Kei: Thank you for reading! I know the chapters are short, but I'll write and update often. I've usually got a few chapters in advance, so no worries

Disclaimer: Must I say it again? I don't own Tsubasa.

Chapter Two: Blue and Red

Kurogane had felt compelled for whatever reason to sit beside the man as Sakura tried to heal him. Sakura had been found in a somewhat similar situation by Tomoyo, without a memory of what had happened before she was found. She seemed skilled in medicine, so Tomoyo-hime had appointed her as a healer. Kurogane hoped that the blonde would remember what had happened to him, because he wanted to find out what the hell would have happened where the man would have been wounded so badly.

Sat on the table next to him was a grey stuffed dog with one eye. Apparently it was the only thing that had been found with the blonde besides the clothes on his back. What he carried around that thing for was beyond Kurogane, but Tomoyo-hime stopped Kurogane from throwing it away for fear it would "offend their guest". Like he cared.

He must have fallen asleep, because when he woke the lanky man was resting in bed, his shirt off and chest bandaged. There were bandages covering his eye where his patch had been, as well. Kurogane frowned. Something about this man seemed to set him on edge. The muscles in his left arm tensed. He didn't like it.

"I'm proud of you, Kurogane. To think that you would save someone's life instead of ending it."

Kurogane turned to see Tomoyo-hime standing in the entrance of the sliding door, Sakura standing beside her. She smiled at him and he turned away, making an irritated noise in his throat. "Yeah, you got a problem with that?" Dammit, he could never look her face to face without her teasing him. She was the only one he could never bully.

"Sakura brought a salve to rub on his wounds when he awoke, but he seems to enjoy his rest," Tomoyo said, "Would you mind doing that when he wakes?" Kurogane grunted. Taking that as a yes, Sakura came forward and handed the jar to him. "Ano, when you rub it on his wounds, don't use too much otherwise it'll be painful, Kurogane-sama," she stuttered. Sakura was usually quiet, and even more so when Kurogane was around. Kurogane looked up at the short-haired brunette, nodded, and turned back to face the blonde again. Both left, leaving Kurogane alone with the man.

A few minutes later the blonde began to stir and his one eye fluttered open. He looked over at Kurogane, staring at the tall man for an unnaturally long time. His gaze wandered to the ninja's arm and his eye narrowed. Kurogane looked away. "You're awake, then?" There was no answer. Kurogane looked at his reflection in the mirror across the room. His black spiky hair was matted with blood, as was his black cloak and armor. Ruby eyes glared back at him. It was no wonder the man was staring. Finally, Kurogane heard the man's voice speak quietly.

"Who...?"

It was no more than a whisper, but it got Kurogane's attention well enough. His red eyes snapped back to stare into the man's shocking blue one. Somehow, in that one second Kurogane saw a whole world of things when he looked into that eye. "K-Kurogane," he answered, realizing how nervous he seemed to sound. "Who are you?" he asked, more gruffly than before.

"Fai," he said, his voice raspy, "Fai D. Flowright." The man, Fai, smiled weakly at Kurogane. "Nice to meet you, Kuro-black." Kurogane twitched. Kuro-what? Resisting the urge to smack the damn blonde, he pulled back the blankets to uncover Fai's chest. "Can you sit up?"

Fai nodded and sat up slowly, wincing in pain. Kurogane unwrapped the bandages and grabbed the jar of salve. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the pale chest. Fai had deep gashes all over his chest and back, one dangerously close to his heart. His arms were covered in scratches and bruises. At the very least Sakura had washed all of the blood off. Sighing in disapproval, Kurogane began to rub the salve into the wounds. The pale skin felt cool beneath his hands, the slender body shivering at his slight touch.

Fai looked up into Kurogane's eyes. His brow was furrowed slightly in concentration, the red eyes pondering. Fai flinched. The medicine was beginning to take its effect, stinging the wounds as it healed. But all things that healed had to hurt.

Kurogane's hands soothed him, massaging his back and chest, easing away the pain as he began to drift off into sleep again. Suddenly the relaxing motion stopped, and Fai glanced back up to see Kurogane replacing the lid on the jar and wiping his hands off with a towel. Red eyes met his. "So," he said, picking up a roll of fresh bandages and re-wrapping Fai's wounds, "what were you doing there? Did Ashura's soldiers want something to do with you?" Fai flinched at the name, and he knew Kurogane had seen it, because his eyes narrowed. Fai closed his good eye, opened it again, and looked at the tall man.

"Ashura's soldiers are after me. They want to use my powers to fight against Nihon and the Suwa. I can use magic," he explained at the quizzical look on Kurogane's face, "But I didn't want to use it to fight. You know about the Suwa, right?" Kurogane grinned evilly. "Course I know about the Suwa. I was born there. Suwa no Kurogane is my full name, and it's a good thing you didn't fight with them, because if you did, you'd be dead right now."

Fai laughed for a moment, forgetting the pain. He was silent for a minute, and then turned to face Kurogane again. "But if you're Suwa no Kurogane, aren't we in Suwa right now?"

Kurogane's eyes clouded over, hiding the pain inside them. "You wouldn't have heard, being on the run, would you? Suwa..." he paused, "Suwa was destroyed by Ashura's demons. I'm the last of the people who lived there." Fai's eyes widened in shock. "I... I'm sorry, Kurogane," he whispered, instantly feeling bad for asking. "Don't be," Kurogane answered, shrugging, "I'm not one to brood too much about the past." Fai looked down at his hands.

An awkward silence ensued, and after a while Kurogane stood, turning to face the door. "Get some sleep," he muttered, walking out and sliding the door shut. Fai sat still, and in the dim light of the candles a sad smile played about his face.

Kei: Kinda depressing chapter. Ah well, what can I do? The next one is pretty funny.