Introduction

Welcome to the realm of heartbreak, angst and fluff! This is my collection of drabbles, oneshots and ficlets about Kurogane, Fai and the pairing KuroFai! This is my ultimate favourite shonen-ai/yaoi pair ever, so I just had to write a tribute to them!

Let the angsty love begin!

Second Chance

Once, back in Piffle Country, when the kids and Mokona were asleep, Fai had asked him why he acted so strange around Tomoyo. No, not strange; the word that the blonde has used was 'quiet'. It hadn't made any sense to Kurogane at first – as far as he was aware, he was always quiet, unless you counted those times he was fighting or chasing after Fai.

Fai had smiled wisely then, and told him that whenever he was around her, he didn't act like himself. Instead of being the harsh ninja that they were all used to, Kurogane seemed somehow softer in her presence.

Regretful.

Kurogane had laughed at first, saying scornful words about idiots, passing it off as a stupid mistake on Fai's part. But the blonde had just remained quiet, gazing patiently at Kurogane with those knowing blue eyes of his, as if waiting for Kurogane to admit that he was right.

He'd snapped then, giving Fai the darkest glare he could muster as he strode out of their lodgings, leaving his companion alone in that darkened room. And when he'd looked back over his shoulder, Fai had still been watching him, that damnable smile dancing round his lips.

That smile had haunted him until his return.

Since then, Fai had said nothing of their previous conversation. Such things belonged to the night, when no one else could hear what they spoke of, or see their expressions. On the surface, when the light fell on them, they were allies at best, barely able to live around each other. Only when the night fell did they show what they felt on the inside, revealing a deeper bond than any would have suspected. They were more than just friends…but what should come next continued to elude them.

Perhaps, Kurogane reflected, it wasn't surprising that Fai had noticed – just that he had chosen to voice his thoughts out loud. It was an unspoken rule between them that they were to stay out of each other's pasts…both had histories too painful to just be brought up in ordinary conversation, and they had respected that fact.

Until now.

To this day, Kurogane still wasn't sure what had caused the blonde to break the rules and ask the question. All he knew was that it had touched a little too close to home, shown a more knowledgeable Fai than he had previously been giving credit for. And that had unnerved him.

She had been like that too. Sitting in her throne room, the worries of Japan heaped upon her shoulders…and yet still aware enough of her ninjas' problems to know when they needed advice or guidance. Especially in Kurogane's case – she'd been the one to know when he needed help even before he did.

He had cared for her deeply, wanting to protect her more than anything else in the world, heedless of the way he spoke to her. No, because of the way he spoke to her. She had been the only person he'd ever spoken so emotionally and angrily to – it had been a mark of how much more he cared for her than the others.

Then she had sent him away on this journey, forcing him into this quest with her magic. And although he'd protested hotly, he wouldn't have minded so much if he hadn't had something that he still needed to do in his world, something that had made him fight tooth and nail against her powers in an attempt to escape the portal.

He hadn't told her that he loved her.

But he had been whisked away despite his struggles. And all he'd wanted to do was to find his way back to his world, to where she was. To finally say the words that he'd never found the courage to say.

And then he'd met Fai.

Throughout their journey, the blonde had grown on him before Kurogane had even realised, seeping through hidden cracks and pathways into his life. And slowly, it had become less and less urgent a task to return home to his princess, the need to confess his feelings less strong. With every Tomoyo that he met in different worlds, he had felt less of a pull, his feelings gradually changing into the love of an elder brother for his sister rather than the passionate love of a potential lover.

Soon Kurogane found himself thinking that if he ever arrived back in his home world, he would gladly keep on travelling, as long as the blonde wizard was with him. He no longer lived behind the ghost of former feelings for his princess.

Now, the different versions of Tomoyo only serve to remind him that he's already missed his first chance at love.

Gazing at Fai, Kurogane swears that he won't waste his second.

Author's Note

Well, here's my Kurogane-centric...it was a bit longer this time, for all the people who've been wanting these drabbles to be longer...is this better? Anyway, my next one will be up in a few days...you'll see why! Read and review please!

Meowzy-chan - Hmm...I'm keeping most of the Ashura stuff for another collection of short stories that I'm thinking of...but in case that doesn't work out, I promise I'll put some in here with the Fai-centric fics too! As for Kurogane wondering about going back to his world...well, that was actually answered in this fic, funnily enough! You must be pychic...I wrote this when I wrote the other one!

Toshi.is.dead - I'm glad you liked it! Hope you liked this one too!

Yurikitsune - Thanks for your lovely comments! They really made my day, and got me writing the ficlet that's coming next!

Ueste - I'm really sorry that you find some of my drabbles too short...I tried to make this one longer...but there will be other 100 words ones too, so I'm sorry again...

LadyAthena-Chan - Your english was fine, don't worry about it! And again, sorry about the lengths of the previous drabbles...hmm...Kissu...I need to write more fics with KuroFai kissing too...I'm sorry that your name isn't right here, keeps auto-correcting the punctuation into this version...gomen nasai!

JazzyKnickers - I'm glad it makes you want more! I might expand that into a longer oneshot at one point, where he actually tries...I got inspired from rereading an RPG I took part in a few months back...and Kurogane (my character) pulled him back from a cliff...hmm...