This was initially a crazy idea that popped into my head a few months ago that just wouldn't leave me alone. I just wanted to write a spell battle and it turned into this, but I quite like it so it's all fine. Set before Seimei's "death."

01. Dauntless

His body was trembling a little. Maybe it was the cold, maybe it was his fear of being caught, but his body would not stop shaking. He bit down hard upon his lip, hardly daring to breath, as he peeked through the crack between the doors. It was so hard to see.

The adults had gathered. He could not see them well but he knew that they were there. Their voices were clear and distinct in the silence of the night, sometimes sounding too loud, sometimes too harsh.

"I think that we may have found her Fighter."

A male voice. The smell of smoke drifted through the gap; an unaccustomed smell which made his eyes water and his ears twitch.

"But -"

"Her real Fighter," the man said calmly. "That's just one of Nagisa-sensei's experiments. She's nothing but a substitute doll," he gestured to a young girl sitting in a cushioned chair.

He had not noticed her at first; she was wearing black and had almost blended in with the background. Indeed, she sat as though she were a doll, seeing nothing, saying nothing, her expression blank and unreadable. He leaned forward, straining his eyes for a better look.

She was beautiful. Her flaxen hair was almost the same colour as his, but longer and smooth, falling down her back to her hips, her face was calm, like a finely crafted work of art, but her eyes were hollow. Empty. They looked so lonely. He wondered, was she crying? He could see no tears but he thought she might be crying.

Someone moved in front, obstructing his view.

"So, there's nothing like the bond between a real Fighter and Sacrifice after all," another muttered.

"Um…please, wait a moment." Another voice. Not one of the adult's. It was distinctly female and probably very young.

"Honestly, what was that Nagisa-sensei thinking? You can't just create a Fighter for a Sacrifice that already has a name and its own Fighter somewhere else."

"They don't have a high sync rate."

"Look," one of the adults rolled up the girl's sleeve, stepping aside to reveal a pale arm that shone in the lamplight. "The name is gone."

"Please, wait!"

"What will we do with her?"

"Wait!"

He saw her now, the owner of that protective voice. Her face was obscured by shadows. She stood in front of the other girl, raising her arms up to bar them from reaching her. One of the adults stepped in front of her, his arm reaching out to pat her head.

"Now, now, she's no use anymore," he said kindly, a father trying to convince his daughter that it was time to throw out that old, dirty teddy and buy a new one. It was hard to believe that someone with such a voice could say such things. "Whether it's a Fighter or a Sacrifice, without a name, it's like a doll without a face – utterly useless."

XX

Time was ticking by slowly. The hands of the clock counted down the minutes that passed, the faint shadow of the stone sundial slowly shifted across its face. All the greenery was making him restless; the peaceful atmosphere only fuelled his impatience. He continued to wait alone in the deserted courtyard, his gaze flitting from the tall stone buildings surrounding him to the raised flowerbeds surrounded by brick.

Another five minutes passed. His ears began twitching. It always happened whenever he grew agitated. Tail swaying restlessly from one side to the other, he continued to drum him fingers across his arm. Why did those birds have to sing so loudly?

Finally, he could hear footsteps rushing towards him, the sound of panting growing louder. Another boy was racing across the courtyard, leaping over the flowerbeds that obstructed his bee-line path towards the centre. His blond hair was messy and tangled, as though he had just leapt out of bed, but his eyes looked lively and full of energy.

He waved as he reached his goal, crying cheerfully, "Good morning, Kuro-tan!" between loud gasps for breath. "I hope that you're up for a little practice!"

The black ears atop his head twitched again. "Don't say 'good morning' so casually," he grumbled, waving a hand at the clock tower with a look of impatience. "Look, I've been waiting for you for half an hour!" He moved out of the shadow of the tree. The light hit his face, causing him to wince and raise a hand above his head.

Fai's ears pricked in alarm. "Ah, that's not good!" Grabbing Kurogane's hand, he cried; "Come on, Kuro-chan, let's run for it!" and dragged him away from the courtyard.

XX

There was hardly time to stop. A moment later they barged into what looked like a large hall, though perhaps it was a gym, although no equipment was present.

Kurogane took a moment to catch his breath. He brushed off the leaves that had caught to his shirt during their sprint, hardly noticing the two other figures standing across the length of the hall.

"Sorry we're late!" Fai perked up, his voice echoing off of the mahogany walls.

Their opponents smiled understandingly. Both were still in possession of their ears and tails just as they were, but these children were considerably younger than them. He estimated them to be approaching their early teens whilst he was just coming out of that stage.

"It's this guy's fault for not meeting me on time," Kurogane jabbed a thumb in Fai's direction.

"Let bygones be bygones, Kuro-pii!" Fai laughed, instigating an urge for him to grab that energetic yellow tail and yank it for all he was worth.

"So, what's your name?" ignoring his own Fighter, Kurogane directed the question at young girl who was no doubt the Sacrifice of the pair.

"Sakura," she smiled, "and this is Syaoran," she gestured to her Fighter, a young boy with brown hair and eyes who nodded politely as he was called. Although he appeared meek, there was something about him, maybe it was in his eyes or in the way that he held himself, that told of great strength and determination.

"He meant your real name, silly," Fai smiled.

"Real name?" the girl looked confused. "Oh! D - Dauntless," she stuttered, blushing with embarrassment as it dawned on her.

Kurogane caught the slight frown that fluttered over Fai's face, it lived for no more than a second before it vanished beneath a practiced smile. "…That's a nice name," he muttered, hardly loud enough for the two children to hear.

"Let's cut to the chase."

"Kuro-pon always gets like this near a battle," Fai playfully nudged him with an elbow. He shot back a discontent glare and snapped, "Don't call me that!"

Backing away, yet still laughing, he turned to Sakura and Syaoran. "I hope you don't mind if we don't hold back," he smiled disarmingly.

"That's fine," Syaoran stepped in front of his Sacrifice. Though it was a friendly battle, there was a look of determination in his eyes that said that he would not yield to defeat so easily. He held a hand out and yelled, "We declare a spell battle!"

"We accept!"

Light burst forth between the two parties and the hall was enveloped by a dark dreamscape. The polished floors and long, white-panelled windows were swallowed up; wooden walls disappeared and were replaced by a black world, illuminated by the twinkle of distant, ghostly lights.

Fai threw an arm out, as if dispelling the thin webs of a spell designed to trap them. He stood in front of Kurogane, slightly crouched as a though their battle was with fists instead of words, but it was words that he ultimately used as he prepared to initiate the first attack.

"Behind a veil of darkness, you will be forsaken and broken!"

The lights around them blinked out on after another in rapid succession, no smoke arose from their dying flames; they simply vanished from the air.

Bracing himself against the cold that crept in with the growing darkness, Syaoran took a brave step forward, never far from Sakura's side but positioned just before her in case of attack. "In the darkness, we are dauntless. The fire of our resolve burns brightly."

His words brought forth a thousand flames that restored the light to the bleak world. Tongues of fire spewed forward, rising, ready to consume their opponents but were quickly extinguished with a simple spell.

Kurogane watched the two children carefully. He did not doubt that Fai would be able to handle the pair, but even so he would rather have his Fighter finish things quickly than to give them an opening. He did not enjoy playing around as much as Fai did. "Finish it quickly," he ordered.

"Aye, aye, Kuro-chi!" Fai saluted, obviously enjoying their battle, but he did as he was told and stepped up for the next attack. "Water, a rushing tsunami, extinguish their foolish resolve."

A wave of water flooded the world, knocking the children off of their feet. It stung. The water felt hard. For a moment Sakura had the distinct impression of being swept away. She could not see anything, her eyes were stinging. She gasped for breath and felt water flood in through her mouth, hitting the floor hard.

The water slowly ebbed away until it totally disappeared. Coughing up what she had swallowed, untroubled by her own pain, she desperately called for her Fighter.

Kurogane frowned. "Hey, I thought I told you to finish this quickly."

"It's not that easy, Kuro-chan. They're quite skilled for kids."

"Are you okay?" Sakura kept close to Syaoran's side, her expression painted with worry. "I'm afraid I don't understand. Why are they so -"

"Droplets of life that soak the world, freeze to ice!"

Quicker than they could react, the water still clinging to their skin immediately turned into sharp shards of ice that pierced into skin. Sakura reeled back, screaming.

Panicking, Syaoran conjured up a hurried fire spell that melted the needle-like shards, leaving them both panting and breathless.

Yet Fai was relentless. His Sacrifice had told him to finish things quickly and therefore he was not about to waste any more time in battle.

"Explode!"

"Defend!"

Whilst the Fighters continued to release spell after spell, Kurogane observed the opposing Fighter. He was young and skilled, but the boy was clearly reaching his limit. "Hey, kid, it's important to always stay focussed," he yelled.

"Giving them advice? How generous!" Fai beamed.

Sakura crept close, clutching at the sleeve of her Fighter's shirt. "Syaoran-kun, there's something strange about those two."

"Strange?"

"Pay close attention to them," she whispered.

"Alright, I get the message," Fai sighed. His smile wavered a little and his expression softened.

Stepping back in line with his Sacrifice, he reached out for Kurogane's hand, their fingers intertwined by their sides, Kurogane slowly closed his eyes and Fai followed suit.

A sudden current of air erupted around them, catching at their clothes, their hair, their tails, wrapping them in ribbons of white wind. As strength from the Sacrifice flowed into the Fighter, Fai kept his eyes tightly closed and began to chant slowly and steadily, like an actor whose rehearsed lines had been practiced to perfection, but there was something wrong. his words sounded too practiced, they were wooden and hollow.

"We are Faceless. Like a broken doll, though we have a thousand faces, none are our own."

The wind swallowed them whole, swirling around and around until they could no longer be seen.

"None can know us, none can touch us."

The air erupted into fierce gales and the wind seemed to combust. As it died, it left nothing in its wake. The two had disappeared with the wind.

"Light, illuminate the illusion!" Sayoran cried. His words turned the black world white yet still there was no trace of their opponents. Gritting his teeth together, he searched the empty space. Up, down, east, west…despite his spell they were nowhere to be found.

He kept protectively close to Sakura as he scanned the surroundings, straining his ears for the sound of footsteps, searching for a trace of a human figure. They had to be somewhere. They could not leave, no, he knew that they would not leave the battle.

"Syaoran-kun, above!" Sakura screamed.

His neck snapped upwards just in time to catch a flash of white. Lightning fell from the sky faster than he could move; his one thought was not protect his Sacrifice as he heard Fai's voice shout a final spell.

"Break!"

XX

The world was spinning. His head was throbbing so badly that he thought it would split open and his body was aching all over.

As his vision came back to him and the pains in his head somewhat subsided, he found himself sitting on the hard floor next to Sakura, who was doing her best to keep her groans and aching pains to herself.

"Are you two okay?" Fai offered them a hand. "Was that a little too much? Sometimes, I just get carried away," he laughed.

Syaoran shook his head, smiling. "We're fine," he accepted his hand. Fai pulled him up and gallantly offered the girl a hand with a sweeping bow and an inappropriate grin.

"You have potential. You should keep training," Kurogane trailed behind his Fighter, arms crossed over his chest as though they had been fixed there.

"Of course! With a name like Dauntless, people will be expecting big things from you!" Fai gushed. "I like that name." His smile was perfect.

Kurogane frowned and grabbed Fai's wrist. "It's over. Let's go," he said, pulling him away. Fai grinned and waved goodbye.

Sakura and Syaoran watched them leave, they could still hear them bickering all the way to the exit. Their voice carried through the metal door even as they passed it.

"Since I won, you have to treat me!"

"Why do I have to treat you?"

"Well, it's only because I'm such a great Fighter that you don't have a scratch on you…"

Eventually they faded away, leaving the defeated pair alone in the untouched hall.

After a moment, Syaoran finally felt it safe to let a sigh escape his lips. "I'm sorry. I promise, I'll become stronger," he murmured, slightly disinheartened.

Sakura shook her head. "It's okay, but…" she turned her concerned eyes to the exit. "Those two..."

He placed a hand over hers, squeezing it gently. He offered her a reassuring smile and turned as well to look at the door. "I know, I noticed it too." He wondered if those two would really be alright.

XX

Fai sat at the edge of the fountain, enjoying the open sky and fresh air in the courtyard as he swung his legs up and down. Kurogane sat besides him, staring at the sky, knees drawn up as he balanced on the stone edge.

"That was fun," Fai sighed, stretching out all his aching muscles and limbs. "Though I'm jealous of people with cool names, since ours is sort of lame."

"Well, I'm sorry it doesn't meet your approval," Kurogane grumbled, throwing a stone into the fountain. He was feeling particularly irritable today.

He hated it when Fai used that particular illusion spell, not that he was averse to using illusions but the wording just was not to his liking. He supposed the wording was what made it such a powerful spell and was what made him hate it so much. Maybe he should have told him not to use it.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he did not notice the energetic hand being vigorously waved in front of his face. As soon as he snapped out of his trance, he found himself face to face with Fai's cheerful grin.

"Now, about my reward…how about I take your ears!" he piped, reaching out, to pinch the black tips of Kurogane's ears.

"Don't touch them!" Kurogane sharply leaned back and almost fell into the fountain. A faint blush coloured his cheeks. His ears were especially sensitive to others.

"My, aren't you two having fun?" a woman's voice suddenly intruded upon their antics.

Both turned around in unison to the sound of a familiar voice, an unforgettable voice. They stopped as if frozen, their voice falling silent for a moment whilst they overcame their initial surprise.

"What do you want, old ha -"

Fai jumped him, slapping a hand over Kurogane's mouth. "Nagisa-sensei, you look well," he smiled. However, his pleasantries were ignored by the woman, who was focussing her energy in a match of glares between herself and Kurogane.

The woman in black stood before them proudly. She flicked a lock of blue hair from her face, eyes narrowing dangerously. "So I'm old, am I?" she said tersely, never taking her eyes off of the Sacrifice. A wicked grin seeped across her face, though perhaps it was more like a grimace.

"Of course not, Sensei! You're just experienced," Fai tried his best to pacify their teacher.

"Well, in that case, let me tell you what my experience has taught me," she poked a finger squarely between Kurogane's eyes, much to his annoyance as he tried to bat her off. She frowned at his disobedience and intensified her poking. "Let me tell you this!" she announced. "Good things come in matching pairs. That's why I'm working on ironing the bugs out of the Zero series right now."

"Those kids, huh?" Fai murmured, though no one heard him.

"It's much easier this way, wouldn't you agree?" This time, she addressed the question to Fai.

When she was not angry or glaring at Kurogane, she seemed to totally forget his existence. She made it no secret who she preferred between the two, not that Kurogane cared the slightest since, between Fai and Nagisa-sensei, he would grudgingly admit that he preferred Fai as well. He just wished that she would one day leave them both alone instead of showering Fai with that detestable look of pity she always had ready for him, especially since he could guess just why she pitied him.

The only answer Fai could think of was to laugh her off and mutter some non-committal response. Luckily, this appeased her enough. She smiled at Fai, ignored Kurogane, and went on her way with a wave that was meant only for the Fighter.

"I hate her!" Kurogane muttered darkly, glowering at her back.

XX

"Chii-chan is doing well," Nagisa had told him once. How long ago had that been? He wondered if Chii was still doing as well as she had once claimed.

"I'm glad," Fai had said. The news was welcome but there had been something else, something nagging at his mind that he was afraid to ask.

His small hands fiddled in his lap, restless. He always hated making Nagisa-sensei angry. She was so big and tall compared to him and she did not have any ears. He always had the impression that she could be quite vicious, though he had never witnessed her being so before.

Drawing the courage to ask, he had turned to his teacher. "Nagisa-sensei, what happened to Freya-chan?"

Nagisa just wagged a finger back and forth through the air. "Now, now Fai-kun, don't concern yourself with that! She was just a prototype."

A faceless doll someone had once called her.

"I would like to give it one more go though," she had said, more to herself than to him. He thought that she was going to lose herself in thought but she turned to him, gazing right at him expectantly. "Well?" she smiled.

"A faceless doll," Fai echoed, staring at his reflection in the mirror. He wondered why he was always so troubled. Was it those memories which would not let him be? Or was it because of his Sacrifice? Maybe he was simply over thinking things. Maybe he was not thinking hard enough.

Slowly, he unbuttoned his shirt with a hand, fingers working deftly to loosen each button. The white cloth slid away, revealing his name carved upon his chest: Faceless. What a detestable name.

"You're becoming extremely vain."

"Kuro-pon!" Fai almost jumped. Spinning around quickly, he turned to face him as he quickly rebut toned his shirt. "What do you mean by that?" he asked, flustered.

Kurogane was leaning against the doorpost to Fai's room. With a smirk, he shut the door behind him with his tail and walked in, throwing himself into the seat of a wooden chair "You check yourself in the mirror every day, just staring at yourself. Don't think that I didn't know. Narcissus!"

Fai laughed. His hands slowed as the buttons neared his chest. With slight hesitation, he finally finished buttoning his shirt, covering up the name as though it were not fit for the world to see.

"I think I'm more like Echo," he said softly, looking down at his hands that still held on to the collar of his shirt.

Frowning, Kurogane got to his feet. Taking hold of one of Fai's hands, with the other he pulled at the strings lacing the top of his shirt, tugging until the name on his chest could be seen.

"Look. Mine's still here," he said sternly, placing Fai's hand on top of it as proof.

"But -"

He sighed and flicked the tip of Fai's ear as punishment for his foolishness. "Listen, since you're a moron you shouldn't try to think too much. I'm your Sacrifice."

Without meeting his gaze, Fai nodded, though he did not appear too convinced. Kurogane sighed again, pushing Fai's hand from him.

"I'm going to get some rest,' he said, making his way to the door.

Fai nodded wordlessly; his eyes fixed upon his back as he watched him leave. The door slid open and Kurogane stepped out, softly closing it behind him. Fai watched until the door completely blocked his view. By the time he felt as if he should have said something, it was already too late. He was left alone in his small room, gazing at the spot where Kurogane had been.

"Don't disappear."

Wait! I know what you're thinking. 'Why is Fai the Fighter?' 'What's with their stupid name?' and 'Where is Ritsuka and Soubi?' right? Well, when I started writing it just flowed better with Fai as the Fighter and I think the name somewhat fits both of them, though perhaps more Fai than Kurogane. Oh, and Soubi will definitely appear in the next chapter. So...good? No good?