The Clarity of Assumption
An XXXholic fanfiction
Written by mindpaper
Chase after truth like hell and you'll free yourself, even though you never touch its coat-tails.
-Clarence Darrow (1857-1938)
This takes place during an undefined time in xxxHolic, after Watanuki's accident in volume 10 of the manga. Spoileriffic, so if you haven't read that far then please read at your own risk.
This also is a Douwata fanfiction, so if you are not a fan of the pairing, please read it with a grain of salt.
Chapter 1: Without a doubt in my mind
"Himawari-chaaaan!"
A young girl with lush, curled black hair turned to the approaching young man and smiled brightly. The bright yellow bird on her shoulder chirruped cheerfully. "Ah, Watanuki-kun! You're here early!"
Kimihiro Watanuki waved energetically until he reached her side, out of breath. "Yeah—I figured that today, I would have to catch you early in order to give you bento—since you have class rep meetings during lunch hour. So I got up early, so I could see you and Tanpopo!" He smiled at the bird, who chirruped happily.
Suddenly, Watanuki's happy smile turned sour. "I ALSO had to get up early because of that jerk Doumeki and his inhuman demands. Seriously, who asks for fire-baked yams in the middle of spring? It's a winter food! I had to go outside and light a fire in the front yard after digging around for as many leaves as I could find—all the tenants were looking at me funny." He scowled as Himawari began to giggle. "He just wants to get a rise out of me. Honestly."
"But I like that about you two," Himawari smiled as Watanuki facefaulted. "It's so cute. But I guess there's no chance of it happening today…"
Watanuki gave her one of his familiar blank stares. "Huh? What do you mean?"
They began walking towards the front doors of the school building. "Doumeki-kun hasn't shown up yet. Usually he's here before I am, since he's an early riser. But if he hasn't come by now…" she frowned a little. "I'm pretty sure he must be preoccupied in some way."
Watanuki looked down at the bento he was carrying. "Preoccupied… huh…? It's not like him to not tell you in advance."
Himawari turned to face him. "Exactly. I suspect that he must be busy… or sick."
He laughed. "Whaaaat? Are you serious? I doubt it. That guy… that guy couldn't get sick." He watched as Himawari reached into her jacket pocket, pulled out a small cracker, and began feeding it to a slightly antsy Tanpopo. "That just doesn't happen to a guy like him."
"Well, why couldn't he? Everyone does, once in while."
"But it's spring! We've been outside all season, and have been so busy at school—I can't think of any reason why he would be sick!"
Himawari watched Tanpopo finish the cracker, and gave Watanuki a serious look. "You're probably right. He lives a very healthy lifestyle…"
Watanuki looked at the ground. "Well…but… recently, he's been through a lot, hasn't he?" Himawari's expression softened.
It had only been a few weeks since Watanuki had fully recovered from his injuries. After that incident, Yuuko-san had restored him to his former state of health—but only after his two friends—Himawari and Doumeki-- had paid her with intense sacrifices. He was not to know what Himawari had done to save his life—Himawari herself forbade Yuuko-san from telling him. But Doumeki… had given him his blood. Equal to the amount that he had lost in the incident, which apparently was quite a bit. According to Yuuko, it had weakened Doumeki for several days. Even earlier than that, Doumeki had given him half of his own right eye, because Watanuki had lost his.
That jerk… making so many sacrifices for him…
"Watanuki-kun, it has been weeks since then…" Himawari said softly, touching his arm. "I doubt that it had anything to do with this."
Watanuki smiled slightly. "R..right. After all, this is that tenacious guy we are talking about." Noticing her worried expression, he made a nonchalant motion with his hand. "He's probably at home, helping out with the temple. I wouldn't worry about it, Himawari-chan. More importantly…" he lifted the large bento, wrapped with a furoshiki, and took out a smaller box. "Take this! I made croquettes this time."
Himawari put down her bag and took the box with both hands. "Thanks so much, Watanuki-kun! I look forward to your bento so much each day—my classmates will be very jealous of my lunch!" She flashed her joyous smile at him, which had the potential to render him unconscious with the sheer energy she exuded. But surprisingly he stood firm, unaffected.
"I'd better get to class, then! See you, Watanuki-kun…" she waved as opened the door to the main building. "Ah, I almost forgot! I'm so sorry, but I have to go home later today—I know you have work, so please go ahead without me today."
Watanuki smiled. "I will! Thanks for letting me know." He watched her wave one last time before disappearing behind the swinging doors. Gripping the furoshiki tightly, his smile faded. "Sick… huh…" he muttered to himself. "That jerk… it's impossible. I should just forget about it—he'll probably show up for lunch at the usual spot."
Lunchtime came, and Watanuki waited on the steps of the auditorium. The minutes flew by unnoticed, and only in the last few minutes of the break did he realize that Doumeki hadn't come. He tried to eat quickly, but wasn't feeling very hungry. The rest of the day crawled by. Feeling antsy during class, he excused himself for a bathroom break. While walking in the hall, he passed by the adjacent class—the one Doumeki was in during this period. As he passed the door, he suddenly had a thought—why not do a little peeking to see if that jerk had shown up? He usually sat closest to the outside window in the back row. He cast a sideways glance as he strode past the window, scanning for the tall, golden-eyed stoic. But all he saw was a row of students that he didn't recognize, and an empty seat.
Wait… an empty seat?!
He looked forward again in consternation. He was absent, after all. Jeez, that moron… what was he up to? Where was he? He hadn't mentioned that he would be absent any time this week—last time he was absent from school, his family was visiting extended family in a different province, so he took a day off. This was a Friday—it wasn't impossible that he went on another family trip. He scoffed to himself. What was he so worried about? He shouldn't worry—he'd probably show up on Monday and say, "I was on another family trip, blah blah blah. Why, did you want to come too?" He frowned in pre-determined anger. He had the worst attitude…
…But even with that bad attitude, he was always really good about telling them where he was. He would have mentioned something, at least…
Watanuki shook his head. He had to stop thinking about it. Why should he care…? Nothing fazed that guy. Even if he was sick, he'd be able to take care of himself... and his family would take care of him too. He had nothing to worry about.
Absolutely nothing to worry about.
Thanks very much for reading! Chapter 2 to follow.
Translations and insiders
Bento- a Japanese-style lunchbox that developed as early as the Kamakura period (1185-1333). Usually consists of a 4:3:2:1 ratio- 4 part rice, 3 part sidedish (meat or main course), 2 part vegetables, and 1 part pickles or dessert. It is considered a great skill to be good at making bento, especially amongst housewives. Good thing Watanuki knows his stuff, huh? He makes a great housemaid.
Furoshiki- a simple piece of cloth that is used to tie up a bento box for easy transport. Watanuki always carries one with him when he travels with his famous packed lunches.
Croquette- a potato patty that has been battered and fried. Usually spiced with a variety of things, and is a favorite in bento.
Baked yams- yams are usually baked as a snack in winter or fall, by lighting dead leaves that have fallen from the trees. One wraps the yam in a covering (usually aluminum foil) and buries it in a pile of smoldering leaves.
copyright mindpaper 2007