He was unaware of how long he sat there, curled up around himself, staring into the void before him. There was no noise but his own breathing. And then, there were footsteps. Light footsteps. Slow footsteps. They sounded like they were approaching him. He sat up and looked around, and then he saw it.

Standing before him was a perfect, mirror image of himself, only instead of a full grown adult, he was a child. Naturally tousled blonde hair, clear blue eyes. The coat he wore was white and blue, lined with fur and marked with soft black swirls. The child stared at him as he righted himself, crouching on his knees before the young boy.

"Yuui..." the child said quietly. The voice sent shivers down his spine. It was soft and gentle and sweet, but cold and frightening. Before him stood his brother, untouched by the ravages of time. The twin he had lost. The twin he had watched fall to his death before his very eyes. He couldn't bring himself to speak.

"How do you like it, Yuui? How do you like what I've made for you? You took everything away from me, Yuui," the child, Fay, said to him, "you were selfish and cruel. It's because of you that I died. You chose to save yourself. I thought you loved me."

"No... you don't understand, Fay..." Yuui replied.

"I understand perfectly, Yuui. Your life meant more to you than mine. So now I've taken away everything you have. I've made you just like me." Fay hissed.

"I do love you," he said desperately, "You're my brother. My twin. You meant more to me than anything."

"Then why did you kill me, Yuui? Why did you wish yourself out and not me?" Fay demanded.

"Fay... Fay, that was a lie. I would never do that... I swear, I would never put myself above you." Yuui said quietly, "That man... Fei Wong Reed... he twisted my memory, and yours... I would never do such a thing. You know that, Fay. I'm your twin."

"Prove it, Yuui. Prove that you didn't kill me!" Fay challenged.

With the smallest of spells, Fay presented the truth, unclouded by the malevolent magic of Fei Wong Reed. The true story. The real reason that everything had happened, and why Fay was dead while Yuui lived. Fay stared at his brother, as though his mind had been freed from a spell of it's own. Tears welled up in his childish eyes, and his little hands reached up to wipe them away.

"Yuui..." he whispered, "Yuui."

Yuui smiled and gently stroked the child's hair, "It's okay, Fay. Where are my friends? Can you... can you please give them back to me?

"They're okay. I didn't hurt them." Fay told him.

"I know, Fay. I know. I just want them back. They mean so much to me..." Yuui said gently.

"You can have them back, Yuui. I'm sorry." Fay said, tearful eyes looking at his brother.

Yuui drew the child into his arms and held him tight. Fay shimmered as he fell weakly against his brother's shoulder, small arms encircling his thin torso. Slowly he became a wisp of cloud, blowing away on an invisible, intangible wind, and Yuui was left clutching a feather. One of the princess's feathers. He smiled down at it gently. This was how Fay's soul had gained it's power. The feather...

"It's alright, Fay. You can rest now."

Slowly, the world came into focus around him. The village became nothing more than a clearing, the houses fading with the cloud that was Fay's soul. Kurogane materialized first, looking as confused as he had when he vanished. Fay stood, cradling the feather ever so gently against his breast. The ninja didn't ask any questions as Syaoran and Sakura, then finally Mokona, all materialized as well.

"A feather?" Syaoran asked, blinking, "Where did you find that, Fay-san?"

Fay smiled faintly. It seemed that no one except Kurogane had any idea of what had happened to them, and Kurogane was keeping quiet.

"It doesn't matter." Fay replied, standing and handing the feather to Sakura. "This is yours, my princess. Be gentle with it... it once held something very special."

She took it, looking it over. It looked no different than any of her other feathers, but before she could ask Fay any questions, he walked away through the thick forest. Kurogane followed him.

"How did you get us back?" he asked the magician.

Fay said nothing, his back to the ninja as silent tears slid down his face.

"You can rest now, Fay." he repeated under his breath. And on the salty breeze that blew in from the ocean, there was a voice. Sweet and childish, full of happiness, relief, and apology. Gently, it whispered in his ear.

"Thank you, Yuui. I'm sorry."