Something must be shared before we get this Chapter 8 started—I finally own something! Yay! Beside the story, the two horses are my own, not from Tsubasa. We'll get to their names in this chapter, too, so enjoy! :3

Running was harsh on my unfit self, but I hardly dared to slow while I raced off in the direction of the stables. The medical hallway opened up into a larger corridor, showing many doors with various color schemes. By memory, I head off towards the green one—that was the one that would take me to the arena.

If the guards or servants noticed me at all, they didn't voice it. I felt like a ghost in the way their eyes never moved when I came by, or how their conversations didn't falter. I was going too fast to feel any need to slow down and ask them why they weren't acknowledging me, so I kept running. My lungs began to ache.

I was about to double over in sheer exhaustion when suddenly I crashed into something solid and warm. I froze for a few moments, not hearing but feeling the cry of surprise that came from the person I ran into.

"DAMMIT, mage! Watch where you're going!"

"Kurogane-san?" was my response, barely heard through my gasping. I tilted my head up at him, cocking my head to one side as I tried to shake off my stupor. The red of his eyes stood out from all the blue and green around us. I faintly smelled wet hay and ice in the air.

His eyes slightly narrowed at my voice, as if there was something odd about what I had said. My hands subconsciously reached forward and latched onto the back of his wooly shirt, mostly to stay upright as my breath slowly returned to me.

"Kurogane…san?" I whispered when I regained my breath. My eyes looked innocent as they reflected from the boy's, and were partly confused. It was like I was telling him: what did I do to get you to look at me like that?

Kurogane-san sighed impatiently, looking away. I quickly dropped my hands, noticing Ashura-O standing next to an open door, silent with that all-knowing smile of his. My cheeks warmed self-consciously.

"So, are you ready to continue?" asked the king of Seresu. Kurogane-san nodded. He took a step forward and….

"Oi, Mage? Let go of my hand, stupid wizard."

I blinked, and then looked down with surprise when I found that our fingers were intertwined tightly together. I choked a little on the air, swallowing nervously at the comprehension of what I'd done. "S-Sorry," I muttered, letting my fingers slip free.

Kurogane-san grunted, but grabbed my hand and pulled me along. Ashura led us on like nothing had happened. I flushed when I thought of the talk we would end up having about this little incident later on. I squeezed Kurogane-san's hand for comfort. He was so warm.

"We're going outside now," the king said, gesturing toward the open door beside him. "This, my dear boy, is one of the four doors that lead to the arena, but the only that leads to the stables. I thought it would be important that you saw the horses first—you seem to be the type who likes animals."

Kurogane-san squeezed my hand. It hurt, and I bit my lip to keep from crying out. I looked over at him in confusion.

"Yes, thank you," he said with a straight face, not looking at me.

Ashura-O nodded and waved his hand for us to lead the way. Kurogane-san walked forward immediately without hesitation. I hurried along behind him, our hands still grasped between us. The cold air that blasted me was cut off slightly from Kurogane-san, who I was sure got the entire beating from the wind. I kept close to him to give him a little warmth.

"What's up with that king guy?" I heard Kurogane-san whisper to me, barely turning his head to glance from the man to me. "I saw how you just froze there next to that window in the medical hallway, and the guy never even hesitated to drag me away. What's going on in his head?"

"Don't be rude to my king, Kurogane-san," I whispered back to him urgently, pressing closer to hear his reply better. "You are the guest in his palace. And it was my choice to stop moving. I just should have been a little smarter to not believe that King Ashura would wait for me to finish thinking."

I watched the boy's face as he scowled in thought. "That king of yours is pretty ignorant himself if he hadn't known already that you shouldn't be left alone in a castle this size."

"I know my way around here well enou—"

"But what were you thinking about? What was going on through your head to make you stop following us?" he cut me off, stopping and turning to me with an insistent nature.

I started to back up, unable to move farther only when Kurogane-san yanked on my hand. 'That's right, he still has my hand,' I thought, slow to catch up.

Kurogane-san glanced up once, glaring at something over my head. I looked back to see the king, standing in the doorway silently with his I-know-what's-going-on-more-than-you-do smile, his long black hair swaying in the freezing breeze.

When he had captured our attention, he cleared his throat. "You two can whisper all you want later, in the warmth of the palace. But for now, shouldn't you be checking on the horses?"

I looked back at Kurogane, staring as his expression turned from aggravation to surrender. His eyes that were red like rubies glared up at Ashura-O in irritation. He huffed out a mouthful of mist and shrugged, letting go of my sore hand. I rubbed it absentmindedly as we continued on to the wooden stables, making sure to keep a distance between us now.

Ashura-O's smile never wavered as he followed behind.

I focused on the ground as I followed behind Kurogane, watching the prints his boots made in the snow. Smiling to myself, I took time to step in each of the large prints, following his exact trail. His shadow shielded me from the sun above, but it didn't help with the reflection it made on the ice and snow. I squinted at the ground.

A horse nickered in front of us, and I smartly stopped before I could bump into Kurogane-san again. I looked up at the horse, delighted to see the mare with the black star on her nose. She stood next to the horse Kurogane-san had ridden on, a high and mighty-looking stallion even the tiny clearing that they walked in. All the other horses looked plain in their similar pale blue hides.

Kurogane-san walked right up to the fence and hoisted himself over it. The shaggy blue horses whinnied and backed off, pawing the snow for some hidden grass or roots. The pin stank of manure and soggy hay.

I stayed outside the fence, but watched Kurogane-san with renewed amazement. He walked straight up to his stallion, which snorted once and lowered his head to the boy respectfully. Kurogane-san patted his snout calmly.

"Have they treated you well?" Kurogane-san murmured to the stallion. The horse brayed, shaking the snow out of his fur and raising his head. The three parallel stripes on his forehead stood out at me, and I gazed at it curiously.

Something nipped my hair. I yelped and fell backward out of surprise, landing on my butt in the cold snow. I scrambled back and looked at what had frightened me. I froze. 'When did that mare sneak up at me?'

The mare's neigh seemed to be a laugh, which made me scowl up at her. An answering roar of laughter behind her alerted me, and I turned my glare to the ruby-eyed Kurogane-san.

"Scared of a horse, mage?" he taunted.

I huffed, standing and brushing myself off with as much dignity I could muster in the situation. The mare watched me with interest, cocking her head.

'The child is scared?'

I froze. Who was that?

The mare pushed her nose into my chest as my eyes flitted around in alarm. 'The child shouldn't be frightened. After all, I am a horse.' The mare mocked Kurogane-san's voice. I shot my eyes to hers, looking into bright emerald eyes.

'Indeed!' said a gruffer voice—the stallion walked up to me and butted me in the face with his muzzle, 'since when is a horse the source of fright, child?'

I stared from one to the other in shock.

"Hey! HEY! Mage, what's wrong?" Kurogane-san's voice somehow penetrated my thoughts, and I saw him walk between the two horses to shake my shoulders. "You look pale, kid! Don't pass out now, they're just horses! They aren't going to bite your face off!"

"Just… horses…?" I struggled to think. "But… if they are… then…"

"Dammit, mage! THINK!" he slapped me across the face. I was jarred back into reality.

"Kuro—WHAT—"

Kurogane-san laughed, hard. "Good, good! Call me Kuro-what, you little idiot! You're scared over two horses! Two horses!"

"I'M NOT SCARED!" I screamed, balling my fists.

"That doesn't explain why you looked like you were going to faint while the horses walked up to you and breathed in your face!" He doubled over in chortles. The two horses looked at him in confusion.

'The boy cannot hear us?' the stallion asked.

'He is not a child of magic, like this one here,' answered the mare.

They both snorted in unison. It was as if they were amused that Kurogane-san couldn't use magic.

"W-Who are you two?" I asked, covering my ears with my hands. "H—How come I can hear—"

'Hush, child of magic,' shushed the mare, touching her nose to my shoulder. 'The child of war would not understand your rambles. He would deem you as crazy.'

'LOONY~' responded the stallion, trotting in place.

'Exactly,' the mare sighed in my head, tilting her head at the stallion, saying, 'though in all honesty it is this one who is the loon.'

'What was that?!'

The stallion chased the mare several times around the pen, which gave Kurogane-san a chance to stop laughing and regain his composure. He looked around for a moment. Snow had started to fall, and the sky had darkened with a thickening of clouds. I looked up at the darkened sky, blinking away the snow that fell in my eyes.

"Where's that stupid king of yours, anyway?"

I lowered my head and looked around. It was just as Kurogane-san had said: Ashura-O had disappeared again. "I dunno," I sighed, tilting my head back up to the sky and groaning, "who knows? The king will go where he wants."

'I believe he just wants you children to be alone together,' suggested the mare.

The stallion answered with a cheerful 'ooh~ naughty, naughty~'

"Shut up," I muttered.

"'Scuse me?" growled Kurogane-san. I felt his glare on my face. I lowered my head again and closed my eyes. I felt the mist from my breath fan my over my face.

"Nothing, Kurogane-san. Just talking to the horses."

"Hmph… whatever you say, idiot."

"Should I say the same to you, then?" I opened my eyes and glared at the boy. "I'm thinking. Shut up already." Kurogane-san sneered.

'Okay,' I thought to myself, closing my eyes again. 'Talking horses—great! Talking horses and a boy without magic, from a different world altogether? Not my lucky day.'

'Child of magic,' said the mare, I waved my hand in a give-me-a-moment gesture.

'Child of magic,' the mare insisted. I opened my eyes and slid my eyes to her emerald ones. 'Child, we come for the sake of you two and two others.' She stamped her foot urgently. 'We do not have much time—a moon at most. We must figure out what to do.'

"Do what?" I asked, ignoring the strange look I got from Kurogane-san. "What are you here for?"

'We ourselves do not know that yet,' answered the stallion, suddenly very serious. 'But we know that something must be done before we can find the other two we search for. Something concerning the two of you.'

I cocked my head. "The two of us…?"

"Dude, mage!" shouted the raven-haired boy, who was abruptly shaking my shoulders again. "You're creeping me out, Fai! Is the cold getting to your head?"

I jolted, looking at Kurogane-san in alarm. "Y-You… Fai…"

I suddenly understood what the horses were waiting for, and I didn't like it. It had something to do with my Fai, and someone that Kurogane-san held dear. Someone he held as preciously in his heart as I had with my twin.

Precious

Tears began to well up in my eyes and run down my face in rivers. Kurogane-san's eyes widened in shock. "Mage?" he whispered, climbing quickly out of the pen and taking my hands in his. So warm.

"Precious… to… him?" my voice croaked. I didn't remember speaking, the words just rolled out of my mouth as the tears streaked down my face and neck. "Precious to… me, is he?"

"What the hell are you talking about, magician?" whispered the boy, which I only faintly heard. Though I did feel him shake me. "Quit it. You're still creeping me out. Hold on—I'll get you where it's warm." He started to drag me off toward the palace door.

"NO!" I screamed, my eyes widening. I spun back to the horses, tugging on Kurogane-san's grip on me. "You—who are you?"

'Child of magic,' murmured the mare, which rested her nose on my forehead for a moment. 'We are whoever you find us to be.'

'Yeah,' retorted the stallion. 'We may both be Mokonas in disguise, but call us what you want. Name us!' The stallion nickered in a kind of giggle.

I nodded my head, my heartbeat pounding in my scalp. "Then… may you be Ginryu and Chi," I whispered, the names slipping from my tongue like fate destined them to be named that. And not a moment after did I collapse, sinking a warm embrace.

'And may it stay that way,' I thought groggily.

Okay, so maybe I really don't own the horses… but I hadn't gotten the idea of them being the two Mokonas until the realization came to me: OH! A black horse and a white horse + Tsubasa = Mokonas in disguise!

Whatever :/