Disclaimer: TRC isn't mine. I'm not that telented.

Warning: Spoilers for up to volume 22 of the Tsubasa Resservoir Chronicles manga and the Tsubasa Shunraiki OVA. You've been warned.

A young woman stands to leave the room, smiling ever so slightly at the two friends in front of her. She turns when she reaches the door.

"I'm going to leave you two alone now," she tells them softly. They nod in response, and she leaves.

The men lock eyes for a full minute. Neither of them so much as blink during that time. Red and blue link and unspoken words flow between the two. The air fills with these words, and weighs on the grown men.

Finally, the man with the black hair and red eyes breaks the contact, turning his head to the right. The blond man does not shift his blue eye from the other yet.

"So you finally figured it out, did you?" the red eyed man speaks with an uncharacteristic softness. The other man looks down at the ground for a moment, not saying a word.

"Yes."

The word is barely audible, but the black haired man catches it all the same. He glances over at the other man for an instant, before retuning his gaze to the wall.

"Took you long enough."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. It was my decision. Whether or not you'd told me to do it wouldn't have changed my choice."

The man with black hair closes his eyes, and his right arm unconsciously lifts, moving his hand over the space where his left arm used to be. The blond man's gaze shifts to that spot for a moment, before he catches himself, and lowers his head once again.

"This is at least the second time you've done this. You've sacrificed a lot to save my life."

The blond man's own hand ghosts over the eye patch covering the empty socket that had once been his left eye. The other looks at him briefly, his eyes flickering to the same spot as the blonde's hand.

"Why did you do all this just for me?"

"I already told you. When I want you to die, I'll kill you myself."

"That doesn't answer my question, Kurogane."

"That's because you already know the answer, Fai."

AN: Yes, I am trying to hint at KuroFai here, but it's really up for interpretation. Set right after the whole reunion or whatever between Fai and Kurogane in Nihon, after Fai punches Kuro-sama, and is like: "Now we're even," and whatnot. It was written a while ago, but I only just got around to posting it.