Anyway this is the second and last of the first person POV chapters. And the second and last chapter that comes from the manga.
SPOILERS. You have been warned.
Enjoy and Review please.
First Person: Kurogane's POV
Celes. I only remember Fai saying that name once or twice before. Yet it had been said so many times in the last fourteen hours. Almost as if he were making up for lost time in his grieving for that world. I knew it had to be cold there, if nothing else would tell me Fai's original attire did. All the furs. The hood he wore over his head. They all said that the world was cold. I just hoped the world wasn't desolate as well.
Even though he likes to keep people away, Fai wouldn't do well in a desolate world.
I opened my eyes as the magic stopped. This would be Fai's homeworld. The one he ran so desperately from. I looked around, it was cold, much colder than any other country we'd been to. Behind me I heard Syaoran's voice speak. "We arrived...this is...?"
The Mage finished the sentence for Syaoran, "Celes."
I now understood why Fai wore so many layers of clothing, it was simply because it was so damn cold around here! And the snow, that had to get on everyone's nerves constantly...
"That castle is?"
"Where I was, Castle Ruval." I stared to where Fai and Syaoran were looking, the castle. It was pretty in it's own way, physically impossible, it must've been held up with magic somehow...
"It's no good I don't know where Sakura's body is!" Mokona yelled and while Syaoran comforted the thing the Mage pointed forward and up, directly toward the castle.
"Sakura-chan is over there."
"How can you tell?" I could see my breath in front of my face. As I watched it I half expected it to fall in down in front of me in little shards of ice.
As Fai spoke his voice was very grammatically correct. He spoke with utmost care. He didn't really want to be speaking. He didn't want to explain. "Although her body and soul are separated, Sakura-chan is still alive. The presence of living things comes from nowhere other than that castle."
"What about other people in this country?"
Fai's hand fell to his side and beneath the hood I knew he was looking down. I understood, everyone else in the country was dead. Within the country only the sleeping man and Sakura were still alive. Even though I couldn't see his face I knew some sort of sadness or guilt was eating at him. I wanted to slap him and tell him it wasn't his fault, but I wouldn't start yet, not yet. He wasn't ready. He needed to fix himself a little from the events that completely shattered him before I did anything.
"So, how do we get to the castle? Climbing those stairs?"
Fai shook his head slightly to Syaoran's questions, "It's not like they're really there."
I raised an eyebrow at this comment, "An illusion?" I waited for a response but it didn't come as Fai raised his hand and began to write illuminated symbols on the air, but Syaoran gripped his arm stopping him. They stared at each other having a silent conversation before the Mage let his hand drop to his side and the kid raised two fingers instead. A wind swirled around them.
"Fuuka Shourai!"
We were all lifted off the ground, and began to fly forward surrounded by what seemed to be a shield. Quicker than I realized we got closer and closer to the castle and began to ascend, the shield disappearing as we landed. No one but Mokona seemed to be surprised to see all the bodies that lay scattered around the area. They all lay looking quite uncomfortable in their frozen, unceremonious graves. I could not tell whether these people looked like the Mage or not. They all wore hats, and their eyes were for the most part closed. However they look look similar in one way.
"Those clothes look like the ones Fai wears!" Mokona stated the obvious. They all had the same coat, white with the same patterns in light blue.
"The people of this castle?" I looked to where Fai was as I asked this. He was facing away from all of us, slowly heading on up the stairs as if he thought that if he was slow enough and quiet enough he could get away with going on without us. Like that'd happen...
"That's right." Fai's soft tone was heard as he answered me not looking back at any of us. It was unnerving in a way. The tone he spoke with. It was hallow, empty, worse than I had ever heard it.
Syaoran and I began to follow him now. We went up the stairs, to a door, a very large door that looked like it might just collapse from being too big...more of an archway than anything.
As we got up there Syaoran paused, seeming to be in pain. I too paused, "What's up?"
"Does your head hurt?"
"No..." Syaoran put his fingers to his eye, as if it had ached. Perhaps it had.
I shook this off and went on forward, stopping my quick pace as I got just a few inches away from where Fai was. He kept his hood up so I couldn't see his facial expression but I knew, he was concentrating deeply on something. I could also tell he was still beating himself up inside for all of this, as well as wishing he weren't here. Celes was truly the last place he wanted to be. I wanted to comfort him, and technically I was allowed to. We'd left Infinity, I could 'play my game,' but I wouldn't, it wasn't the time. "Can you tell where in this castle the Princess' body is?"
Fai only walked forward, his head did not even tilt anymore toward the ground, "Yes."
We were silent then, walking down and up many sets of stairs until we reached another one of those big archways that had doors attached to it. The Mage reached out to push it open although it seemed impossible for someone so small to push open such heavy doors. Before his hand even touched it the doors began to open on their own and Fai jerked his hand back away from them.
As they opened completely I saw a man inside. He had black hair and wore kingly clothes. Beside me the kid put his hand to his eye again, it obviously bothering him even more than it had when we had started on this route. The pain was probably caused by this man's presence.
The man smiled looking at Fai and Fai alone. His hands cupped together lightly in front of him, "Welcome back Fai."
Now I saw Fai's head bow more to the ground, almost as if he wanted to shrink away from this man, as if he was afraid of him. I knew from the voice he spoke with that that wasn't the reason why he did this, "I was hoping I would never have to return...King Ashura."
I have to admit, Iwas a bit shocked by the name, I remembered it from the country of Yama. This man however did not look like the Ashura from that time, this one looked very different. Same hair color...but many people had black hair, it wasn't exactly something to go on. Was this an older version of that Ashura with the same soul? Or was this someone completely different?
This Ashura shook his head, still smiling lovingly at Fai. "You hoped that even though you promised that you'd grant my wish." The man held out his hand for Fai to take, or so it seemed until he swept his arm back pulling the folds of his cloak away from his side. Underneath the cloak was a person. "This child has also been waiting...for you, all this time."
I grimaced at the sight of this 'child.' Was it really a child? It looked so...dead. It looked so miserable, so old. Long blond hair that reached the floor and ratty torn clothes. It looked almost like Fai in an absurd, insane way. Blue eyes and the same shade of blond hair.
Without warning both the child and Fai walked forward, stopping a few feet away from each other. Fai stared down at the child. I could not see his face, I could not even read the emotion he could possibly be feeling. I could not know what was going on in inside his head. I couldn't even guess. I found myself wanting to know.
The child reached its arm forward to Fai, as if he wanted to touch Fai. It pointed. It pointed at Fai, accusingly, but it did not speak. What was it saying with that gesture? What was it accusing Fai of? What had happened here? I'd always said that his past didn't concern me, that I didn't care. I don't. I want to help him, help who he is now, however...perhaps I can not do that without knowing. It has been shown over and over again that Fai did care. That Fai's actions and very movements were decided by his past.
I began to see things, things were not in front of me. I could still see Fai, I could still see the scene in front of me, but images of another kind now flashed in front of my eyes. I also heard words that were not from the present...
Fingers, climbing, twins, misfortune? Boys, two of them, the twins, they looked like Fai might have as a child...
Were these Fai's memories?
Locked away? One in a tower? One in the below? Fai. The name was spoken. Yes, these were Fai's memories...but if that was true...then why was I seeing this other one so clearly while Fai was up in the tower staring down?
Yuui? Yuui! That name was spoken too! Yuui was Fai's brother?
That did and did not explain things...Yuui would have looked just like Fai, but it did not explain why when I asked about his name Yuui said that he saw all Fai saw and knew all Fai knew...
I wanted to see more, I wanted to understand now. I wanted to know why. If nothing else I wanted to know who Yuui was...
That was all.
Yuui was strong in a way, he wanted to leave, and could leave, or thought he could. He was brave, brave enough to try and escape and think that if he did leave it might give Fai a better life...
How could it be? How could them being twins be such bad luck for others? It was impossible, clearly it was just the bad luck upon themselves that did this.
How did they escape? There was no one left to take them out. I felt sorry for them both, they had really done nothing to deserve it...but did anyone ever do anything to deserve what they usually got? I felt most sorry for Yuui...even though Fai was trapped in the tower, Yuui being below got the worst of it. To see people fall, and bleed, and die right before his eyes...
No wonder Fai didn't care about his life, no wonder he needed such help. To be able to do nothing for so long...and I still don't know how they got out.
For a moment the memories stopped. I could see Fai, Ashura and the boy clearly now. Was that boy Yuui? If so then how was he in Fai? And why was he so much younger than Fai? Why did he still look so starved? Why? Why?
"It was your decision, was it not?" Ashura spoke to Fai. I wanted to yell at him, to tell him to stop. Even thought I wanted to know, I knew without seeing Fai's face or hearing Fai's voice I knew Ashura was stepping on the pieces of Fai's shattered soul and breaking them even more, grinding them into dust, something that could not be repaired. I wanted to know, but I wanted Fai to not be harmed even more. Ashura was harming Fai.
He was ruining the help I wanted to give Fai!
The memories started again...The bat symbol! The same one that had been on the sword that had killed my mother! The same one Syaoran had claimed to have seen! So...this is what he looked like? The one who had screwed with all of us...
Fai? How was that possible? Fai had just fallen from the tower and died...
Now. Now it made sense. Fai had died...Yuui had taken on Fai's name. My Fai was Yuui...thus why Yuui said he was merely Fai's inner child. He meant this literally. Yuui was who my Fai was as a child...Fai had truly been the person who now stood in front of my Fai. No. Who stood in front of Yuui.
I felt Syaoran fall to my side, I knew he was crying, just like he had when he had seen my memories from that book back in the world of Recourt. I also knew that the pain in his eye must be near to unbearable by now. I knelt by his side, placing a hand on his back in comfort, he obviously couldn't handle such horrible things. Yet they happened somewhere every day.
The memories stopped again. I stared at my Fai, I could practically see him shake, "Yes. You who had received the memories of that child should know...he chose you Fai. No, your real name should be Yuui right? You took the name of that child and erased your own name from this world. But, even so, your sins can't be erased."
Ashura looked back at us. "It's all right. I have shown it to the two who came with you. Your past."
Fai looked back at us too now, horror shown on his face. It wasn't quite as bad as when he had stabbed the Princess through with the sword, but it was close...and it could very well get worse.
"Come and take a look at the real you Fai." I glared at Ashura, Fai was sure to think that I was glaring angrily at him, disgusted by him, but it wasn't that. I wasn't Fai, I hadn't been there, I could not judge him by this. I'm sure most people would have done the same thing, especially children. No, it was the 'King' I was glaring at. He was doing all this just to torture Fai, I knew it, he had no rhyme or reason for this! He was hurting Fai!
The memories started to flow again. I let them flow across my mind, not paying much attention to them anymore. They weren't important...I knew enough. I knew enough to help Fai, I knew enough to understand why he was who he was...
Fai stared at me, at my glare. I could see it from through the memories. He was so afraid right now, he thought he had lost his 'last light' somehow...still I kept my mouth shut. I didn't trust what would come out of it if I spoke out loud.
Me. I saw me. Tomoyo...I listened to this part...I was the witches pawn to this guy with the bat symbol...from the very beginning we were supposed to be enemies? Ha, oh well. That didn't work out very well, did it?
A ghost of a smirk flitted across my face before the glare for Ashura returned. I let go of Syaoran. He fell to the ground softly along with Mokona and I walked forward. Fai drew away from me, his face becoming more and more afraid as he became more and more sure that I hated him. My glare never wavered as I reached out my hand and used the very seal Fai had given me to get my sword from my hand. Thank you Mage...this will work great. I'll even use it to help you first.
My Fai hugged the real Fai close to his body, "I can't die yet." He turned slightly to protect the dead child, "Not until Fai is revived. Not until I give him back his name and his life."
"Then you must kill right?" Ashura pointed at me, "Him."
Fai took in a breath and reached out. His hand alone was so unstable, surely his whole body was trembling under all those clothes. He didn't move other than his shaking. He seemed to be unable to attack me, even though he was under the impression that I was going to try and kill him...
"And I must have you grant my wish." With these words Fai's memories started to flow again.
I watched sword pointed as the memory of how Fai got his 'markings' flowed across my mind. This wasn't right, there was something missing from the memory. Why would he restrain Fai's magic if it got stronger with more use?
In the present Fai finally got the courage to write a spell upon the air to try and attack me. I slashed forward cutting through it and placed the blade close to Fai's skin, "Get this lie over with!" I yelled loudly, then quickly took the blade away from Fai, for he was not who I wished to hurt. I aimed a blow at Ashura, Fai shot off another spell at me. I managed to avoid most of it, but I did get nicked on the cheek by a shard of what was thrown at me.
Why was he protecting this man? Maybe he'd been kind sometime in the past, but Fai had been running from him up til now! There was no need for him to stop me, there was no logic behind it!
Fai began to write again as I slashed through his second spell. The memories flowed. I ignored most of them, concentrating on fighting against Fai's magic. Spell after spell I had to block with my sword. I avoided them until one got too close. I was hit. I crashed back and my back smashed against the floor. I quickly got up, there was no time to waste.
I dashed at Fai, I did not want to hurt him, but if I had to hurt him to get at that king. If I had to hurt him to help him, I would.
"MAJESTY!" Fai's voice screamed out in time with his own memories. A powerful spell came off of him and I braced my self against it, being pushed back away from him, I could barely keep my eyes open against the wind that the spell gave off. I'd never quite grasped just how powerful Fai's magic really was...
I jumped up and attempted to cut through the gigantic spell...I got through it and came down toward Fai, cutting down through him, not my Fai, but the little dead child that my Fai held. "Fai!" The Mage's voice yelled in desperation as I did this.
Before my Fai could give any more reaction then that I grabbed onto my Fai's head and forced him down on the ground, holding him there and making sure no more spells came off his hands. "It should be like I said. Your past has nothing to do with me. Besides, if what that guy showed us is your past, it doesn't make sense, does it?"
"Wh...at?" I heard Fai's voice ask from beneath me.
I explained my reasoning to him, saying that if his magic got stronger the more he used it, why did it need to be suppressed to suppress the curse? Why not just let it become as strong as it could?
Fai shook beneath me and reached out taking a crystal of his memory that fell from the ceiling and holding onto it, looking into it trying to see what he had missed. The memory cleared. So the king wanted Fai to kill him using that curse...bah, useless. I looked to the king with fury, "Get this lie over with! Showing us a past that could come apart this easily, what the hell are you planning!?"
Ashura grinned, "I only want you to grant my wish Fai. You made me a promise that you would eliminate anyone who brought harm to this countries people. No matter who that may be."
Fai's body tensed, "I can't do it...you...brought me and Fai...out of that valley. No matter what...no matter what... I may think of you... you were still the first person...who ever showed kindness to the two of us. That's why...I can't kill you."
That damn man kept right on smiling, "Well then..." He raised his hand and something came up out of the water, all of us looked at it. It was Sakura's body. "I shall continue."
I let go of Fai's head, allowing him to stand next to me. I knew no spell would be woven for me right now. "Sakura-chan!"
"How very mysterious...there is no soul within this body and yet it lives on. Perhaps it is the power of that feather you gave human form. Although it seems to have already returned to this body. Yes...that girl." The girl that Fai had called 'Chii?' That was the only one I could possibly think of. There was no other girl that Fai had known.
Both Fai and I stiffened when he seemed to use magic to try and harm her. I dashed forward with my sword and Fai aimed attack spells. All the power of the spell was absorbed by some force that surrounded Ashura.
He smiled again, not looking to Fai this time, but closing his eyes, "To you this girl...her existence is very important to you."
"Your majesty?"
Seemingly out of the blue he attacked with a similar magic to Fai's. I prepared to defend myself, but a shield made of magic appeared in front of me. Fai had protected all of us from that spell, but the next spell took down the shields surrounding me and Syaoran... "Syaoran-kun! Mokona!" We did not know what had happened to them as the spell hit and a dust cloud arose.
Something grabbed onto me and Fai looked around frantically, at Syaoran, at me, and at Sakura. He gasped when he saw that Ashura was about to stab Sakura with what seemed to be a dagger of ice... "STOP!!!" Fai used the most powerful spell I'd seen from him yet, but it had no affect. Fai was about to be hit, if not killed...
"Raitei...SHOURAI!" Syaoran's voice rung through the hall and killed off the attack that had been about to hit Fai...
The hold on me weakened and I pulled out, dashing to help Fai. He needed help, we had to win this. I saw Fai's face, he looked so sad, it was a look of pure pain and regret. For a mere moment I wondered why that look was on his face before I felt something ram through my side. Well, that hurt. A lot. I put my hand to the wound watching Fai as I fell to the ground.
I heard Fai scream loudly and for a minute, I heard nothing more, it was silent. My eyes saw black. Was I dying? Heh, it wasn't so bad...wait no. I could feel power going through me. I looked up. Ashura was holding onto Fai by his neck, blood coming from Fai's mouth. He was loosing badly.
Fai looked desperately to where Syaoran was. Sakura's body was by him, but there was a spell appearing there. Fai was attempting to save them with a spell of his own even though he was currently in a bad position. I had to help, even if it hurt to move. I had no choice. I dashed forward and cut through the spell just before the spell finished and harmed the kid and the princess. It hurt, but as long as I was concentrated on Fai and his king I could ignore it.
I dashed forward after that to try and help Fai. That king began to write yet another spell. "A protective seal?" He was staring at my head. I couldn't see anything there and I didn't care. I would worry about it later.
I stabbed through the next spell that came toward me as well, but that was not my intention. Had it worked?
The smoke cleared. It had. I had gotten him through with the sword. Hey, if the Mage wouldn't kill him, I would. He seemed truly shocked that I had managed to stab him...he smiled? Why the hell is smiling? I just dealt a lethal blow and I am not Fai. "That seal protected you right? Draw out the sword." I stared in confusion, "Draw it out."
After a long moment I obeyed. His blood flowed and he pulled Fai closer. He still had a hold on his neck. Ashura put his hand to Fai's face, his eye... I looked and I realized that Fai was crying. "You mustn't cry for the likes of me." He whispered as he brushed the tears away gently. He pulled him even closer, into a half hug. "I wanted, if possible, to be killed by you and erase the last curse for you...however," he smiled once more. "If you're with them, you can overcome that curse."
He finally let go of Fai and fell to the ground. No more movement. No more breathing. He was dead. "Your Majesty!" Fai cried loudly kneeling by his side. Even now Fai still cared...Slowly Fai put his hand over Ashura's eyes and drew the eyelids down so that they closed...
He looked to me now. A look of sympathy and regret played his face. I merely stared back. Once he realized I wasn't going to say anything he closed his eyes and looked to the ground, or his knees. Away from me at any rate. I knew he'd just completely lost something that at one time or another had been one of his lights.
"Sakura...?" Syaoran's voice questioned as the girls body floated. Fai gazed in her direction for a moment before a splashing noise drew all our eyes toward the pool. The body of the real Fai came out. It held itself in a fetal position.
"Fai? Even though Chii is no longer there...why?"
As if it actually wanted to answer my Fai, the body uncurled revealing that he held an egg. Light burst from it and the shell shattered. A feather. As usual the feather floated to Sakura's body.
One last scene started to flash before my eyes. It didn't matter so I turned my head away thinking about almost anything but was going on in front of my eyes. When it stopped flashing I looked to Fai. He was crying again. "That was...Fai's memory?" His voice was whimpering.
Fai reached out as if to take the other Fai in his arms again but I grabbed onto his arm, when I saw him look at me I shook my head. He had to let go. If I wanted Fai to move forward he had to let his past go. "Let him sleep."
We both looked to where the original Fai was and the body degraded in Sakura's arms... "It was my fault...that all this time...you weren't allowed to sleep." The Mage bit his lip and closed his eye trying to not cry yet again. "I'm sorry Fai..."
"Quickly take us out of this world."
Before Mokona could even start to do anything A light surrounded Fai and myself. Something was wrong. I looked up trying to figure out what was wrong... "Oi!" I yelled at Fai.
"This world is...!"
Fai dropped to his hands and knees, panting, "This is...the other..."
"Oi!" I yelled again, ignoring his words, "Something's happening!" Fai lay down on his face, he seemed to have no energy at all.
After a moment Fai sat up very slightly, "This world is closing..." I could barely hear him as he he breathed the words out, "By my magic."
"What the hell does that mean!?"
"We won't be able to leave this place..."
I pulled on Fai's arm, trying to get him to stand up with me. I wouldn't believe that. "We're getting out of here!"
Fai shook his head, not resisting my action, but not exactly getting up either. "It's no good everyone...It seems I'm not getting stronger the more I use my magic after all..." There was a very small pause. "More likely, the more I use my magic the closer I get to dying..."
My eyes widened at this statement. "What?"
"But I still have magic power left. Syaoran-kun! Don't let go of Sakura-chan or Mokona." They obeyed. They were outside of the circle we were in.
"What do you want to do?!" I yelled at him, no I wouldn't just let him die, whatever he was planning there had to be a better way!
"Get out of here..." Fai began to write very quickly. In the middle of it all, it all suddenly collapsed, it's magic spilled everywhere...
Fai put his now free hand to his mouth and coughed, I could see the bright red blood drip from between his fingers...he was serious, he was getting closer to dying as he used more magic! "What happened?!"
Fai drew his fingers away from his mouth. His face was clearly horrified that he could do nothing at all. "My magic...it's not enough!"
I growled and while I never let go of Fai's arm I banged at the walls that surrounded Fai and myself, trying to break through them, there had to be a way! Suddenly a hole in the thing appeared above us. I pulled harshly on Fai's arm, not caring if it hurt him at the moment. Only caring to get him out. Only caring about saving him. About saving us.
I got out and for a moment thought we were in the clear, but he wouldn't come through...I tugged and pulled, but he wouldn't come. He realized this and tried to pull out of my grasp, "GO!" he commanded me. I glared. I wouldn't obey.
Suddenly I knew exactly what to do, a voice told me so. "If you want him to go with you. If you wish for it with all your heart...you must exchange him for something that has the same magic as him." The voice sounded so familiar...I let go of his arm. He seemed to be relieved, going to sink down into the middle of the cage again, but his eyes then widened as he realized what I was about to do. It looked like he was going to scream 'No' at me, but it was too late. I had made up my mind. He was coming with me, whether he wanted to or not.
In one swing of Souhi I cut off my arm and reached back in with the remaining one and grabbed him by the collar of his under coat and pulled him through with me. His top coat slipping off his body and being left behind.
I couldn't feel it now, and even if I could, the pain didn't matter. All that mattered was that I was saving him. Of course I myself couldn't die either...that would only mean that Fai would die later from having no blood from me. So we both had to live through this. It was the only option.
Fai stared at me with shocked and horror-stuck eyes. I pulled him closer to me not even thinking of letting go as Mokona started the magic to take us away. This had better be quick, I was already starting to black out from loss of blood...
Fai. Yuui. Whoever you are. The rest is up to you. I trust you.