… Surprisingly, I have nothing to say.

Disclaimer: I said that for the past 13 chapters.

Fai saw a surge of light. What could it be?

Was he dead? Was heaven just above him?

… Probably not. He was most likely to end up in hell anyway. So… what is it?

He could hear voices. They sounded familiar, but what they were speaking sounded more like gibberish to Fai, and the subconscious part of his mind was dominating a huge part of his brain, and the blonde found that he could not think so clearly just yet. He tried reaching out for the strange light, but his hands were too heavy to move.

The voices got Louder. Vaguely, he could decipher what they were saying. Fai's head started to pound caused by the voices and wished he could just yell at them to shut up.

"How is he-?"

"Not yet-"

"But-"

In an attempt to shut them up, Fai opened his mouth to yell, but only managed a groan before pain was searing through him. Why can't the Gods just let him rest in peace and spare him the pain? His throat was parched and everything was so blur, and Fai hated it. It made him dizzy, and Fai doesn't like to be dizzy.

The persons who spoke before fell quiet immediately. Distinctively, the blonde could hear footsteps approaching, and panicked slightly whether he had gotten himself in trouble. But before he could hear them speak, darkness wrapped around his soul and pulled him into unconscious oblivion.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Is he awake?"

"I- I'm not sure, Ashura-san."

Almost unconsciously, Fai peeled his eyes open and instantly, a sharp light pierced through his sight again and the blonde hissed softly. He felt a cold hand on his cheeks and shy away from it, but the soft voices he heard before sifted through the air gently, soothing him. Fai relaxed, and tried adjusting his eyes instead after knowing he was not in some form of danger.

Familiar eyes.

Hushed whispers.

Could it be…?

"Ashura-san?" he croaked.

The figure that knelt beside his bed tensed slightly for a moment, before leaning closer to Fai. Hesitantly, the man reached out and stroked Fai's blonde locks in an almost loving way.

"A-Ashura-san-" Fai tried to get up, only to have white, hot pain searing through his stomach and to the rest of his body. A loud cry of pain escaped his lips as he collapsed onto the bed, panting, eyes glazed over in exhaustion. Ashura quickly pressed the blonde down to stop him from getting up.

"Don't move. You're still hurt," he whispered. Fai could only nod in defeat as he closed his eyes. He felt sick, oh so sick. Sweat drenched his body and rolled down his forehead. The world was spinning around him and Fai realized he couldn't focus on anything, not even the man before him. He felt Ashura's cool hand on his forehead and could actually feel the worry radiating from his very being. After a moment, lips met his forehead in a gentle kiss.

"Sleep." Ashura ordered gently. Too tired to argue, Fai obeyed and slowly drifted away.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

They finally reached Florence.

With Fai was no where to be seen, Kurogane and Subaru were now stranded in the middle of nowhere. Well, they were in Florence, that part he was for sure of it. But they were stranded without a map, with no idea where to go.

And without extra fuel and no station in sight.

Kurogane leaned on the car, heaving a sigh, waiting for Subaru patiently, who had went to get help. Was this all really necessary? Before this, even though the man was subjected to what he considered mental abuse from the so-called witch, he was free to do whatever he wished to. He was a free man, having all the time in the world with nothing to do, and plenty of time doing it. Before this, Kurogane led a peaceful life, a life without worries, without anybody chasing him and tracking him down.

Then the idiot blonde entered his life, and Kurogane found life turned upside down.

Overnight, he became Fai's guardian and protector, taking care of him, travelling across the world on a mission which even he wasn't sure what the hell was going on just to protect the idiot, made a man go crazy, saw another shot dead, and travelled to probably the end of the world just to look for Fai.

… Was it all even worth it?

You know… a voice whispered in his ears. You can just turn back. Forget about him. He was the one who caused you all this trouble. You had a carefree life, and you can still get it back. It's not too late to turn back. Just forget about him. Let him suffer. He deserved it.

Kurogane growled.

Like hell I'd turn back.

Still… he wasn't too sure. Everything was happening too fast, and he's been forced to make decisions too fast to his liking. He hoped that one day when he looked back he wouldn't have to regret any of the decisions he made, but considering the amount of time he had to make these important decisions… there has to be one he'll come to regret one day.

… He was scared.

Scared? The Kurogane, the fearless, strong and bad tempered gym teacher, scared? The gruff man scoffed at himself.

Yes, he was scared, something he haven't felt since a long, long time. The fear was so significant that Kurogane found that he couldn't just ignore it, and admitted it.

He knew it wouldn't be long until he ran out of excuses, or reasons to save Fai. Everything now, even if he said he loved Fai and felt sure about it, there was a little part of him that felt insecure and feared that one day, his resolve and decision and feelings might come to nothing. Fai might just be a phase, like the one he saw some pansy boys falling in love in high school. No, he didn't want Fai to be a phase.

… But the scary thing is, he wasn't sure whether he was.

Kurogane turned to look at the sky. It was empty, definitely going to be a hot day.

Everything the gruff man has been experiencing and felt for the past few months was just like a dream. The unpredictability of his feelings and decisions and what might happen in the future was far from clear. He'd seen those too many times to be sure. One minute, lovers; the other, not lovers.

What if this was one of those phases where he has to go through in order to find his Ew, I can't believe I'm thinking something like this ahem cough true love? Was he going to admit this was just a phase in the future and just brush it off, like he always did to all the other things? This could probably end up as a revelation he would be forced grasp in the future, and that Fai was just a phase and nothing important to him.

Sure, he could say he loved Fai now. But would he love him in the future as he did now? Things change, and Kurogane knew that. Their relationship might be something that would change in the future. Feelings are like the weather. It was unpredictable and changes from time to time and it was the only thing one can never force oneself to feel. People can force themselves to do something, to make decisions, but no one can force another to feel happy when they're not, or excited when they're bored. Emotions are always honest; you can do whatever you can to deny it, but there will always come a day when you have to admit that what you feel is real.

And this thought of what might happen to him to Fai scared him. The blonde has been through enough to deserve any more pain. He really didn't want to add any to that. Even though Fai might just be another phase in the future, he was sure that the blonde wouldn't think of it the same way. Kurogane shook his head to clear his mind.

He loved Fai.

… But would that love last?

Kurogane bit his lip in slight panic and fear and anger, clenching his fists. No, he would not think of that, not now. He couldn't let his thoughts and urgh insecurities affect the rescue. He would not think of any of the sort.

The gruff man crossed his arms defiantly and let out a shallow breath caught in his throat.

He loved Fai, he thought stubbornly.

… Though he wasn't sure exactly how long it'll last, if not forever.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Lying on the bed, Subaru heaved a sigh. They've been stranded on the road for hours and Subaru went to search for help. Thankfully, he met a kind, young woman who offered them help when she found him walking all along in the middle of nowhere. She actually drove all the way to this cheap hotel and even offered to pay the money if they didn't have any. Subaru was a little suspicious in the beginning, but after realizing that she was of no harm to them, he relaxed.

The whole room was quiet, saved by Kurogane's occasional snores. The man closed his eyes, thinking it would probably be a good idea to rest for the moment. They would really need it to search for Fai the next day. He lay there, listening to the deafening sound of the silence as minutes passed.

Bump.

Subaru's eyes shot open and he jumped. Scanning his surroundings, the man couldn't see anything in the shadows. Sucking his breath, Subaru drew the two nearest objects to him (which is a bar of chocolate and a lamp) and made a stance, ready to throw and use the objects on the unseen enemy. Kurogane jolted from his bed on the other side of the room, swiftly grabbing his sword when he noticed that something was wrong.

It appeared, however, that the enemy wasn't really an enemy. Slowly, a figure rose from the shadows. It was a young girl, a teenager, in fact. Her whole body was covered in dirt and ragged clothes hung from her very being, and her breathing was labored. The girl's seemingly brown locks were also covered in dirt and her cheeks sullen, and her whole form was shaking so badly that Subaru thought she might be an oversized bunny in the first place.

The girl looked up at him with fearful green eyes, and whispered in a raspy voice.

"Wh… Where's Syaoran-kun?"

Syaoran and Sakura fans, they made their entrance! And yes, I know. This chapter is short, but please don't complain. I have nothing to say otherwise except for the usual…

… You guessed it.