This is the frist installment for a 3-4 part story. It literally took me forver and a day to write it, so.... Leave some comments. . I would absolutely love feedback. WARNING: Mild spoilers of the Outo chapter

Falling for You

Chapter One: Just a Drink

It has been more than a week since the attack and Fai was still limping. No one else seemed too concerned that he still needed the help of a cane to walk, but it troubled Kurogane deeply. A normal sprain would have easily healed in a week, and with Fai's impressive healing abilities, even faster. The fact that he was continuing to hobble around was proof enough that he was not alright. Sakura had questioned him about it before but the blond had just smiled and said everything was fine. Though both Sayoran and the princess seemed to believe his lie, Kurogane knew the mage's injury was more serious than he was letting on.

He watched the blond now from his place across the room. He was tucking in a sleeping Sakura and Sayoran, the all-too-familiar motherly affection clear in his movements. The children had collapsed on the couch after hours of drinking. Now they slept peacefully opposite each other, Sayoran at the princess's feet and her at his. While the mage worked he was careful not to step on his injured leg. Kurogane brought the bottle of liquor to his mouth and took another sip.

Though Fai himself had continued to drink after the accident, he no longer became drunk. Even after five shots over his usual limit he was still sober. This surprised the ninja. Since they had met the mage had always had a low tolerance for alcohol. Two drinks and he would be crawling around on the floor meowing like a cat, even dragging Sakura into doing it as well. But now, no matter how much he drank, he was still his usual self.

While Sayoran picked fights with the furniture and Sakura acted like a cat, Fai was happily chit-chatting away about the weather or something equally unimportant. Only now did he stop his foolish acts. Probably to keep himself from risking further injury to his ankle. It made Kurogane wonder if he just faked that drunken cat act to annoy him. That was most likely the case.

While he was still pissed about the mage's commitment to a life of lies he couldn't exactly complain about the company. It was actually… nice. Not being the only one to look after the children that is. Now there was someone else to help pick up the beer bottles after the others were sleeping. Of course this gave Fai more time to annoy him. They'd sit and drink, and watch the children make fools of themselves. Fai would talk nonstop as always and Kurogane would grunt every once and awhile just to show he was listening.

The mage never really talked about anything interesting. He kept his conversations light and simple, and talked about things that were more than obvious. Like about the mystery oni and how they had to find Sakura's feather. Occasionally the conversations would go more in depth but as soon as they became too serious he would turn it in another direction. It puzzled the ninja why he did this. Frustrated him, even. But what was even more confusing was when he had started noticing all these things.

When had he started paying the mage so much attention? Why was he finding every single little thing about him so interesting and try to find their deeper meaning? Not everything the mage did was done with some secret purpose. He knew that. But nonetheless he would always pay close attention. The ninja would find himself staring at the elusive blonde for minutes on end, trying to decode the difficult puzzle that he created. Staring at him much like he was now.

Kurogane blinked a few times to refocus his gaze. His was happy to see that the mage hadn't yet turned around from the couch. He could only imagine the teasing that would ensue had Fai caught him staring into space. Again. He wasn't in the mood for another round of "Kuro-myu the space cadet". He was about to lift the bottle for another drink when he realized it was completely empty. He gave an irritated sigh before setting the bottle aside.

"Kuro-pon shouldn't drink so much," a voice chimed, "it will make him sick."

Kurogane looked up to see Fai making his way over to him, a kind smile on his face. Not one of his fake smiles but a true, genuine one. He didn't miss the fact that he was also limping. The man sat down next to him with a blissful sigh, stretching his arms high above his head. The site reminded him of a cat getting ready to lay in the sun. Kurogane's gaze drifted down to his ankle. Fai must have noticed his penetrating stare for he casually brought his leg up to hold against his chest.

"Kuro-rin's been awfully quiet tonight," he continued to chirp.

Kurogane let out a sigh. "Can't sleep," he answered, trying to keep the irritation from seeping into his voice.

Fai smiled. "I have something that can help you!" Kurogane gazed at the blonde skeptically. Despite his hard expression, the mage pushed himself of the floor and skipped into the kitchen. Kurogane could hear the glasses clanging together as Fai clumsily moved about the room. Moments later the blonde reappeared, balancing a tray with two glasses and a flask in his hands. He set the items on the table and motioned for the warrior to come over. With a sigh, Kurogane grabbed the empty bottle of liquor and got up from his position on the floor. Why he decided to humor the mage, he didn't know.

He made his way over to the table and sat down, the blonde already pouring the contents of the flask into two separate glasses. Kurogane raised an eyebrow. A sweet aroma that smelled like flowers filled the room as the contents were poured. The color of the liquid itself was a rich, deep, golden brown. When Kurogane looked up the mage was smiling at him cheerfully. "It's a drink from my native country," he explained, "It is said to induce sleep and give the drinker sweet dreams." Fai sat down and took a sip of the liquid, smacking his lips afterward. "It's good!" he exclaimed.

Kurigane was still skeptical. He titled his glass towards him and gazed down at the contents. "Here it goes…" He lifted the glass and took a long drink. To his surprise, it actually, tasted… good.

"There's liquor in it too, Kuro-tan, so I know you'll like it," the mage purred.

So that's what it is, Kurogane thought. He knew he had tasted some sort of alcohol in it. "So? How is it?" the mage asked.

"It's good," he admitted gruffly. He lifted the glass and took another drink. Fai was happy with his answer. He rested his chin in his hands, a smile still plastered on his face. Despite the lateness of the hour he was wide awake. Even if he touched his drink, the mysterious liquid would do no good to rest his unease. Not tonight. He watched as Kurogane as he downed the rest of his glass. The ninja seemed oddly content tonight, which was different from his usual angry aura. He wondered why.

"What is this stuff, exactly?" Kurogane asked once he had finished.

Fai smiled cheerfully. "It's a special blend of ingredients from my homeland. I used to drink it all the time. It's woven with several spells to help you sleep."

"Ah."

Kurogane's answer was no surprise to him. The ninja wasn't one to trust his cooking on a normal basis. He didn't know why, though; it wasn't like he was bad at it. For a while now he and Sakura have been cooking for the Cat's Eye, the café they opened in Outo. It took a lot of prodding to get Kurogane to even try their cooking. The only reason why he assumed tonight was any different was because Kuro-tan was drunk. He wondered lazily why the ninja was always so stubborn. Something in his past must have happened to have made him so hard.

When Fai brought himself from his thoughts Kurogane was fast asleep on the table. He smiled quietly to himself. The ninja looked so calm when he slept. It seemed to be the only time when he completely let his guard down. He knew for a fact that that wasn't always so. He used to be so angry when he slept. Like he was prepared to wake up and defend his comrades if need be. It surprised him sometimes how much Kurogane was changing. The children had taught him how to love and be a caring individual. A true ninja. Fai bent down and swiftly kissed his partner's head.

"Sleep well, Kuro-tan," he whispered.

End