Who's up for chapter 2! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own TRC

Catching Up On Old Times

Hikaru's POV

The café was getting far too busy and I felt I was in the way so I had gone home. It was blistery cold, but quiet and peaceful. I continued my way down the street when a rumble was heard behind me, making me stop in my tracks, and a breath on my neck made the hairs raise. I whirled around and saw a long caterpillar-like demon with a giant eye at its head. "Aw, crap!" I groaned and immediately darted into a run causing the creature to follow me. I dodged people left and right and as they saw my pursuer, they ran for cover as well. My apartment was just a few yards in front of me and I dove for the door and slammed it shut in the monster's eye of a head. Just my luck, too, because the minute my back hit against the door, a gunshot was heard, immediately followed by the shriek of the monster. I sighed in relief. Thank Shinigami for these demon hunters. I walked into my apartment and hung up my jacket.

After taking a shower, I sat at my small light brown desk and mirror as I dried and brushed my brown and red hair. Suddenly, something in the reflection made me freeze: outside the window, right behind me across the small room, was a shadow I thought. I turned off the hair dryer and put down the brush as I turned to hear anything. Nothing for a while, then the doorbell rang and a knock made me jump.

"Coming!" I shouted as I fixed my grey bathrobe over my light blue T-shirt and green pants. I put my feet in my skeleton slippers and hurried down the stairs and to the front door. When I opened it, I flinched at the visitor.

"You. What do you think you're doing here?" A deadpanning Setsuko asked, her arms folded, and her foot tapping. She was still in her waitress' uniform.

"What do you mean?" I was totally confused. "I live here, Set."

"No." She replied, seizing my wrist. "You're staying at the Cat's Eye."

"Huh?" I replied and she dragged me away from my apartment.

She continued to hold my wrist while I held my bathrobe, feeling absolutely ridiculous as we walked down the city streets. "Set, do you have any idea of what people are thinking right now? I look absolutely ridiculous."

"There are worse things." She shrugged and I looked at her, puzzled, and she looked back at me, "We saw that demon earlier. Syaoran and Kurogane were about to head out, but we got tied up with another demon around the café."

"Ah, don't worry about. I made it home safe and just before a hunter killed the one after me."

"Good."

We finally made it to the café and Setsuko locked the door behind us. "Yay!" Mokona cheered from the counter as it jumped for joy, "They're back, they're back!"

"Ah, welcome back, ladies!" Fai smiled as he poked his head into the room from the back door.

"Hey, Fai!" I smiled.

"Are you all right?" Syaoran asked, "We saw that demon chasing you earlier."

"Yep!" I nodded. "Totally fine!"

"Good." He nodded with a relieved smile, "I'm glad to hear that."

"Where's Sakura?" I asked, looking around.

"The princess is fast asleep." Fai replied, "She worked so hard; things've been busy with this winter season upon us."

"I'm going to get changed." Setsuko announced before disappearing through the back door.

"So, apparently I've been told, and literally dragged over, that I am spending the night here?"

"There're spare rooms in the back." Kurogane said, "The other kid said you can bunk in with her." He stood against the wall again, arms folded, as he stood guard. It seemed whenever I looked at him he was always in the exact same position.

"Are you always the wallflower, Kurogane?" I asked and he met my brown-eyed gaze directly with his fiery red one.

"What the heck are you talking about?"

"I-it's just you're always off to the side watching everything around you."

"Exactly," he turned to look out the window, "I'm watching everything around me so I can protect everyone."

"Oh." I looked down for a moment, feeling a little awkward, before I smiled feebly at him. "Well, thank you for that."

He flinched, clearly taken fully by surprise by my comment, "You're welcome."

"Aw, Kurgie's blushing." Fai teased as he poked Kurogane's cheek.

"Would you shut up?" He shouted and waved his arm to push aside the giggling blond.

"Aw, c'mon, Kurgs." Fai replied, his arms behind his head, "You know I was just teasing!"

"Yeah, I can tell it's a bad habit of yours." Kurogane grumbled as he looked away. "And call me by my full name for once."

"Whatever you say, Kurgerburger!"

Kurogane growled and swiped at him as the magician giggled and pranced to the other side of the room, out of the fuming dark-haired man's grasp. Fai raised his right hand while the other lay on the back door's knob. "Well, I'm off to bed. Pleasant dreams, everyone!"

"Okay!" Syaoran smiled, leaning against the counter, "Night, Fai!"

"Mokona comes too!" The small creature smiled and it leapt onto Fai's shoulder before the two disappeared into the back.

A moment later, Setsuko stepped out, exchanging a quick 'good night with Fai' and I squealed at her appearance: hair in twin tails that fell to her hips, fuzzy penguin slippers, and long light blue pajamas with blue cat faces on them. "Oh my gosh, is that a happy cat?" I asked with a big grin as I pointed to her.

"Uh-huh!" She smiled sweetly. "Or should I say 'aye'!" She saluted and I laughed before waving to the remaining boys.

"We're gonna hit the hay, too. Night!"

"Sleep well, you two." Setsuko smiled as she held the door open for us.

"All right, you too." Syaoran replied.

I looked at Kurogane, expecting him to say something as well. However, my smile and spirits fell when he simply gave me a brief oblige gaze before looking back outside. "C'mon." Setsuko smiled and put a hand on my shoulder, nodding her head a little in the direction of the hall.

"All right." I replied quietly and she led me to the back hallway, three doors on either side.

"Sakura sleeps in there." Setsuko addressed, nodding her head to a room we were passing on the right, "Syaoran does, too, although I'm not really sure if he does any sleeping." She added with a slight giggle.

"Why's that?"

"He's always making sure Sakura's safe, they've known each other since they were kids in Clow Country. It doesn't matter how his condition is; he always puts her before him."

"Aw," I answered as I shut our door behind me, "that's so sweet."

"Yep."

I flopped onto the bed across the room from hers and watched Setsuko bounce as she sat down. "Dude, I still can't get over that we're finally meeting in person."

"I know, right?" She replied. "It's crazy!"

I lay on my stomach and propped my elbows and chin on my pillow. "So how've things been?"

Setsuko shrugged, "I guess they're okay. She was screaming at me until the day I left for the shop and I then never came back." She finished with a weak giggle and a sweat-drop.

"I'm sorry." I said solemnly.

She shrugged again with an indifferent smirk, "It's fine. I won't be seeing her again."

"But you won't be seeing your dad or sister again."

"It's whatever. I admit I do miss them an awful lot, but my mom put me through enough hell as it was. . ."

"And that was your wish." I finished quietly and she looked up at me, then down at her knees.

"Yeah."

Neither of us said anything for a few minutes, then I spoke up. "Now, this leads me to another question: why were those guys at the shop and why did they need compensation for whatever wish they were making?"

"Oh." She smiled, "That's a story in and of itself, so get comfy."

I sat up, wiggling on the bed to get comfortable, and I crossed my legs, putting my pillow on my lap, and took a cup of green tea that Setsuko had made before changing earlier. I took a sip of the piping hot beverage. "Story time? I'm up for it." She returned my smile.

"So, a while back, before anyone knew each other besides Syaoran and Sakura, Syaoran was in the ruins in Clow Country and stumbled upon Princess Sakura in the depths of it. He called to her, but she did not seem like herself. Then, a strange thing happened. . ."

About an hour had passed, all the while Setsuko explained why they were all called together, what their wishes were, what the prices they had paid were, and all about their adventures before coming to this country.

"What was the price you paid?" I asked, hesitating after hearing the precious items Yuko, the shop-owner, had demanded.

She was silent for a while, her eyes widened upon my question, then she looked down as if regretting her decision of compensation. This only made me feel uneasy. Finally, she closed her eyes for a moment before giving me a weak, sad smile. "Drawing."

"What!" I was not expecting that at all. It actually hurt me more than anything and I've been through a shit ton. That was her passion! "Why did you do that?! That was everything to you!"

She shrugged with a sad smile, "Honestly, it was better than enduring more abuse from my mother."

"But it was drawing that helped you channel your emotions when she did abuse you!"

She just shrugged again and shook her head. "So was writing and, when I was by myself, belting my lungs out singing."

"Set. . ." I said sadly, then I knew what I had to do. I reached into my pants' pocket and took out a small bundle of envelopes bound together with a rubber band, then I took out another stack from my other pocket. As I did so, my friend's round brown eyes widened. I placed the stacks in front of me on my bed and looked at her directly. "Do you know what these are? Every letter you've sent me over the course of two, almost three, years."

She only stared at me in silence. "Do you know why I've kept all of them, Set?" I paused for a brief moment. "Because you have no idea how much they've helped me when I was down . . . and in my letters to you, I've told you everything I've dealt with since my family was killed. . . And these." I shifted through the stacks and pulled out another bundle of white sheets folded in half, I opened them and she gasped. Her hands flew to cover her mouth and her eyes grew wider. My gaze returned to her once again. "These are each and every picture you have drawn me." She reached for one, which I handed over, that she had drawn of two characters we had shipped together.

A grand piano was drawn to the slight left and a girl wish ash-blond hair sat on the red-cushioned bench. The girl's eyes were closed and a smile stretched on her face. She wore a long black dress, which fell about a foot above her ankles, with ruffles at the end. She wore black heels and long black gloves that stretched up a few inches under her shoulders. The thicker black dress material ended just above her breasts and sheer black silk covered up to her neck.

To her right, leaning against the piano, was a guy with white spiky hair, his eyes were closed and a smile was on his face as well. He wore a grey pin-striped tux and matching dress pants, and his hands were tucked into his pockets. He wore black dress shoes and a red dress shirt with a black tie.

Under their feet was a black-and-red-tiled floor. Two light candles were drawn at the bottom of the page and they gave off a blue light. Maroon curtains hung on either side of the page while darkness filled the gap between the two. To the upper right corner, next to the raised top of the grand piano, was written 'Enter the madness. I'll play you a song.'

"Remember this?" I asked her. "You had such a gift, Set. Why'd you give it up?"

She sniffled and wiped her tears. "There are more precious gifts to me than this talent." She looked up at me with a smile and moist eyes. "Like you. You've no idea how much you helped me in my dark times."

I smiled and stared at her for a long moment. "Remember one of our first few letters to each other? When we were first introducing ourselves?" She nodded, "Remember when you told me what your name meant?"

She nodded and looked down with a smile, tears still in her eyes. "Setsuko Kenjii." She said.

"Melody child of strength." We said together, she nodded again and I smiled.

"You're so strong, Set. You've been through so much, but you didn't give up."

"Thanks to you. You helped me keep my sanity, or whatever is left." She laughed a little for a few moments, "Light blossom. That's what your name means. And I know I've said this before, but it really does suit you. You're such a bright and sweet person.

"Thanks."

She wiped the remains of her tears and smiled, "Now, speaking of bright and sweet people. How's my little knight in shining armor doing?"

"Kirito?" I laughed loudly, "He's doing good. He still tells me how badly he wants to meet you."

"Are you still gonna freeze him for me?" She asked, putting her hands on her cheeks and closing her eyes with a dreamy smile making me laugh again.

"Of course! Whenever I write you he always tells me to write 'I love you, Setsuko! –blows kisses-'. It was so adorable to see him walking around with his father's sword and shield. I still hear Kirito's mother rant about his father leaving his weapons out. "

She giggled. "I honestly still cannot believe you're not living with them already! Ever since you lost your family, they practically have adopted you!"

"And I've practically adopted you!" I folded my arms authoritatively, "So, you listen to your mother, young lady!"

Setsuko laughed brightly and it made me smile even more. She really was a fighter. Her mother didn't necessarily abuse her physically, but she definitely had degraded her verbally. We helped each other through some tough times I must say. I shook my head, dismissing the memories Set had shared with me of her home life. But, I'm not gonna focus on that. Point is, she was here with me. Finally, after two long years of connecting only through letters. I will admit, I'm pretty pissed she gave Yuko her drawing ability as compensation, but she had more talents that she loved. She was an amazing singer, so she says. Sad to say I haven't heard her apparent melodious voice yet, and she also wrote beautifully. She's shared a few stories she's written and I loved each and every one of them.

I stood up, carefully gathering the letters and drawings she had made on the tiny nightstand, and walked over to her before engulfing her in a giant bear hug. "I'm so glad to finally talk to you face-to-face."

She giggled and hugged back. "Agreed." We pulled away. "Say, with the winter season making the Cat's Eye as busy as it is, would you like to help us out tomorrow?"

"Aye sir!" I exclaimed giving a salute, to which she returned.

"Aye! We start tomorrow!"

"Yay!" I beamed and she giggled in reply. This definitely was to be the best Christmas ever.

I do not own Fairy Tail

Well that's all for the second chapter! I know I just updated, but I'm really trying to finish this within the month as it's just more appropriate I think. Please drop a review and I hope you enjoyed! :)