Disclaimer: You're joking right? I couldn't possibly own the wonderful'ness know as Tsubasa… they're all wearing their clothes still.

Author's Note: Holy crap, it's a bird, it's a plane… it's an update! Still in Outo country though some small insignificant time later. Remember, this is after the fight with the Oni where Fai hurts his ankle.

Unbetaed. Once tested. Enjoy.

P.S. Thank you all of you lovely reviewers, it was a certain handful of you who reviewed a lot of my stuff recently that really got me back to my keyboard. Thank you. Sorry no individual review replies this time but I promise next time.

The mage whipped around at the sound of his voice, a mesh of understated horror and surprise running over his features before he had a chance to compose himself. "I didn't hear you come in, Kuro-stalker. Was there something you wanted?" His voice was strained by a ceramic smile- cold and fragile, as he wrestled his shirt back over shower fresh flesh.

In all honesty, Kurogane hadn't meant to spy on him. Hell, he hadn't even thought there was anything worth spying on until the other jumped, pulling up his defenses quicker than someone up to nothing should. All he'd done was walk into the room, it wasn't his fault the idiot didn't know how to shut the door when he wanted a little privacy, and even then- it's not like the mage had been doing anything scandalous.

When he'd entered he'd been met with the sight of Fai standing with his back to the mirror, resolutely twisting to look over his shoulder at whatever invisible affliction held his limited attention span. At first Kurogane had actually thought something was wrong, seeing as the mage didn't even notice his presence.

And then it clicked.

The tattoo he had reluctantly given the witch on that rainy day so many months ago.

It had been on his back.

"I said, it's not gonna come back just 'cause you keep looking for it." He repeated, trying not to wonder why he even bothered.

The mage tilted his head, playing coy. "What ever are you talking about, Big Doggie?"

"That stupid tattoo of yours."

Fai's eyes narrowed from one breath to the next while the rest of his face stayed eerily still, trapped between that ceramic smile and tainted tongue. "Obviously."

The ninja frowned as the other turned to walk away, venom clear in his throat. That was a weird answer considering he hadn't been the one to ask the question in the first place. Without thinking things through he grabbed his arm in passing, trying to turn him around. "What the hell is wrong with-"

He never got the chance to finish what he was saying as the deceptively petite blond ripped his arm away and kept on walking. "I have things to do."

Blinking, Kurogane stood there for a long moment wondering just what the hell had happened and why he was suddenly so pissed off. What did he care if that idiot wanted to be an… an idiot!

He felt like sticking his fist through a wall at the sheer stupidity of it all. If he didn't want anything seen or said then he should have just shut the damn door- and if he didn't want to talk about it all he had to do was say not play one of those stupid fricking games.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid!

Before he knew it he was stomping out of the room half intent on giving that moron a piece of his mind and half intent on killing him,… only… as he rounded the corner he once again found himself in an empty café, the front door shutting without a presence in sight as if the mage had never even been there at all.

Almost wanting to run out after him the ninja resisted knowing he would be long gone by now and no one would find him unless he really wanted to be found. He growled to himself, clenching a fist and reminding himself one more time that he shouldn't even bother as he turned to go back to what he was doing before blondie caught his attention.

And then a paper crinkled underfoot.

He looked down and sure enough, it was another poem written in that strange flowing script.

A mark
A stigma
A curse born in flesh

My face
A lie
And a treacherous mask

The scars
The warning
Reminder of the past.

Telling
And Yelling
Just why I'm the Last.

What once was
Can never be.
What always has been
They'll never see.

But do I want that?

Or is it for the best?

To be invisible
And protect the dark bleeding
Heart in my chest?

~Yuui

That name, it made his breath catch just to be reading it again under such words. He wasn't poetic by any standard of the word but whoever the customer was that had left this behind… it made him wonder.

And again it made him think of Fai.

Author's Note: So, I'm on a different computer now. My writing nest is all pretty'ified and I finally have the mentality I need to start updating fics again. Once more- no promises this time but I'm hoping, really, really hoping, I can stick to my writerly morals for awhile. If I don't I ask you all to poke me frequently with long pointy sticks and remind me you've been waiting

Just make sure the sticks aren't shiny… I have an attention span issue with shiny things.