Hello! Moonpupluver here!

My my my...It's been a while since I've made a fic. After all I'm too embarrassed to show my face around here when I don't finish one of them. sigh

I have hopes that this one will be completed though...Ah! Before you read, I must mention that there will be some OC's placed in the story. Don't worry, they won't become Mary Sue's or whatever, since none of them are female and Sakura belongs to Syaoran. (Poor Tomoyo XD).
Anyways, I just put them in because slowly I want to graduate from Fanfiction and eventually start my own writing. Not that there is anything wrong with Fan fiction. So enjoy the love that is SyaoranxSakura and KuroganexFai!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tsubasa and the characters in it, although I do own one of the characters, it was not made by the soul stealer's CLAMP. Use my character without permission and you will kindly have to slip on a banana peel, roll over and die :P

It was long after closing hours and the stars could finally be seen across the peaceful night sky. Not that being in an alley way was the best place to view them, but the young man carrying a bag of trash didn't have much choice. He would have to quickly return and serve his late customers and he somehow wished he could just stay there in the nice breeze...the breeze that smelled like who knows what considering the how close he was to the bag of trash and for a moment his stomach churned. With a look of utter disgust, he placed a hand to his mouth, as if he was going to gag, and then quickly covered his nose.

Yup, it was a typical day, same thing, nothing new for the raven-haired man. He quickly walked up to the large dumpster, and with a giant heave, threw the waste nearly missing. Looks like he was lucky today. He cringed at the thought of having to clean up a mistake again due to his unbearably short height.
Looking back up to the sky, something unusual caught his eye. He even removed the hair draping carelessly over his injured left eye, just to be sure. There was no doubt about it. It was a shooting star! Without hesitation, he closed his eyes and muttered a wish, a silent prayer, before opening them and seeing yet another strange thing. This time he must have been seeing things because if he didn't know any better...It looked like the sky was opening up!

And it contents were heading straight towards him?

"Great! I make a wish and it's the end of the world!"

The man quickly ducked behind the dumpster and landed with a hard thud on the floor, getting his uniform covered in dirt and other unmentionables. He groaned. So much for luck... Before he could get up and examine the damage made to his shirt, he heard a loud thud come from in front of the dumpster, scaring him stiff.

"We've arrived in the next world Puuu!"

Was that a voice?

Pushing himself off the ground, he crawled closer to the edge of the bin to try to look from behind it.

"You call that arriving? You Damn Manjuu bun! We're in the middle of an alley of who knows where and thanks to you, the brat and I almost landed in a garbage bin!"

Okay so I'm definitely not hearing things...Maybe if I take a quick glance-

Squish

"Ew..."

Oh no! I hope that they didn't hear-

"Shh! I think there's someone behind there!"

Damn…

He peeked from behind his hiding place to find five pairs of eyes staring at him. All of them were dressed differently and were staring at him as if he were a homeless street beggar. Not that he didn't look the part...Well this was awkward...

He sighed, got up and moved away from the dumpster to reveal himself fully.

"Er...Hello?"

"We apologize if we frightened you. We didn't mean to..." Fai tried to continue, but he couldn't hide the hint of amusement in his voice. He took another sip of his tea and then turned to look at his companion in black, "Of course anybody would be scared of mister scary Kuro-pon!"

Fai watched as Kurogane spat out what he had drank from his cup of coffee and turned to look at him enraged.

"What did you just say? You're the one who'd frighten off everyone with your crazy ideas and nicknames!"

It was a lame response, but cute and acceptable nonetheless.
To praise him, Fai gave a cheery laugh that only succeeded in making Kurogane snort and turn the other away fuming. Still amused, Fai glanced at their young black haired host and smiled.

"Ah don't worry about him; he's always grumpy like this-"

3...2...1...

"Don't talk about me as if I'm not here you damned mage!"

Yup right on cue!

Pretending to ignore the comment, he spoke to the other man, "Thanks for letting us stay here. We're travelers and we don't really have any money right now so..."

"It's alright. I'm sure we can arrange something," the other interrupted while brushing away some strands of hair from his eye. He was wearing different clothes now, and Fai wondered what the man had been doing behind the giant trashcan in the first place.

"So then I'm assuming this if your first time visiting here?"

"Yup!" he grinned but then faltered when he realized something.

"Ah it seems we haven't introduced ourselves yet huh?" Fai drank some more tea before continuing, "You can just call me Fai and over to my right is Kuro-"

"Kurogane!"

The other man and he stared at the ninja oddly, Fai pretending as if he had no idea why Kurogane wanted to say his own name.

"Right, like I was going to say..." he continued slyly and Kurogane gave a grunt and glared at his cup, "And the boy asleep on the couch is Syaoran-kun. Next to him is Sakura-chan. It's been a long day and both of them were tired...and you?"

The black haired man flushed, "You may call me Kihaku," He said, giving an elegant bow, "I'm the Hotel and Cafe keeper and-"

"We can tell, now where the hell are we anyways?" Kurogane decided to interrupt impatiently, making the other flinch.

To Fai, It seemed like Kuro-tan didn't like this guy very much...then again Kuro-sama hardly took a liking to people easily.

"You mean you don't know?" Kihaku straightened and gave Kurogane and him odd looks, "This is the town of Sochiro, the home of the biggest Carnival in the country!"

Awkward Silence

"Carnival?" Fai questioned a bit confused, he turned to look at Kurogane who only frowned at him.

"Yeah, it's too bad you got here late, you missed out on all the bright lights, sugary smells and strange music. People just can't seem to get enough of this place; we even built this Inn here for people to stay."

Fai gave an excited gasp. This Carnival thing seemed like something fun. It reminded him of Edonis and Oto for some reason.

"But were not here to spend time in your stupid whatever it's called." Kurogane retorted, crushing Fai's fantasies of having a good time.

"Oi Manjuun bun! Wake up!"

"Mokona is Mokona!" It replied, waking out of its sleepy haze. Mokona popped out of Sakura's sleeping arms and hopped to the counter that they were sitting at.

"Do you sense any feathers or not? If not, that way we can get the hell out of here!" Kurogane all but growled a poor Mokona. Fai heard Kihaku gasp in shock, but made no deal about it. After all, that was the normal reaction people gave when it came to Mokona. He guessed that there were no such magical creatures here.

The white little manjuu bun, as Kuro-wan so meanly called it, closed it's eyes in concentration, and he looked so adorable Fai wanted to just hug it.

"Mokona senses it...but it seems a bit far..."

"A Bit Far?"

"I'm sorry, but did you just say feather?"

Everyone turned to look at the Inn keeper as if he had said some sort of taboo, and when the man didn't say anything Fai asked, "Yes we did...you wouldn't happen to have any information on it would you?"

Kihaku's face immediately paled and he shook his head, his hair covering his left eye again. His visible eye then diverted its gaze downward.

"Er...no, but it seems strange that a group of travelers would be looking for a simple feather...Ah you must be tired! It's already three in the morning and I'm sure the kids and you would like some rest...Let me make the preparations, it should take only a few minutes"

Slumping down the counter, resting his chin on his arms, Fai watched as the black haired man wandered into another room. He turned to look at Kurogane, who was busy finishing off his tea.

"The man seems suspicious..." Was all the ninja said before placing the cup back on the counter and walking off towards Syaoran and Sakura, hand connected to his sword.

"Kuro-wan thinks everyone is suspicious...but I agree. He seems to know more than he lets on."

Kurogane turned to roll his eyes at him in annoyance and Fai gave him a knowing smirk.

There was a connection between him and Kurogane and both of them knew it. It was what Fai thought had attracted him to the ninja in the first place. They found themselves thrown together in many situations, even without the kids sometimes, throughout the course of their trip. It sometimes seemed...inevitable...or what was it that Yuuko-san called it? Hitsuzen? Whatever it was, it just seemed to grown the bond between them.

"I'm back! It seems like I only have one room left but it has two beds and a futon. Is that alright with you two?"

"Its fine," he said kindly and then looked at the big puppy for his opinion, not that it mattered anyways.

"Whatever, just tell me what room it is so I can carry the kids there..."

They both watch as Kurogane lifted first Syaoran then Sakura carelessly over his shoulders and then turned to look at them irritated

"Well?"

Beside him, Kihaku gave a startled jump and blushed, "This way then..."

"LIKE HELL AM I SLEEPING WITH YOU!"

"Kuro-tan hush! You'll wake up the kids...and the whole Inn included."

Kurogane growled enraged. He oh so badly wanted to pull out his sword and slice the mage in two right then and there. His excuse was that he didn't want to clean up the mess afterwards and scare the kids when they woke up. He was going to continue his list of excuses with said mage clung to his arm and started whining.

"But I get so lonely in the middle of the night! Besides there's only three beds. We can't put Syaoran-kun with Sakura-chan because who knows what will happen and-"

"And I'm not sleeping with you and that's final! I don't even want to know where the hell you got that stupid idea! You've slept alone just fine for the past worlds and I'm not going to do anything to change it!"

He crossed his arms, so that forcefully the other man would have to let go.

"But what about that time in Shura?"

Kurogane could only gape at the man,

"There was no time in Shura!" he practically screamed, earning another hush from Fai.

The stupid blond man was teasing him now and he was going to take no part in it.

"Look, the princess sleeps in one bed, the brat in the other and you on the floor. I'll just sleep against the wall or something..."

Kurogane watched the man pout pathetically, "Kuro-sama is no fun... and I can't sleep well on futons!"

"Tch...Who ever said I was fun? Just deal with it and go to sleep."

Fai didn't seem to know what to say next, so to claim his victory he smirked and the other stuck out his tongue childishly.

He slid on the floor, leaning against the nearest wall and expected the mage to follow suit by going to his own bed, but the other man never ceased to confuse him. He watched curiously, as the mage placed the covers on the princess's and brat's bed over them, tucked them in, and gave them, including the manjuu bun and small peck on the forehead. It was true, Fai acted just like the silly mother he claimed himself to be. This in turn caused Kurogane to ponder if he himself did too act like a father to the kids...well whether or not it was, like hell if he was ever going to admit it.

"Goodnight..." was all he heard the mage mutter to them before getting into his own bed and turning to face him.

"Looks like we'll need to investigate this so called carnival in the morning huh?" his companion said before giving a small yawn, "We should have fun while we're at it..."

Kurogane frowned, "I just want to find the feather and get out of here so I can go home already."

Fai looked like he was going to say something, then paused, then considered it again. Sometimes Kurogane wished that Fai wouldn't hesitate to tell him anything, that if he had something to say, he might as well just spill it. He was tired of all these secrets from the mage.

"Is that really all you ever think of?" Fai questioned with a trace of sadness in his tone.

That was a stupid question that wasn't really worth answering, but since he had bothered to ask, he might as well reply.

"Isn't escaping all you ever think of? Isn't that man all you ever think of?"

Kurogane knew he had struck a chord, because the man before him fell silent and paled,

"Going home was my wish, and when it comes down to it, when we get there I will stay. It's not my problem that when this quest is all said and done, you and the white thing will probably still be traveling dimensions alone."

He knew it was harsh to say, but when had he ever held back? It was the truth and the mage had to face it already.

"This was your choice and it has nothing to do with me."

It was something he wanted to convince the mage of, but he was having a hard time believing it himself.

He searched for the mage's facial reaction, only to have him turn the other way. Fai knew that Kurogane could see his emotions by just looking into his eyes. It was something he had learned to do in Shura, with the manjuu bun not being there and all.

Touches were another thing. Kurogane was never fond of people touching him, but Fai had been constantly clinging to him as if his life depended on it and every time the mage's fingers brushed his skin, he had a feeling that there was some emotion behind it. Sometimes enough feeling to cause the hairs on Kurogane's body to stand from the chills, but he blatantly ignored them.

Kurogane felt himself easily drifting off but before he could, he heard a loud shifting and then his cold shoulder being replaced by a heavy warmth. He cracked a crimson eye curiously to see the blond slumped against him, head on Kurogane's shoulder and lightly wrapped around a light blanket. He had even gone as far as wrap his arms around the ninja's own arm.

He shook his head at the mage in disappointment, but he was too tired to fight him off and well...he looked peaceful for once. He felt his face heat up a bit, but quickly dismissed it, closing his eyes again.

"Night...mage."

Ah I hope my OC doesn't ruin the fic, or I will have to scold him for not being interesting enough lol.

I won't be hard on him though, because he's extra sensitive, right Kihaku-kun?"

Kihaku: Huh?

Me: You see? Look at that cute innocence! pets him

Kihaku: I don't know what you're talking about...

Me: Anyways I hope you like because the next chapter won't come out in a while due to a road trip that I'm taking. makes shifty eyes and looks at the review button Yoroshiku onegai shimas bows And see you all in a few weeks!

Sneak preview for the next chapter: It's a bright, sunny day to go to the carnival and love is just waiting to cause mischief! Who's that pair walking into the tunnel of love? Also, are those some old faces of friends? And who are those new people?

Find out in the next Next Chapter: Love Carnival of Surprises!