Growing Pains (YnM, Tatsumi x Watari, #4)
Title: Growing Pains
Author: kitsune_tsuki
Pairing: Tatsumi x Watari
Fandom: Yami no Matsuei
Theme: #4 - Our distance and that person.
Disclaimer: I don't own YnM, I just like to borrow it for a bit.
Summary: Watari gives Tatsumi parenting advice. (This fic takes place right after Masquerade and probably won't make as much sense if you haven't read it.)
Tatsumi feels a bit of...well, relief that this particular party the Earl threw was decidedly better than the last in that there were no untoward surprises. Or at least none that involved property damage or the use of firearms. And somehow, although Tatsumi suspects he knows the reason, he'd been talked around to driving Tsuzuki and Hisoka home while Watari stood off to the side and simply smiled.
Tatsumi isn't surprised when Hisoka waves off their offers of help getting Tsuzuki into his apartment, and decides to wait until the two of them are safely inside before driving home with Watari and 003. He can't really place the emotion he's feeling as he watches them stumble up the walkway to the apartment building, but he's not focused on that so much as he is -
His eyes narrow as Tsuzuki trips and manages to take Hisoka down with him with a flailing arm. He reaches for the seatbelt release and mutters darkly as part of his costume gets in the way, only to be brought up short as Watari snorts in amusement. He looks up to see Watari covering 003's eyes with his hands as though she's far too young and impressionable to witness such an unexpected sight. Eyes narrowing slightly, Tatsumi's not entirely certain Hisoka is, for that matter, let alone -
"I had no idea Hisoka had it in him." Watari says, laughter in his voice as he turns to meet Tatsumi's stunned gaze. "Although Tsuzuki certainly doesn't seem to be complaining."
He definitely isn't, Tatsumi realizes as he watches the scene unfolding before them, Tsuzuki and Hisoka staring at one another like deer caught in the headlights as they try to figure out what just happened.
Clearing his throat, Tatsumi untangles his costume from the seatbelt and forces himself to look anywhere but out the side window.
"Perhaps we should - " Tatsumi breaks off as Tsuzuki grabs Hisoka and plants a very enthusiastic - if somewhat drunken - kiss on his lips. After a moment they pull away from one another and...stare.
Watari laughs again, pulling his hands away from 003’s eyes to give Tatsumi an amused look. "This is going to go on all night, isn't it?"
Tatsumi can't help the smile, even though it doesn't feel right. "Knowing them? I would assume so."
Watari shakes his head and adjusts his costume, frowning a little as he does. "I can't help but feel a little bit like a parent right now."
Carefully looking anywhere but at Watari while he performs an odd little shimmy, Tatsumi focuses instead on the steering wheel. "How so?"
"Well - " Watari growls a little and reaches into his costume and pulls something out, shoving it at Tatsumi. "Hold this for a moment would you?"
Tatsumi reluctantly takes the object in question, wincing inwardly as it...jiggles.
"Thanks." Watari says, taking it back from him and placing it back inside his costume, arranging it to his satisfaction. "I wish I'd managed to come up with a better way to do these before the party. They're a bit tricky to keep in place and - "
Tatsumi closes his eyes and tries very hard not to listen to Watari explaining certain aspects of his costuming difficulties in excruciating detail. It's one thing to admire the craftsmanship of a well-made costume, and something completely else to be caught staring while Watari fiddles with the more delicate parts involved.
003 gives a cry of protest as Watari wriggles and scrambles for the relative safety of Tatsumi's lap. Tatsumi listens to the rustle of fabric and Watari's muttered curses for several minutes, finding himself staring down into 003's eyes after the first two.
"Oh. It looks like they've finally decided to go inside." Watari says, and Tatsumi follows his gaze.
Tsuzuki is still having trouble walking in a straight line, but Hisoka is doing an admirable job of keeping him pointed in the right direction and...Tatsumi can’t quite figure out why that thought feels a little bit uncomfortable.
"You said something about feeling like a parent?" Tatsumi prompts, hoping to change the subject before Watari can go back to discussing his wardrobe problems again.
"Hmm? Oh, that." Watari follows the others with his eyes as they make their way to the front steps and turns to look at Tatsumi. "I'd imagine this is a little like what a parent feels watching their children grow up. Letting them go so they can go on to see what's ahead of them in life."
Tatsumi finds himself staring at Watari, completely at a loss for words, which seems utterly ridiculous as he finally realizes he knows exactly what it is he’s feeling. It’s not a good feeling, having a name for it. Not when he knows -
"It's all right to feel like that, Tatsumi." Watari says quietly, "It's a part of life. Growing up, as it were."
"Watari - "
Watari gestures towards Tsuzuki's apartment building where Hisoka has just managed to get Tsuzuki up the steps. "You're not supposed to stop caring because they move on, Tatsumi."
"What am I supposed to do, then?"
Smiling, Watari shrugs and watches Hisoka give Tsuzuki a shove to get him through the door. "Nag them. Embarrass them. Whatever it takes to let them know you're still there even though they don't need you as much."
"And that’s a part of life too?"
Watari smiles and shrugs. "It's what I've been told, anyway."
Tatsumi takes a moment to think about it, and...comes to a conclusion that isn't as far removed from his initial reaction than he would have liked. But he supposes that it is progress of a sort, and that - Well. Perhaps there is some merit to what Watari's saying. Speaking of which…
"Dare I ask which parent you would be?"
Watari raises an eyebrow and gestures to the dress he's wearing and smirks slightly as Tatsumi scowls. "Were you expecting a different answer?"
Tatsumi gives Watari a dark look and hands 003 back to him as he moves to start the car. "Clearly I hadn't realized the folly of asking that particular question."
Watari winks at 003 as he settles the little owl in his lap. "Well, obviously not. Although..."
Shifting the car into drive, Tatsumi pulls away from Tsuzuki's building while Watari does his level best to traumatize him.
Author: kitsune_tsuki
Pairing: Tatsumi x Watari
Fandom: Yami no Matsuei
Theme: #4 - Our distance and that person.
Disclaimer: I don't own YnM, I just like to borrow it for a bit.
Summary: Watari gives Tatsumi parenting advice. (This fic takes place right after Masquerade and probably won't make as much sense if you haven't read it.)
Tatsumi feels a bit of...well, relief that this particular party the Earl threw was decidedly better than the last in that there were no untoward surprises. Or at least none that involved property damage or the use of firearms. And somehow, although Tatsumi suspects he knows the reason, he'd been talked around to driving Tsuzuki and Hisoka home while Watari stood off to the side and simply smiled.
Tatsumi isn't surprised when Hisoka waves off their offers of help getting Tsuzuki into his apartment, and decides to wait until the two of them are safely inside before driving home with Watari and 003. He can't really place the emotion he's feeling as he watches them stumble up the walkway to the apartment building, but he's not focused on that so much as he is -
His eyes narrow as Tsuzuki trips and manages to take Hisoka down with him with a flailing arm. He reaches for the seatbelt release and mutters darkly as part of his costume gets in the way, only to be brought up short as Watari snorts in amusement. He looks up to see Watari covering 003's eyes with his hands as though she's far too young and impressionable to witness such an unexpected sight. Eyes narrowing slightly, Tatsumi's not entirely certain Hisoka is, for that matter, let alone -
"I had no idea Hisoka had it in him." Watari says, laughter in his voice as he turns to meet Tatsumi's stunned gaze. "Although Tsuzuki certainly doesn't seem to be complaining."
He definitely isn't, Tatsumi realizes as he watches the scene unfolding before them, Tsuzuki and Hisoka staring at one another like deer caught in the headlights as they try to figure out what just happened.
Clearing his throat, Tatsumi untangles his costume from the seatbelt and forces himself to look anywhere but out the side window.
"Perhaps we should - " Tatsumi breaks off as Tsuzuki grabs Hisoka and plants a very enthusiastic - if somewhat drunken - kiss on his lips. After a moment they pull away from one another and...stare.
Watari laughs again, pulling his hands away from 003’s eyes to give Tatsumi an amused look. "This is going to go on all night, isn't it?"
Tatsumi can't help the smile, even though it doesn't feel right. "Knowing them? I would assume so."
Watari shakes his head and adjusts his costume, frowning a little as he does. "I can't help but feel a little bit like a parent right now."
Carefully looking anywhere but at Watari while he performs an odd little shimmy, Tatsumi focuses instead on the steering wheel. "How so?"
"Well - " Watari growls a little and reaches into his costume and pulls something out, shoving it at Tatsumi. "Hold this for a moment would you?"
Tatsumi reluctantly takes the object in question, wincing inwardly as it...jiggles.
"Thanks." Watari says, taking it back from him and placing it back inside his costume, arranging it to his satisfaction. "I wish I'd managed to come up with a better way to do these before the party. They're a bit tricky to keep in place and - "
Tatsumi closes his eyes and tries very hard not to listen to Watari explaining certain aspects of his costuming difficulties in excruciating detail. It's one thing to admire the craftsmanship of a well-made costume, and something completely else to be caught staring while Watari fiddles with the more delicate parts involved.
003 gives a cry of protest as Watari wriggles and scrambles for the relative safety of Tatsumi's lap. Tatsumi listens to the rustle of fabric and Watari's muttered curses for several minutes, finding himself staring down into 003's eyes after the first two.
"Oh. It looks like they've finally decided to go inside." Watari says, and Tatsumi follows his gaze.
Tsuzuki is still having trouble walking in a straight line, but Hisoka is doing an admirable job of keeping him pointed in the right direction and...Tatsumi can’t quite figure out why that thought feels a little bit uncomfortable.
"You said something about feeling like a parent?" Tatsumi prompts, hoping to change the subject before Watari can go back to discussing his wardrobe problems again.
"Hmm? Oh, that." Watari follows the others with his eyes as they make their way to the front steps and turns to look at Tatsumi. "I'd imagine this is a little like what a parent feels watching their children grow up. Letting them go so they can go on to see what's ahead of them in life."
Tatsumi finds himself staring at Watari, completely at a loss for words, which seems utterly ridiculous as he finally realizes he knows exactly what it is he’s feeling. It’s not a good feeling, having a name for it. Not when he knows -
"It's all right to feel like that, Tatsumi." Watari says quietly, "It's a part of life. Growing up, as it were."
"Watari - "
Watari gestures towards Tsuzuki's apartment building where Hisoka has just managed to get Tsuzuki up the steps. "You're not supposed to stop caring because they move on, Tatsumi."
"What am I supposed to do, then?"
Smiling, Watari shrugs and watches Hisoka give Tsuzuki a shove to get him through the door. "Nag them. Embarrass them. Whatever it takes to let them know you're still there even though they don't need you as much."
"And that’s a part of life too?"
Watari smiles and shrugs. "It's what I've been told, anyway."
Tatsumi takes a moment to think about it, and...comes to a conclusion that isn't as far removed from his initial reaction than he would have liked. But he supposes that it is progress of a sort, and that - Well. Perhaps there is some merit to what Watari's saying. Speaking of which…
"Dare I ask which parent you would be?"
Watari raises an eyebrow and gestures to the dress he's wearing and smirks slightly as Tatsumi scowls. "Were you expecting a different answer?"
Tatsumi gives Watari a dark look and hands 003 back to him as he moves to start the car. "Clearly I hadn't realized the folly of asking that particular question."
Watari winks at 003 as he settles the little owl in his lap. "Well, obviously not. Although..."
Shifting the car into drive, Tatsumi pulls away from Tsuzuki's building while Watari does his level best to traumatize him.