A/N: I know I've said this thousand and thousands of times before, but let me say it again: I'm terribly sorry for being such a late updater. I'm going to hide and repent now. Sniffs.Anyway, thanks for waiting. Next chapter will be up in no time, promise. And thanks to my beta: anmbcuconnfan- you're amazing! Now, on with the read!

0o0o0o

It was like déjà vu.

Tomoyo knew she'd seen this scene before, and the image replayed on her mind. Fai, pale and unconscious, was resting on Kurogane's shoulders. The image brought her back to a time when Fai was not yet in their lives, when everything Kurogane knew was slaying vampires and beating up drunks. If their lives had remained the same, Tomoyo would have laughed at the situation. It was amusing, really, to have someone as big and strong as Kurogane lose to fragile, slender Fai every time he teased. And yet, it happened all the time. Tomoyo knew what it meant of course. If Kurogane had been really serious about "having the drunk's head for dinner," then there wouldn't have been anything left of Fai. But as she stood there looking at the two unconscious figures, she saw that Fai was still whole.

Physically, at least.

She had seen this before, that time when she had first seen Fai. He was so drunk that he was unconscious. Kurogane was irritated to the seventh pit of hell and Syaoran was as worried as ever. But the atmosphere was warm.

Unlike now.

She swallowed back a gulp and bit her lips hard. She had to suppress her fear, because if she didn't, she might cause more worry than was already necessary. Fai and Kurogane were slumped on the pavement of the sewer. Fai's head rested on Kurogane's shoulder, while the latter's bowed so low that their heads were touching. Kurogane's hand held Fai's tightly. The contrast between them was so intense that it almost made her scream. Kurogane was bloody, too bloody. His arms, head, and almost every part of him was bleeding profusely. His sword remained by his side and even Souhi was bloody. But Fai…

She bit her lips harder until she felt the metallic taste of blood filled her mouth.

"What happened, Tomoyo-hime?" Syaoran asked agitatedly.

"I'm guessing an encounter, Syaoran-kun."

"But why wasn't I told by Kurogane-san? And why is Fai- san…"

"I don't know Syaoran-kun."

She knelt down beside the two unconscious figures. She stroked Kurogane's head, feeling the fresh blood stain her delicate hands. Slowly, she reached out another hand to touch Fai as well. She extended her arm slowly. Her hand hovered a few inches above Fai's face. But it just remained there. Shaking, she pulled it back. She wanted to cry.

She couldn't bring herself to touch Fai.

His new presence reminded her of too many things she would rather forget. She wanted to touch him, God knows she did. But out of reflex, out of the fear and confusion she knew would hurt every tangible and intangible part of her, she couldn't.

"Tomoyo-hime?"

"Let's get them home, Syaoran-kun".

For the second time in her life, Tomoyo Daidouji felt that she would explode into pieces.

0o0o0o

Sakura knew when something bothered her Syaoran. She knew it by the way he held himself, by the way he spoke, and by the way he smiled. She was walking towards the bar counter to clean it, even though she wasn't sure if they would open again. She saw him sitting alone on one of the coffee tables. He was looking far away; she knew instantly that he was sad and troubled, just like everybody else in the household. She decided to postpone the cleaning and let Syaoran have his moment.

"I don't like what's happening either, Syaoran," she muttered softly under her breath before moving away.

0o0o0o

Kurogane took on his father's name, his father's sword, and his father's honor because he wanted to avenge him.

The day he buried his parents' bodies, he had sworn all loyalty under Tomoyo-hime. He would kill every vampire, burn their pathetic asses straight into hell, and never leave an undead roaming the earth for as long as his heart beats. That was his life's purpose.

He grew up with Tomoyo-hime, trained himself, took Syaoran under his wing and trained him, fell, stumbled, got up, fought, battled, killed, got hurt, got up and fought again. He could endure anything. He could do anything to serve his life's purpose. He was born to be a slayer. That was all he knew. That was all he understood.

He lived to kill vampires. He lived for vengeance.

The years passed. He lived, and Tomoyo-hime, Syaoran and Sakura did too. The vampires died, and they died and they died.

And then, a drunken idiot came.

He annoyed every inch of Kurogane's being. He was noisy, he was boisterous, he was cheerful. He shone like the sun and he scattered his rays inside the cottage, so that every inch was filled with his presence. He shone like the mornings of Nihon that Kurogane loved so much. He shone so brightly, that a day without him was like having no morning at all.

Then the vampires came for him. At first, Kurogane killed them because they were vampires.

Months passed and vampires died and Kurogane pretended that he still killed them for the same reason; because they were vampires. The idiot shone more, and the cottage was happy. But the idiot was sad. There was always a shadow that followed his every ray, and that shadow threatened to swallow him every time. They lived, and vampires died. But then the vampires came for him again, and Kurogane tried to kill them.

Not because they were vampires, but because he wanted to protect the idiot.

He was confused. He didn't want to admit it. Yet he realized that there wasn't any contest at all. He would protect the idiot first, and then deal with the vampires. He hadn't forgotten his goal. He simply remade it.

Because as time passed by, Kurogane understood that vengeance was not a way of life. Protecting someone is.

And he began living for it.

0o0o0o

"You're awake." Tomoyo greeted Kurogane as soon as she entered his room, and saw that her patient was already sitting on the bed with his head on his hands. She took time to survey his form. He looked a whole lot better after two days of complete bed rest. The other patient, however…

"How is he?" he asked without looking at her.

"I… can't tell. I don't know," she muttered as she sat down on his bedside.

There was silence between them, but it wasn't tense.

She felt his pain, and he felt hers. They'd been victims of the same circumstance, of the same fate. They'd shared the same pain.

"I'm sorry for putting you through this again, hime."

Another silence.

Tomoyo took Kurogane's hand into her own. It was hard at first, but she understood. She always understood.

"Can I see him?"

"Give him time, Kurogane. For now, just rest," she said as she patted his head, then stood up and left.

She closed the door behind her.

She sighed.

Kurogane would protect Fai no matter what the odds were; that much was clear to her. The mere fact that he was willing to die with him was proof enough. She knew that he would follow Fai all the way to the ends of the earth should the other decide to go there. She had nothing against it. In fact, she was happy that Kurogane was finally living for something real. She had wished for nothing but his happiness.

But his happiness was something that always proved to be evasive.