A//N: Okay! So here is the first chapter within my Nihon Arc. This entire arc is going to be three or four chapters long. ((Including this one.)) Then that will be the end of the main story. ((Unless something very drastic happens within the manga...then I may decide to extend it even farther.)) However after the main story I will be including two other chapters. One for each of the future mirrors. ((You'll find out about those mirrors this chapter.))

I try to bring up the idea of mirrors and reflections in this story repeatedly...hope you noticed the reoccuring theme before now...

Anyway, read and enjoy, review if you will.

Screams. Screams of varying strength and intensity filled the air as the bubble that carried the travelers released in the next world. Syaoran stood holding Sakura's limp body in his arms gently. Fai was not so loving. In fact he did not even touch Kurogane. His hands were to his mouth trying to hold back his screams as he looked down at the person who lay in his lap.

"Fai-san..." As if Syaoran's voice saying his name were a trigger Fai took his hands away from his mouth his screams coming out full strength now. His gloved hands reached out and hugged Kurogane to him, his grip was tight as if daring anyone, even a god, to try and take him away from him.

He could do nothing! Nothing! He couldn't prevent his love from dying here in his arms trying to save his life. "You idiot!" This was the first sound that came from Fai that wasn't a scream since they had landed. "You idiot! I can't heal you! I can't do anything!"

"Fai-san..." Syaoran's voice repeated. "Look. You don't have to do anything."

"What do you mean Syaoran-kun?!" Fai yelled looking up, tears running silently off his face like rejected and imperfect crystals, "We've landed in the middle of nowhere! I can't do any magic right now, let alone healing magic! He's doomed, there's nothing I can do!"

"Behind you Fai-san." Syaoran's voice was eerily calm. "We're not alone here..."

"Go! Go! Go!" Fai's tears stopped as surprise stretched across his features. That voice sounded familar... The youngling looked over his shoulder, his hands holding to Kurogane even tighter. If at all possible his face became even more surprised when he saw how many people stood at the nearby hill.

People dressed all in black ran out from the group, carrying a stretcher with them. They stopped in front of Fai and pulled at Kurogane, trying to take him. At first Fai's arms tightened, but then loosened allowing them to take his wounded light and place him on the stretcher. "Wait!" Fai reached out to them. "Please, take me with, let me help!" He needed to do something, something to help. Something. Anything. They ignored him, merely running off.

Fai stood shakily to his feet, but then sunk back to his knees shaking his head. No...they were right...Kurogane was already on the brink of death from all the blood he'd lost, they didn't need him around to slow it down...not that it mattered. He was probably going to die anyway, all because of him...him and his bad luck...

The blond gripped to his knees and his entire body shook. He gasped for breath more tears spilling from his eyes. The tears Kurogane had taught him to cry...even though the ninja didn't seem to be able to cry himself...

Fingers lightly grazed along Fai's face, drifting from his hairline all the way down his tear soaked cheeks to his chin. The blond looked up. A young girl's face smiled down at him. Who would be smiling at a time like this? Then Fai recognized her. Tomoyo...Was this Nihon? Was the world that had been bought with his transport magic Nihon?

"Do not worry." Tomoyo's calming voice reached Fai's ears and for a moment his eye closed as he listened. "Kurogane will not die." It held the same tone, but there was so much more behind it. The most notable thing behind it was the will. This princess, this girl, she was positive that his light would not go out. She was sure he would live.

For a moment all doubt left Fai's body, but instead of his tears stopping, they ran faster. A sensation of happiness crept over him for a minute as he took Tomoyo's outstretched hand and pulled himself to his feet.

For once he had not killed that which he loved.

"Are you an oni?" The blond frowned as he turned around and looked down to see several children following him. He tilted his head slihgtly. The look on his face was blank, as if his mind could not make coherant thoughts. "Well? Are you?"

"If I was you'd better run. I might just decide you'll be my dinner." The children looked at each other and giggled. It always baffled Fai how children could be so carefree. He knew children were supposed to be that way, but he had never been that way, so he wondered. "Why do you ask?"

"Your hair. Your clothes. They look so different. Like an oni that fails at it's human form."

A small chuckle escaped Fai's lips, it not a lighthearted chuckle, in fact it was very dark, almost evil. "I see." The mage nodded looking down at the children. "Yes. That is exactly what I am. A monster that fails to hide properly. I try so hard, but I can't even fool children anymore." The children were not speaking of the same kind of monster that Fai spoke of when he said yes, but being a vampire was probably close enough to what they wanted. "Children shouldn't be around me. Go home to your parents before I corrupt you."

"You must be an awefully kindhearted oni then, to let us go."

"The oni is not interested in undeveloped children. I don't like such pure things." The children giggled again and smiled at him before running off across the courtyard.

"That wasn't very nice." Fai didn't even need to turn around. It was Souma. He could tell by voice alone.

"They seemed to love it."

"I mean it wasn't very nice to yourself to agree with them."

"But it's all true."

"Yes. In this world you are considered an oni."

Fai turned around now. "But?" The way she had said those words. It sounded like she had meant to say something more, but had stopped herself from doing so for some reason or another.

"But he liked you. He wouldn't cut off his arm for some oni. He had to really like you."

Fai took in a deep breath, tilting his head as he gave her the same look he gave the children. That blank look that said he was lost. He was lost, very lost and he didn't know how to find his way. Fai put his fingers to his lips, they parted just enough so that he could speak softly. "If that's so, he's a fool."

Souma frowned. "A very lucky fool from what I can see. Come on now, Tomoyo-hime has sent you clothes and has requested that you bathe all the blood off of you before you change." Souma held out her hand. "She also wants that coat washed clean of blood, but other people will take care of that."

Fai shook his head. "It's useless. No matter how many times you wash it, the smell of Kurogane's blood mingled with traces of my own will never leave it."

"All the same, she wants it done." After a moment Fai sighed and slipped the stained overcoat off him. It occured to him now that the children had not been afraid of the blood on him. Had they thought it fake? Or were they so used to the sight it no longer bothered them? There was no way to know as he handed the coat to Souma. "Thank you."

Fai managed a small smile. "No. Thank you."

"Fai looks wonderful!"

"Ah?" Fai looked over his shoulder as he looked to see Tomoyo behind him. He looked down at himself, in this blue and white yukata he wore. "Thank you. I...wasn't exactly sure how to put it on...but I did my best."

"Your best was correct." Tomoyo came closer now, reaching out and pulling on his sleeve slightly. "You can stop worrying now Fai. Kurogane is stable. He's just sleeping now."

A look of relief came over Fai's face and he closed his eyes bringing his hands up to his chest as if a great weight had just been removed. "Good. I'm so glad."

"However, it will be a couple days before he awakes. You will have to wait until then to speak with him."

Fai shook his head slightly. "I don't know what I would say to anyway at this point. He's given up so much for me, but I have never done anything for him. Nothing but cause him trouble. Maybe a couple days will allow me to think of some chaotic speech I'll say when he awakes." The blond looked down at the princess, his eye closed for a moment to think. "What of Syaoran-kun? Sakura-chan? Mokona? I have not seen any of them since I got here."

"Syaoran fell asleep once he was assured that Sakura would be safe. Sakura has been taken to a place where her body can be revitalized."

"And Mokona?"

"Is with Syaoran, but has been asking for you."

"Why didn't you just bring Mokona to me?"

"You...weren't stable. You aren't stable. I want you to be stable before you speak with Mokona."

Fai gave a small, but seemingly light-hearted chuckle. "I don't think I'll ever be stable again. Not after what he did...If I'm stable, for all I know it might happen again."

"It might." Fai flinched. "But then again when it happens it might be you cutting off your arm to save him." Fai shook his head as if to say that he was too much of a selfish person to do such a thing. Tomoyo seemed to mimick him and pulled on his arm, dragging him along as she pulled him out of the room. "You need reflections."

"I reflect everyday...I don't think anymore of it would do any good."

"No...not that kind of reflection." Tomoyo tsked her tongue at him. "I thought as a mage you would have heard of this before..."

"Heard of what?"

Tomoyo shook her and head and opened a door, "Reflections." The princess pushed Fai into the room and shut the door. "Don't come out until you figure it out, and learn what you want."

Fai blinked, he was in a dark room. At least for a moment he was. Then lights somehow flashed on and he realized he sat in a room full of mirrors. "What?" Yes, in each of these mirrors he would see his own reflection, but then what? It wasn't like he'd learn anything by looking at himself in a mirror.

He reached out and touched the mirror in front of him. One of the mirrors behind him touched as well...but it was different! Fai spun around and found himself staring at a younger him. A teenaged him that held several books in his arms. "I won't help you, I'm just as lost as you are."

Fai gasped putting his hands to his mouth. The teenager in the mirror laughed. "No, you didn't say that. I did."

"And who are you?"

"I'm you...from a few years ago." His teenaged self pointed to the mirror next to him. "There's you from when you started this journey." Fai looked and sure enough there he stood with two eyes and his staff, a smile plastered across his face.

His old self laughed, placing his hand to his mouth and waving slightly. "Hello, long time, no see.

"How does this work?"

His old self shrugged. "Each mirror holds a version of you...except for the two on either side your present self. I don't know what those are."

"I do." Fai spun around yet again and came face to face with what he thought was his present self, but it was wearing different clothes. "I'm your self from Infinity."

"I've changed since then?"

"Hell yes." Fai smirked at him, "Look at you, even worse than I was here. I was down, I refused help I knew I needed. Look at you, being pushed into a room and told to stay there. What do you do? You obey! You are way different than me." Fai pointed to the mirrors by his 'present self.' "Those mirrors there show two possible futures. They will play scene's like those strange television things from Piffle and the Hanshin Republic."

"My…futures?" Fai stared at his most recent past self and the blond in the mirror nodded. "How is that possible? To read my futures?"

Fai had to turn around again as another one of his past selves spoke. This time it was the teenager who held more books than seemed possible. "Well according to lore it is possible, after all there is such a thing as fortune tellers. I'm guessing that these are not actual images, rather, something that a fortune teller might guess and is thus put together all in one possible scene. Like a taste rather than the whole thing."

"I see…so the mirror itself is made of magic?"

"Don't know. We only know what you know, or knew. Well…except for Mr. Infinity over there. There was no way to know about the mirrors being possible future selves. That must be information from the mirrors themselves." Infinity nodded.

Fai slowly turned around looking at each mirror. He counted six phases. The small child. The starved child. The studious magician of Celes. The smiling fool. The vampire. Then his present self...he didn't have a name for this one, he didn't know what he was like in this form yet. Then there were also the two mirrors that supposedly represented a possible future for him.

"What are these spell mirrors supposed to do?"

The vampire spoke. "We are here to clear your mind. To light your path...to show you what you want, to show you what is possible. To remind you of what you have forgotten and were too deaf to hear when you were us."

"Does it work?"

The vampire shrugged. "That is up to you. Now. Listen to what we have to say." He pointed to the small child. "Starting with him."

Fai turned to him, "Love." This was all the child said. Fai knew he wasn't able to speak well back then so it made sense that it was all he would have said...

Slowly the blond looked to the starved child. "You must live. Live on no matter what is thrown at you. Don't throw your life away." Fai bit his lip as he heard Kurogane's own words within this advice. He closed his eye for a moment and nodded.

He turned a few degrees so that he could now see the teenager again. The studious magician. "I think mine's a little obvious." The young man held up one of his books. "Learn. Learn as much as you can about everything, if possible don't leave any stone unturned. Knowledge is invaluable in almost any situation. Don't assume, always learn so that you know. Assuming is bad, it causes problems."

"Right." That was something Fai had not forgotten from that time in his life, living through the textbooks and spellbooks, trying to learn everything he could, but everyone assumed...it was unavoidable.

Next was the smiling fool. "Don't hide. Don't run. Such silly words coming from me right?" He laughed and put one of his hands on his chest. "But I think we both learned that when we run, it always catches up with us. Someone will always see through the smile, like Kurogane did. Oh! And Lying. Don't do that. All it does is tangle you up in a web that makes it harder and harder to remember all the lies you've told. Even if you keep up with it all, it all eventually comes crashing down."

"That's...very true." Fai laughed slightly, "So...only one left..." The blond looked to the vampire.

The vampire smiled slightly and nodded. "I have two lessons for you. Even though I know I'm your most recent past, I believe you have already forgotten both my lessons. I don't blame you. Celes hit us hard." The vampire put a single finger to his lips. "Grow. Trust. You must grow past what you are. Always try to make yourself better than who you are in every way. Trust those you love, don't run from them, don't push them away, sometimes they push back."

"And when they do they push hard."

The vampire nodded. "And they are stubborn as mules. At any rate..." The vampire raised a hand and pointed calmly to the two future mirrors. "Take a look. There is no sound, but a small scene will play...Take note that you can't see anything that you haven't already seen, so new people and new places will appear as nothing."

"Right." Fai did so. When he first looked at the first mirror nothing happened, then he ran his fingers across the glass. It began to play.

It looked strange. There was Kurogane and himself, walking, just walking. They wore cloaks that looked similar to Sakura's cloak, or Syaoran's cloak. He still had one eye, but the eye was a different color, it looked like he'd been fighting some battle recently for the color was gold. He was speaking to Kurogane. That was obvious. The man only nodded continously as they walked. Suddenly Fai reached out and grabbed at something, a doorknob maybe...

Fai pressed his fingers against the glass again and this scene stopped playing.

He moved to the other mirror and activated its scene the same way. The first thing he saw was his face...laughing. It was a lighthearted laugh and he pulled on someone's arm, pulling them into the scene. Kurogane. The black haired man seemed to yell at him as Fai gestured to something.

Kurogane looked at it and then the man smiled, a laugh coming to him as well as he pulled on Fai's shoulders. Fai allowed him to do this and was pulled back to Kurogane's chest as the man hugged him from behind.

It sunk in. Kurogane had two arms. Fai also had two eyes...only one of them was a different color! A yellow...or maybe a red, he was too far away to tell for sure...

Fai had to force himself to touch the glass again and stop the scene, he wanted to watch it forever...it looked like they were so happy...Kurogane...happy...Was it possible? They were utside of this world. Both scenes took place elsewhere, this meant that no matter what Kurogane would leave. Was it possible for him to be happy elsewhere? Or was it just a facade to try and convince someone else?

No. Kurogane wasn't like that! That was him, that was Fai. He hid things! Kurogane did not. Fai smiled as he thought on all the wonderful qualities that made him love Kurogane so much...and his being an open book was one of them. "I want it..."

"Want what?"

Fai didn't know which of his past selves spoke, but he answered the question no matter which one it was. "What was in the mirror. I want that happiness for him...for me." The blond bit his lip. "Is that...selfish?"

"Yes, but you know what? We don't care. We all know what we've been through, you deserve a moment of selfishness. Are you sure that is what you want?"

Fai nodded. "Oh yes...I...don't think I've ever been more sure of something."

"Then you have to work for it."

"I know. I will."