A/N: A lot of things happened to me recently which included good as well as bad things. The bad things kind of made me have a writer's block since I was quite depressed but I managed to somewhat get through that thanks to an awesome friend of mine (you know who you are. ;) ) and I managed to somehow get my lazy butt to actually write this chapter.

I'm putting this up today despite the fact that weekend is almost over because I just got a new laptop! Yeah. I'm pretty excited about that though, I'm gonna have to get used to the keyboards layout. *sighs* But anyhow, before I start rambling about the pros and cons of changing laptops and whatnot, I'll shut up and let you guys go ahead and read.

I'm seriously hoping this chapter will leave you guys hanging on the worse cliffie ever! (Insert evil cackles here)

Now without any further ado, go ahead and enjoy. ;)

Syaoran was confused. No, it wasn't enough to say he was confused. Syaoran was beyond confused. He was baffled. Confounded. Bamboozled.

No. Not really. That was just blowing things a bit out of proportions.

He was just confused.

After that talk with the Oracle, he had somehow not ended up back in the dungeon with Fai.

No.

He had ended up in a never-ending corridor with so many twists and turns, it would make one of those roller-coasters he had seen in Edonis seem like a little toy train. The corridor seemed to be made out of ice. Transparent, crystal-clear ice, though he could see cracks appearing in the frozen water, the fractures worsening in intensity the farther he walked. It was strange, though. Intricate looking doors, made out of dark wood, were inserted into the ice on his left and right all along the corridor at periodic intervals. Some were shiny and brand-new looking, while others were old and worn out, not from years of use, mind you. Their state seemed to scream neglect, as though they had been left to bear the wrath of the elements for far too long. But…in a place as strange as this, how was that even possible?

Cautiously making his way down the corridors, Syaoran took great care not to touch any doors. He had been warned against opening them by the one that had sent him here, after all. It apparently had something to do with the 'invasion of privacy'. The better looking doors, which for some insane reason Syaoran felt the urge to call 'happy doors', were getting fewer in number the longer he walked, until the time came that there were no more happy doors left. Syaoran couldn't help but shudder at the feeling of utter despair that seemed to leak out of some of the doors. He hurried his footsteps. The faster he found who he was looking for, the faster he could get out of this place.

Before I die… a child's voice echoed all around him. Syaoran's feet froze outside one of the doors. As though in a trance, he found himself turning around to face it, his hand reaching out to touch its worn surface. It felt cold, frozen- like the cracked, icy walls all around him-beneath his fingers. Hesitating for a fraction of a second, Syaoran pushed against it, the door swinging inward with a low, ominous creak. For a fraction of a second, nothing happened before flurries of snow and hail rushed out the door, twisting and spinning around the spirit's form, pulling him inside before he even had the time to register door swung shut with a resounding bang, leaving nothing but silence in its wake. A soft, whispered sob traveled down the twisting corridor before it, too, was smothered out by the silence.

-0-

Having fed Syaoran and tucked him into bed, Sakura gently closed his eyes, setting Mokona down by his side.

"Can you stay with him, Moko-chan?" she asked the dimension hopper softly as she brushed Syaoran's unruly hair from his face. They had grown rather long during his time away, the bangs that normally swept his brow now almost reaching past the tip of his nose. He'd need a haircut soon. But that wouldn't be possible until he stopped freaking out whenever someone approached him. It was true he didn't struggle as much when that someone was Sakura, but he still refused to speak to her. He refused to speak at all.

"You can count on Mokona!" The little rabbit saluted enthusiastically before hopping over to Syaoran. The magical creature nuzzled his face, "Mokona will use one of Mokona's super-secret 108 techniques and make sure Syaoran has a good night's sleep."

"Thank you." She smiled before picking up the empty tray of food and heading towards the door. "I'll come back once I have finished talking with Kurogane-san, alright? We might need you to contact Watanuki-kun after that."

"Okay!"

Gently closing the door behind her, Sakura heard Mokona say something to Syaoran but she never heard him reply. Sighing softly, she proceeded to make her way down the familiar corridors to the kitchen to put away the tray. A servant approached her when she started washing the used utensil, but she waved him away with a small shake of her head. She had always been an odd one in this regard. Sakura enjoyed washing dishes sometimes when she was feeling depressed. The sound of running water, the feel of the soapy liquid on her hands, the whole process of washing things… it soothed her somehow.

"Kurogane-san, we need to get Fai-san out of that place."She said the minute she was seated next to him on the roof.

"I know."

"Mokona is awake now," she said softly, resting her chin atop her folded legs as she observed the desert bathed in the silvery moonlight."But I don't think Mokona will be able to take us there on its own. At least, not on the first try."

"We can make a deal with that Watanuki kid." Kurogane offered out of the blue.

"I was thinking the same but… what about Syaoran?"

"We'll just take him along."

"But… Kurogane-san," she bit her lip, wondering how to bring the subject of the teen's mental state up with his mentor. Surely the older male had to realize that it might not be such a wise idea to move him around like that. Especially to a world that was as unstable and turbulent as the ninja had described the one that currently had Fai.

"We can't just leave him here." He said simply, "I know you don't want to leave him behind and I doubt you'd stay behind yourself while I go to try and save the mage's ass."

The princess of the desert said nothing in return, for he had accurately voiced the thoughts that had been troubling her for the past few days.

"Everything will be alright." He spoke up, making the girl look back at him, "that's what you said your otherself told you once, right?"

"We'll just have to believe in that." She nodded in understanding, a soft smile gracing her lips at the thought of her alternate self, the one that had actually met with Tsubasa's mother in a dream. Since the clone was a part of her, it was almost like she herself had met that Sakura.

-0-

Syaoran yelled in surprise as he was thrown back out into the corridor. The door shut on itself, vanishing to become a part of the cracked ice now that he had seen what lay on the other side. Gingerly picking himself up off of the frozen ground, Syaoran began trekking down the corridor, taking extra-special care not to let any of the whispered words or voices distract him. This place he was in… he wasn't here to mess around. The cracks and the twists and turns already spoke volumes of the amounts of damage this place had endured. Him poking his head through random doors would only do more harm than good, especially since what he had seen on the other side…the spirit had to brace himself against the frozen wall as a fresh crack appeared in the wall behind him, rocking the whole place. Looking over his shoulder, he noticed that the crack seemed to be spreading, reaching out towards him.

"Oh, shit." Even when he had been alive, living out his life as the Li heir, Syaoran had never been one to use profanities, despite his mentor's –albeit in another life- liking for them. But there were some situations that just called for this sort of reaction. As he broke out into a sprint, feet slipping over the frozen water, the spirit of the clone knew that this was one of them.

It felt like he ran for hours on end, the wooden doors flashing by his sides as he moved until he slowed down to a jog, panting hard before stopping to half-lean against the transparent wall.

I can't believe you did something like that! This time the voice that bounced off of his surroundings was distinctly female. Warily, he glanced to his right, noticing a 'happy' door. This had to one of the first he had seen in ages. Against his will, he found his body moving towards it, his hand reaching out to push against the wooden surface. This door swung inwards soundlessly, a flutter of pale lavender petals rushing out into the corridor. Invisible strings pulled him inside as the door swung shut with a loud crack. Only a lavender petal was left behind to drift down to the floor where the brunette had stood only moments before.

"Go away! I don't want to talk to you or ever see your face again." A pretty, raven-haired girl with crimson streaks in her long hair furiously marched down the translucent crystal steps of Castle Ruval. The giant magical wings, in reality nothing more than the physical manifestation of countless, complex spells keeping the magnificent castle afloat in the sky, held a faint purple hue from the light of the setting sun in the background.

"Masooma, please," A rather-helpless looking Fai followed closely behind the angry witch. "Give me a chance to explain."

"I don't want to hear your explanations, Fai." She whirled around abruptly. "And you can tell the same to your newly-appointed Oracle." She spat the word venomously. "If you two machos want to be idiots and kill yourselves in the process of trying to prove who the alpha male around this place is, by all means go ahead. Don't let some stupid, unfashionable bookworm get in your way. I'm leaving." And then she was marching down the stairs again. Two streams of blue runes shot out from Fai's outstretched fingers, wrapping around the raven-head's petite form, halting her in her steps.

"Fai," she grit out in a voice of forced calm, "Let me the hell go!"

"No." The mage responded simply.

"I swear to God, Fai, if you don't let this spell go this instant," she growled dangerously, "I will not hesitate in tearing you apart limb from effin' limb when I get out of this spell."

"I doubt you'd have the heart to do such a thing to me, Masooma."

"You over-confident, self-conceited, cocky bastard! Let me GO!" she shrieked.

"Not until you hear me out." The magician responded stubbornly.

"I don't care. I don't want to listen to your explanations. Let me go! I want to get as far away from you two as possible! Let me go!"

"You can scream all you want, Masooma," the blond said softly as he refused to let go of the spell, taking slow, calculated steps towards the restrained witch as he spoke. "I'm not letting you go. Not now." Then, before the witch could even register what was happening, his lips crashed into hers in a fierce kiss. "Not ever." He growled almost ferally. "I almost lost you once because of my stupidity. I'm not letting that happen again." He told her, planting another harsh kiss on her lips as he finally let the restraining spell fade away. The woman responded in like, her arms clutching on to the man like he was her last lifeline on a ship sailing in a turbulent storm as tears flowed freely down her face.

"You idiot!" She slapped him as soon as he pulled away. "You stupid, stupid idiot."She cried, collapsing into his arms as she punched him weakly on the chest. "You could have died. You both could have died."

"I know…" He let her hit him, keeping his arms wrapped around her shaking frame as he kissed the top of her head. "And I'm sorry."

"You shouldn't even be using your magic right now." She frowned after a while, sniffling softly as she pulled back to look at him through puffy eyes. She looked like a mess just then, but Fai seemed to look at her as though she was the most beautiful creature he had ever laid his eyes on. The blue in his eyes seemed to have faded away quite a lot, a thin, translucent white film coating the irises, giving him a partially-blind appearance. All of a sudden, as though the effect of his actions had finally caught up with him, he swayed on the spot, almost collapsing on the stairs had it not been for the witch keeping him somewhat upright in her embrace.

"Maybe…"he responded breathlessly, "But you would have left otherwise."

"I have half a mind to do that right now." She grunted, but there was no real bite in her words. "You both are idiots." She smiled softly. "When the Blind One is able to move about on his own again, he is so in for a beating." She added. "And you…"

"Would you really beat up a half-dying man, Masooma-chan?" Fai said, somehow managing to look really pathetic and weak as he let all his weight fall on her. The girl staggered under the added weight before growling playfully. "I have half a mind to do just that. Infact…" She let go.

The magician fell to the steps with a surprised yelp.

"That's not very nice, Masooma." He whined, "I'm a seriously weakened mage here. Plus, I think it's against the rules to hit your Master. Especially when he is out of commission."

"Rules are meant to be broken, Master." She stuck out her tongue before marching back towards the castle. "You were the one that taught me that."

"H-Hey! You're not gonna leave a weak man out here on the cold steps, are you?" He nervously called out after her.

"The medic in me seems to think a little bit of cold, fresh air is just what you need." She grinned over her shoulder before continuing up the steps.

"M-Masooma…Hey, you're not serious about leaving me out here, are you?"

"For a couple of hours, maybe," she called back. "Even though you're one heck of a kisser, I'm still pretty pissed off over what you did, so be thankful I'm even talking to you."

"Masooma..."Fai whined as her echoing laughter carried all the way over to him in the light breeze as she disappeared inside the castle. It appeared as though the smirking guards stationed at the entrance- who had apparently witnessed everything that had happened- were a lot more afraid of the resident medic then they were of the High Mage as they stayed put at their places.

Syaoran was thrown out of the door harshly, his head colliding with the wall opposite to it rather painfully. It shut with a bang, melting into the wall itself as another crack appeared in its place, racing towards the fallen spirit.

"Damn it!" Cursing, Syaoran was on his feet, racing down the winding corridor, vowing to not stop again, no matter what happened. Not until he had found what he had been sent to find. He knew it was in here somewhere, and he'd be damned if he didn't find it.

-0-

Something soft and warm was cuddling up next to his face, its fluffy little paws playing with his hair as a high-pitched, child-like voice went on and on about one thing and another.

In. Out. In. Out. He concentrated on breathing, pushing down the panic that was bubbling up inside him. It had been such a long time. They had to be planning something by now.

True, he had managed to not respond to whatever they had done to him so far, but how long would he be able to keep it up? The princess's caressing touches, her gentle smiles, her soft, musical voice… they were all just a ruse. Just like all those other times. They were probably just waiting for him to let his guard down. Trust them again so that they could tear at his fragile emotions even more. Would she get angry, though? Angry that he was not responding to her like she wanted him to? Would she hit him the next time she came? He wasn't really fighting back anymore, though, was he? Surely, just because he managed to retreat deep within himself whenever she was around didn't really change the fact that she was still able to feed him like she wanted.

It was strange, though… why had she chosen this new way of feeding him? Was she tired of watching as he choked on his own blood as the feeding tube was shoved down his throat? Was that it? For them to go by so long without hitting him or demanding to know the location of the essence, something that -he had told them time and time again- he did not know… they were most definitely trying to lull him into a false sense of security.

Thoughts like these raced inside his head as he lay motionless in bed, the chatter of the white dimension hopper nothing more than background noise. Things were going slow for now, but how long until the princess tired of this routine? How long before she…

"Sakura!" The dimension hopper cried in ecstasy and Syaoran resisted the urge to flinch. She was back. What would she-

"Hello, Syaoran." She smiled softly as she approached his bedside. "How are you feeling now?" She asked, her soft hands hooking up under his armpits as she moved his body into a sitting position. "I hope you had an enjoyable nap," she said, her hands moving to straighten out and rearrange the sheets. "Mokona kept you company, right?"

"Mokona is always good at keeping company!" The dimension hopper declared happily. "It's one of Mokona's 108 super-secret techniques."

"That's great, Moko-chan." She beamed brightly, and Syaoran found himself wondering just what was it that had the princess in such a good mood. "Your hair is getting a bit out of hand, though, Syaoran." She said, her fingers untangling some of the messy knots in his hair that almost completely managed to hide his eyes from her view. Syaoran had to struggle to keep his breathing under control. It was starting again. She was bored. She always commented on some inane thing before she started tormenting him. But surely…she couldn't be. Syaoran's breath hitched in his throat as he saw her pull out a pair of shears."I thought I could give you a haircut after I'm done changing your bandages."

"This won't take too long." She said as she stepped closer. Syaoran resisted the urge to scoot away from her. If he gave no reaction, she might not go through with it. His eyes flickered down to his bandaged torso before flickering back to the scissors in her hand. His long hair prevented her from seeing his darting eyes, but for how long? How long before she'd notice how he was trembling?

W-Why couldn't he just retreat back into himself like usual? She was getting closer. Only a few feet away from him now.

"Syaoran. Y-You're shaking." No! She should not have seen that. "Is everything okay?"

"N-No." The whimper escaped his lips as he finally lost the battle with his instincts. He shied away from her, scooting back, using his hands until he was at the very edge of the bed.

Her expression was schooled into one of shock and hurt, but Syaoran knew better. It was just a mask. It was all just a sick, twisted game to her. Nothing more.

"It's okay, Syaoran." Her whispered words echoed inside his head as the expression on her face morphed into one of twisted delight, her jade eyes drinking in the sight of his trembling form.

"It's okay, Syaoran. Relax." She took a step closer and he inched away even more, the bed running out from under him as he toppled over on his back. He hit his head on the ground, somewhat dazed and disorientated for a while as the jade-eyed girl climbed over the bed.

"S-Stay away…"

She froze halfway down the climb.

"Syaoran, I-I.. I need to change your bandages." She said as she started moving again.

Instantly, Syaoran began to scoot away, shaking his head, wide eyes taking in his surroundings though he knew his body lacked the energy to actually stand up and make a run for it. Maybe he could just topple his body over the window sill if he managed to make it that far? It was quite possible that he was being kept in a room on one of the upper levels of the castle, so the fall might actually kill him, but… wouldn't that be a relief? He wouldn't have to bear all this pain anymore.

"Syaoran, please."

"Syaoran, please. Let's try not to make this any more difficult than it has to be, okay?"

"No." he mumbled, aggravating his arm that was still in a cast as he struggled to get away from her.

She was moving closer, knife in hand, a cold, sadistic smile plastered on her face.

"S-Stay away from me."

"Syaoran, please, calm down."

"Stop struggling so much and I promise it won't hurt that bad." Her cold, frozen fingers trailed up his bare torso, nails digging into the cuts she had inflicted on him with the knife.

"Stay back!" he cried out as a torrent of memories, flashes, sounds, sights, and occasional smells from the time he had spent in those dungeons began catching up with him.

Her cold, biting laughter.

His own agonized screams.

The sound of metal slicing through flesh.

Biting cold. Pain. Knives. Blood. Needles. Fear.

"Please. No." He shook his head, scuttling as far away from her as he could.

His pleas didn't stop her though. She was towering over him, the pair of shears glinting in the moonlight as she looked down at him.

"You think your little unresponsive act would fool me for long? I was only letting you have your way to see what you intended to do. But now… I tire of it all. I simply do not have the patience to watch you act like an invalid anymore."

"No!" He screamed in terror, backing away from her as fast as he could, barely even noticing it as his head collided into something sharp and wooden in his haste to get away. Something warm trickled down the back of his head, sliding down his bare back. His sensitive nose picked up on the tangy scent of blood. "Leave me alone! Please…" he begged, pressing his body into the wall next to the table he had managed to bang the back of his head on. The cold breeze hit his sweating body, making him shudder even further. He was right beneath the window.

"You really think I'd listen to what you want?"

"If… If you w-won't listen to me…" he warned her in a shaky voice as he managed to push his body upright using his legs and working arm, leaning heavily against the sill. "I-I swear I'll jump out of the window."

"Syaoran!" She cried out, almost making a rush for him before stopping mid-step, eyeing him nervously as he managed to get half his body on the window sill, still leaning heavily against the wall for support.

"I don't know what I did to deserve what you have put me through, Hime," he said, feeling a little satisfied that for once he had actually gotten her to stop. "But I can't take it anymore."

"Do I look like I care?"

"I'm tired of it all and-"

"Kid!" The door to the room burst open, the red-eyed ninja rushing inside, followed closely by Mokona. When had the magical creature left to go call the man? "Step away from the window." He commanded sternly as he stopped next to the princess.

"So you can chain me back?" He laughed bitterly, a bit of delirium and hysteria coloring his tone as he leaned further away from them.

"Syaoran..." Sakura called, echoed by Mokona, tears welling up in its beady little eyes.

"I can't take it anymore," he told them softly, "and it's not like it matters much to you anyways whether I live or die."

"Kid, get away from the fucking window right now!" the ninja growled.

"I just want it to end." He said, leaning further back.

"Syaoran!"

"Kid!"

He saw them move towards him, their hands reaching out to stop him but a small smile tugged at the corners of his chapped lips. Tsubasa had a feeling akin to flying as he sailed through the air, watching as golden sprinkles of magic followed in his wake. The blood from his wounded head flew upwards, leaving a warm trail against his cold skin as the cool night air caressed him, making his longer hair beat about his battered face as he fell, the darkness rushing to claim him. The princess's spell appeared like a shimmering trail of fairy dust against the dark sky always a little out of his reach. The spell would be too late to stop my fall. That was the last satisfied thought that rushed through his head as he surrendered himself to unconsciousness, never hearing the sickening crunch as his body hit the ground below.

A/N: And now you all probably want to kill me.

I swear this thing has a mind of its own. There are so many things that I never planned on happening but they just write themselves out. This last scene was actually one of those unplanned things. So yes, I do recall promising that I won't kill anyone in this story but… Yeah. Let's just say that might not be the case anymore. Sorry guys. *sweatdrops* But you people still have a lot of power you know. I already decided on his fate but your opinion might make me change that decision (maybe…)

So drop by the review room and scream and curse at me for making him jump out of the window. Tell me how much you loved that little fluffy scene between Fai and Masooma (This chapter is my newest favorite in this fic by the way. ;) ;) because of these two scenes.) Ask away any questions that you may have and tell me whether you want Syaoran to live or die. I know what I want to happen next chapter (or rather the runaway plot bunnies do) but you can still make it change so do let me know what you want, k?