Summary: The lines are totally skewing. The meeting of the rival kings! Kurogane and Fai don't know Syaoran? (Sorry for the strange summary…)

Warnings: 1. Swearing. 2. Spoilers for chapter 58 and beyond. 3. Some KuroxFai action. Mostly left up to the imagination, but….there's stuff there.

Disclaimer: I take basically no credit for writing this chapter. It was pretty dull for me to write really. I didn't make up any characters. I didn't make up the action sequences. I barely wrote any dialogue. Further explanation at the end.

Legend

Fateful Meetings

"Hey." A gruff, but soft voice and a gentle hand on his shoulder woke Fai slowly from his sleep. He opened an eye to see Kurogane propped up on an elbow next to him. "It's almost dawn."

Fai frowned slightly. "What would be your point? I'll have you know that you just woke me from a wonderful dream."

"Did I?" Kurogane smirked.

Fai snorted and closed his eyes again. "Yes. I'd like to go back to it now."

He felt Kurogane lean over him and nuzzle his cheek. "Sorry. It's time to wake up."

Fai opened his eyes and turned his head, bumping their noses together. "I think your obsession with rising at dawn is unhealthy. It wouldn't kill you to sleep just a little longer than the rest of the camp."

"You never know," Kurogane shrugged. "It might."

"No it won't," Fai said. "But since you have succeeded in your ploy to wake me up, I might as well humor you today."

"Just like every other day?" Kurogane asked.

"Hush," Fai bumped his forehead into Kurogane's in retaliation. "I don't see why I have to get up just because you do."

"Because I won't let you sleep, so you might as well get up with me," the swordsman stated. "Besides, you know today is important."

Fai groaned. "I don't see how Yasha-ou thinks that today is going to be the start of the end for him."

Kurogane shrugged. "It could be that feather. He might be able to feel if that princess is around."

"Maybe," Fai sighed. "But I suppose you're right. We should find him."

The two rose from the ground and headed toward the rest of the camp. There, they found Yasha sitting off to a side in front of a small fire. He nodded them over and the warriors joined him.

"Ashura has called the boy to him," Yasha said. "They will be on the battlefield today; he and his princess."

"When?" Kurogane asked.

Yasha shook his head. "That I do not know. Their appearance should cause Ashura to retreat though. But this will be the beginning." He gazed wistfully into the flickering light of the fire. "I know he will be able to let me go." He looked first at Fai, then Kurogane. "Are the both of you ready?"

Kurogane nodded. "Just stay outta my fights and everything'll be fine."

Yasha nodded. "As you wish."

:-:-:-:-:-:

The battle played out as the battles with Ashura normally did; Kurogane and Fai dominating the battlefield, killing off many, Yasha and Ashura avoiding each other, fighting whomever they came across. The sky split open and deposited two children into the midst of the battle. Yasha pulled back immediately, Kurogane and Fai falling in to either side.

"They're here," he said.

The young man lay underneath the young woman, who immediately moved off of him. She spoke to the young man and then to a small creature that landed beside them.

"Children?" Ashura paused after felling one of Yasha's warriors. He looked curiously at the two as they lay amongst the dead and wounded. "What are you doing in a place like this?"

The fighting continued around the small group, but to Ashura and the two young people, there was no battle at all.

"Ashura-ou, are you hurt?" A blond-haired warrior came up behind Ashura.

Ashura smiled to him. "No. It seems we still haven't reached a conclusion, then. With Yasha and his people."

The children looked around and noticed Kurogane and Fai. Matching stricken expressions fell over their faces as they took in the sight of the two on either side of Yasha.

"What do you suppose they're thinking?" Yasha mused quietly to his swordsman and bowman.

Kurogane blinked impassively at the two. "Damn if I care."

Fai smiled slightly.

"It looks as if we shall find out later," Yasha said.

"The moon has risen. This is as far as the battle will go for tonight," Ashura sighed, almost disappointed.

The battlefield shimmered under the rising moon and Yasha's clan disappeared. Kurogane frowned as the children vanished before his eyes. There was something about the young man. Both of the two, actually. It seemed almost as if they recognized him and Fai. He snorted to himself. That was impossible.

Once they were transported back to their camp, the clan dismembered to tend the wounded. Yasha moved off by himself into the dark and left Kurogane and Fai alone.

"They looked as if they recognized us," Fai began.

Kurogane scowled at him. "That's ridiculous."

Fai smiled and brushed a hand down Kurogane's arm. "You're hurt a little."

The swordsman scoffed. "Maybe if you hadn't tried to butt into my fight, I'd be fine."

"Or maybe you'd have one less arm instead of only a scratch," Fai grinned.

"Whatever," Kurogane huffed. "Just stay outta my fights."

"I wouldn't be a very good bowman if I just left you to your own devices," Fai said.

"The farther you're away though, the less likely you're going to get hurt," Kurogane mumbled.

"You worry too much, Kuro-chan," Fai shook his head and walked forward, leading them toward their usual location. He sat back against the thick tree and patted the ground next to him.

"Come, Kuro-mi," he said. "Let me look at that shoulder."

"You are not a healer, you know," Kurogane groused as he sat down heavily.

"Hush and take off your tunic," Fai said.

Kurogane frowned, but proceeded to pull the black garment free. He winced as the fabric pulled against the laceration across his shoulder. Fai hissed softly in sympathy at the sight. It was not deep, but it was quite lengthy, starting from the middle of his back and terminating at the end of his shoulder. He placed a cool hand over it, gently rubbing the skin around it.

"This looks a tad painful," he observed, keeping his tone light.

"It's nothing," came the gruff reply.

"I suppose," the bowman laughed. "There's really not too much to be done. It was made quite cleanly, though. No ragged edges or anything."

"Lucky me," Kurogane said. "I'd thank the bastard if you hadn't killed him."

"It was my duty to kill him, Kuro-tan," Fai laughed. "And had I not, just remember that you would have been a lot worse."

Kurogane lay back, trapping the other man against the tree. He rested his head against Fai's shoulder and looked up at him. "You're not going to let me live this down, are you?"

Fai put his arms around his swordsman, resting them across his chest. "Probably not. You should rest. I have a feeling we're going to be fighting everyday until this whole thing is over."

"I'm not tired," Kurogane mumbled, his eyes drifting closed.

Fai pressed his lips against his swordsman's spiky hair. "Of course not."

:-:-:-:-:-:

The next day saw the two warriors fighting Ashura's army once more, viciously taking down any in their way. Yasha remained a ways from this battle, allowing his warriors to do the fighting. Something about today's battle was different; the fighting more reckless, the warriors more willing to die. A small path cleared as Kurogane cut down the ones in front of him.

"Kurogane-san! Fai-san!"

The cry was faint among the shouts of pain and death that clouded the air. Kurogane reared his steed and cut down another warrior, Fai loosing an arrow to find its mark at another's chest.

"Kurogane-san! Fai-san!"

Their attention finally caught, the two warriors turned to see the young man from the day before galloping toward them.

"What the hell is this?" Kurogane muttered. "And how the hell does he know our names?" As the young man drew closer, Kurogane stabbed his sword out, halting him from advancing further. "If the Ashura clan's sending kids like this into battle, they must be fresh out of decent warriors!"

The boy looked at him, a confused look in his eyes. "Kurogane-san."

Kurogane smirked. "Zenryuu-hikougeki!" He slashed his sword through the air, sending an attack at the boy and knocking him from his steed.

The young man recovered quickly, grasping his shoulder, now scarred by the attack. Kurogane lifted his sword for a second attempt. Before the young man could move, Fai let his arrows go, pinning him to the earthen boulder behind him. Panic seized the young man as he found no escape from the impending attack.

"Hikougeki!" The attack sluiced the air to come crashing down around the young man. When it cleared, Kurogane approached, looking down at him and grunted. "We missed all your vitals. That won't happen next time." His sword crashed down again. "Hama-Ryuuoujin!"

The young man desperately pulled his sword free, cutting his clothing. He leapt clear of the attack to land at one side.

Kurogane frowned. "Running away in tatters like that, huh?" He jumped from his mount and tossed the reigns to Fai, who caught them deftly. "Stay out of this," Kurogane growled to him before moving in to attack the young man again.

Their swords came together, clashing loudly as the blades scraped against each other. Kurogane pulled back and struck at him again, but the young man flipped up and over his head as Souhi cut the air.

"C'mere so I can get you once more, kid!" Kurogane snarled. "This time, I'll slice you clean in half!"

The young man hit the ground behind him. Kurogane could have laughed at the sight of him. He looked completely uncertain of himself, and also seemed unsure whether or not to really be involved in this fight. Instead he came forward again, throwing most of his strength into the blow. Souhi crashed to a halt against the young man's sword. How the hell did he stop that? Kurogane wondered.

With Kurogane's attempt to free his sword from the block, the young man flipped up and over his head, leaping from Kurogane's shoulder and high into the air. He aimed his sword downward and, much to his apparent surprise, sent a fiery attack raining down onto Kurogane. He was barely able to bring Souhi up in time to block it, but Kurogane cleanly swept it aside.

"Well, well. Not too bad. But...it's still not enough!" He grinned. "Tenma-Kuuryuusen!"

The young man jumped up to dodge it, but the attack curved, arching up to swallow him in its maw and bring him crashing to the ground. Kurogane approached him, stopping to look down with disapproval.

"You react too slowly," he said.

The young man looked between Kurogane and Fai with open astonishment before Kurogane brought Souhi down upon him once more. The young man did not have time enough to react and braced himself for the blow. Kurogane sensed an attack from his side, though, and halted his sword, using the momentum to leap out of the way, landing behind Fai on his mount. Flames licked through the air, missing the young man entirely and dissipated. Ashura sat serenely on his own mount, pointing his sword at the two warriors.

"Saving your underlings now, huh?" Kurogane smirked at him. "That's not like you, Ashura-ou!"

Ashura smiled, and deftly released another attack toward them.

Kurogane grasped Fai's shoulder, squeezing gently and whispered. "Don't worry."

Fai smiled softly, holding the animal steady as it pulled to try and escape the impending hit.

Kurogane launched himself directly at the attack, completely terminating it with his own sword. It seemed as if Ashura had not seen it coming, as he was momentarily taken by surprise as Kurogane completed his jump to land directly above Ashura on his own steed. The swordsman grinned as he pressed his sword closer to Ashura's throat.

Ashura smiled. "Impressive."

Kurogane knew the boomerang was coming before he saw it, blocking it and sending it flying back to the blond warrior that came at them. He lost his balance on Ashura's steed and leapt to the ground.

The blond warrior charged forward, fury blazing in his eyes. "King!" He reared his mount and raised his weapon high over Kurogane's head. "Bastard!" An arrow hit his shoulder, cracking his armor, effectively stopping him.

Fai held his bow, not preparing to shoot again. Kurogane frowned at him. "Stay outta my fight."

Fai grinned calmly, even as Ashura's army amassed around them. Then small sparks appeared, floating in all around the group.

"Yama-tenkouken!"

The huge attack was mostly indiscriminate in killing the majority of those in the area, throwing bodies aside as the wisps of Yasha's attack curled through the battlefield.

Kurogane glared up at his leader and sighed. "I thought I said to stay outta my fight, Yasha-ou."

Yasha sat atop his steed on a large outcropping and looked sternly at the battlefield, unmoved by Kurogane's admonishment. His gaze met Ashura's and silence fell over the field as the moon rose behind him.

Kurogane shook his head in exasperation and climbed onto the back of his mount. He rode past the young man as the moon castle beckoned them away.

"Next time come at me like you mean it, kid," Kurogane smirked.

Fai grinned back at him as they disappeared into the night.

:-:-:-:-:-:

Yasha turned away from the group, isolating himself once more from the rest of his clan. Kurogane watched him go before turning to Fai.

Fai smiled. "So what happened today?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kurogane snarled as he made his way through the group.

Fai trailed slightly behind him. "Why didn't we kill that boy?"

"We always missed him," Kurogane spat.

"We don't miss, Kuro-pon," Fai said.

Kurogane turned on him. "What are you implying?"

Fai did not flinch. "I'm just saying that perhaps we didn't really want to kill him."

The swordsman's anger slowly ebbed as he mulled Fai's statement over. He glared at him. "I hope we're not getting that soft." He turned around.

Fai reached forward to clasp Kurogane's hand in his own. "You know it doesn't mean that. I know I would rather not kill him. If what Tomoyo said was true, then his princess needs him."

Kurogane tightened his grip on his bowman's hand. "The kid's going to need to get a lot stronger if he's going to be of use to her. He reacts far too slowly."

"Why don't you give him a chance?" Fai asked. "You saw he was blind in one eye."

"Doesn't mean he can use it as an excuse not to get stronger," Kurogane said.

"It seems like he's trying though," Fai said. "But you know there's more than just physical strength."

"He's got plenty of the other strength, that's for sure," Kurogane said, tugging his bowman forward to stand next to him. They began once again toward their normal location far from the clan. "But he still needs training."

Fai chuckled. "Well, if you keep going at him as you did today every time we meet, he'll be stronger in no time."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kurogane frowned.

"Oh nothing," Fai grinned innocently. He gasped, startled as Kurogane swung him around to press him against their usual tree and leaned over him. He looked up at his swordsman, a small smile playing at his lips. "What's this now?"

Kurogane gave him a sly grin. "Oh nothing."

Fai reached his hand up to brush the tips of his fingers across Kurogane's lips. "I know this smile, and it doesn't mean 'nothing.'"

"So what does it mean?" Kurogane asked, pressing his lips to Fai's lingering hand.

"Well, it's a little difficult to tell," Fai's voice dropped to a breath as Kurogane took his hand, continuing to drop kisses down his wrist. "It could mean any number of things, really."

Kurogane glances up and leaned in closer. "Oh?"

"Yes, it could," Fai smiled softly. "Maybe you could just illustrate it."

"Just like every other time?" Kurogane smirked.

"Oh hush," Fai said as he closed the remaining distance between them to press their mouths together.

W/C: So I've decided to tweak this section. I realize that I am not an author, so I can hardly have an 'author's note.' So instead I'm making it a 'writer's comment.' Pretty lame, but true. Alas. On with the writer's comment!

So this chapter was basically me taking Tsubasa chapters 58-63 or so and describing them in Kurogane and Fai 3rd person point of view. We got the Syaoran version, but I'm going through Kuro and Fai. Though they're not Our Kuro and Fai. I'm having too much fun with this nowadays. I'm totally skewing Tsubasa reality! So anyway. Basically, I described the scenes that involved Kurogane and Fai and then added in the other scenes. So a lot of the dialogue is not mine. It belongs to CLAMP and Jamie from the translation site Hyu. I used all of her translations for the CLAMP stuff. All the other tidbits are mine. I feel like such a thief for this chapter. My goodness.

But next chapter! Will be much more fun for me. Because I'll get to write again. And not steal from others. So next chapter is going to be a wee break from my AU Shurano Kuro and Fai and we're flashing back to my AU Our Kuro and Fai. That's right. I'm busting them out of the dungeon and fun is going to ensue. Well…fun for me anyway.

Thank you, to everyone who reads this thing still. It's actually starting to close in on complete. Yes you heard right: complete. I've only got a few chapters left to write before this story will be done. Crazy. So since I was able to keep my three-week update as promised, the next one should be right on target too. Expect it on April 17th!

Thanks for reading!

Edit: Kay, so I can't read calendars, so the next update is on the 17th. And the last bit of action should be in its own part. Damnit. I hate when I mess things up. Oh well.