form was still Doumeki and Watanuki would still love him.
It was only when his sobs got the better of him that Watanuki pulled away and rested his forehead on Doumeki’s shoulder. The other man sighed and pulled him into a tight embrace, stroking his back in a comforting manner.
After a few minutes, Doumeki let him go. He kissed him lightly on the forehead and said, “Good night, Watanuki.” This time, the tone of finality was gone, which made Watanuki smile.
“See you in the morning.”
===
Watanuki pressed his forehead against the screen as if he could gain the strength he need for the task ahead. After only a few seconds, which seemed like minutes to Watanuki, he moved away and headed to his room.
Once inside, he closed and bolted the door, which was quite useless against the residents of the shop. There were other ways of getting inside but Watanuki felt a silly sense of reassurance in doing so. He then moved to the center of the room where he sat down. He pulled out a small piece of parchment from his pocket and laid it in front of him.
The parchment was aged and cracking at the edges but the figures drawn on to it stood stark against its cream face, as if they had been painted only that day. Yuuko had told him that this was in fact a hundred years old, something that Clow Reed himself had used. Thinking about that made Watanuki smile fondly but the thought of the task ahead made him frown immediately.
It could only go either well or bad and Watanuki hoped that it was the former.
He secured the edges of the parchment on the tatami mat with sewing pins. Next he took out another pin with which he pricked his finger. As fat drops of blood fell onto the parchment, Watanuki murmured an incantation. As the words flowed from his lips, he felt his power stirring within him, warming his body. Oh how he wished he could feel the same warmth from Doumeki!
A small frown creased his brow. Yes, that’s exactly why he was doing this!
As the spell rose to a crescendo, Watanuki put forth power into a single thought.
Show me who granted Ezawa Miyuki’s wish.
===
Oh. Watanuki thought. I should have known.
The spell had transported him to the basement of some building. Pipes ran along the length of the room above him and down some of the corners. Just a few feet away from him was a high back chair made from what looked like mahogany. On this chair sat a smug looking man dressed in a black two piece suit and red shirt, his boots gleaming like a beetle’s carapace. He was smiling in an infuriating way at Watanuki as he rested his chin in the cup of his hand.
“This is a surprise.” He said in a smooth voice, “No one comes here without my permission but you’ve done it. Bravo!”
By “permission”, Watanuki knew that he meant the numerous spells zigzagging across the room. An ordinary person would have been zapped to ashes if he had tried to sneak into this room.
That comment made Watanuki huff with pride. He was not the heir to Yuuko’s shop for nothing. Compared to him, the man, though powerful in his own right and in this world, was still a nobody. He couldn’t cross dimensions like Watanuki and his power to grant wishes was meager. Still, the fact that he had been able to grant Ezawa Miyuki’s wish from a whole different world put Watanuki on the defensive.
“I should call you out for being a poacher, Monou Fuuma.” Watanuki said in an even voice. “Keep your tentacles to yourself. Why did you grant Ezawa Miyuki’s wish from another world?”
“My my.” Fuuma said, “We are being testy. What can I do but grant that poor girl’s wishes when it was screaming out to be granted across the void between worlds? She wished to be with a man and if that couldn’t be, she wished that he would never belong to anyone.”
“A man died before his time because of that wish.” Watanuki said, anger just hinting in his voice.
“Oh? Shame about that.”
No sooner had those words left Fuuma’s lips that Watanuki showed his strength without moving a muscle. Fuuma let out a soft gasp as two deep wound appeared, one on his cheek and the other on his neck, just above the collar of his shirt. He touched a finger to the wound on his cheek and snarled.
“What’s this? A show of pitiful pow-”
“You don’t get it, do you?” Watanuki seethed, “I can sense you across the void. You try one more funny thing and I promise you those wounds will multiply and burn and nothing, not even the magic of the dark mage upstairs or the whole magic of this world can save you. Am I understood?”
Fuuma leaned back with an expression that was mix of defeat and petulance. “What a plucky seventeen year old you are. Who made you what you are?”
“That is none of your business.”
“Maybe.” Fuuma answered, a malicious smile curling his lips, “But I sure can make that wish fermenting in your heart come true.”
This time, it was Watanuki’s turn to smile, “What do you know about my heart or any heart for that matter? You‘ve lost yours. You have no heart with which to understand mine.”
With that, Watanuki summoned a gateway to his world and left.
Part Five
Pairing: Watanuki/Doumeki
Rating: PG-13
Author’s note: AU-ish because of an established relationship. Set during Watanuki’s ownership of the shop. Thanks for reading and enjoy! ^_^ After a long hiatus, I’m back with the continuation of this story! I think the sudden spurt of inspiration came from reading new donuts fic and looking at gorgeous donuts fanart.
Thanks for reading and enjoy!
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Watanuki stared at the lacquered rose wood box as if it were something ominous. Well, not the box itself but its contents, though why he should feel anxious about it, Watanuki had no idea. What he did know was that he couldn’t touch it and that was why he had sent Kohane to get the egg that Yuuko had given to Doumeki.
He gave the box a last long hard look before getting up and shuffling out of the room. The house was silent, even if it was only just past sunset. The cicadas that made a comforting buzz were nowhere to be heard. Perhaps they too felt the sadness that had enveloped this place? Even Maru and Moro had grown quiet, plaintive at times. They spoke in whispers and their gait had lost its sprightly spring.
Watanuki made his way down a corridor, pausing two doors from his room. He reached out and placed a hand on the delicate screen but made no move to open the door. He didn’t have to open it to know that Doumeki was sitting in the middle of the room, meditating. Doumeki did that almost the whole day. In fact, it was the first thing that Doumeki did the day after his arrival at the shop and he refused to spend time with Watanuki.
Which, if Watanuki was forced to admit, hurt him so much he had almost wished Doumeki would just go already and leave him in peace because, if anything, Doumeki’s arrival at the shop in the state that he was in disturbed Watanuki, made him feel a rage that he had never felt before.
Because Watanuki knew...
He knew now that Doumeki’s death was not natural.
===
The only other time that he had seen Doumeki was the first night after his arrival. He had been doing his usual rounds of the shop grounds when he had spotted Doumeki standing under a wisteria tree in full bloom. Despite the breeze that made the flowers and branches sway, Doumeki’s clothes remained still, a sure sign that though he was there, he was detached from the physical world.
He had quickly made his way to Doumeki but when Doumeki became aware of his presence, the archer had started towards the shop. Watanuki had quickened his pace and had gotten to Doumeki just in time to grab the edge of his sleeve.
“Doumeki, please.” He had said, not knowing what he was asking of Doumeki.
The taller man had stared down at him before pulling his sleeve out of Watanuki’s grasp, “Good night, Watanuki.”
And those three words broke Watanuki’s heart because they had been said with such finality it was like they were farewells. Watanuki wasn’t going to have any of that. There had to be a way. There must be a way! If he had to keep Doumeki here until he found a way to restore him, he would. But Doumeki had to help him! He couldn’t just keep pushing Watanuki away.
Doumeki must have sense his agitation because he turned to Watanuki and cupped his cheek. Despite the utter lack of warmth, Watanuki held his hand closer to his cheek and sighed just as tears rolled down from his eyes.
“Watanuki, the dead and the living don’t mingle. They cannot.” Doumeki whispered.
Watanuki’s closed his eyes and pressed Doumeki’s hand even closer, “Then why did you come here?”
Doumeki placed his other hand on Watanuki’s shoulder and pulled him closer. Then suddenly, Watanuki felt Doumeki’s lips on his, a soft kiss that barely gave any comfort.
“You know the answer to that.”
Despite himself, Watanuki grabbed Doumeki by his shoulders and kissed him hard, willing his body heat to seep into Doumeki and give him life. The archer let out a small gasp and, abandoning what he had said earlier about the dead and the living, he began to reciprocate earnestly.
At first it was a shock for Watanuki to feel a cold tongue mingle with his own warm one but he didn’t break off the kiss. This was Doumeki and Doumeki in any form was still Doumeki and Watanuki would still love him.
It was only when his sobs got the better of him that Watanuki pulled away and rested his forehead on Doumeki’s shoulder. The other man sighed and pulled him into a tight embrace, stroking his back in a comforting manner.
After a few minutes, Doumeki let him go. He kissed him lightly on the forehead and said, “Good night, Watanuki.” This time, the tone of finality was gone, which made Watanuki smile.
“See you in the morning.”
===
Watanuki pressed his forehead against the screen as if he could gain the strength he need for the task ahead. After only a few seconds, which seemed like minutes to Watanuki, he moved away and headed to his room.
Once inside, he closed and bolted the door, which was quite useless against the residents of the shop. There were other ways of getting inside but Watanuki felt a silly sense of reassurance in doing so. He then moved to the center of the room where he sat down. He pulled out a small piece of parchment from his pocket and laid it in front of him.
The parchment was aged and cracking at the edges but the figures drawn on to it stood stark against its cream face, as if they had been painted only that day. Yuuko had told him that this was in fact a hundred years old, something that Clow Reed himself had used. Thinking about that made Watanuki smile fondly but the thought of the task ahead made him frown immediately.
It could only go either well or bad and Watanuki hoped that it was the former.
He secured the edges of the parchment on the tatami mat with sewing pins. Next he took out another pin with which he pricked his finger. As fat drops of blood fell onto the parchment, Watanuki murmured an incantation. As the words flowed from his lips, he felt his power stirring within him, warming his body. Oh how he wished he could feel the same warmth from Doumeki!
A small frown creased his brow. Yes, that’s exactly why he was doing this!
As the spell rose to a crescendo, Watanuki put forth power into a single thought.
Show me who granted Ezawa Miyuki’s wish.
===
Oh. Watanuki thought. I should have known.
The spell had transported him to the basement of some building. Pipes ran along the length of the room above him and down some of the corners. Just a few feet away from him was a high back chair made from what looked like mahogany. On this chair sat a smug looking man dressed in a black two piece suit and red shirt, his boots gleaming like a beetle’s carapace. He was smiling in an infuriating way at Watanuki as he rested his chin in the cup of his hand.
“This is a surprise.” He said in a smooth voice, “No one comes here without my permission but you’ve done it. Bravo!”
By “permission”, Watanuki knew that he meant the numerous spells zigzagging across the room. An ordinary person would have been zapped to ashes if he had tried to sneak into this room.
That comment made Watanuki huff with pride. He was not the heir to Yuuko’s shop for nothing. Compared to him, the man, though powerful in his own right and in this world, was still a nobody. He couldn’t cross dimensions like Watanuki and his power to grant wishes was meager. Still, the fact that he had been able to grant Ezawa Miyuki’s wish from a whole different world put Watanuki on the defensive.
“I should call you out for being a poacher, Monou Fuuma.” Watanuki said in an even voice. “Keep your tentacles to yourself. Why did you grant Ezawa Miyuki’s wish from another world?”
“My my.” Fuuma said, “We are being testy. What can I do but grant that poor girl’s wishes when it was screaming out to be granted across the void between worlds? She wished to be with a man and if that couldn’t be, she wished that he would never belong to anyone.”
“A man died before his time because of that wish.” Watanuki said, anger just hinting in his voice.
“Oh? Shame about that.”
No sooner had those words left Fuuma’s lips that Watanuki showed his strength without moving a muscle. Fuuma let out a soft gasp as two deep wound appeared, one on his cheek and the other on his neck, just above the collar of his shirt. He touched a finger to the wound on his cheek and snarled.
“What’s this? A show of pitiful pow-”
“You don’t get it, do you?” Watanuki seethed, “I can sense you across the void. You try one more funny thing and I promise you those wounds will multiply and burn and nothing, not even the magic of the dark mage upstairs or the whole magic of this world can save you. Am I understood?”
Fuuma leaned back with an expression that was mix of defeat and petulance. “What a plucky seventeen year old you are. Who made you what you are?”
“That is none of your business.”
“Maybe.” Fuuma answered, a malicious smile curling his lips, “But I sure can make that wish fermenting in your heart come true.”
This time, it was Watanuki’s turn to smile, “What do you know about my heart or any heart for that matter? You‘ve lost yours. You have no heart with which to understand mine.”
With that, Watanuki summoned a gateway to his world and left.
Part Five