He knew what the boy was the minute he laid eyes on him, of course.
Still, Syaoran looked so miserable when the girl didn't remember him upon waking that he couldn't help but squeeze his shoulder in quiet support as he introduced himself to the girl. In spite of what the clone was, the half a soul inside him was real. Surely it wouldn't hurt to treat him as a real boy until they found out what had happened to the real boy who owned the soul and had to be out there somewhere.
He considered giving the ninja a heads up while the kids were sleeping, but he wasn't quite sure how the man would react, and until he knew more there wasn't really anything to be done anyway. So he kept it to himself.
Sakura turned out to be pleasant, sweet and absolutely adorable. When he and Kurogane found her asleep in the swampland along with Mokona while Syaoran dove for a feather, there was no reason not to leave her as she was. But he couldn't help sitting down and pulling her onto his lap anyway, wrapping his arms around her.
He would have to be more careful. It would be far too easy to get too attached to these kids and drag them into the mess that was his life, and he wanted to avoid that at all costs.
As much as he would have liked to spare Syaoran-kun, Fai had to admit the cold, hard fact that Sakura-chan's narcolepsy put them at a disadvantage with it being necessary for someone to guard her should they get into trouble while she was sleeping , and they might easily end up in a situation where Syaoran would have to hold his own in a fight. So although he inwardly cringed, he didn't protest when Kurogane started training him in earnest.
Instead, he silently cleaned and dressed the inevitable wounds when they came back.
"Fai-Mommy takes good care of Syaoran!" Mokona chirped.
Syaoran gawked, but Fai just smiled softly. After relentlessly teasing Kurogane (yes, he did know the man's name, but he was just too easy a target to resist), he supposed that was the natural progression of the Daddy joke.
Somehow, it didn't bother him.
One night, it took them longer to come back than usual, so he stayed up with a book. He heard the telltake sounds of stirring upstairs, and then the quiet pitter-patter creeping towards the room, then hesitate. He put the book down.
"You up, Sakura-chan?'' he asked.
A head peeked through the door, and she nodded.
"Come here." He said, stretching his arms out and curling his fingers in a beckon.
She curled up on the couch with him, and they waited together.
It was when he and Kurogane got separated from the kids for half a year in Shura that he realized it – he truly loved them When they found them again it took every ounce of his self-control to let Kurogane's fun run it's course and not run over to them and sweep them up. He made up for it later, mercilessly glomping Sakura-chan and tackle-hugging Syaoran-kun all night.
"Is that really necessary?" Kurogane rolled his eyes.
"Yes." He answered snidely, then pulled them both close.
"I'm never letting you out of my sight again." He promised.
It wasn't long after they landed in the forsaken Acid Tokyo that he sensed it – the fairy tale was coming to an end, and the moment he had dreaded was coming.
He had dressed Syaoran's wounds many times, but this time after the scrap with Kamui was different.
"Really, Fai-san, this isn't necessary. I can do it myself…"
"I know you can." He replied, trying to keep his voice steady. "But just indulge me this one time. You've been through a lot, Syaoran-kun. Let me spoil you a little bit."
It had to be later that night, of course, that he and Kurogane finally had a real fight. Or rather, Kurogane fought and Fai did nothing to stop him. He almost ran out after him and told him everything about Syaoran-kun, but then realized it was better this way. Magic was not Kurogane's forte, this was his territory now, and he'd have to go to a dark place with the boy where Kurogane could be of no help. It was really better that the ninja stay with the Princess at this point.
The next morning, he went to Sakura-chan and curled up with her for a half hour, just watching her sleep.
"I don't know what's going to happen, Sakura-chan, but I swear I'm going to do everything I can to bring him back to you in one piece when the time comes." He smoothed her hair back and kissed her forehead. "Good dreams, sweetie."
One look at Syaoran-kun, and he knew it would only be a few more hours. He stayed remarkably calm, and put on such a good act that Kurogane didn't even sense anything amiss when he wheedled him into staying behind. He even put on a show for Syaoran-kun, not wanting to scare him prematurely. After all, the poor boy had no idea what he was.
He thought he would get a chance to split them away from the recon group when the time came, but these things never turn out as planned. Instead, something went wrong under the water between Syaoran-kun and Kamui. Dammit. Why now, of all times?
He didn't even really think before diving into the reservoir, only taking a split second to entrust a stunned Mokona to the little girl who seemed the safest bet.
Because, after all, that's the kind of things that mothers do.