I went to sleep late. Know why?
My wonderful, sweet, awesome, caring, (add other positive descriptions here) roomie has committed an unforgivable sin - no, wait. Sins. More than one. She gave me plot bunnies. And got me hooked on another anime series. Or three. And so, you can all blame/thank her for this fic.
It’s dedicated to you, Nink - ya hear?
Title: Fukushuu
Pairing: N/A
Rating: PG - for mentions of death and the creepiness of Yuuko/Ai that knows no bounds.
Genre: General, Crossover, Horror?
Disclaimer: I own nada.
Warning: As with all crossovers, this fic does not adhere strictly to canon. And my hormone levels are all screwed up right now. I think that’s warning enough.
Summary: There were things in life worse than dying. Of this, Watanuki was sure. One did not have the luxury of remaining completely oblivious to hardships when being cursed with the ability to attract evil spirits, after all. Still, he had never known pure, unadulterated hatred. After talking with Yuuko, he never hoped to.
--------------------------------------------------
Working at Yuuko's shop was like walking down a winding road. Sometimes the ground was straight, sometimes, uneven. Every once in a while, he would stumble across a crossroad, each path leading him to a different encounter.
Crossroads
“Fukushuu - Revenge”
By Hikagi
--------------------------------------------------
“Yuuko-san,” he said as he poured her another cup of coffee. The shopkeeper raised an eyebrow as she helped herself to the cookies Watanuki had prepared earlier in the day. “Do you have a family?”
Yuuko smiled mischievously and picked up her mug. “What’s this, Watanuki - suddenly curious?”
“N-no!” He paused, setting the coffee pot on the table with a frown. “Well, maybe.”
“Ho!” Her eyes lit up this time. “And what made you ask?”
He waved a hand at the air and settled on staring down at the patterns in the wood. “Just… I was remembering something.”
“Ah. I see.”
Yesterday had been the last day of Obon, and their little group (along with a number of other locals) had gathered at Doumeki’s shrine to light lanterns. Watanuki had lit one for his parents and watched as it floated away with countless others on a nearby river, the flames gradually getting dimmer. (1)
Yuuko-san had made a passing comment on how the candles would help guide the spirits back to their realm by gathering around the underworld gates.
“So do you?” He was referring back to his first question.
Yuuko set her cup down and reached out for another cookie. “I suppose you could say that we are related, though I’m not sure if it’s by blood. But we have a few things in common.”
Watanuki waited until she was done scarfing down what little was left of the batch. “Who?”
“Her name is Ai.”
“Ai,” he repeated, trying it out. He liked the sound of that. “That’s a nice name.”
“You think so too?” Then she smirked, looking at him with a sly expression. “Or maybe that’s because you have someone you like?” (2)
He ignored that last statement and pushed towards another topic instead. “And what does she do?”
Watanuki was startled by the fearsome, feral grin that crept on to her face. It wasn’t a particularly pleasant look.
“She grants wishes. For a price.”
Watanuki involuntarily shivered. They sounded like they were family, alright. “Like you do?”
“Hmm…” She paused, bringing her free hand up to her face to tap her chin thoughtfully. “Yes and no. Her specialty has more to do with revenge and delivery.”
“Revenge and delivery? What kind of profession is that?”
Your bitterness, I will dispel. (3)
“An arduous one. And one that cannot be performed just by anyone.” She handed him her mug and he automatically moved to fill it. “Do you remember, Watanuki?”
If you truly wish to eliminate your antagonist then you must untie the red ribbon. (4)
“Hai?”
She was staring at him now with that gaze - the one that looked like it was looking into the deep recesses of his mind and soul.
If you remove the string then you will have officially entered into a contract with me.
“Earlier, when we first met, I warned you. Your name is the bridge to your soul. Your date of birth communicates your past and future.”
Yuuko’s eyes caught the light and they flashed red - redder than he ever remembered considering that he had always noticed his employer’s unusual irises.
The one you seek revenge upon will be taken immediately to Hell.
“Do you remember what I said about taking another’s life?”
She waited, still staring at him. He opened his mouth when he realized that she wanted him to respond.
Know this, if I deliver your revenge, you must make restitution to me.
“That it has severe consequences,” he answered a bit hesitantly after a few seconds.
His legs were starting to go numb from sitting on his feet too long in one position.
When one person is cursed, two graves are dug.
The Dimensional Witch nodded. “Yes. It is a heavy burden. Do you know why?”
Watanuki shook his head, trying not to wince as the movement made his body shift and the prickling sensations in his legs increase.
If you accept this contract, then your soul will fall into the pits of hell.
Yuuko reached out to a small cabinet that was in arm’s reach and took out a thin box. Watanuki recognized it as the one she kept her smoking pipe in.
“The price is eternal damnation.”
Your soul will forever wander in pain and agony never having known paradise.
“Eternal damnation?”
Suddenly, it wasn’t just his legs that were numb. There was a coldness in the pit of his stomach that became more pronounced with each passing second, making him exceedingly uncomfortable.
But that’s after you die.
Yuuko shrugged as she stuffed a bit of tobacco into her pipe and lit it on fire. “Or so people think.”
“Then that means…”
“Ai-chan has made her decision, and has paid the price.” She paused as she inhaled and released the smoke in a steady stream. “No, it is more accurate to say that she has taken upon her shoulders to carry the burden and is still suffering as we speak.”
Watanuki watched the smoke linger in the room and swirl about as if it had a mind of its own.
“Can’t we do anything about it?”
She peered at him with a sideways tilt of her head.
“Don’t you think I’ve already tried?”
--------------------------------------------------
Watanuki was standing in front of the outdoor sinks after gym class, vigorously washing his face and scrubbing the dirt from under his fingernails.
“Argh, that Doumeki! He’s annoying! If he doesn’t tie with me during the track runs, then he gets lucky and blocks half of my shots during soccer!”
He turned off the faucet and reached for his towel, careful not to upset his glasses.
“Hey, did you hear?”
“Nani, nani?”
“About Jigoku Tsuushin!” (5)
“Jigoku Tsuushin?”
Watanuki stopped drying his face when he heard the voices of two senior girls only a few meters away. He snatched his glasses and put them on and then turned his head in the direction of the voices.
“Yeah! They say that if you leave a message on the homepage, you can deliver your vengeance against any antagonist.”
“Really? Sounds amazing.”
“But there’s a catch. Apparently, you die too if you use it.”
“No way! Does such a thing exist?”
By now, he was listening intently, ears straining at every sound. Without being aware of it, he was holding his breath, anxiously waiting for the conversation to continue.
His thoughts echoed that of the second girl. Did such a thing exist? Was it possible? Did Yuuko-san know of this Jigoku Tsuushin?
“Probably. One of my friend’s friend used it, and they said that the boy bullying her went missing the next day.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course!”
The voices were starting to fade and Watanuki found himself unconsciously leaving his perch to follow them, his towel forgotten at the sink.
“It’s true that this world would be better off if some people weren’t around.”
“But they say that the webpage can’t be accessed unless you have a really strong grudge.”
Watanuki jumped slightly when he felt a hand descend on his shoulder.
“What are you doing?”
“D-d-doumeki!”
He tried to give the taller boy a fierce glare, but that was effectively ruined by Doumeki’s impassive face.
“Eavesdropping?” he asked, looking at the retreating figures of the girls. Watanuki could tell from the tone of his voice that he wasn’t impressed.
“N-no way! Zettai! Never in a million years!” He made exaggerated motions to get the point across, but Doumeki was ignoring him by this point.
“Would you use it?” he cut in, stopping Watanuki in the middle of his rant.
Watanuki blinked, confused by the sudden turn in the conversation. “Huh?”
“The rumor those girls were talking about,” he clarified. “Would you even consider something like that?”
Watanuki seemed to shrink in his spot. “I’m not sure,” he confessed. “I’m just thinking about getting rid of this curse. I don’t have time for trivial things such as vengeance.”
“Oh?”
“And besides.” Watanuki pushed his glasses further up his nose and brushed off his shoulders. “There’s probably a catch to it. You probably can’t use it to drive away evil spirits.” He turned around and started walking back to the sinks to retrieve his towel.
Doumeki stayed for a bit longer, watching the other boy with a seemingly bored expression before he followed suit. “They said that the user dies.”
By now Watanuki had picked up his belongings and was making his way back to the classroom. “That’s probably not all there is to it. Yuuko-san hinted as much.”
“Hmm?”
‘After all,’ Watanuki thought, recalling to mind how Syaoran was clutching the pale, limp figure known as Sakura that fateful day, ‘there were things in life worse than simply dying.’
He looked across the school yard and saw the familiar shape of something white falling from the sky. It seemed perfectly harmless, but he knew better by now. Nothing was as it seemed, and there were no such things as coincidences. (6)
'Yes, there were many things on this earth worse than death…’
Fin.
--------------------------------------------------
1. Obon is a Japanese holiday that commemorates the dead. It takes place during the 13th-15th of the seventh month (July or August, depending on if you use the solar or lunar calendar) of the year.
2. ‘Ai’ can also mean ‘love’. Yuuko was teasing Watanuki about his crush on Himawari-chan.
3. I’m using Shinsen-Sub’s translations because some of the other ones I’ve found don’t suit my tastes.
4. The italics were taken directly from the anime - they are the words that the Jigoku Shoujo (Hell Girl) speaks to each and every one of her ‘customers’ (as Yuuko would put it) before she fulfills their ‘wish’.
5. Jigoku Tsuushin means Hotline (or Correspondence) to Hell.
6. The feathers! You remember the feathers, no? From episode 13 of the anime when that one girl had wings sprouting from her back?
If you are unfamiliar with Jigoku Shoujo, I highly recommend that you find out about it (try wikipedia or anime news network). It’s a little dark and horror-ish, but xxxHOLiC is like that too in some ways. This was inspired by my noticing Enma Ai’s hairstyle and thinking, “Hey, doesn’t Yuuko have the hime-cut as well?” And they both have red eyes! And then voila, my brain takes off in another direction yet again.
I dislike how I start off with a simple idea or sentence, and it writes itself to be longer than I intended. It produces some interesting results, yes, but I end up spending so many hours trying to figure out how I’m going to go from one topic to another. It’s aggravating!
On a random note, the icon for this post features both Enma Ai (top left) from Jigoku Shoujo and Ichihara Yuuko (bottom right) from xxxHOLiC. I made the icon myself. *preens*
x-posted to xxxholic and FFN
Previous chapters/shots can be found under Crossroads (FFN) or at the challenge table (LJ).
~ Ika
It’s dedicated to you, Nink - ya hear?
Title: Fukushuu
Pairing: N/A
Rating: PG - for mentions of death and the creepiness of Yuuko/Ai that knows no bounds.
Genre: General, Crossover, Horror?
Disclaimer: I own nada.
Warning: As with all crossovers, this fic does not adhere strictly to canon. And my hormone levels are all screwed up right now. I think that’s warning enough.
Summary: There were things in life worse than dying. Of this, Watanuki was sure. One did not have the luxury of remaining completely oblivious to hardships when being cursed with the ability to attract evil spirits, after all. Still, he had never known pure, unadulterated hatred. After talking with Yuuko, he never hoped to.
--------------------------------------------------
Working at Yuuko's shop was like walking down a winding road. Sometimes the ground was straight, sometimes, uneven. Every once in a while, he would stumble across a crossroad, each path leading him to a different encounter.
Crossroads
“Fukushuu - Revenge”
By Hikagi
--------------------------------------------------
“Yuuko-san,” he said as he poured her another cup of coffee. The shopkeeper raised an eyebrow as she helped herself to the cookies Watanuki had prepared earlier in the day. “Do you have a family?”
Yuuko smiled mischievously and picked up her mug. “What’s this, Watanuki - suddenly curious?”
“N-no!” He paused, setting the coffee pot on the table with a frown. “Well, maybe.”
“Ho!” Her eyes lit up this time. “And what made you ask?”
He waved a hand at the air and settled on staring down at the patterns in the wood. “Just… I was remembering something.”
“Ah. I see.”
Yesterday had been the last day of Obon, and their little group (along with a number of other locals) had gathered at Doumeki’s shrine to light lanterns. Watanuki had lit one for his parents and watched as it floated away with countless others on a nearby river, the flames gradually getting dimmer. (1)
Yuuko-san had made a passing comment on how the candles would help guide the spirits back to their realm by gathering around the underworld gates.
“So do you?” He was referring back to his first question.
Yuuko set her cup down and reached out for another cookie. “I suppose you could say that we are related, though I’m not sure if it’s by blood. But we have a few things in common.”
Watanuki waited until she was done scarfing down what little was left of the batch. “Who?”
“Her name is Ai.”
“Ai,” he repeated, trying it out. He liked the sound of that. “That’s a nice name.”
“You think so too?” Then she smirked, looking at him with a sly expression. “Or maybe that’s because you have someone you like?” (2)
He ignored that last statement and pushed towards another topic instead. “And what does she do?”
Watanuki was startled by the fearsome, feral grin that crept on to her face. It wasn’t a particularly pleasant look.
“She grants wishes. For a price.”
Watanuki involuntarily shivered. They sounded like they were family, alright. “Like you do?”
“Hmm…” She paused, bringing her free hand up to her face to tap her chin thoughtfully. “Yes and no. Her specialty has more to do with revenge and delivery.”
“Revenge and delivery? What kind of profession is that?”
Your bitterness, I will dispel. (3)
“An arduous one. And one that cannot be performed just by anyone.” She handed him her mug and he automatically moved to fill it. “Do you remember, Watanuki?”
If you truly wish to eliminate your antagonist then you must untie the red ribbon. (4)
“Hai?”
She was staring at him now with that gaze - the one that looked like it was looking into the deep recesses of his mind and soul.
If you remove the string then you will have officially entered into a contract with me.
“Earlier, when we first met, I warned you. Your name is the bridge to your soul. Your date of birth communicates your past and future.”
Yuuko’s eyes caught the light and they flashed red - redder than he ever remembered considering that he had always noticed his employer’s unusual irises.
The one you seek revenge upon will be taken immediately to Hell.
“Do you remember what I said about taking another’s life?”
She waited, still staring at him. He opened his mouth when he realized that she wanted him to respond.
Know this, if I deliver your revenge, you must make restitution to me.
“That it has severe consequences,” he answered a bit hesitantly after a few seconds.
His legs were starting to go numb from sitting on his feet too long in one position.
When one person is cursed, two graves are dug.
The Dimensional Witch nodded. “Yes. It is a heavy burden. Do you know why?”
Watanuki shook his head, trying not to wince as the movement made his body shift and the prickling sensations in his legs increase.
If you accept this contract, then your soul will fall into the pits of hell.
Yuuko reached out to a small cabinet that was in arm’s reach and took out a thin box. Watanuki recognized it as the one she kept her smoking pipe in.
“The price is eternal damnation.”
Your soul will forever wander in pain and agony never having known paradise.
“Eternal damnation?”
Suddenly, it wasn’t just his legs that were numb. There was a coldness in the pit of his stomach that became more pronounced with each passing second, making him exceedingly uncomfortable.
But that’s after you die.
Yuuko shrugged as she stuffed a bit of tobacco into her pipe and lit it on fire. “Or so people think.”
“Then that means…”
“Ai-chan has made her decision, and has paid the price.” She paused as she inhaled and released the smoke in a steady stream. “No, it is more accurate to say that she has taken upon her shoulders to carry the burden and is still suffering as we speak.”
Watanuki watched the smoke linger in the room and swirl about as if it had a mind of its own.
“Can’t we do anything about it?”
She peered at him with a sideways tilt of her head.
“Don’t you think I’ve already tried?”
--------------------------------------------------
Watanuki was standing in front of the outdoor sinks after gym class, vigorously washing his face and scrubbing the dirt from under his fingernails.
“Argh, that Doumeki! He’s annoying! If he doesn’t tie with me during the track runs, then he gets lucky and blocks half of my shots during soccer!”
He turned off the faucet and reached for his towel, careful not to upset his glasses.
“Hey, did you hear?”
“Nani, nani?”
“About Jigoku Tsuushin!” (5)
“Jigoku Tsuushin?”
Watanuki stopped drying his face when he heard the voices of two senior girls only a few meters away. He snatched his glasses and put them on and then turned his head in the direction of the voices.
“Yeah! They say that if you leave a message on the homepage, you can deliver your vengeance against any antagonist.”
“Really? Sounds amazing.”
“But there’s a catch. Apparently, you die too if you use it.”
“No way! Does such a thing exist?”
By now, he was listening intently, ears straining at every sound. Without being aware of it, he was holding his breath, anxiously waiting for the conversation to continue.
His thoughts echoed that of the second girl. Did such a thing exist? Was it possible? Did Yuuko-san know of this Jigoku Tsuushin?
“Probably. One of my friend’s friend used it, and they said that the boy bullying her went missing the next day.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course!”
The voices were starting to fade and Watanuki found himself unconsciously leaving his perch to follow them, his towel forgotten at the sink.
“It’s true that this world would be better off if some people weren’t around.”
“But they say that the webpage can’t be accessed unless you have a really strong grudge.”
Watanuki jumped slightly when he felt a hand descend on his shoulder.
“What are you doing?”
“D-d-doumeki!”
He tried to give the taller boy a fierce glare, but that was effectively ruined by Doumeki’s impassive face.
“Eavesdropping?” he asked, looking at the retreating figures of the girls. Watanuki could tell from the tone of his voice that he wasn’t impressed.
“N-no way! Zettai! Never in a million years!” He made exaggerated motions to get the point across, but Doumeki was ignoring him by this point.
“Would you use it?” he cut in, stopping Watanuki in the middle of his rant.
Watanuki blinked, confused by the sudden turn in the conversation. “Huh?”
“The rumor those girls were talking about,” he clarified. “Would you even consider something like that?”
Watanuki seemed to shrink in his spot. “I’m not sure,” he confessed. “I’m just thinking about getting rid of this curse. I don’t have time for trivial things such as vengeance.”
“Oh?”
“And besides.” Watanuki pushed his glasses further up his nose and brushed off his shoulders. “There’s probably a catch to it. You probably can’t use it to drive away evil spirits.” He turned around and started walking back to the sinks to retrieve his towel.
Doumeki stayed for a bit longer, watching the other boy with a seemingly bored expression before he followed suit. “They said that the user dies.”
By now Watanuki had picked up his belongings and was making his way back to the classroom. “That’s probably not all there is to it. Yuuko-san hinted as much.”
“Hmm?”
‘After all,’ Watanuki thought, recalling to mind how Syaoran was clutching the pale, limp figure known as Sakura that fateful day, ‘there were things in life worse than simply dying.’
He looked across the school yard and saw the familiar shape of something white falling from the sky. It seemed perfectly harmless, but he knew better by now. Nothing was as it seemed, and there were no such things as coincidences. (6)
'Yes, there were many things on this earth worse than death…’
Fin.
--------------------------------------------------
1. Obon is a Japanese holiday that commemorates the dead. It takes place during the 13th-15th of the seventh month (July or August, depending on if you use the solar or lunar calendar) of the year.
2. ‘Ai’ can also mean ‘love’. Yuuko was teasing Watanuki about his crush on Himawari-chan.
3. I’m using Shinsen-Sub’s translations because some of the other ones I’ve found don’t suit my tastes.
4. The italics were taken directly from the anime - they are the words that the Jigoku Shoujo (Hell Girl) speaks to each and every one of her ‘customers’ (as Yuuko would put it) before she fulfills their ‘wish’.
5. Jigoku Tsuushin means Hotline (or Correspondence) to Hell.
6. The feathers! You remember the feathers, no? From episode 13 of the anime when that one girl had wings sprouting from her back?
If you are unfamiliar with Jigoku Shoujo, I highly recommend that you find out about it (try wikipedia or anime news network). It’s a little dark and horror-ish, but xxxHOLiC is like that too in some ways. This was inspired by my noticing Enma Ai’s hairstyle and thinking, “Hey, doesn’t Yuuko have the hime-cut as well?” And they both have red eyes! And then voila, my brain takes off in another direction yet again.
I dislike how I start off with a simple idea or sentence, and it writes itself to be longer than I intended. It produces some interesting results, yes, but I end up spending so many hours trying to figure out how I’m going to go from one topic to another. It’s aggravating!
On a random note, the icon for this post features both Enma Ai (top left) from Jigoku Shoujo and Ichihara Yuuko (bottom right) from xxxHOLiC. I made the icon myself. *preens*
x-posted to xxxholic and FFN
Previous chapters/shots can be found under Crossroads (FFN) or at the challenge table (LJ).
~ Ika