Because Not ALL the Cast Wants into Watanuki’s Pants - Ame Warashi/Zashiki Warashi - xxxHOLiC

[buddha-loves-me.livejournal.com]

Title: Because Not ALL the Cast Wants into Watanuki’s Pants: A Ame Warashi/Zashiki Warashi Ship Manifesto
Author: buddha_loves_me
Series: xxxHOLiC
Pairing:Ame Warashi/Zashiki Warashi
Word count: 2,934 words
Spoilers: Detailed explanations of the entire series, so expect spoilers.
Notes: Firstly, All graphics made by me; scans and scanlations found at onemanga.com.
Secondly, there has been some speculation due to a recent comment made by CLAMP over Zashiki Warashi’s possible gender. Until I hear real confirmation, I’ll continue to refer to Zashiki Warashi as a “she.” Whatever her gender may be, she appears and presents as a female, and is regarded as a female by other characters—so that’s how I’ll refer to her as well.
Thirdly, this manifesto deals only with the manga evidence. While it’s to my understanding that there are many sweet moments between the two in the anime, I don’t personally watch the anime and therefore cannot give accurate analysis on the episodes.
Fourthly, the manifesto title is all thanks to jlarinda

Thank you, and I hope you enjoy the manifesto.




The Series
Everything happens because of Hitsuzen

xxxHOLiC is a relatively new series by CLAMP, a well-known group of manga-ka known for their unique style and noteworthy ability to mesh the popular genres of shoujo and shounen into a unifying blend. The series in question, specifically, deals with a magical shop owned by a powerful witch by the name of Ichihara Yuuko. This shop is special—if a customer wishes it and manages to see and enter the shop, they can have their wish granted, for a price. (Thanks to something called ‘hitsuzen’ which doesn’t really have an accurate translation, though it’s something similar to ‘destiny’).

The characters of ‘holic go through a series filled with mysticism, intrigue, ambiguity, and prevailing themes of inevitability, sacrifice, self-worth, and change. The series deals with the connection between our human realm and the other realm—the spirit world.

This manifesto focuses on two spirits—Ame Warashi and Zashiki Warashi. While their appearances—especially together—are small and far-between, their interactions and characters provide and demonstrate the potential and opportunity for a relationship, one of which I’ll further explain as this manifesto continues on.




Ame Warashi

Ame Warashi is the rain spirit, responsible for the rainfall. From what her canon interaction has shown, she’s a grumpy and irritable individual—with an easily roused temper—as well as a deeply inquisitive and intelligent being. When unhappy, a quick whack from the umbrella she always carries around is not unlikely. She’s impatient, prideful, and distrustful towards humanity. She rarely interacts with the human world—citing that if their constant inability and refusal to care for other non-human beings leaves her to believe them cruel and unworthy of her attentions.

She also seems to have a concern for her reputation. When asked to pay a price for Watanuki’s services by Yuuko, she states to get upset over something so trivial will only make others laugh. And she also gets very angry when Doumeki asks if she’s another spirit—showing that she holds this as a great insult and sees her higher level status as very imperative to her character. She’s also one to make note of someone’s ‘class’, and seems disdainful of those who don’t have any (by her standards).

And yet, she’s not too prideful to ask for help when she needs it, and is willing to say thank you. And the way she’s shown accompanying Zashiki Warashi, someone who is almost a polar opposite to her in character, suggests that she may not be as cruel and grumpy as originally believed. But of course, this does not prevent her from being painfully blunt and willingly stating her opinions, despite what others may feel about it.




Zashiki Warashi

Zashiki Warashi is a vestal spirit, a spirit responsible for watching over houses. In Japanese culture and mythology, they’re pictured as young children who reside in large, old houses. It’s believed that once a zashiki warashi inhabits a house, it will bring good fortune to those who live within the house and should the spirit ever depart, the household is supposedly subject to great decline in luck.

Similar to this, though lacking in the harmless pranks and mischief often associated with the zashiki warashi if Japanese folklore, Zashiki Warashi of xxxHOLiC is child-like and extremely susceptible to evil magic—something that’ll be addressed later on in this manifesto.

Unlike Ame Warashi, Zashiki Warashi is far more reserved, soft-spoken, and timid. Because of this, she hates conflict and tries to avoid making others unhappy. When she first appears in ‘holic, she’s hoping to give chocolate to Watanuki, and when it doesn’t go quite as planned, she begins crying and runs away, showing her complete distress over others’ unhappiness and conflict caused by her.

Despite her bashfulness, Zashiki Warashi has a very strong will. She’d do anything she can in order to help those she cares about, and worries over those close to her. She’s a very sweet individual, and not quite fitting the archetypical belief of a mischievous little child living in an old house. She grows and changes, slightly, throughout the manga.

Zashiki Warashi is introduced and continually appears in the manga as a sweet, naïve spirit with a rather large crush on the main character, Watanuki Kimhiro.




Watanuki Kimihiro

Not an active player in the ship, but I feel that it’s important to explain Watanuki’s effect and influence on the two spirits, for he provides a vital understanding for their dynamic and for many of Zashiki Warashi’s motivations. To deny Watanuki’s importance is to deny an essential part of the ship.

Watanuki is a kind, if not eccentric, young man for whom the series centers. I could write an entire essay on Watanuki’s complex and remarkable character, but it’s not necessary for this manifesto and would be extremely off-topic. What’s necessary to know is that Watanuki has undergone some remarkable evolutions throughout the series; at the beginning of the series he was a loud boy who hated his ability to see. Over the course of the series, he grows, learns, loves, understands his surroundings, and shapes into a remarkable human being.

Needless to say, it’s not too hard to understand just why Zashiki Warashi would have a crush on him. Her introduction to the series revolves around Valentine’s Day and her desire to give some chocolate to him. She pulls out some chocolate from Doumeki Shizuka’s stomach, Watanuki’s friend (my words, not Watanuki’s.) Unfortunately, this causes Doumeki to fall into a coma. Such a dramatic turn of events causes Zashiki Warashi to start crying and fly away, cradling the precious chocolate in her hands.

In the end, after some heroics on Watanuki’s part and some magical assistance from Zashiki Warashi to keep him from plummeting to his death, all is righted. The entire time, Watanuki assumed that Zashiki Warashi wished to give the chocolate to Doumeki. She hesitantly corrects him, hands him the chocolate, and floats away, blushing happily.

When they meet again, Watanuki returns the favor of Valentine’s Day and gives her a White Day gift, much to her delight. It’s clear that she adores him, as she is not good at hiding her emotions and never makes any effort to do so.

Finally, another instance of Watanuki’s influence on Zashiki Warashi’s character, and vice versa, is the spider web arc. In it, Watanuki loses his eye in order to spare Doumeki from the wrath of a spider’s grudge. Through a series of events, his eye falls in the hands of the Mistress of Spiders. Zashiki Warashi, determined to help, goes to retrieve his eye, despite knowing it’d be harmful to her, as she is very sensitive to evil auras, such as the one given off by the Spider Matron.

Now clearly Zashiki Warashi’s feelings cannot be dismissed. Claims can be made that it’s just a shallow crush or a deeper, passionate love. But whatever the case is, it cannot be denied that Zashiki Warashi cares for Watanuki on some level or another. And that, of course, can be quite a road block when you want to ship something else, such as Ame Warashi/Zashiki Warashi. So I better stop making a good case for the Watanuki/Zashiki Warashi ship and get onto my original point, huh?




Together
Subtext between Spirits

So why do I keep going on about Watanuki in a ship that’s obviously about Ame Warashi and Zashiki Warashi together? Because Watanuki is an important part to Zashiki Warashi’s life. And both of their numerous appearances revolve around the young man in some way. But it’s important to understand the two spirits’ natures and dynamic with one another as much as possible.

I’ll start with Ame Warashi, as she is the easier of the two to tackle, at least to me. As explained in her character section, Ame Warashi is a blunt and grumpy individual—clearly caring about her own reputation and status. She cares about things, such as the plant she was desperate to save with Watanuki’s help, but she doesn’t portray any kind of concern for any other person, sans Zashiki Warashi.

I point to two instances. After first meeting Watanuki, and whacking him on the head for wishing the rain would stop, she mutters to herself, pondering over just why ‘that child’ would like this kind of person. Clearly she’s familiar with Zashiki Warashi, and concerned over her enough to wonder just why she would go for a human boy, and one she deemed incompetent and silly.

After Watanuki has completed the task Ame Warashi paid for, and informs him that it was the plant and not the corpse she was worried over, she once again sighs to herself and marvels over Zashiki Warashi’s tastes. She then straightens and warns Watanuki, seriously and albeit grumpily, that he better remember to pay people back on White Day. White Day is, of course, the response holiday to Valentine’s Day in Japan. At first Watanuki is confused and wonders what Ame Warashi meant, until he remembers Zashiki Warashi.

These two scenes, while no doubt silly and very brief, show that Ame Warashi and Zashiki Warashi are familiar with each other—Ame Warashi enough so that she knew of Zashiki Warashi’s feelings for Watanuki and her Valentine’s Day excursion, and enough that she’d care enough to make mention to Watanuki and warn him against forgetting. It also demonstrates that she cares for Zashiki Warashi’s feelings enough to look out for her. If Watanuki were not to give the vestal spirit something, Ame Warashi believes, she’d be very unhappy—and she obviously doesn’t want that. It also seems to me, but this may be because I’m wearing my slash goggles, that Ame Warashi is slightly jealous of Watanuki, hence her little snide remarks over why she’d like “something like this.”

A little harder to identify is Zashiki Warashi’s feelings. It’s quite obvious that she cares and adores Watanuki—the earlier section demonstrates her devotion and feelings for him—but how does she feel about Ame Warashi? It’s a bit more subtle than with Ame Warashi.

Zashiki Warashi, as already explained, is an extremely shy and naïve character. She blushes a lot. A whole, whole lot. And yet, despite all her shyness, she still manages to stay around Ame Warashi and be comfortable around her enough to stand so close to her and travel along with her. And, comfortable enough to possibly share her feelings with Ame Warashi. Of course, this could be simply that Ame Warashi has keen insight and Zashiki Warashi is fairly straightforward when it comes to her feelings for Watanuki.

Of course, this can be dismissed as that she only blushes around Watanuki because she likes him. It’s hard to know for sure, since her greatest amounts of interaction are around Watanuki, someone she does like so intensely. But I like to think that she draws a certain strength from Ame Warashi’s strength and bluntness. It’s hard to know for sure, given their status as minor characters and, therefore, limited interaction with other characters. The fact remains that Zashiki Warashi is seen around Ame Warashi, and Ame Warashi’s earlier comments suggest that they’re quite familiar with one another, and that suggests that Zashiki Warashi is comfortable around her.

The final scene, and most recent scene, where we’ve seen the two they’ve been together and, naturally, visiting Watanuki. He’s just awoken from a very nasty accident, involving some bad luck and a window, and, as Ame Warashi quite irritably explains, Zashiki Warashi was worried. Ame Warashi, for unstated reasons, accompanied her. Zashiki Warashi asks if Watanuki is okay, and he reassures her that he is, smiling kindly. This, of course, drives the poor Zashiki Warashi crazy. Ame Warashi lets him know, as Watanuki looks on, surprised. She then lets him know she thinks him a complete idiot (another example of jealousy, perhaps?)

Watanuki notices that Zashiki Warashi’s voice has changed—as if she’s grown up. Ame Warashi, after making a jab at his petty human senses, states that she grew because of him. When Watanuki asks whether Zashiki Warashi can grow up, Ame Warashi reacts violently, with the return of her umbrella smash. And, yet again, Ame Warashi makes another mention of her bafflement at Zashiki Warashi’s affectionate attitude towards Watanuki.

This scene provides a prime example of Ame Warashi’s ability to observe and assess situations. She knows of Zashiki Warashi’s feelings. She knows Zashiki Warashi’s feelings and can make accurate claims to her motivations, something that takes keen insight… or personal feelings.

Though this scan is not of best quality, when Ame Warashi runs over to join Zashiki Warashi, she looks concerned.. Ame Warashi is a feisty and confident individual, and rarely shows remorse or pity for anyone. But it’s obvious that she cares for Zashiki Warashi. She reassures her that he’s okay and that they can leave now—showing that perhaps she accompanied Zashiki Warashi on this trip so that she could see her reassured. Then, they stand together and leave with their goodbyes.

At the time of this manifesto being written, this is the last we’ve seen of the two.




The Pairing
Why it Works

This was the hardest section for me to write. I avoided it, because I wasn’t sure how to go about explaining how the information above and the characters can create for a pairing that works. I, of course, have my own interpretation of the pairing—and that’s the nice thing about pairings of minor characters: there’s a lot of room for interpretation and wiggle room. The two spirits provide amble opportunities to explore different aspects of their growing relationship.

This pairing is far from canon. There are multiple hurtles that need to be overcome for it to take a step towards a romantic relationship.

To me, after looking at the subtext and evidence, believe that it’s at a one-sided crush on Ame Warashi’s part. Zashiki Warashi is rather naïve and gentle and preoccupied with her thoughts of Watanuki (Ame Warashi said it herself that she thought about him so much her voice changed) that I don’t believe she’d even be aware of Ame Warashi’s feelings for her. Ame Warashi would acknowledge this, but still feel frustrated, which would explain her slightly antagonistic attitude towards Watanuki.

The way this pairing would become mutual, of course, would be for Zashiki Warashi to develop feelings for Ame Warashi beyond friendship and trust. Zashiki Warashi can be near Ame Warashi without getting sick—meaning she has a pure aura—and she does appear with her where she’s otherwise appearing by herself. But Zashiki Warashi’s feelings for Watanuki are rather strong, or at least appear that way, and something must shift in the current dynamic for her to begin to feel non-platonic feelings towards the rain child.

Ame Warashi’s feelings are just as blatant as she is. She cares for Zashiki Warashi, looks out for her, and protects her to the best of her abilities. But she’s also prideful, and would not compromise Zashiki Warashi’s feelings and security for the sake of letting her know her feelings. She may be impatient among others, but I believe she’d be willing to hold onto her feelings and wait until Zashiki Warashi was ready to see the rain spirit’s feelings or to accept them without growing so embarrassed that the comfort they share would be ruined.

A lot about this pairing is speculation. It’s impossible to guess what’s going on behind the scenes. We only have what we’re given. But I believe that Ame Warashi and Zashiki Warashi are familiar enough with each other. I love their relationship regardless, whether it be platonic or non-platonic.

In the end, I believe Ame Warashi’s feelings are pretty clear—but the progression and evolution of the pairing relies solely on Zashiki Warashi and her actions. She cares for Watanuki—though the depth of her feelings isn’t completely known and debateable—and as long as she cares that much for him, the two spirits’ relationship will remain purely friendship. But I believe the potential and possibilities are there to move on to a different level.

Whether it’s romantic or not, they care for one another.




Fandom

Because Ame Warashi and Zashiki Warashi are such minor characters, and the pairing has a relatively small following—in most cases I’ve seen it’s a pairing that’s well-liked but not actively shipped—the fandom has only a few things to offer in terms of Ame Warashi/Zashiki Warashi.

Below is a modest list of fanfiction that I’ve found and enjoyed, and a list of communities to get you started if you wish to find and/or contribute to the pairing. It doesn’t have much, but what it does have is really sweet and, I believe, true to the pairing. There is no pairing-specific community for the two, but the communities below have had instances of the pairing in the past, or the possibility in the future.


Fanfiction:
Gloves and Handkerchiefs by zeeofgreeneyes: Short little one-shot, but the characterization is spot-on.
Blind by stardropdream: Another one-shot, and pretty gen, but deals with the relationship between the two, plus some input from Neko Musume.
Untitled by retsuko: A short, but incredibly sweet, drabble.
Tea with You by zeeofgreeneyes: Another sweet one-shot between the two, set in a café (with some references to Doumeki/Watanuki/Himawari.)


Communities:
holic_girls: xxxHOLiC community dedicated to the female (and seemingly female) characters of ‘holic.
xxx_holic: General xxxHOLiC community
trc_altlove: Community for the pairings that aren’t as popular as the main pairings (accepts both TRC and ‘holic universe).
clamp_yuri: Community dedicated to canon and non-canon yuri couples in CLAMP works.