Tsubasa Chronicle Fan Fiction ❯ Reciprocity, Part II ❯ Chapter 8 ( Chapter 8 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Tsubasa.

 

Fai walked over to where Kurogane stood and tried to gage his mood. It had been a long, weary night and he could tell that the samurai was just as fatigued as he was. Neither of them had known what to do when their doppelgangers had suddenly materialized before them. They had both been at a complete loss about what had happened or what to do, but Kurogane had taken charge of the situation, ordering Fai to watch the sleeping pair as he ran to get the one person he thought might be able to give them some insight into the situation- Queen Tomoyo.

 

As Fai waited, he wondered if this could possibly be some bizarre scheme of Ashura's, but as he gazed at the face of the unconscious man that looked so much like Kurogane, he could see he was made of flesh and blood and he did not sense any magic aura about him. Turning his head, he glanced over at the vision of himself lying on the floor; the blonde matched in him every way save one. Stepping closer, Fai noticed the black, swirling markings covering the man's back and pondered their purpose. But he didn't have much time to contemplate this oddity as Kuro soon returned with the Queen and her attendant, Soma, in tow.

 

After taking a moment to assess the situation, Tomoyo said, “Let us move them into Fai's room for now.” Soma and Kurogane lifted the two men and brought them into the mage's adjacent chambers to lay them on the bed.

 

“Your Highness,” Fai offered, “I think the blonde man may be hurt, his clothes have a few traces of blood.”

 

The Queen looked the man over and saw Fai was correct. “Soma, take this man into the bath chamber and tend to him, be sure he has no serious injuries.” Then, seeing the mage's hesitation, added, “Fai, you may accompany her if you like.”

 

The two of them left with the blonde in their arms and Kurogane, unable to keep back his impatience any longer, asked, “Do you know what is going on?”

 

Tomoyo looked troubled. “I am not a seer, Kurogane and Yukito left us very little information before his passing, but I will do my best to find out what is at the bottom of his strange event.”

 

Sensing Kurogane's disappointment, the Queen laid a gentle hand on his arm, telling him, “Don't worry. I will consult Yukito's old logs. I seem to remember him foretelling the appearance of someone's `cosmic twin'. Though I thought at the time it was some kind of metaphor, it seems the prophecy was literal.”

 

Kuro frowned. “I don't understand,” he replied crossly.

 

Tomoyo smiled at his typical grumpy manners.

 

“This man is you- the you of another world. A different body, but the same soul.”

 

The concept still made little sense to him, but Kurogane tried not to sound belligerent as he asked, “If they are from a another world, how did they end up here?”

 

For a moment Tomoyo contemplated this in silence, then a small glimmer on the bed caught her eye. Leaning over, he plucked an oval stone from the dark-haired man's hand and examined it. It was cracked and stained with blood, but it retained a deep crimson hue.

 

“Doesn't Fai wear a similar pendant?” she asked.

 

Kurogane nodded, remembering the way Fai's gem had glowed just before the inexplicable appearance of their look-alikes. He opened his mouth to inform the Queen of this connection, but stopped when he saw his twin stir.

 

The raven-haired man blinked his eyes open and immediately glanced to his side, not even noticing the people standing by the bedside. “Fai!” he yelled, his voice hoarse when he found the bed empty. “Fai!”

 

“He is resting, as you should be,” said a calm voice.

 

Looking up, the man's eyes widened in wonder. “Tomoyo-hime!” he gasped, “You're safe!”

 

The Queen stared back at him in wonder, about to ask how this man knew her, but he went on.

 

“Where are we? What happened? The last thing I remember was Ashura about to attack us and then… then it all went blank.”

 

“Ashura?!” Tomoyo and Kuro both exclaimed.

 

The man on the bed now looked at his twin, eyes narrowing. “Your majesty, who is this imposter?” he asked in a voice seething with suspicion.

 

“I could ask you the same thing,” Kurogane growled.

 

Tomoyo waved her hands in the air, “Please, calm down- both of you!”

 

Things might have gone badly, despite the Queen's pleading, but the men's attention was diverted as footsteps approached them from behind.

 

“Fai!” the dark-haired man exclaimed, jumping out of bed and running over to throw his arms around the lithe blonde who had walked into the room. “Are you alright?” he asked, pulling back to look into his eyes.

 

To his surprise the man in his arms was blushing fiercely.

 

“I- I think you want /that/ Fai,” he said, turning around to point at the limp body in Soma's arms.

 

They had discarded his stained clothing and dressed him in an extra pair of silk trousers from Fai's wardrobe.

 

The raven haired man stood for a second in confusion, glancing between the two blondes, then walked over to scoop the unconscious man up in his arms and carry him tenderly to the bed.

 

In the meantime, the mage stepped over to Kurogane, who was silently fuming. First this insufferable copy practically threatens him, then he makes advances towards /his/ Fai!

 

But the other Kurogane was not looking half as volatile as he had just a moment before. Sitting next to the bed, he held his lover's hand in his own and gazed up at the Queen in bewilderment.

 

“How did this happen?” he asked her.

 

“Kurogane-san,” Tomoyo said, sitting next to him with her trademark smile, “I think we have a lot to talk about.”

 

It took some time, but gradually they were able to piece together what had happened, as well as calm down both `Kuroganes'. Neither man seemed especially happy about this odd turn of events, and Fai found his Kuro's cross attitude regarding his `other self' highly amusing. Fai had little problem with accepting the existence of his twin, though he was a bit disconcerted about the state the man was in.

 

When he and Soma had taken the blonde into the bath chamber, they could find no evidence of injury, at least at first. But as they stripped away his clothing to inspect his body further, it became clear that his wounds were of a decidedly intimate nature. Soma saw Fai blanch as they slipped the man's pants down his legs, revealing the dried blood between his thighs.

 

Fai was all too familiar with the nature of his injury.

 

“I'll get a wet towel to clean him,” Soma offered, feeling a bit awkward under the circumstances.

 

In silence, they tended to the blonde man, but Fai's reactions convinced Soma that the mage had undergone the same kind of abuse in Ashura's palace.

 

Fai had felt the woman's eyes on him and chose not to acknowledge whatever conclusions she was forming in her mind. He was no longer subject to Ashura's demands and he had vowed to put all those unpleasant memories behind him, but it seemed he could not forget. The sight of the blood and the bruises forming on the man's hips recalled all too vividly the cruelties that had been inflicted upon him.

 

He began to wonder where this doppelganger had come from and if his wounds had been caused by another `Ashura'. The idea set a shill in his bones. If this `Fai' was from some parallel world, as he suspected, then it was possible that the sadistic King was inevitably tied to his own existence- no matter what world he escaped to.

 

When Soma and he had finished cleaning and dressing the blonde man, Fai had been more than a bit surprised when Kuro had suddenly hugged him so passionately- until he realized it wasn't /his/ Kurogane! It made him feel strangely guilty when he didn't fight the embrace, but instead let himself enjoy it. The whole situation was confusing, to say the least.

 

By the time Tomoyo had worked out that the appearance of the `twins', as they were called, it was nearly dawn. They knew it had something to do with the magics within the gemstones, but how and why they were connected was another story.

 

When the sun finally broke over the ridge of the hills, Tomoyo stood and took her leave, advising everyone to get some rest. “There is only one thing we can be sure of,” she said as he made her way to the door, “nothing is ever a coincidence, there is a reason you were all brought together.”

 

The affect of this rather eloquent speech was slightly marred by the large yawn that followed it. Tomoyo held a delicate hand over her mouth in a failed attempt to hide it, which made her look both childish and sweet. Both Kuroganes smiled. Tomoyo was Tomoyo, no matter what the world.

 

“I will check Yukito's logs later today, but for now I think I will sleep,” she said with a little smile. Bowing, she left the room, Soma following at her heels.

 

Now that Fai's bed was occupied, he suddenly realized he would have to share Kuro's bed once again. It wasn't that he really minded it, but matters between the two lovers were still strained. They had left each other on bad terms the day before and nothing between them had been resolved.

 

As the two men walked back to the samurai's chambers, Fai stalled, fidgeting nervously.

 

“What are you waiting for?” Kuro said sharply, “I can tell you're tired, just get into bed, I won't bite!”

 

Complying, Fai slipped himself beneath the covers and positioned himself as close to the edge of the bed as possible. If Kuro was angry with him, he wanted to give the man as much space as possible; he didn't want to raise his ire further by presuming things were ok between them and trying to snuggle in next to him.

 

Unfortunately, Fai's reluctance irritated Kuro to no end. The warrior saw his hesitation as just one more indication of the mage's desire to keep himself emotionally distanced. Deciding he was too tired and frustrated to think about such matters, he flopped into bed and shut his eyes, quickly succumbing to sleep.

 

But neither of them slept well. Whatever was happening with these `cosmic twins', it was entangled with powerful magics and both Kuro and Fai somehow knew that, from now on, nothing would ever be the same.

 

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