Disclaimer; I. Don't. Own. Tsubasa.

Epilogue: A Nightmare

Pain lanced through the wizard's body. Blinding, white hot pain with no outlet, reminding him of what he'd done, of what he had chosen. His breath caught in his throat. He could have prevented this. He should have prevented it. It was all his fault. Fai forced himself to look away from the destruction before him

"No…" he muttered softly, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Please God, no… not again…"

"Fai, calm down," a rough yet gentle voice whispered soothingly. "It's fine. It's just a dream."

The wizard searched the surrounding landscape for thee source of the voice, but he was embraced by a pair of strong, warm arms, disabling him effectively.

"Go away…" he muttered. "I… don't want to hurt you, too…"

"You won't," the voice said softly. "And I won't let anything hurt you."

The magician sobbed, clutching at the strangers shirt and sobbing, shoulders shaking violently.

"You'll get hurt…" he whimpered. "And then you'll hate me…"

"I'd never hate you. Moron." The gentle assurance startled the wizard, and he buried his head in the newcomer's chest.

"Why do you care?" he sobbed. "I'm nothing, a useless waste of skin. I'll only burden you."

"You'll never be a burden," the voice snapped. "Never."

The magus chuckled ruefully.

"Why do you care?" he asked again. He suddenly found himself staring into twin pools of deep crimson.

Kuro-rin?

"Because I love you," the swordsman whispered softly, leaning in and kissing him gently. The mage froze, eyes opening wide as the ninja pulled away.

"I love you," he repeated, pulling the wizard close. Fai buried his head in the dark haired man's chest again.

"I love you, too," he murmured. "I mean it."

The magician opened his eyes slowly, in time for Kurogane to lean in for another kiss.

"I know that, moron."

A/N; And thus ends By Your Side, the child born in my mind and nurtured by your loving? reviews. And as much as it hurts me to let her go and grow to all that she can be, it's time for me to let her be. (sobs) Now I know how my mom feels whenever I talk to her about moving away for college. I feel so lonely… but now, I leave my baby in your hands. Take good care of her!

Side note; Yeah, I consider her a girl. And if I write a sequel it will be her baby brother. And yes, I consider my stories my kids. Is that a problem?

Like always, reviews are welcomed.