A/N: So I spent about a day or two trying to figure out what to do for the prompt of "reticence" without adhering to the usual "Fai is keeping secrets from everyone" lameness, which, of course, would just be taking the easy way out. The idea I ended up using actually came to me in a dream. I don't really remember anything about what happened in the dream; the only thing I'm still sure of was that it took place in a courtroom, hence the setting of this fic. Unfortunately, I can't remember exactly how a hearing is conducted, plus some parts weren't added in order to save time so if I leave something out or get it wrong please forgive me.

For those who aren't familiar with the word "reticence", allow me to define it for you as it is found in the Oxford Pocket American Dictionary of Current English: "Reticence /retisens/ n. 1 the avoidance of saying all one knows or feels, or of saying more than is necessary. 2 a disposition to silence. 3 the act or instance of holding back some fact. 4 abstinence from overemphasis in art." Ok, now that we know what the word means, on with the fic! WARNING: THIS FIC CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR CH. 153-164!!


Reticence

Silence, Kurogane, the gym teacher reminded himself. Don't volunteer anything that they don't ask for directly. Answer their questions with as little information as possible. These bastards don't have any solid evidence to pin this on you. As long as you keep your mouth shut, they can't prove that you had anything to do with this. Silence…

Kurogane was having a somewhat difficult time following his own advice, especially with the prosecutor glaring at him like that. The prosecutor in question was obviously doing its best to look intimidating but when you're black, furry, roughly the size and shape of a football and have long rabbit-like ears intimidating is a very difficult look to pull off. If Kurogane had possessed any less control over himself he wouldn't have been able to suppress the snort of laughter that was rising in his throat, or abstain from running up to that ridiculous-looking thing and giving it a good, hard punt. Even with the degree of control he had resisting these urges was tough.

When Kurogane thought about it, he supposed he wasn't really in any position to laugh considering who he himself had for a lawyer. He sighed and shook his head in disbelief. Upon finding out that Kurogane was going to be tried for murder Fai had insisted that Kurogane hire someone to defend him. Ignoring the protests of the accused, Fai had done a little research and taken it upon himself to hire who he claimed to be the best lawyer the country had to offer.

Kurogane was more than a little skeptical; his defense attorney looked exactly like the prosecutor except that it was white with a red jewel on its forehead rather than black with a blue jewel. He wouldn't be at all surprised if he found out that his defense attorney and the prosecutor were actually conspiring against him, the sneaky little bastards. Speaking of sneaky bastards, someone managed to creep up behind Kurogane without him noticing and touched him on the shoulder, startling him out of his reverie. He turned his head to see who had dared disturb him and found himself nose-to-nose with a certain blond chemistry teacher.

"You dumb ass!" Kurogane hissed through clenched teeth, scooting his chair as close as he could to the table in front of him so he wouldn't be so close to Fai. "I thought I told you not to come! You'll probably say something stupid that will get me sentenced to life in prison!"

"But I couldn't just let Kuropuu sensei go to court all by himself with nobody to cheer him on or hold his hand if he gets scared!" Fai grinned, leaning over the wooden railing that separated them so that he could rub noses affectionately with his co-worker.

"Cut that out!" Kurogane growled, waving him away irritably as he willed himself not to blush. "Everyone knows that you and that Ashura guy were close until I got hired! I'm just gonna look even more suspicious if you go around acting like you're my boy toy bitch all of a sudden!"

"Alright, alright, I guess I can save all my hugs and kisses until after the hearing," Fai sighed reluctantly.

"Keep 'em! I sure as hell don't want 'em!" the gym teacher sputtered.

"Hmm? Are you sure?" Fai asked teasingly. "You wanted them pretty badly last night…did Kurochii change his mind?"

Kurogane was just about to snap back at him when the bailiff addressed the court in a loud, carrying voice. "All rise for the honorable Judge Ichihara, presiding."

The judge entered the courtroom dramatically by throwing the door open and gliding in gracefully. She wore a scandalously low-cut black robe with a V-shaped neck and white lace around the collar and hems of her sleeves. The rest of the people in the room were dead silent, seemingly overwhelmed by either her presence or her more-than-sufficient bust that was peeking out of her robes. Kurogane, however, was not impressed, though he was quite shocked to see her.

"Huh?! What the hell are you doing here?!" he demanded, pointing at her accusingly. "How can you be a principal and a judge?! You kidnapped the real judge didn't you, you bitch?!"

"That's enough, Mr. Kurogane," she said smoothly, wearing that infuriating little smile of hers. "You will respect my position as judge or I shall hold you in contempt."

With a great amount of effort, Kurogane forced himself to sit and bite his tongue though he couldn't quell the tremors of rage that shook his body. That woman was always screwing with his head. With her as judge, there was no way he was getting out of here without a good, long sentence, not even if someone else stood up and confessed to the crime and offered a video tape as proof.

Judge Ichihara cleared her throat to get the attention of the bailiff, then nodded pointedly in Kurogane's direction.

"You will remain standing, Mr. Kurogane, until Judge Ichihara is seated," the bailiff said sternly.

Kurogane gave a derisive snort. "Like hell I will."

"You're not doing anything to help the outcome of your case by disrespecting the judge, I'll have you know," Yuuko said smugly. "Stand, or I shall throw this case out and you'll simply be taken to jail without a trial."

Snarling, Kurogane got to his feet and Yuuko chose that exact moment to sit down. The gym teacher stared at her in disbelief.

"This is no time for you to be screwing around, witch!" he snapped.

"Sit down, Mr. Kurogane. If I have to repeat myself, I shall have to hold you in contempt," she said, smirking as she looked over her glasses at him.

Kurogane bitterly dropped back into his chair. Fai leaned over the railing again to whisper in his ear.

"I think you made a friend, Kurorin sensei."

"Shut up," he growled.

The bailiff began to speak again. "Kurogane… Kurogane…" he stopped and frowned as he scanned his sheet. "Hmm… there doesn't seem to be a last name here."

"Tch. Pathetic," Kurogane sneered. "How the hell is it possible to bring a guy to court without even knowing his damn name?"

"Spare us your critique of the country's justice system and tell the court your last name, Mr. Kurogane," Yuuko said.

"Whatever. I don't care," Kurogane sighed. "The last name is—"

Fai stood up behind him so suddenly that the gym teacher nearly wet his pants. "If I may speak on the accused person's behalf, Your Honor?" he asked politely, with a slight bow to Yuuko.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Kurogane demanded incredulously.

"You may proceed," Yuuko said, smiling pleasantly back at the chemistry teacher.

"I would like to inform the court that Kurotan sensei is so manly that he needs only one name," Fai announced.

"Under any other circumstance I would consider that claim insufficient, but I shall accept it here because I trust in Fai sensei's…" Yuuko's eyes flashed mischievously in Kurogane's direction and a similar smile played about her lips, "expert opinion in the matter."

Kurogane's face turned beet red and he jumped to his feet again. "J-JUST WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN, YOU CRAZY BITCH?!" he shrieked indignantly.

"You will address me as 'Your Honor', Mr. Kurogane, if you wish for this trial to continue any further," Yuuko replied calmly. "And I'm sure you don't actually want me to explain to the court exactly what I meant by that statement."

Gritting his teeth so hard that he probably could have crushed a bullet between them, Kurogane forced himself once again to sit down, his face still burning brightly.

Fai leaned forward. "You're welcome, Kurochii sensei," he whispered cheerfully.

"Bite me," his co-worker snapped.

"Not now, Kurorin, you naughty boy!" Fai giggled. "At least wait until we get home!"

"You may continue with the reading of the charges, bailiff," Yuuko interrupted before Kurogane could turn all the way around to tear Fai's head off.

"Kurogane, you are charged with murder in the first degree of Ashura…"

Fai jumped up again. "He doesn't have a last name either!"

"Thank you, Fai sensei," Yuuko said. "Continue."

"How do you plea?"

"Not guilty," he growled.

There was some muttering from the audience and jury at that statement. Yuuko sighed. "Very well, Mr. Kurogane. Although I'm sure that claim is 100 percent bullshit, we shall now proceed with the opening statements. Mokona Black, if you would, please?"

The prosecutor hopped over to where the jury was seated, cleared its throat and began to speak. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury…" it began dramatically. "Would you all look at that guy over there? Just look at him. He's a pretty scary looking guy, right?"

The people of the jury nodded and muttered their agreement. Kurogane glared at them all and they quickly averted their eyes.

"He's a big, mean, vicious doggy and he's the one that killed Ashura. Thank you."

"HAAH?! WHAT THE HELL?! YOU CALL THAT AN OPENING STATEMENT?!" Kurogane shouted, jumping to his feet again, his hands curled tightly into fists. His defense attorney, Mokona White, reached up and tugged on his sleeve to get his attention.

"Kurogane should leave the talking to Mokona, ok? Mokona is a professional."

"Tch," Kurogane said dubiously.

"Thank you, Mokona Black," Yuuko said pleasantly. "Mokona White, your opening statement?"

Kurogane's defense attorney now approached the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, Mokona thinks that Kurogane is innocent. Thank you."

"THIS IS BULLSHIT!!" Kurogane shrieked. "YOUR OPENING STATEMENT WAS EVEN WORSE THAN THE BLACK MANJUU'S!!"

"Thank you, Mokona White," Yuuko interrupted. The defense attorney smirked at the prosecutor as it passed, causing the prosecutor to frown and fold its stubby little arms.

"Mokona shouldn't be so happy already," the prosecutor warned. "The trial isn't over yet; Mokona can still make a comeback."

"Mokona White, you may call your first witness to the stand."

"Mokona calls Syaoran to the stand!" Kurogane's defense attorney squeaked.

Syaoran got up from his seat in the audience and nervously approached the witness box.

"Does Syaoran promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" Mokona asked.

"I do," Syaoran replied breathlessly.

Kurogane glared at the boy; that kid better not screw up.

"How does Syaoran know Kurogane?" Mokona asked casually.

"H-he's my gym teacher," Syaoran stammered.

"What about Ashura?"

"I think Ashura sensei was a world history teacher but I never had him, so…"

"Did Syaoran ever see Ashura and Kurogane talk to each other?"

"Er… well, one time I heard Ashura sensei ask Kurogane sensei what time a staff meeting was, but other than that…"

"No further questions, Yuuko," Mokona said.

"Very well. Mokona Black, you are free to cross examine the witness," Yuuko prompted.

The prosecutor approached the witness, a wicked-looking smile on its furry little face. Syaoran looked uncertain as to whether he should be fearful or amused.

"…Did Syaoran ever notice any other teachers who talked to Ashura a lot?" it asked.

"Um…Well, like I said before, I didn't have Ashura sensei as a teacher but I did notice that he and Fai sensei seemed to be pretty good friends for a while."

"Did something happen between Fai and Ashura that made Syaoran think that they weren't friends anymore?"

"Well, when…" Syaoran hesitated, and looked nervously in Kurogane's direction.

Kurogane intensified his glare, his eyes clearly saying "if you say what I think you're about to say, I will personally devour all your appendages". The boy swallowed hard, a drop of sweat sliding down from his hairline to drip off his chin.

Yuuko looked between Syaoran and Kurogane and frowned. "Just ignore him, Syaoran." Then she grinned in Kurogane's direction. "I won't let the bad dog hurt you. You may continue."

"Why, you whorish…" Kurogane snarled, quaking with fury.

"I…I noticed that after Kurogane sensei was hired that Fai sensei and Ashura sensei didn't seem to talk to each other as much any more…" Syaoran mumbled, staring determinedly at his knees.

"Did Syaoran see any special connection between Fai and Kurogane?"

"Fai sensei followed Kurogane sensei around a lot…and sat in during some of Kurogane sensei's classes…and always called him strange nicknames and sometimes even made lunch for him…" Syaoran stopped there but it was clear that he had more to say: his face was on burning and his breathing was quick and shallow. The prosecutor seemed to pick up on this as well.

"Is there something else that Syaoran wants to say? Remember that Syaoran did promise to tell the whole truth."

"…Ah…Um…One…one day, I stayed after at school because I… wanted to ask Fai sensei a question about my chemistry test and…I went to his classroom and…and…"

"And what?"

"F-Fai sensei and Kurogane sensei were…they were…k-k-kissing!"

The whole courtroom began to buzz at this statement. Fai laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head, a slight blush coloring his cheeks. Kurogane was curled up in a fetal position under his chair, his face in his hands, his head on fire. Fai crouched down, pulled a twig from somewhere inside his sleeve and began to poke joyfully at the gym teacher's blazing cranium.

"Order! Order!" Yuuko called, banging her gavel, though she herself looked rather amused as well.

"Did Syaoran take a picture?" the prosecutor asked gleefully.

Syaoran's head shot up in horror at the suggestion. "N-No! I…I ran! I ran away from there as fast as I could! I…I would never…!"

"Ok, ok, Mokona understands," the prosecutor nodded sorrowfully. Then it grinned. "Show it to Mokona later, ok?"

"B-but I…!"

"Did Syaoran see any reaction from Ashura to Fai not spending as much time with him?"

"Ashura sensei seemed…distant. Kind of like he didn't care about his job anymore. But I might be wrong since I never had him as a teacher," Syaoran repeated.

"Hmm, Mokona has no further questions, Yuuko."

"Thank you, Syaoran. You may return to your seat," Yuuko said kindly.

Syaoran stumbled back to his place in the audience, taking the path that was as far away from Kurogane as possible.

"Mokona White, could you extinguish your client, please?" Yuuko requested. "The witness's testimony seems to have caused him to spontaneously combust with embarrassment."

Mokona reached into its mouth and pulled out a bucket of water which it dumped over Kurogane's head, putting out the fire with a loud hiss and lots of white steam.

"Thank you," the judge said stoically. "Now, Mokona White, you may call your next witness."

"Mokona chooses…" Kurogane's defense attorney rubbed its chin thoughtfully as if trying to pick someone at random from the crowd, "Kobato!"

Kurogane frowned as Mokona shouted the name, trying to remember if this person was anyone he knew. He turned to look at the girl as she stood up from her place in the audience and approached the witness box. She looked decidedly unfamiliar. The gym teacher's scarlet eyes narrowed as he studied her, trying to discern whether she would be of any help to his case. He didn't think she was a student; Kurogane was the only gym teacher at Horitsuba Academy which meant that everyone had him for a teacher. He considered himself to be pretty observant and was pretty sure he knew all his students at least by sight.

Kurogane glanced over his shoulder at Fai to see if there was any hint of recognition in his eyes but the chemistry teacher's face was blank. He turned his attention back to Kobato just in time to see her trip and fall flat on her face. Kurogane felt like banging his head on the table; if that clueless kid and this airheaded ditz were the best defenses that Mokona could pull out then he was definitely screwed. He rubbed at his wrists, almost swearing that he could already feel the shackles locked around them. Giggling sheepishly, Kobato got to her feet again and continued towards the stand. Once she had herself situated in the chair, Kurogane's defense attorney commenced with the questions.

"Does Kobato promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?"

"Ok!" she agreed cheerfully.

"How does Kobato know Kurogane?" Mokona asked.

"Hmm…" Kobato leaned forward in her seat and studied Kurogane's face carefully. "I don't think I know him at all."

"I see…" Mokona nodded slowly. "What about Ashura? Does Kobato know Ashura?"

"Ashura?" Kobato repeated curiously. Then she shook her head. "I don't think I know anyone by that name either."

Mokona threw the jury a significant look. "Did the jury people hear that? Kobato doesn't know Kurogane or Ashura."

The people of the jury nodded thoughtfully and began to mutter to each other. Kobato watched them, looking politely puzzled. The prosecutor looked angry and frustrated. Kurogane studied these reactions in disbelief before raising his voice in objection yet again.

"If that girl doesn't know me or that Ashura guy then why the hell did you call her up there, stupid manjuu?!"

Mokona turned around to stare at Kurogane, its mouth open in shock. When it realized that he honestly didn't understand the value of this valuable witness, it sighed and shook its head as though it was being forced to explain something extremely obvious to a very slow child.

"Kurogane is such a simple person," Mokona lamented. "Mokona doesn't know how Kurogane ever managed to become a teacher… Yuuko must have felt sorry for Kurogane."

"HAAH?! WHAT WAS THAT, MANJUU?!" Kurogane snapped. Mokona turned its back on him.

"No further questions, Yuuko."

"YOU'RE NOT TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY, YOU HAIRY LITTLE SHIT!!" the gym teacher spat. "DON'T YOU REALIZE THAT IF I LOSE THIS CASE, I'LL BE IN JAIL FOR THE REST OF MY FREAKING LIFE?!"

"Do you have any other witnesses, Mokona White?" Yuuko asked calmly, ignoring Kurogane.

"Mokona has no more witnesses," Kurogane's defense attorney replied.

"Very well; Mokona Black, you may call your first witness."

The prosecutor took a deep breath before approaching the witness box.

"For Mokona's first witness, Mokona calls… Ashura!"

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Kurogane roared, slamming his hands down on the table. "HOW THE HELL CAN YOU CALL A DEAD GUY AS YOUR WITNESS?!"

Even before Kurogane had finished this question, two men in black suits entered the courtroom through the same door Yuuko had used at the beginning of the trial, carrying a coffin between them. They propped it up against the wall in the witness box and retreated.

"That's cheating, Mokona!" Kurogane's defense attorney squeaked. "Mokona can't ask Ashura! That's cheating!"

"I'm afraid you are mistaken, Mokona White," Yuuko said. "Mokona Black may call whoever it chooses as a witness, just as you could."

The prosecutor smirked at the white Mokona smugly before turning back to the witness.

"Does Ashura promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?"

There was a single knock from inside the coffin.

"Huh?" Kurogane growled, frowning suspiciously as he watched the motionless coffin.

"One knock means yes, two knocks means no," the prosecutor clarified. "Now, is it true that Ashura was a world history teacher at Horitsuba Academy?"

There was one knock in response.

"Was Ashura good friends with Fai until Kurogane came along?"

Another single knock.

"Was Ashura jealous of Kurogane when Fai started spending time with him instead?"

Another single knock.

"Did Ashura ever see Kurogane and Fai being all lovey-dovey?"

Another single knock.

"I object!" Kurogane shouted, his face burning as he pointed an accusing finger at the coffin.

"Kurogane objects!" the white Mokona echoed.

"Shut up!" he snapped at his attorney. "The black manjuu probably has someone else in there answering the questions the way he wants them to!"

"Overruled," Yuuko said easily, clearly taking joy in doing so. "Continue, Mokona Black."

"Did Kurogane kill Ashura?" the prosecutor demanded.

There was no response. The black Mokona frowned. "Is Ashura dead or is Ashura just thinking?"

Still there was no response. The prosecutor pressed its ear to the coffin lid then shook its head sadly. "Ashura is dead for good this time."

"Hmm, how disappointing," Yuuko frowned. "And we were so close to having this all cleared up, too… Alright, Mokona Black, you may call your next witness."

"Mokona's next witness will be Fai!" the prosecutor chirped.

"Hmm? Me?" the chemistry teacher asked, looking mildly surprised. He stood up and began to edge his way out toward the aisle but the voice of someone else in the crowd stopped him.

"Or perhaps you meant me?"

The chemistry teacher's eyes widened a fraction more and he spun around to see where the voice had come from. Kurogane couldn't resist turning around either but when he did, he was overcome with a sudden and violent urge to be sick. There, mere feet behind his co-worker, was a second Fai who, aside from the clothing, looked to be an exact replica of the Fai he knew.

"Oh god… there are two of you?" he moaned, lowering his head into his hands. "Somebody kill me."

"Trust me, Mr. Black," the second Fai said seriously, "that doesn't solve your problems as neatly as you might think."

"Ah, Fai…" the first Fai said with a nervous grin, making desperate hand gestures to shut up his twin.

"Why don't we have both of you come up here?" Yuuko suggested, not looking the least bit surprised.

Both Fai's approached the witness stand, looked hesitantly at each other, then sat simultaneously in the single chair, each taking up half of the seat.

"Does Fai…er, Fais… promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" the black Mokona asked.

"Yes," the second Fai said decisively with a cheerful smile.

"Um…ok," the first Fai said, a bit more nervously and considerably less decisively, though his grin never wavered either.

"Why don't you tell the court your names, just to make things a bit less confusing?" Yuuko prompted with a smile.

"I'm Fai," the second Fai said.

"I'm…Yuui," the chemistry teacher said.

"Wait…What?" Kurogane demanded, narrowing his eyes at the two blonds suspiciously.

"How does Fai know Kurogane?" the prosecutor interrupted.

"Well, Yuui would never bring him home and let me meet him, so …I don't know him." He looked up at Kurogane and grinned mischievously. "But I'd like to."

At that comment, Kurogane slammed his head on the table in front of him so hard that he actually took a chunk out of it.

"Ah, Kuropuu…!" Yuui gasped, holding out his hand as if to touch the gym teacher's now bruised forehead.

"What? Was it something I said?" Fai asked innocently.

"Does Fai know Ashura?" the prosecutor continued, unconcerned.

"Yes, actually I…Ouch!" Fai stopped mid-sentence when his twin pinched his arm warningly. "You meany! What was that for?"

"Hmm? I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Yuui replied, his smile looking very forced now.

"Fai and Yuui are under oath so they have to tell everything they know," the prosecutor reminded them sternly.

Fai and Yuui looked at each other with pained expressions.

"I'm sorry, Yuui… I have to…" Fai said apologetically.

"I know; I deserve it completely, but…" Yuui tapped his foot nervously, compulsively. "Please, at least try not to…"

"I will," Fai agreed.

"And if you do have to, do you think you could…maybe…?" He winced, knowing that what he was implicitly asking was a far bigger favor than what he had any right to request.

"You don't mean…" Fai looked horrified.

"Please? This one's really, really important to me," Yuui begged.

Fai looked pained again. The rest of the people in the courtroom, Kurogane included, watched this exchange in bewilderment, wondering just what in the hell was going on here.

"If you do it…I'll let you have a taste later," Yuui promised, though he looked as though this exchange was costing him a great deal of resolve. Fai's eyebrow perked up in disbelief and he glanced interestedly in Kurogane's direction.

"Ok…" he sighed. "I'll do it."

"W-WAIT!!" Kurogane stammered. "A TASTE OF WHAT, EXACTLY?!"

"I know Ashura because…" Fai began.

"HEY!! DON'T YOU DARE IGNORE ME, YOU BASTARDS!!" Kurogane shouted. "I'M NOT GONNA BE PART OF YOUR DAMN AGREEMENTS!!"

"I spent a year in his freezer," the blond finished resignedly.

"In Ashura's freezer?" the black Mokona said. "Why?"

"Well…" He hesitated again, choosing his words carefully. "I have a…rather unusual condition which causes my skin to… do weird things if I'm not kept properly refrigerated."

The room lapsed into a confused silence as spectators tried to process what Fai had just said.

"Condition?" the prosecutor echoed. "What condition?"

"…I'm dead," Fai said.

"Dead?" the prosecutor repeated dumbly. "But… Fai doesn't look dead."

"No, it's true. I'm stone dead," the blond insisted. "If you don't believe me, come touch my hand."

Mokona extended a black paw hesitantly and touched Fai's hand.

"It's freezing!" it gasped. "And…and wet."

"Sorry about that," Fai said, grinning apologetically. "I'm starting to thaw, I'm afraid. But if you pull hard enough on my hand, it would probably snap right off. If you're going to test that claim though, I'd prefer it if you'd just try one of my fingers; I'm rather fond of my hands, you see."

Mokona grabbed Fai's left pinky and pulled and, true to his word, it snapped off with a nasty crackling sound. Several people in the audience and jury fainted.

"How…how did Fai die?" the prosecutor asked distantly, still staring in disbelief at the detached finger between its paws.

Fai glanced sadly over at Yuui, and then sighed deeply. "Yuui…killed me."

Everyone in the room who hadn't passed out stared at Yuui in shock. Yuui laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck.

"My, this is awkward," he grinned.

"Hold on… you what?!" Kurogane sputtered.

"Yuui…killed Fai?" the black Mokona asked slowly.

The blond twins got up from their seat and Yuui began to move towards the opening of the witness box.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," Fai said as he climbed up on the railing that surrounded the witness box to make sure that everyone in the courtroom could see him. "And now, Yuui, seeing as how I had no choice but to let the cat out of the bag, if you'll push the button..."

Fai lifted his shirt and Yuui poked his bellybutton. That was the only warning that everyone else had before Fai exploded. As the room filled with smoke and Fai flakes rained down from the ceiling, Yuui made a mad dash for Kurogane.

"Let's run, ok, Kurosama?" he suggested as he grabbed the stunned gym teacher's hand and half dragged him from the confusion of the courtroom.


Kurogane sat bolt upright, covered in cold sweat, his breathing fast and shallow. The room was dark so it took him a few moments for him to figure out where he was. Slowly it came back to him that he was in the hotel room that he, Syaoran, Sakura, Mokona and Fai had checked into earlier the previous day. The ninja clutched at his heart and allowed his breath to slow back down to normal. What a weird, creepy dream. He wondered if perhaps he shouldn't have eaten so much pizza right before bed. A sudden stirring beside him in the bed kicked his heart rate back into overdrive. Fai sat up and rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"Wassamatter, Kurochuu?" he mumbled. "Did you have a bad dream?"

Kurogane backed away from him so quickly that he fell off the edge of the bed.

Fai giggled and crawled over to look down at the swordsman who was sprawled on the floor in a tangle of blankets. "Calm down, Kurowanwan! It was only a dream!"

When Kurogane didn't get back into bed, Fai slid down onto the floor and knelt beside him, leaning down to softly kiss his lips and stroke his cheek reassuringly. "It's ok, Daddy; Mommy won't let the bad monsters get you."

Kurogane sighed. The magician was right; it was only a dream. He scooped Fai up and deposited him back on the bed before lying down next to him once more. The blond wrapped his arms around his companion's shoulders and gave him another kiss as he closed his eyes again.

Now that he had calmed down, Kurogane was pretty ashamed of himself for being so rattled by a ridiculous dream like that. For one thing, neither of them were teachers and for another thing, the mere idea of there being two Fais was utterly ridiculous. Two Fais…pfft, yeah right. And maybe there two Syaorans, too. Feeling much better, Kurogane nuzzled his face into Fai's silky blond hair and went back to sleep.


A/N: Phew, it's over… that was a bitch to write. Not sure what I think about it but I'm glad it's over. The next prompt is "class". Stay tuned!