(Ebisu)
The holding cell was possibly darker than the other cell which he shared with Fai. Ebisu now had a new cell mate who is going to die in 3 days time. Ebisu found himself getting even more lonely in this darkness and was missing Misaki and especially Ai. Ebisu remembered his wedding day to Ai. He remembered everything but the memories started slipping away. Ebisu started thinking of Fai and the letter he wrote. He was going to kill the King. Ebisu laughed to himself out of the irony that was invisible to everyone else. Killing the King would be impossible and Fai would more likely end up dead instead of the King. The memories of Fai and the letter now seemed to also be slipping away from him. Ebisu started to panic and stood up trying to feel for walls or an exit. He felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down. Don't think. This place pulls away all your memories and happiness. Dying is easy and simple compared to this." The strange man moved away and Ebisu still couldn't see anything. He didn't want to forget his beautiful wife, Ai, let alone his adorable daughter Misaki. There is also the faithful Kano who led a lonely life. Ebisu knew that Kano had loved Ai at some point in time. The memories were slipping away again. Ebisu ran to the entrance and pulled on the bars. A small shock ran through his body and Ebisu was thrown back several metres. Ebisu put his hand to his head and found blood on his hand. His vision was disappearing but he could hardly tell as he fell into unconsciousness.
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Ai entered Syaoran's room with a tray of breakfast and Fai's letter that she received the previous night. Ai placed the tray on a table and walked gracefully across the room to the windows and opened the curtains. The moonlight streamed across the small room and lit up Syaoran's face as he woke up from the brightness.
"Good morning Syaoran!" Ai handed him the tray and the letter. Syaoran was pleased to hear from Fai at last.
"When did this come?" Syaoran looked up at Ai with sleep eyes.
"Last night. We have a job to do. To go rescue everyone and kill the King! To rescue my husband at last! Oh, and your friend Fai of course." Ai seemed to get slightly carried away. Syaoran decided to bring her back to reality.
"What about Misaki? She can't come to assassinate the King. She's too young and will be traumatised." Ai's face dropped as she realised that she couldn't find anyone to look after Misaki. "I think you should stay here with Misaki. You'll both be safe here." Syaoran proceeded to eat his breakfast while waiting for an answer from Ai. Ai sighed quietly.
"I suppose you're right. You will bring Ebisu back for me right? Please promise that you'll bring him back alive?" Ai got down on her knees in a begging position. Syaoran stood up and looked out the window at the large, dark Castle that held everyone in darkness.
"I promise to do my best." Syaoran turned to Ai and brought her back up to a standing position.
"I should get breakfast for everyone else and you can organise a plan in the main room." Ai took away the tray and left the room. Syaoran read Fai's letter once again and decided that they should travel to the castle to kill the King.
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Fai lay down in the darkness. He had no idea how big this cell was but it only managed to hold two people generally. Fai did not have a new cell mate yet and had heard nothing from Ebisu in the time that he had been gone. Fai bit his lip as he worried about his new friend. A guard walked past the door and Fai got up to run to the door. "Hey!" Fai called and ran to the door of the cell. "Do you know where Ebisu is? The guy you took out of here a few days ago? Where is he?" Fai reached through the bars and tried to grab the guard. The guard sighed and turned to him.
"Your friend is going to die. Soon enough, you will too. He's waiting to die in the holding cell." The guard suddenly realised that he had said too much and quickly turned on his heel to get away from Fai as fast as possible. Fai loosened his grip and went back to lying down on the cold, dark ground. Fai searched the ground for something to sharpen or use as a weapon or even a means of escape. The cell appeared to be quite large but it was hard to tell in the darkness. Fai could feel himself giving up and decided it was best to sleep or think of an escape plan.
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Syaoran had gathered Kurogane, Sakura, Mokona and Ai at the small dining table. They were having a communal lunch. Syaoran excitedly read out Fai's letter about Sakura's feather and killing the King. Ai was still disappointed to have to be left behind and look after Misaki.
"We should leave as soon as possible." Kurogane noted. Ai left the room to go wake up Misaki. Misaki's small room was dark as usual. Ai felt her way across the messy floor to the bed that held her small child. Ai found that the bed was made and had not been slept in. Panic rose in Ai's chest as she searched frantically for the light for a few minutes. Ai ran out of the room to where her guests were.
"What's wrong Ai-san?" Sakura asked in her sweet voice and moved over to comfort Ai. Ai was sobbing uncontrollably and could only stutter her words out.
"I-I-I lost-lost M-M-Mis-Misa-ki-Misaki!" Ai sat down on a pillow on the ground and found a picture of Ebisu, Ai and Misaki on the table.
"It's okay. We'll find her. She can't have gone far." Sakura stayed to comfort her and Kurogane and Syaoran searched the house. Kurogane went to Ai's room half-expecting to find skeletons in the closet. There was no sign of Misaki anywhere. There was a scream in the next room and Kurogane rushed out and into the corridor. Syaoran appeared with a distressed Misaki complaining of blood on the walls. Kurogane pushed past Syaoran and went to the bathroom.
"It's clean. It's fine Misaki-chan." Kurogane tensed up and looked over to Misaki-chan. Ai and Sakura ran over to Misaki-chan and hugged her at the same time.
"That dream. That same dream. The blood. The bad man. Kurogane saved me. Sakura promised me. SHE PROMISED!!" Misaki screamed again and forgot that she wasn't dreaming anymore. "Who is the King Ma? Who is he? He's powerful and scary." Misaki left Ai and Sakura to go sit on a pillow.
"No one knows who he is. Syaoran, Sakura and Kurogane are going to leave today to go and fight him. They will bring back Father. They will bring him back and everything in Moni will be normal again." Ai suddenly felt a wave of nausea as she promised her daughter something that she wasn't sure of. Poor Misaki, Ai thought. "This is their last day here so we should pack some food for them. Will you help me Misaki-chan?" Misaki nodded and Ai helped her up and walked to the kitchen. Everyone else went their separate ways to collect their few belongings. Mokona came out of Sakura's room with a scared expression on his little pork-bun face. "Feather in danger. Mokona can sense the feather and the evil man who holds it. We must get Sakura's feather back!" Mokona sat on Sakura's bed and watched her pack her clothes.
Later, everyone was ready to leave. Ai was not quite ready to see her new friends off to the castle. "There's plenty of food for you. We still have enough and can go to the markets. Remember to avoid the roads and the carriages. Good Luck." Ai hugged Sakura, Syaoran and tried to hug Kurogane but he was rather big for Ai's delicate arms. Misaki ran and hugged Sakura.
"Sakura-san, please bring Daddy back for me" Misaki whispered in her ear and Sakura nodded in response. Misaki ran back to her mother and held onto her hand. "bye bye Kurogane-san and Syaoran-san." Black carriages ran past the house and Ai yelled for everyone to run. One particular carriage stopped and Ai waited in anticipation. Something was pulling them in and not pushing anyone one. Misaki and Ai got away from the vortex and ran inside the house for shelter. The door closed and the carriage was on its way. Syaoran and Sakura were left on the side of the street and then realised that Kurogane wasn't with them.