The Truth Beyond the Reflection

Chapter 10: The Strands of Time

By Sanzaki Kojika

Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of the Kyou Kara MaOh! Characters. I do however, own everything "beyond the reflection." Heh. WARNING: There IS Yaoi in here. YxW and vice versa. I guess you could say hints of CxY, too.

Wooo! I told you chapter 10 wouldn't be too much of a wait! And ta da! Here it is X3 I have a little work on chapter 11, too. This story probably won't go over 13 chapters…but it's already much longer than I had originally planned. But I have this problem…anyways, thanks to you all for being so patient! And, I appreciate all the reviews and what not! Morgif seems to be quite popular. Wolfram chapter again!

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Great, now I was in such a better position. Now I was not only following a sword, but a box as well. And this box…it had the power to destroy my world! I wondered if it possessed the same kind of power in this realm. Oh well. The more I thought about it, the more my head heart. It didn't really matter anyways. I just wanted to get home! And, I was looking for any excuse to think of something that wasn't too depressing. No luck.

I slowly trudged along behind Morgif and Chigi. The more we traveled, the slower my pace fell. We were following a rocky, winding path that cut through the rise in the land. All the walked I had been doing was really starting to hit me. My leg ached with every step. The surface of the road we were walking on wasn't helping at all, either.

"Wolfram-kyo…" Morgif slowed down to meet my pace. He fell back just slightly ahead of me.

"Are you all right?" Morgif gave me a worried look.

"I'm fine!" I snapped. He didn't look even the least bit convinced. I think maybe Yuuri had been right. He would always tell me that I was a horrible liar, especially when I was mad. I tried to force a smile. Oh, how I missed my wimp!

Morgif stopped in front of me and knelt down. I stopped a few feet away from him.

"What are you doing…?" I cocked my eyebrow. He glanced back and flashed me another Conrad grin. Gah! This was driving me crazy!

"Get on," he said. I just stared at him. What? Was he going crazy…?

Morgif scooted back to me and wrapped his arms around my knees. Before I had time to react, he was lifting me and then I was on his back. He started to move forward and I cried out as I almost fell. I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck to keep my balance.

"I'll carry you," Morgif chuckled. He quickened his pace in an effort to catch up with Chigi. Fortunately (at least I hoped so), Chigi had stopped at the top of the rise. He was staring off towards the mountains that were looming ever closer.

Look there. Chigi made a great sweep across the land with his arm. Morgif moved a little closer. I shifted on his back to get a better look. It was…beautiful.

The blue and purple mountains rose up majestically upon the horizon, breaking through the thin strands of cotton that made up the clouds. The sky splayed out behind it in an array of indigo, violet, crimson, and orange. It looked almost normal…the only difference was the thin silver strands dancing across the setting sun.

"What is that…?" I finally managed to find my voice. I could see Morgif's brow crinkle up into a frown.

Foul magic left by your king. Chigi growled slightly. My grip on Morgif tightened.

"What would you have us do?" Morgif gripped my knees tighter. Chigi continued to stare at the sky.

Have thy nymph destroy the strands. Chigi closed his eye for a moment.

Morgif glanced back at me. Wait…now I was a nymph? I didn't really understand, but I guess Chigi probably didn't know what I was. All he knew was that I didn't belong here.

"We will agree to help you, if you agree to help us," Morgif smirked slightly. I gasped at him. Was he trying to get us…er me…killed? Chigi glared down at us.

What wouldst thou have me do? Morgif flashed me a grin. No worries? Yeah right!

"Tells us how to get my nymph back into his own world," Morgif grinned up at Chigi. The cyclops stared at us in silence for a moment.

Very well. Chigi turned away. Morgif helped me down off of his back. I leaned against him as he led me towards the rise. For some reason, when I was around him, I never worried about showing my weakness. Maybe it was because this still seemed unreal to me. We stopped next to Chigi.

"This will probably be painful, but I need you to use your magic on those strands," Morgif motioned to the silver threads floating in the sky. I cocked my eyebrow at him slightly.

"Painful…? That doesn't make sense," I scowled at him. He grinned at me.

"Your magic is not of this realm. There will be some repercussions…" Morgif averted his gaze towards the sky. I nodded slightly. Heh. It couldn't be that painful.

Come. Chigi bent down and held his hand out. I gave a nervous glance to Morgif, but he motioned for me to go. I slowly climbed onto the giant hand.

Chigi slowly rose up, and I clung to one of his fingers in an attempt to balance myself. He lifted me high above his head and held me up towards the sky. I glanced down and gulped slightly. Good thing I wasn't afraid of heights.

I took a deep breath and held my hands out before me. I closed my eyes and concentrated on the silver strands. Slowly I called forth my contract with the elements. I could feel the magic rising to my fingers. The moment the magic began to form into fire, the pain struck.

I gasped and stumbled slightly, but I managed to keep my concentration. The more my flame grew, the stronger the pain got. It was worse than the pain from the houseki! I bit my lip against the pain. I was fighting just to keep myself standing on my two feet.

I finally got the fireball large enough to engulf all of the strands I could see, and I let it loose with a cry. My vision blurred as my fire met with those strands. I saw the blur of the explosion before I was engulfed in pain and met by darkness.

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A sharp pain shot through my head. I cried out against it. My whole body was aching. I wanted to rest more, but I forced my eyes open. I couldn't waste time just lying around! As I became more aware, it felt like I was moving…

"Wolfram-kyo, are you all right?" Morgif leaned over me. I nodded slightly. He moved back as I forced myself into a sitting position.

"Wha…?" I rubbed my head slightly. The sun had entirely disappeared from the sky. The moonlight casts its dim glow upon all of us. I couldn't find any stars.

So thou hath awaken. I jumped slightly. Chigi sounded so close, closer than I had ever heard him before. I glanced up and realized why. I was still in the palm of his hand. I could see the lake off in the distance. He must have carried us from the mountains. He traveled surprisingly fast.

"How long have I been out…?" I closed my eyes for a moment. Part of me was dreading the answer. I sighed softly. I wish the pain would dissipate.

"About a day," Morgif grinned. I blinked at him.

"You're kidding, right?" I gave him a dirty look. He shook his head.

"No, it's the truth. I'm sorry, I didn't realize the backlash of your magic would be that strong…" Morgif gave me a sad grin. So…after a day this damn pain still hadn't faded? I was more than a little pissed. The pain broke through my anger though. When Morgif looked over at me worried, I gave him a slight smirk.

"Heh! It was nothing!" I folded my arms across my chest. I really wish I wasn't lying. The pain was more than just a bother! It was hard to think, and every movement I took caused my body to rack with pain. Morgif didn't buy my lie.

As we neared the lake, Chigi's pace slowed. At the edge of the murky water, he stopped and lowered us down. Morgif held out his arm and I gratefully accepted it. Soon, we were both back on solid ground…well, as solid as it could be. We were in a swampy area after all.

Now I shall keep my promise. Chigi knelt down closer to us. Despite myself, I took a step back behind Morgif. I clung to his shoulder. True, I didn't feel well enough to stand on my own, but I was hiding more from nervousness than pain. But, that was something I would never let anyone know.

If tis a changeling, thou needs one on the other die to bring it forth. Then, both much meet the portal as one.

"Thank you!" I shouted out as Chigi turned to leave. I suddenly lost all sense of fear for this giant creature. He glanced back at me and it almost looked like he smiled. We watched him as he trudged out of sight.

"Let's go tell Conrad!" I grinned. Despite all the pain I was in, I ran through the water to the mirror. My hope had revived me. I could see the dark shadows of the treasury. I took a deep breath and steadied myself. The pain was setting in again. "Conrad!"

It didn't take long for my grinning older half-brother to come stumbling over boxes and into my sight.

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Translation notes:

Wolfram-kyo: Lord Wolfram

Houseki: literally jewel, in this sense it refers to the gems that Mazoku (monsters) are weak against

I'm officially a college student now! Yes, I am a semester graduate XD But anyways, cause of this, in a way, I'll have more time to work on things. My novel is nearing its close, so it won't be long until that no longer obstructs my fanfiction writing (not that I do much of it). But yeah…well, anywho, the next chapter should be…sometime!