I wandered out of the lofty moonlit tower which was still awash in cold water and residual hexes from that final conflict. I drifted through winding alabaster corridors and down curving flights of ornate stairs, trailing steam as I evaporated the cold water from my drenched clothes. Musing deeply, I strode through the most secluded byways of the citadel, mindfully avoiding the troublesome things that dwelt in the more-frequented halls.
At last, I came upon a massive wooden door, heaving it open. Glancing around swiftly, I noted with relief that the cavernous gallery had remained, like the rest of the castle, wholly immune to the passage of time; the mirror loomed glossy and profound as always, weightily drawing in the eyes to its curving dark wooden frame and the stigmatic emblem etched in its crown. A price had been paid for this, indeed. I ran my hands slowly down the expertly carved sides, feeling the polished earthy wood and examining the pristine surface of cool glass. The mirror, lit by a single shaft of grey light from an oculus carved in the ceiling, dominated its shadowy surroundings as the sole furnishing in the entire room.
The aurora in the night sky must have at that moment shifted, for so the quality of light in the room altered subtly and the shadowy reflections in the mirror's silver depths wavered like unsettled mist. Again, I stroked the dark ruddy wood, meditating deeply on a single face. As the mists within the mirror began to synchronize with the ebb and flow of my thoughts, they all at once parted like a dewy curtain, and there I saw Fai. My heart leapt with a mixture of pleasure and terror, with giddiness and bitterness. Of course he must be alive---the chance was imperceptibly small that the future ahead could have disposed of him already. Of course.
Yes, he was alive still, at least, yet…strained, I felt. I could not make out his surroundings, but I could perceive that there were people around him interacting, and that there were strong ties linking them to him—most uncharacteristic of Fai, if I were to remark on it. The light of another world spilled into the hall as I looked on, my curiosity piqued. It was indeed an interesting revelation, that Fai (whether intentionally or not, I would not be one to speculate) had become entwined with such a number of people. Curious, curious. Perhaps, more than the fact that I had awakened at last, the source of his distress, his strain, was the conflict between the ties of his long-standing curse and the natural allure of camaraderie. He had discovered at last, then, that supremely human conflict between fate and desire. At this thought, I felt the stirrings of compassion, for I, too, had long been waging war against fate. There was no denying hitsuzen, for certain, but fortune itself has the strange habit of letting in loopholes where they are least looked for. For those matters of loopholes, I gladly reminded myself, I knew of an expert. Now would be the time to bring my long-deferred plan into fruition. I bid farewell silently to Fai as he glanced tellingly around, believing (or perhaps doubting) himself to be unwatched. The glossy mirror became opaque again. I cleared my throat slightly and smoothed out my robes, preening myself slightly before straightening. 'She' was never one to waste her time with the disheveled after all, or at least she would never take them seriously. I hesitated slightly, then called out to the depths of the mirror,
"Yūko Ichihara. Audience is sought with Yūko Ichihara by Ashura, in Celes country. Please respond."
A moment of silence, then the silver surface of the mirror shone brilliantly with the crystal-clear image of the witch herself. Slightly startled by the abruptness of her appearance, I composed myself and began to organize my thoughts. This would perhaps be a difficult task to pull off, yet I was certain I could succeed if only I said things in just the right way. My heart beat rapidly, though I attempted to restrain it.
"Good morning," she stated evenly, the epitome of poise. "I hope you have enjoyed your rest." Her mouth twitched in a slight wry smile as her intelligent eyes looked over me, carelessly and at the same time intently. Though it was somewhat irritating, I knew I was intended to glean all of these nuances of her gestures; Yūko had never let any subtle accident of motion betray those secret and most profound machinations of her mind. Though I had known her for many, many years, she remained, as always, an enigma. At every moment that I believed to understand her motivations or her true personality a bit more, she revealed yet another layer of herself, and another, and so on, until all the progress I had ever made towards understanding her resulted in nothing. I had thought her ebullient and careless attitude to be a façade. Now I realized it was not always clearly so. I underestimated her far-reaching influence and breadth of intelligence and had even, when I first began to know her, been audacious enough to believe that she would always abide by the letter of the law. Now, fortunately, I knew otherwise.
"I…hope you are also well." I said, diplomatically. She stared impassively at me for a moment, then screamed suddenly over her shoulder, "You have to carry it with both hands. If you drop it, I'll charge you the entirety of its worth plus a repair fee." I cringed as she giggled with wicked delight and turned to face me again. Her laughter ceased as quickly as a candle being snuffed out, and the smile fell off her face. Undaunted, I continued "I have a favor to ask."
"You know the price." She stared unblinkingly at me. As always, I got the distinct impression that she was toying with me on purpose, that she was merely reciting hackneyed lines and at the same time concealing something larger than ritual—whatever my speculations were worth.
"I do."
"Then go ahead and ask!" Yūko waved at me with extreme frivolity, and I was taken slightly aback once again at her apparent mood swings, though I had not truly expected otherwise.
"I wish for Fai to come to Celes in the end." Hardly daring to continue looking into her eyes, yet not nearly foolish enough to break eye contact, I focused instead on presenting myself with extreme confidence. Yūko looked pensive indeed as I watched her. A few moments passed in silence, and I felt slightly uneasy. Never had it taken so long for her to reach a conclusion before, or at least not in my experience. The moments dragged onward, and anxiety began to overwhelm me. Still, I steadied myself. I would succeed if I could gain this much, because I could work from there. The second wish would follow naturally from the first, after all. I was undaunted by the price of either.
"That wish is indeed…." she intoned seriously at last, "unnecessary." She leered at me impishly, her grave air vanishing in an instant. My mind reeled, for her answer was unfathomable. A spark of anger flashed within me.
"Why is this so?"
"For many reasons," she laughed, "not the least of which is that the arrow has been loosed, pulled taut by the hand of fate and the hands of those who would pay the price for swaying its aim."
"You are implying that this will be done already, correct?" She merely glanced around her surroundings, humming noncommittally. "I was under the firm impression that it was impossible to know the course of such things in advance, at least so precisely." Her eyes flashed, and again her gaze was affixed to mine. Perhaps I had too strongly implied that she had bent the rules, a weighty accusation for one such as Yūko. I saw the situation slipping out of my grasp. "I apologize; it was not my intent to offend—"
"That wish has already been asked of me", she declared matter-of-factly, though I could detect a hint of sulking in her voice. Nonetheless, the gravity of the statement banished all other thoughts from my mind.
"You surely cannot be serious?" Yūko's expression was stony and unforgiving. "Who would make such a wish unless…" My head reeled with the potential ramifications of someone else who wanted Fai to return to Celes. When could someone have made that wish? It was only now that I began to perceive the necessity of it, and only for myself. What other forces were involved here? I cast around wildly for a culprit. "Surely Fei Wong Reed never asked you to grant a wish of his?"
The witch stuck her tongue out, grimacing as if she had tasted something unpleasant. "No way!" she exclaimed. "That foul person is the last one who would ever ask me for something! He's too selfish and short-sighted and low-down and vile and completely despicable. He wouldn't want to give anything to me in return, so he'll never ask. Plus…" And here she grinned wryly again, "He knows that asking a wish of me means I'll do everything in my power to make him regret doing so." An evil laugh issued from somewhere deep in her throat.
"Then…who made the wish?" The laugh faded away like all her prior outbursts, and she responded so swiftly and intensely that I almost missed her words.
"Death is only the end of one's ability to prepare."
A riddle? "I—" Suddenly, an idea struck me, and my eyes flew towards Yuko's, searching for the answer. Her enigmatic smile seemed to confirm my insight, yet perhaps I was misinterpreting?
My mind reeled once more. Impossible. She looked gravely serious, yet I sought some inkling of jest in her expression. I found none, yet I knew what she was suggesting was even more absurd than the idea that my wish had been granted earlier.
"It seems like you're…implying…that Clow is somehow involved with all of this. But that's absolutely—"
"It's absolutely the case that Clow Reed was, if nothing else, a brilliant strategist."
Curtly, she turned to leave and I saw that I would glean nothing more from this conversation. "You shall repay me for my time and advice; The price is the same. Take care. Come along, Mokona." The mirror blacked out as if a switch had been thrown. I stood senseless, staring at the misty vacant depths of the mirror. Overall, the fact that Clow Reed's influence was still active in the world did not change much, but it deeply unsettled me that he wielded such a far-reaching power even after his death. Nonetheless, my plans were, overall, even further along than I had anticipated. I had already chosen with all of my heart that I would give anything to grant Fai peace. The painful joy that this sweet potential instilled in me…I suppose that is what is called love. I set about making preparations for his arrival.