Away From Me, a tsubasa chronicle fanfic

Author's Note: This is just a one shot. I got myself thinking about the most recent chapters of the Manga and these are my thoughts of things that could come out of them...and my own interpretation on some of the vague parts throughout the chapters. This is just a friendship not romantic story, ok?

'…Fai…' her pleading voice reached out to him.

'…Chii?' he replied, at first happy to hear her voice once more…then…

'…Fai…' her voice had dropped to nothing more than a whisper, her fear evident.

'…Chii, what's happened? You can tell me…' he spoke trying to soothe her like he used to.

'…Fai, something threatens to awaken Ashura-ou…and the source…it's…it feels like…like…'

'…Like me…' he whispered in realization.

Fai sat up in his bed, his breathing ragged and sweat running down his forehead. He felt as though he might be sick. '…Oh God…why Celes? I would have followed you anywhere…but not there…' he thought, as he reached up and placed his left hand over the patch that now covered where his eye had once been.

The light from the sun was beginning to pour in through the curtains which could only mean that it would be sooner rather than later that they would depart from this world. What if Mokona sent them directly to Celes? What if…what if…

His thoughts were shattered as a knock came from the door. He slowly took a deep breath trying to calm himself but his voice betrayed him, "…Come in…"

The door knob turned and when Fai looked up he found Kurogane standing in the doorway.

"C'mon the kids and the manjuu are waiting," informed Kurogane in an annoyed tone of voice until he got a good glimpse at Fai.

His mask was faltering, he could feel it and he was becoming more panic stricken by the moment as his thoughts ran to Chii…what would happen to her? Yes, she was merely a creation…but she was more than that.

Kurogane looked down the hallway to make sure that neither the princess or the kid—and especially not the manjuu—were in sight before quietly closing the door.

"…Alright, what's wrong?" he asked, trying hard to stay calm, he had never seen Fai so scared before.

Fai just sat there on the edge of the bed, trembling; his thoughts absorbing him into the darkness of it all.

"Oi, mage?" questioned Kurogane, now standing in front of him, "Do you need to—

Fai pushed the wrist that had been offered to him away and turned his head with a look of disgust on his face. Leaving Kurogane in a rather confused frame of mind; however, he placed his hand in his pocket and took a step back.

"What's wrong with you today?" he tried once more, this time getting Fai to look up.

"…This is where we part ways I'm afraid…" he began, trying to put that fake smile of his back onto his face.

Kurogane arched an eyebrow, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Fai stood up and walked over to the window, drawing back the curtain to get a better view of the city before him. "I can't travel with you or the children any longer," he replied, his acting skills returning once more.

Kurogane stood there in a daze; here the damn mage was saying such nonsense this early in the morning—obviously thinking that he was merely trying to get a rise out of him.

"Very funny, let's go dammit," informed Kurogane before heading toward the door with a sour look on his face.

The atmosphere became very cold as Fai replied in a tone of voice that was not only serious but deathly calm, "I said no."

Kurogane froze in his tracks before slowly turning toward the mage, "What the hell is wrong with you today?" he asked the annoyance and frustration evident in his voice, Fai seemed like an entirely different person.

"I can never go there…" began Fai, before looking away, "…not where the Syaoran we once knew is…"

Kurogane's eyes widened, "You know where the kid…" he trailed off then began once more, "where he is?"

"…Hai…" replied Fai in almost no more than a whisper, "…he's in…" he took a deep breath, the word on the tip of his tongue, "…Celes…"

"Celes? Isn't that your home?" Kurogane made a fist with his right hand and grinned, "We just tell the manjuu to take us to Celes and this thing might be over—

"No!" cried Fai much to his own surprise and Kurogane's. Kurogane looked at him and suddenly blinked realizing just how nervous the mage was.

"…No…" he whispered, regaining his composure, "…I will never…never go back there…for he's there…"

"You're not talking about the brat are you?" questioned Kurogane, his tone of voice serious but calm.

"…The other Syaoran possesses half of my magic; it would be enough to awaken…him…" his voice was cold and stripped of emotion as he stared at the room in front of him, his eye not trying to capture any object in particular.

"Him? The one you've been running from?" probed Kurogane, trying to grasp what Fai was so afraid of.

"Hai…Ashura-ou…" the name was like a thousand daggers going into his heart as the king's face flashed in his mind.

"Well then stop talking nonsense, we'll take the brat and this so called king down with us when we arrive," he announced with a smirk appearing on his face only to be shot down.

"Are you not listening to me?" wondered Fai as he turned around, his blue eye coursing with magic and anger in his voice. "I can never go back there. What part of this don't you understand?"

Kurogane was taken back, he could feel his own anger beginning to rise, the mage had to have some reason for becoming so angry…but this wasn't the man that he had been traveling with all these months…or was it? He couldn't be sure anymore; the mask was gone and the aura had changed…he had truly become someone to take seriously in only a matter of seconds.

"Then explain it to me you damn mage," Kurogane practically growled, trying to hold back all of his anger in an attempt to try and understand the situation.

"Explain it to you? I tell you I can't go back there and you can't understand that?" again with the same cold tone and expression.

Kurogane clenched his fists, it was taking ever ounce of his being to not walk over to the damn man and give him a proper beating in hopes of knocking some sense into him; however, he felt best to stand his ground.

"Yeah, you heard me. What's got you so afraid? What the hell could this guy possibly have done to you that would make you abandon the princess? Didn't you ask her if you could stay with her?" he waited and heard no reply from the Mage of Celes. "Well dammit? Answer me!" he yelled, his patience now wearing thin.

Fai looked straight at Kurogane, sadness reflecting in his eye, "Should I take her there to watch me die then?" he asked, all emotion drained from his face in the blink of an eye.

Kurogane could feel every muscle in his body tense up as he continued, "Or should I watch her die at the hand of Ashura-ou? It's your turn to answer me now, Kurogane."

Any evidence of a bond that they had once shared due to traveling was gone. There was no emotion, no feeling to Fai's question; this was a man who had died inside a long time ago and who possessed a talent for acting. No! That wasn't true…Fai had begun to open up to them…it hadn't all been a lie. Kurogane knew it couldn't have all been a lie, not the way that he saw him interact with the children and the annoying manjuu. So why was he trying so hard now to distance himself from their group? Didn't he realize that if they found the other Syaoran then he could become human once more?

"So you'd rather run then face this king of yours?" Kurogane practically spat the words, he hated cowards. "So he's a terrible king, what'd he do?" he hadn't even noticed that he had walked up to Fai, "Huh?" he questioned giving him a push, "Well? Speak up mage, I can't hear you."

Images flashed before Fai's eyes…

"I want to die…I want to die…" his pitiful voice cried out to no one, as his let his hand slide down the wall once again, the tiny barred window in front of him. The cold snow filled prison and his shadow on the floor his only company, as he once again reached his frostbitten hand up and touched the bars of the window. "…I want to die…" he moaned, "…but before that…I want to be loved by someone…before I die…"

Kurogane took a step back realizing that he had let his anger get the better of him and it had obviously pushed the mage too far. He could see the sadness seeping out of Fai and realized that perhaps some memories were too terrible to put into words, but something told him he had to try.

"…Oi…" he began, taking another step away from him in hopes of clearing the air, "…look, all I'm saying is that the princess and the manjuu need you. You want to abandon them, then fine. I'm not going to be the one to tell them though," he muttered, looking at the vacant look on Fai's face, before turning to leave.

"I want to be loved by someone…before I die…"

He took her frostbitten hand in his own, "I'm a magician who can't heal your injuries…but would you let me stay with you?"

She looked up in disbelief and tried to smile, "no matter if you can or cannot use magic, Fai-san is Fai-san," she whispered, looking like she wanted to cry.

Before closing his eyes he brought her hand to his lips and made a vow... "My one and only princess…"

"…Wait…" his voice was no more than a whisper and Kurogane had almost missed it, his hand had already been on the door knob.

"What?" he replied, standing with his back to him, his hand on the knob, wondering how the princess was going to deal with another loss.

"Allow me to tell you a story…before you go..." his voice had returned to its normal tone, but the overwhelming sadness still remained.

Kurogane sighed and removed his hand from the knob before walking over to a chair and having a seat. "Well?"

Fai remained standing, he even tried to crack a smile, "…There was once a magician whose one desire was to be needed…"

Kurogane arched an eyebrow as he continued his tale…

"Your highness…this Fai D. Flowright…he's far more powerful then we could have imagined, do you think its wise to let him remain free?" asked one of the palace guards, bowing before his lord.

"…I'm quite curious to learn of a man whose power exceeds my own…in fact having him in the palace would make it easier for me to monitor him…" replied the king before dismissing the guard.

"Fai, you and I have become very close wouldn't you say?" asked Ashura, sitting on his thrown, Fai on his right with staff in hand.

"Hai, I guess you could say that we've become good friends Ashura-ou," replied Fai with a smile, "I feel I can trust you with anything."

"Yes…friends in deed we have become…and I too share the same feeling" commented Ashura as he returned the smile.

"Fai your skills are truly amazing…in fact they even exceed my own…" stated the king, as he watched the magician.

"Ashura-ou, you're being far too kind. I hardly think that my magic is any comparison to that of yours," replied Fai with a grin.

"…Ah, but you're being far too modest. It has not escaped my notice just how much magic you possess…and that is why…" he trailed off before his lips turned into a smirk.

"Ashura-ou?" questioned Fai, reaching out his hand to his lord as he was surrounded by the palace guards.

Kurogane looked down at his hands in his lap, he couldn't look at the mage, not now for he knew where his tale was going. The mage turned his back to him and placed his hand on the window flashes going through his mind once more as he continued his tale of betrayal…

"Ashura-ou…why?" he pleaded, as he was bound by his wrists as the guards dragged him out of the throne room. He struggled trying to plead with his king, "Ashura-ou?!" He took a deep breath getting ready to whistle, for if he couldn't use his hands he would use another form of magic in order to escape. Surely this had to be a mistake but as the air entered his lungs he received a blow to the gut and gasped in pain.

The last image he saw was Ashura's twisted grin and the passing of murmurs as the guards dragged him out mentioning a traitor in their midst the entire time…

"Why?!" he begged as the guards threw him into the cold icy prison that he would later call hell, the binds had been cut prior to as the door slammed and the guards snickered. "Wait?!" he hollered hearing their footsteps hollow on the cold icy hallway.

He could only hear their laughs echoing along the walls, 'Fool…to think he didn't realize that Ashura-ou would never allow a man whose power exceeded his own to be free.'

"…I want to die…" he moaned, as he scratched another mark onto the wall, the rising moon casting a shadow along the prison, "…I want to die…" he pleaded.

By that time his hair had grown quite long, his fingers so frostbitten that he could no longer feel the pain, and his heart as cold as ice. He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten…when was the last time that he had come across another living soul? Perhaps this time the guards would truly forget about him and let him die.

"…I want to die…" he went back to musing, his own words his only company, "…I want to be loved by someone…before I die…" he whispered, as he lowered his head and closed his eyes tightly hoping that there would come an end to all of this pain.

Kurogane slammed the side of his fist into the wall causing the mage's eye to soften at the gesture. "…And so the magician begged for his death every day…that was until…"

"Ashura-ou, we meet at last," stated the magician in a cynical manner, his icy blue eyes reflecting the power coursing through his body.

"Fai…how did you—

The magician cut him off in mid-sentence, he would be the one talking today, "That's not important Ashura-ou…" he stated with a smirk as Chii appeared next to him.

"Fai…" she whispered, wrapping her arms around him, before he gently pet her head.

"Ah Chii…you were so helpful to me…" he informed her in a gentle tone, "this won't take long…" he turned his attention from her and any traces of feeling were gone.

And so the battle began…

"…Fai…" whispered Chii as she watched him sit at the edge of the pool, "Is the king sleeping?"

"…Hai…there was no other way…" he replied, starring out in front of him wondering how it came to be like this.

"Now what are you doing to do Fai?" asked Chii as she placed his jacket on his back.

"…I can't stay in this country any longer…no more like in this world…"

"This world?" she asked, clinging to the front of his jacket as he placed his hand on her head.

"More like this dimension actually," he replied, smiling down at her.

"I don't really understand," she informed him as his smile grew.

"It's fine Chii, that you know that much," he commented, as he wrapped his arm around her and kissed the side of her head.

"I have to go now or nothing will happen…" he whispered as he looked at her hovering above him.

"Where to?" she questioned, her eyes full of curiosity.

"Far away, as far as I can go, where there is no Ashura-ou," he replied, holding his staff in his left, he reached for her own with his right. "Can you do something for me?"

"What?" she asked, her eyes full of devotion, their foreheads almost touching.

"For that, may I change a little of what you look like?" he wanted her permission before doing so.

"Yes," she simply stated, a loving smile on her face, "For Fai is the one who made Chii…"

He looked down on the seal that she had formed around the pool that contained the body of the sleeping king and sadly looked upon his face. "…At least you'll have a good dream…" he whispered before casting the incantation with his staff, "…Well…to the witch…"

Fai's voice trailed off as he stared out the window, never again would he look out a window with bars on it. He couldn't bare it.

"That bastard…" whispered Kurogane as he clutched his fists in anger, the damn mage before him had carried this much around with him and somehow through it all had managed to remain positive for the children and the manjuu. He had known that the magician was powerful; he had had his suspicions for quite some time. He was a polished fighter and the amount of knowledge he possessed in the world of Rekord was only a layer of the real power that Fai apparently possessed…to be more powerful than the king in a world where magic was a way of life.

"So now you see why I cannot return to Celes…" informed Fai, his eye falling on a pair of birds flying freely; that's the feeling he wanted to be free of Ashura-ou.

Kurogane stood up, "I don't see anything. You sealed him, even if the bastard woke up you could do it again."

Fai turned around quickly with astonishment, "Were you not listening? The other Syaoran has half of my magic…Ashura-ou was a threat before but with only half of my magic, I have no chance of winning!" he cried out, his fears and frustrations escaping into his voice, "…I can't go back to that…" he whispered, his hands resting on the window once more and his head down with his shoulder slumped, as he shook his head, "…I won't go back to that hell, waiting every day to die…"

"Look, you're not alone," began Kurogane with a sigh, "If he does find you, you've got me and the kid for back up."

"I can't involve any of you in my past…" whispered Fai, his eye down cast and his right hand slowly sliding down the window, "Ashura-ou will surely take my life…at least I pray he will…and not lock me away…"

Kurogane could see that the mage was falling, locked in his own mind were the painful memories that had began to seep out. "We're already involved whether you like it or not. Plus, you think the princess will just let us abandon you?"

"If you don't abandon me, I'll have to watch all of you die…" he whispered, "See?" he chuckled, "You should have just let me die when I asked you…"

Kurogane couldn't stop himself before he grabbed the mage by the shirt collar and hoisted him up off the ground. "Listen to me and listen well because I'm only going to say this once," he informed through grit teeth.

Fai's eye widened as he listened, "I swear to you, that you won't end up locked away again by that bastard, I give you my word," he vowed, before letting go of him.

Fai stood in front of him in shock; never had he expected that someone would care…especially not for him, "Kurogane…" he murmured as he watched the ninja stalk toward the door.

"I'll tell the kids and the manjuu that you'll be down shortly, and don't have any more stupid ideas because you know, the princess really cares about you," he informed, before shutting the door behind him.

Fai sat on the edge of the bed and thought…

'…I want to die…' the musing went through his mind. Then another thought, '…Maybe living isn't so bad…living with people like Sakura-chan, Kurogane, and even the real Syaoran…perhaps I could…'

He sighed and shook his head, '…No…I'll just carry on with this façade for a while longer…until I can find the other Syaoran and make him return my eye to me…' he smirked, his right eye shimmering with power. '…And then…'

THE END! Please Review. This was my first shot at a TRC story.