A/N: I'd Suggest that you read Big Puppy before reading this; they are inter conected now.
Disclaimer: I own nothing; all characters (except Frank and Amiya) belong to CLAMP!
Eroko: I got so many possitive reviews on chaprer 1 of Limits; it made me feel so happy that people like my work. I hope I can keep to standards and please tell me of anything you think I could improve on!
~Spoiler warning: If you haven't read through to Infinity you are bound to have spoilers~
Chapter 2: Missing You
Looking for the feather in this world was hard; the land was barren and rockslides changed the terrain in an instant. The inn they stayed at was nice enough; Amiya avoided them however. It was aggravating enough to deal with the townspeople; they were too nice, always wanting to dress Sakura up or take Syaoran fishing.
It was on the first snow when Kurogane had noticed the glares that Amiya would cast at Fai however. It was as if she despised what he was, as if she knew what he was. A small shy knock tore him from his thoughts as he sat on the bed beside the window. They all had separate rooms now that the fall rush had died down; it was hard to travel in a mountain during winter. "Enter." His voice was gruff and his eyes narrowed when he saw Amiya poke her head in.
"Kurogane-san, is it alright if I have a word with you?" Her voice was soft as she slid in, flicking on a light.
He shrugged as Amiya closed the door behind her. "What do you want?" He returned to glaring out of the window.
"You're waiting for the vampire to return, are you not?" She stood, glancing at him with honest blue eyes; the most emotion she'd shown in the past two days. Kurogane could only nod slowly, his eyes never leaving the terrain outside. "Listen, I know it's not that consoling but the people here won't act on anything just because they suspect it; they need proof, and they don't have proof. I don't intend on giving them that proof either; I don't want someone to go through prosecution like I am. Your mage will be fine so I wouldn't be so uptight; it's scaring away customers." She gave him one final glance before opening the door to walk out. "Besides, I hate taking away someone's important person." She walked out as Kurogane whipped his head around to glare at where Amiya had been.
A small almost inaudible sigh escaped his lips as he glanced put the window; it was getting dark and Kurogane was getting worried (though he wouldn't show it). He was so used to having that stupid mage around that it was rather too quiet to not have him around. But then again with the way Fai had been acting since Acid Tokyo wasn't pleasant; Kurogane often found the blonde glaring off in his direction or narrowing his eyes at him when they spoke, and it was getting to the point where Kurogane was tempted to physically knock some sense into the idiot. He still remembered the time they had spent with each other; those quiet moments where they seemed so close yet so far away; the times where he felt the blonde had actually opened up. The first time was back in Jade, when it had been snowing and cold…
-Flash Back-
Kurogane glanced over to the mage, whose expression was relaxed while his eyes held a deep turmoil. "Oi wizard, wake up." He was gruff considering that Fai had almost run into a tree but narrowly dodged it.
Fai glanced over and smiled broadly. "Ne, Kuro-tan no need to be so mean~!" Kurogane wasn't fooled by the act; the smile was as false as ever despite the look that loomed in the mage's glittering blue eyes; deep distress and a daunting sadness. How long would it take for the mage to stop playing these silly games? It was obvious that he was dealing with some pent up emotion but Kurogane wouldn't pry; the past was something that should just be left behind if it drags you down, it should be discarded because it has no bearing on who you are. Or so Kurogane thought, but if the idiot wanted to keep to himself and suffer the ninja wouldn't interfere unless it hindered the group. "Ne, Kuro-inu what's with the frown?" Kurogane let out a 'tch' of annoyance and turned away, hoping that the blonde wouldn't continue the banter. "Kuro-wan-wan~! That's meeaannn!"
"Oi, shut up idiot." Kurogane narrowed his eyes as he felt the blonde lean on his shoulder.
Fai pouted slightly. "But Kuro-rin told me to wake up... and a conversation should keep me awake."
Kurogane quickened his pace, ignoring the mage. Fai could be rather hard to deal with; those annoying nicknames and fake smiles pissed Kurogane off beyond beliefe, but there was still an urge to protect the mage that hadn't been there when they first started the journey. He knew the wizard could protect himself; Hanshin had proved this much. Just the thought of losing a companion set Kurogane on edge however; through the previous two worlds he felt like all of his companions had gained an importance. Syaoran was very determined; he'd lose his head just to get Princess Sakura's feather. Sakura on the other hand was kind and gentle, always wanting people to be careful and not to get hurt. Fai on the other hand... was indeed faking his happiness, wanting others to think it was all alright when it really wasn't. In Kurogane's view the mage could be too kind for his own good, and because of this Kurogane felt like he needed to protect the grinning idiot more so; maybe if he tried hard enough he could tame the wind...
Kurogane shook the thought out of his head; thinking of such things wouldn't get him any where because he'd eventually return to Nihon and leave the rest of them behind. Including the idiot wizard. Kurogane frowned at this; he wouldn't allow himself to get any closer, he'd just end up losing them when he left and that would topple the defenses built around his still wounded heart. "Kuro-pon-pon, if you don't answer I'll seem weird~!" Fai had caught up and was smiling broadly at the new nickname.
"No weirder than you are already."
Fai gave a mock expression of shock, eyes widening in innocence. "Ne? I'm weird? Kuro-chan is so mean!"
Kurogane growled, narrowing his eyes at the annoying mage. "Mage, it's tempting to kill you, even with this 'curse', so be warned." The blonde only smiled lightly, eyes closed in almost a sad manner. This caused Kurogne to stop and think for a moment, Fai also stopping as if he anticipated Kurogane's slight shock.
"Is something wrong, Kuro-sama?"
The shinobi could only study Fai for a moment, the quiet mage unmoving with expression. "I think I should be asking you that instead."
Fai glanced down, hair covering his eyes. "I'll be fine Kuro-sama... this place is not it so I'll be fine." Before Kurogane could inquire Fai began to catch up to Syaoran and Sakura, leaving Kurogane blinking before it registered; this place was similar to Fai's home.
-End Flash Back-
Another knock (this one sharper and more firm) broke Kurogane from his thoughts. "Come in."
The inn keeper, Frank was his name, strode in smiling brightly. "Dinner's up and your pal's back too. We'll be a waitin' for ya." He quickly ducked out, being slightly intimidated by Kurogane's piercing glare. Kurogane gave one final quick glance out the window at the snowy landscape and sighed; the snow was like Fai; unpredictable and hard to catch, but maybe someday he'd find a way to keep it, or melt it so emotions could flow free.
*~*~*
Dinner had been awkward; Frank was finally noticing Fai's lack of eating and was showing concern until Amiya started barking at him for being rude. In a way Kurogane was thankful; he wasn't too sure what the reaction would be and he didn't want to chance it when it was possible to get another feather and maybe meet with the other Syaoran. But Kurogane had to think; Amiya was similar to the one back in Eriis and it wasn't completely impossible that she was the same person (their experience with Kyle Rondart proving that it was possible). If she theoretically was, did that mean that Kiouku was here as well? That thought made Kurogane's blood burn in anger; last time they saw the unpredictable red-head he had turned Kurogane into a dog and made Fai and him run around on some silly quest only to proclaim how detestable they were. Kurogane pushed the thought aside as he lifted some fire wood and set it on the rest of the stack. The blonde girls tasks were easy enough but left the ninja with too much spare time to think of unneeded things, making him wonder about their current situation. The stupid meat bun hadn't been able to pinpoint the location of the feather and it was possible that they'd end up staying there for a bit.
"Um Kurogane, someone is here to see you..." Amiya had popped her head into the room, blonde hair tossed up into a bun. Kurogane raised an eyebrow; he hadn't been in this world before and none of the townspeople were too keen about him. He set down the wood and followed Amiya to the lobby. Standing there in a black sweater and regular blue trousers was the idiot red head, crimson eyes mage, Kiouku.
Kiouku turned and nodded lightly, seemingly in a better mood than last time Kurogane saw him. "Good evening, Mr. Black."
Reviews make me type faster, really! And I'll be showing the real Kiouku; not just the super serious Kiouku like in Big Puppy.