Summery; Warning; Disclaimer: See First Chapter.
Last chapter for this story as well! That's three stories I've finished today...whew, what an acheivement, right? I hope this last chapter is as good as the others, though I know it lacks a bit in the humor previously shown. I got the eighth manga of Tsubasa when it came out, btw. It was hard to write an end for this, since I don't even know the end of the manga, but I did my best!
Please review.
"Her ability to love," Yuko said soberly, and Watanuki's eyes widened. The black Mokona on the back of the chair looked solemn as well as Yuko continued. "Aea gave me her ability to love – her emotions completely. She thought if she did, they would be safe."
"And will they?" Watanuki demanded, suspecting another of Yuko's catches. To his surprise, she nodded slowly.
"Yes, they will. Oh, don't look so surprised, Watanuki – Zervian is now after Aea exclusively, which is good news for Mokona Modoki," she added, and frowned. "Zervian…he always had good potential, but rather too much of an ego for my taste – and Clow's as well. Ah well, what's done is done."
Watanuki watched as Yuko left the room.
"Is she serious?" he asked finally. "I mean, doesn't she care?"
"Yuko doesn't have that much power over people, to choose what they will and won't give up," Mokona told him suddenly. "And Yuko cares very much. That's why she made a mistake."
"A mistake…?"
"Yuko, in making Aea unable to love, made Kurogane sacrifice his happiness as well," Mokona said soberly. "But Kurogane hasn't received anything in exchange for that yet."
"Hmm…"
"I'm here, Zervian!" Aea announced, striding through the building still in her robes. The building, located in the desert like the rest of the city, was built out of large yellow bricks and was caked with sand and dirt. "I'm here, so come out and show yourself!"
"Are you the one that was with Fai and Kurogane?" Syaoran asked, and she glanced upward at their prison, showing no surprise at their situation.
"And Mokona?" Sakura added, and Aea nodded.
"Yes."
"I see you finally made it, Aea," Zervian said pleasantly, appearing above them on a platform. "So nice of you to join us, just as I'm about to unlock a gate that will allow me access to any world I choose, and conquer them!"
"I guess I made it just in time," she commented calmly, and a ring of fire suddenly surrounded the man. "You can thank Yuko for the return of my powers another time," she continued conversationally, and a whirlwind levitated her into the air so she was on level with him. "But right now, I suggest you occupy yourself with keeping yourself alive as long as you can manage."
"Back into assassin mode, I see," Zervian chuckled, and leapt to the ground lightly. "Good – it wouldn't be any fun to kill you while you're weak."
"Bastard!" she swore, but even her yell somehow lacked emotion. "You can't win anymore." Swirling bands of water and green light surrounded her right arm, wrapping themselves around her arm and neck like snakes while the left was covered in black light that had a dark-purple shine to it, and she flexed her fingertips.
"Let's go."
"Where are we going now?" Kurogane grunted, as they landed on soft grass.
"I see you've arrived," Yuko commented, and they jumped in surprise – all except Mokona, who laughed happily to himself.
"Mokona brought Fai and Kurogane to Yuko for help!" he informed them, leaping to Yuko's shoulder.
"You bitch," Kurogane growled, and lunged at the space-time witch. He was thrown back by a shield, and clambered to his feet with a swear. "That kid with you – the one with the black thing – told me before we left about your slip-up. Were you ever gonna tell me this?"
"Of course," she replied calmly, and Kurogane smirked.
"I bet you were."
"We need your help," Fai interrupted. "We need to get to Aea's world, but Zervian's blocked us from it."
"What did you think he would do?" she asked them. "I gave Aea back her full abilities – along with some extra – in return for her payment. It was an equivalent exchange."
"Except you took something from Kurogane as well," Mokona reminded her, and she groaned.
"Yes, yes, that was unexpected. I think she did it on purpose, now that I think about it," she realized with a grin. "That girl's learned some tricks along the way, I see."
"I want you to return her emotions," Kurogane demanded. "That's what I want. And for you to send us to her world – to where she is. Just those two things, you damn witch."
"Such polite language," Yuko said sarcastically, and turned to Fai. "I assume this is your wish as well?"
"Well, I need to get Syaoran and Sakura back, and apparently they're on Aea's world," Fai shrugged casually. "Besides, Zervian has the last feather. It's our responsibility, I suppose."
"I see," Yuko nodded, and considered the two young men briefly before turning to Mokona. Touching the jewel on its head, it glowed bright for a moment before he jumped back to Fai with a grin. "There. Mokona will take you directly to her world, to her exact location. But be careful – assassins are bad enough, but assassins that can wield magic are one of the worst things you'll ever find. And that counts for both of them."
"And her emotions?" Kurogane pressed, and she smirked slightly.
"You're a smart ninja – you'll figure out how to give them back to her when the time is right," she informed him, and his jaw dropped when he realized she had forced the task on him instead of doing it herself. Mokona cut off any complaints by taking them to the world in another instant, and Yuko turned to Watanuki, who had strode up behind her. "So, you told him."
"It was only right," he protested. "And besides – Mokona told me first."
"Ah, well, it couldn't be helped," she sighed, and then brightened up. "Anyway, let's get some good liquor to celebrate!"
"Without emotions, you both lose and gain something, Aea," Zervian commented, at a brief pause in their fight. Half the room was destroyed, and only the magical seal on the prison had kept Syaoran and Sakura from harm. "You're a much more reckless fighter, making for interesting concepts, but you lack the ferocity you used to have."
"Shut up," she growled, lunging. A bright enveloped them, and he was thrown out of it in an instant. She followed quickly with another attack, bringing the earth up around him to stab him in several areas with knife-like rocks. "You're not as strong as I would have thought you'd be," she commented. "Or is it that I'm merely stronger than you now?"
"Bitch," he said calmly, and a sudden tidal wave swept her into the wall and knocked her to the ground. "I'd stop being so confident if I was in your position," he continued, but took a step back as she flew into the air. The wind around him seemed to close in, and he found himself being suffocated and burned at the same time.
"Whew – what a rush!" Fai exclaimed, landing on the ground. The two young men appeared by one of the walls, directly behind Zervian and facing Aea. Mokona instantly leapt to the prison where the two teens were kept, and bounced on it impatiently.
"Aea!" Kurogane shouted, but she gave no notice of them. Her power was focused on Zervian, who was apparently going to suffer quite a lot before she decided to kill him.
"Without emotions, she's just a killing machine," Fai realized, and got to his feet. "I'll go get Syaoran and Sakura – you take care of her."
"Right," Kurogane nodded, giving in without an argument for once before the two rushed forward, splitting off in opposite directions after a few feet.
"Fai!" Sakura cried as he climbed up, and he grinned cheerfully at them.
"Hey, you two. Mokona, any way to get them out?"
"Zervian has to break the spell," Mokona reported glumly. "The feather is keeping this shield up."
"Oh."
"Aea!" Kurogane shouted, reaching her and grabbing her ankles to pull her out of the sky. She floated down on her own, the magic on Zervian never lessening, and regarded him coolly.
"How did you get here?" she demanded, and he grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Aea, you have to stop this," he ordered.
"Why?"
"This isn't you!" Kurogane said in frustration. "You're not someone who tortures people like this. You have to stop this – Yuko said you got your emotions back!"
"I didn't ask for them," she said, turning away from him. "Now, move. I have a job to do, and then I'll leave for Yuko's world. Don't worry – I'll hand the feather over before I go."
"I couldn't give a damn about the feather!" Kurogane growled, pulling her back to him. She looked a little surprised before collecting herself, but he glared at her. "Aea, how do I give you the emotions back? That damn witch…" He trailed off, the lightbulb suddenly going off in his head. Grasping her tightly the ninja lowered his head and pressed his lips firmly against hers. Aea gasped in shock, and the others watched interestedly as a glow surrounded the two before fading back into Aea. Kurogane almost jumped back when she suddenly responded to his kiss before pushing him away.
"Kurogane!" she began, but whirled around to face Zervian, who was on the ground almost unconscious. "I do wish I had finished you off before I got them back," she sighed, and shook her head. "It'll only be harder, but they need that feather – and you're too dangerous to let live, Zervian. I'm sorry, though."
"I liked you better when you were a cold-blooded killer," he spat, and she smiled sadly.
"I know." Closing her eyes, a black light encased Zervian before closing in on itself, and seeming disappearing into thin air. The prison holding Syaoran and Sakura, and the thing Fai and Mokona were sitting on, suddenly disappeared as well, but Aea caught them with her wind and floated them to ground. Going over to where Zervian had been, she crouched down and picked something up before turning back to the others. Striding up to Sakura, she held her hand out, revealing the final feather in her open palm. "I believe this belongs to you," she said calmly, and stepped back in surprise as the feather floated in Sakura.
"What the hell's going on?" Kurogane demanded, as the building began to shake.
"This building is an alternate version of the ruins in Clow," Mokona informed them, as Aea led them out of the collapsing building. "Something's happening in Clow, and it's affecting any ruins connected to it in other worlds!"
"Gee, that makes things so much clearer," Kurogane grumbled, and ran into Aea when she suddenly stopped. "What's wrong?"
"I'm sensing an abnormal power nearby," she said quietly, and turned to face them. "Mokona knows the way out – don't you? Take them and hurry. I have to see what's going on!"
"Aea!" Kurogane shouted, and Syaoran grabbed at Sakura as the girl suddenly chased after Aea as well.
"Sakura!"
"To hell with this!" Kurogane muttered. "Mokona, where'd they go? We're following them!"
"We're gonna be in trouble!" Fai called, but still ran after Syaoran and Kurogane as Mokona led them through the tunnels inside the ruins.
"The seal…" Aea breathed, arriving in a large round room that was completely except for a glowing seal on the floor. "It appeared again," she said quietly, stepping into the center of it. A blast of power suddenly shot through her, and she cried out in surprise.
"Aea!" Sakura yelled, arriving in the room moments later. The young woman was floating in the air, apparently unconscious, and Sakura took a step forward to go to her, but Syaoran grabbed her arm. "Syaoran?"
"We have to go – huh?" Syaoran cut himself off, staring at the room. "It's like when you lost your memories, Sakura! What's going on?"
"Aea is connected to the ruins," Mokona reported, seemingly communicating with Yuko again. "Sakura, you and Syaoran need to go in the center right now, or else you'll never be able to return to your world again, and it will be destroyed as a result."
"Go, kid!" Kurogane shoved them towards the symbol, and another flash of light blinded them when the two teens reached the center. When they could see again, Aea was on the ground, the symbol was gone, and Syaoran and Sakura had disappeared.
"Good luck, you two," Fai said quietly, as Kurogane rushed to Aea.
"Aea?" he held her up against his chest, and looked down at her anxiously. "Is she alive?"
"Of course I am," she mumbled, opening her eyes with obvious effort. "What do you take me for, you idiot? I wished you hadn't had done any of this…I did it to protect you."
"I thought you were the one who always needed rescuing," Kurogane reminded her, picking her up amid her struggling. "Stop squirming around, or I'll drop you!"
"Mokona…what's going on?" Fai asked, as a dim light surrounded him. Kurogane turned around, and Aea slipped out of his grasp to move to Fai's side.
"You're a magician –it's residue from the teleport," she explained calmly, and Mokona nodded in agreement. "But I think it's almost time for you two to leave again, isn't it, Mokona?"
"Yes – and Yuko is waiting," Mokona told her, and she nodded sadly.
"I remember."
"I'm not going back," Kurogane said firmly, and Yuko regarded him with amusement. Mokona had taken them to his world once more, and Aea was dressed in a black skirt and silver top, with her hair twisted on her head loosely.
"First you wanted to go back, and now you're saying you'll break the contract?" she asked, and shook her head. "Make up your mind already. More sake?"
"No!" Kurogane answered for Fai, who frowned teasingly and winked at the Mokonas. "And I'm not going back!"
"What are you willing to give up?"
"Not that again," he groaned, and Aea interrupted the conversation.
"Well, he'll be stuck in a world completely different than his way of life," she began, "He'll never be able to return to his old life again, and have to adapt totally to this one. Isn't that sacrifice enough, Yuko? The charge isn't worth as much as you're trying to make it seem, after all."
"Good point," the older woman admitted, and turned back to Kurogane with a smirk. "All right, you can stay with Aea, but on one condition."
"What?" he asked suspiciously, and she grinned.
"You'll work here for a year under my command!"
"What?" he started, but choked on his words with a tolerating smile. "Fine, I'll do it."
"Fai?"
"I still want to travel," he shrugged. "Of course, it won't be nearly as much as fun, but I can't return – not yet."
"Mokona is still available," Yuko offered, and he grinned.
"That'd be nice."
"It seems it's settled. Syaoran and Sakura are safely back in their world, and Fai will continue to travel," Yuko nodded in satisfaction, peering at the group intently. "You, Aea, will become my apprentice, and your soulmate Kurogane here can stay with you as well."
Kurogane turned red at that statement but didn't argue, and Aea only flushed a little before nodding.
"Fair deal."
"Good – Mokona?"
"All right! Fai, let's go!" Mokona cried, sprouting wings and flying into the air. Fai stood underneath him, a goofy grin on his face while he waved at them before disappearing in a whirl of light.
"Are you doing all right, Kurogane?" Aea asked a few months later. "I know it's weird here, but…"
"I'm fine," he interrupted her, grumbling as he scrubbed the floor. "Damn witch…just wait until my time's up…"
"Poor Kurogane," Aea giggled, and he abruptly stopped scrubbing. Getting to his feet, he pulled her to him and kissed her with more passion than she had previously thought the ninja was capable of showing – until their wedding night, at least, which had occurred several weeks after their return to Yuko's world – and left her breathless.
"I've got you, don't i?" he pointed out matter-of-factly, before returning to his hated chores.
A weird ending, but the whole story was weird, so I figured what the heck? Please review!