Disclaimer: MKR and its characters belong to Clamp. I do owe just Hoshi Ryuuzaki and the bad guy.

Notes: This story is close to the end...how sad T.T ... but oh well, this is not the last chapter so yeah...hope you'll like this one.

-CHAPTER 13

Fuu was passed out, so were Hikaru, Ascot and Hoshi. Ferio had run to his woman, so had done Lantis. They had to protect them. He sighed, he failed in protected his lover, but he would never fail again. He looked straight at the black dragon shaped deity before him. It wasn't Selece, that did mean that Umi hadn't summon it, it was that damn fury god. He walked towards the goddess, hiding behind his cold eyes all the fear he was feeling. He, the Master Mage of Cephiro, was afraid. Afraid of losing the only one person he had ever loved.

"I'll tell you just once, Yoru, let her go and leave this place. Come back to your cavern and stop attacking our kingdom" he icy said, the goddess laughed.

"do you really think you can stop me, Master Mage?"

"yes" he simply answered

"you know, I will have piety of you...fighting you in my Manashin form would be too easy, and I won't be unfair..." she said.

Clef swallowed, he'd rather prefer attacking her in that form, at least in that way he wouldn't have to face Umi.

In a few the Manashin disappeared and Umi was standing in front of him, a smirk crossing her pale face.

"here I am, Clef" she said

"do you really want try to fight me? To...kill me" she asked.

Clef froze hearing those words. Of course he wouldn't. He'd preferred die himself, but he was the Master Mage, protecting Cephiro and the Magic Knights was his duty. He never found his task so hard.

"yes" he answered.

Umi nodded

"very well, that was what I wanted to hear..." she commented, then she drew her rapier and caressed its blade

"bye bye Clef" she said in a smirk throwing herself again him, he dodged the attack and, when she tried with a spell, he evoked a protecting barrier.

"better than what I did expect" she said

"Kuro Ryuu!" she exclaimed when the barried disappeared: a black dragon came out from her palms and attacked the Master Mage. He couldn't dodge it and the magic dragon wrapped his smoky tail around his throat. Or maybe he just won't do it. A part of his mind refused to attack her, maybe if he wouldn't react Umi, or what of her lasted in her body, had came out and recognize him, maybe she'd stop herself and she'd blow away that thing with her own will. But they were all mere suppositions.

Umi laughed

"I thought you could do better...you are such a delusion for being a Master Mage" she said launching another spell against him. He took the attack but didn't say a world, neither he tried to react.

"why don't you hurt me back?!" the goddess yelled, he weakly smiled. She was getting nervous, well, at least part of his plan was working.

"you should be happy I don't...or you'd be done..." he whispered. It was hard to breath with that dark spell wrapped around his neck.

The fury god clenched her fist and started launching powerful spells against him, he stayed silent. Not a single moan came from him. That was making her frustrated, she was the goddess fury, she enjoined other's people rage and him being so cold was a torture to her.

She came closer to him and drew her sword

"there's no fun to play this way..." she whispered raising the edge of her weapon to his throat

"so I think I'll get rid of you...in the end you must consider yourself lucky: you got the honour to get killed by the woman you love" she added laughing, he clenched his fists. Now he was really getting angry, she couldn't even think to compare herself to that woman she had stolen the body and the mind to.

"you..." he hissed

"you aren't...her..." he weakly added

"U...Umi...I know you are there...I saw it earlier...with....with Fuu..." he whispered

"I...I know you can...hear....hear me..." he added.

Her head ached. That voice...it was Clef's one. She could have recognize it everywhere. So here he was, he hadn't left her behind, he was there. There for her.

"Cle...Clef..." she whispered.

The Mage's eyes enlighten, his lips curved in a sweet smile. He knew that, she had to be here, she was much stronger than that, her proud would never permit her to get manipulated by such a mean being.

"Umi..." he softly said, her arm trembled, she lowered the sword

"no!" the husky voice yelled

"kill him!" she ordered.

Her limbs ached again, her throat burned. A force she couldn't fight raised her arm again getting the blade of the sword closer to his throat. She couldn't kill him. She had to do something, in the end she was the Magic Knight of Water, it had to mean something!

"no! No! Clef!" she yelled,

"Clef, attack her, do something!" she exclaimed in pain

"you know that..." he tried

"I know...but please do something...I won't kill you and it hurts...please, I prefer risking my life rather than keep going on like this!" she yelled, the voice laughed again

"I think it's too late..." the goddess said

"I won't say it..." the Master Mage hissed, then he raised up his staff.

A flashing white light came out of it, in a few the black dragon disappear in a smoky cloud, he took his hands to his throat gasping for air.

"how...what...?" the fury god was confused, Clef smirked looking at her, then with a simple spell made her sword fly away from her hands

"who's winning now?" he asked, then he stepped closed aiming at her with his magic staff

"let her go..."

"never, if you kill me, you'll kill her too" she answered in anger. Clef closed his eyes and sighed

"Umi..." he whispered

"please, say something..." he pleaded

"just do it" the woman's voice said

"that's not me, Clef...she deformed even my body...I'm not me anymore...I won't be like this..."

He wasn't able to speak, he just looked blankly at the body in front of him.

She was right, that frame was so different from Umi's one, he couldn't recognize anything of the Water Knight in it, just the long hair were the same. But that didn't change a thing, Umi was still risking to die. Maybe if he'd use a not too powerful spell...

Yoru laughed

"are you scared, Clef?" she asked, he clenched his fists

"yes, I am" he admitted, the goddess smirked

"but I won't let you win...I can't" he said, then a purple and azure light came out of his staff, his heart ached at the thought that he was risking to kill Umi. But he couldn't do without it. It was his duty.

"forgive me" he whispered

"I...I love you" he added, then launched the spell against her.

She reached out her arms, two black and red blast of magic came out from her palms, they crashed against Clef's one.

They fought for a while, he was not using all his powers, he was afraid to kill her.

Her spell was getting stronger, he didn't know what to do.

He turned and saw Hikaru and Fuu lying on the floor in Lantis and Ferio's arms. He couldn't help thinking they were lucky, they could be happy together. Then his eyes went to Ascot, he'd hate him if something would have happened to Umi, he cared so much about her, he still couldn't believe she preferred a 7 centuries old man to a handsome boy like him. Finally they posed on Hoshi. She was unconscious on the floor, Umi loved her, she'd give everything to see her safe, she did even offered her mind to Your for her, how could she think she was a terrible mother? That thought gave him strength, he had to do it or everyone of them would have been killed by that damn thing. Umi would never accepted to see them die, she'd never forgiven his weakness. He sighed and made the spell strongest. The azure and purple blast became huger, in a few it crashed against Umi's chest. The light surrounded her, she screamed in pain. His heart ached hearing her, but it was late now, he had to finish it. He closed his eyes for not seeing Umi's body disappearing in the blinding light, but that shriek sound made him thrill, chills run down his spin, his head ached. Then the light vanished and he fell on his knees, destroyed.

When the scream was over, suddenly even the rain ceased with it. That had to mean that the Water Knight powers weren't able to work anymore.

He swallowed seeing Umi's body lying not too far from him. He slowly approached her. She was badly hurt, full of bruises and cuts.

"Umi..." he whispered, she didn't answered. He didn't expect she'd done it but his heart sank anyway.

What had he just done?

Ferio looked at Lantis

"keep an eye on Fuu" he said, the swordsman nodded and watched him walking towards the Master Mage.

"Clef..." he said kneeing next to him, he didn't answered but kept looking at Umi, he gently moved away some long hair strands from her closed eyes.

"I'm...I'm sorry..." the boy added, the Master Mage shook his head.

"she asked me to do that" he icy explained. He wanted to cry, but he couldn't. Even in that moments he was the Master Mage, he couldn't appear weak. Ferio stayed silent, Clef took Umi's hand and kissed it, then he held it tight.

"we should come back to the castle" he said sighing, Ferio nodded and Clef stood Up taking the Water Knight in his arms, then he walked towards Lantis and the others.

The swordsman looked at him, but he didn't said anything. There were no need of words, it was clear how the Master Mage was feeling. Clef couldn't help feeling jealous of the two men standing beside him, Fuu and Hikaru were damaged, of course, but they'd heal and soon they'd come back to their normal everyday life. But what about him? And especially about

Clef just waved his staff and took everyone back in the castle.