Note: This AU actually comes from one of my developing story plots with original characters. It's very much inspired by Ash on the windowsill by Reikah and Tsubasa Tokyo Revelations. The TRC crew might be out of character since I'm on a writer's block and to be truthful, I'm pretending to be capable of writing. There are quite an amount of changes to character details and backgrounds, and some of the important characters in TRC might not appear in this story, such as Mokona, unless I can fit them in. Another thing is that this Sakura is the clone Sakura, though she is not as naive but still a happy one. If you haven't been put off by now, please enjoy it and review if you have the time to spare.

P.s. Does anyone still read TRC fics?

The dust on the ground shifted with the wind as the two human figures cautiously treaded on the ground. There were dangers lying beneath these seemingly innocent plains, and everyone knew to not judge it by its cover. The wind around them was picking up speed, and she could almost feel the oncoming storm.

"Fai-san?" She sounded muffled with the mask over her mouth.

"Time to look for refuge. Beware of the dust, Sakura-chan." Her companion hummed cheerfully, as he tried to sweep his bangs away from his goggles. His hood had already slid off the top of his head, revealing his light blonde hair.

The girl nodded, her eyes darting around quickly, as she looked for a sign of any civilisation. Ever her good luck that could be depended on, she could see the flickering of lights not too far away. She nudged Fai and he patted her head gently, giving her praise to her effort.

Both of them started to make their ways towards the lights, while the wind around them turned from a gentle touch into an angry whip. Once they were closer, Sakura found out that the lights had belonged to a small base. Hopefully the residential survivors there were kind towards travellers; she knew a few that didn't take too kindly to them.

Just as they were about to reach the borders, Fai hastily pulled up his hood again and adjusted Sakura's cloak to make sure it won't accidentally slip off. She could understand gestures like these; their appearances might end up more trouble that they would want.

"Don't take off your goggles or hood until no one's around, okay?" And she nodded like the obedient child she would be. Though she wasn't very young, she was still much younger than Fai.

Just as Fai had turned around to face the front, a man stopped them in their tracks. He looked twice the size of Fai, and doesn't seem to be as friendly as the latter.

"Stop there. Announce yourselves."

"Good afternoon! We are travellers looking for a refuge to pass this storm." Fai spoke, as he was better with words than Sakura was.

"I want names." The guard demanded.

"I'm Fai and she's Sakura. Look, we don't want trouble, just a shelter for the day and we'll be gone." Fai pointed beside him. "Plus, she's just a kid. What harm can she do?"

The guard scanned both of them with his eyes, trying to discern if he was lying or not. Fai had looked thin, which to him meant fragile, and Sakura was small for her age, so the man was satisfied enough to let both of them go into the base.

"If you dare to do anything stupid here..." The man trailed off.

"Of course not!" Fai was about to give him a quick smile before remembering that he was wearing a mask. Instead, he gave a thumbs-up to the man and the guard watched their retreating backs with wary eyes.

"Well then, Sakura-chan, let's look for an inn." Fai skipped, but did not move too quickly so that she could catch up with him.

The base around them was like a town, and a busy one at that. There were ashes covering the streets, just like all the other bases. The buildings' colours had already faded away, leaving boring grey in return. Despite this, there were still some colours from the woven clothes that were hung outside to dry. The people around seemed to be not bothered by the two new presence and continued to work through their routines.

The inn was quickly found, as Sakura found out that the flickering lights she had seen earlier belonged to it. Pushing open the flimsy wooden door, she stepped into the new environment.

"Wow, it's clean." Even the taller companion agreed on her statement. Having a clean environment was a rare scene nowadays, as the land was constantly being covered in ashes and dirt blown by the winds.

"A room with two beds, please!" Fai chirped at the receptionist, who was a boy far too young in his standards to be working. Then again, Sakura was too young to be travelling on these dangerous lands. Fai took a look at the sign behind him, mentally counting the price before putting one gold shilling on the counter.

"Yes, sir. Here are your keys." The boy started, but Fai was already climbing up the old staircase with their bag. As such, Sakura had to take the keys from the boy, not at all frustrated at the man's actions.

Their hands slightly brushed, and even though she was wearing gloves, both of their faces turned red furiously. Although her goggles were one of the tinted types, she could notice his chestnut brown hair and eyes. And his blush, too.

"S-Sorry." He apologised, his hands stiffly by his sides now. Sakura could only shyly nod and kept her head down as she took rapid steps towards Fai, who seemed to be very amused at the interaction.

When they reached their room and had both taken off their protective gears, then she could see Fai's miserable attempt to hide his grin. If she could look at a mirror now, she was sure that the tip of her ears was bright red.

Luckily, there was no mirror in the room and Fai hadn't said anything else related to the interaction for the rest of the day but Sakura could still see the amusement in his eyes. Turning away from the delighted tall man, she tried to focus on the room instead.

Like the lobby, it was clean as the windows were tightly shut. The colours of the walls had long faded and there were barely visible cracks running across the ceiling. The room was small, and the beds were the only furniture present. The two beds were separated by a bedside table, the arrangement reminded Sakura of the luxurious hotels that were now overrun with rats.

"Oh look, we're out of water, Sakura-chan." Fai mumbled from somewhere behind her. "Can you give the water a hug?"

Fai had tried to keep his voice jokingly light, like it was not much of a big deal but Sakura knew he hated to ask her for favours like these, even if she was more than happy to do them.

"No problem, Fai-san." She took the black water bottle from his hands.

Opening the bottle, Sakura carefully touched the surface of the water with the tip of her fingers. The murky water immediately turned clear and she gave a small smile at the successful feat. Her eyes drooped tiredly and Fai hurriedly took the bottle away and held her in his arms. Her lips parted, about to apologise.

"Don't. I shouldn't have asked you. You did well, Sakura-chan." He was praising her again, and she could see the regret piling up in his eyes. Hazily hearing the bottle being closed and feeling herself lightly placed on the stiff bed, she tried to smile at him, to reassure him that she was fine.

Fai's reply was to tuck her in and said nothing.