A/N: Hey everyone Nyx here to welcome you all to my first entry to FF. net . While it's not the first thing I've ever written, it is the first fanfic so I ask for kindness and helpful comments in reviews. This fic was a request from a good friend of mine (see I did it so be happy!) so if you like it you can thank her for it. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I own nothing and no one. Card Captor Characters do not belong to me.
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Ch 1. Another Day
Snow drifted through the open window in gentle icy sheets and blanketed the floors. It was cold, very cold but she was burning. She clawed at her skin as the fire blazed beneath the surface. She couldn't move, couldn't breath.
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Sakura Kinomoto fell out of bed with a thud. She opened her eyes slowly and looked around, trying to comprehend her surroundings. It took her a moment – then two- eventually she became aware that she was in her room. She sat up and glanced around, now where was that alarm clock? Panning the room, her eyes locked with the glowing red numbers. 4:30 am. … … What!? A scream of frustration shook the walls as a very angry brunette launched the clock through the open window. The machine turned and mocked her one last time before falling three stories to the ground below. A moment of silence preceded a satisfying crunch; more silence. Sakura smiled in satisfaction, and was about to flop back down onto her bed before a small voice broke the calm.
"Ne Sakura, if you keep going through clocks like that we'll be broke."
Sakura turned to face the tiny yellow head that poked out from her laundry basket. She was quiet for a moment and studied the grumpy little face of her partner as he watched her intently.
"It has nothing to do with we, you're just worried I'll cut back on your sweets." She huffed before turning her back on him and going to the dresser.
She was up now and work was in three hours, there was no point in going back to sleep. Sitting down in the chair, she looked into the mirror on her dresser and took in her appearance. Her short brown hair was frumpy and tangled, and she'd have bags under her eyes in the morning, she could see them coming. Her head fell forward against the desk, and another sigh left her. These nightmares came and went, but they were becoming more and more frequent lately.
It was always the same: she was in her house, there was snow and blood everywhere. Then the pain would start. That searing fire that made her tear at herself in hopes of alleviating some of the pressure, it never worked. She would thrash and thrash until she saw it, the body. A mangled corpse in a heap of blood and snow a few feet away, and she could never see who it was. The one time she had managed to get close enough, the dream had ended. No matter what she did, the dream would play out the same way. Once it started, she lost all control and could only watch it happen. She hated that dream.
A small weight settled on her shoulder and brushed against her cheek. In the mirror, Sakura could see the sad eyes of her companion boring into her own. She could make out the faintest shimmer around his eyes in the moonlight. Was he crying?
"Sakura," he said gravely. "To murder an innocent clock is one thing, but to threaten my sweets is just too cruel."
If she wasn't so tired, she would have laughed. What a dramatic little bear thing he was, and she never could tell if he was serious or not. "Cruel huh, to you or the sweets?"
"Both! What good is a sweet that cannot be eaten, and even worse, how can I possibly function without them? It's like taking my blood away!"
At the word blood Sakura's mind was invaded by images from her nightmare, causing her to shiver involuntarily. She put her head back down, hoping that it went unnoticed. The small paws on her head told her she had no such luck. She didn't need to see him. She could imagine the little black eyes glinting with true worry in the moonlight as he studied her. It hadn't been the first time.
"Was it the same dream again?" He asked quietly as he stroked her hair.
"It isn't a dream Kero it's a nightmare, but yes it was the same."
He moved to rest all of his weight against her head, and she felt a sigh rake through his body.
"I'm sorry Sakura, dreams are things I cannot protect you from."
"It isn't your job to protect me,"
"Yes it is- ouch!" Kero held his head where she had flicked it. Glaring at her silently.
"Don't interrupt. It isn't your job to protect me from dreams, Kero. They can't actually hurt me anyway."
"Sometimes dreams hurt us more than we know, and I don't like seeing you hurt Sakura; it happens too much already. I just wish there was more I could do."
Sitting back up, Sakura plucked him from her shoulder and held him to her. Kero could whine, but he was such a faithful partner. She made a mental note to buy him some candy in the morning. "You're here when I wake up, and that's more than enough for me."
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Three hours later Sakura found herself in a coffee shop not too far from her apartment, staring at a manila folder that she'd received at headquarters yesterday. She wasn't afraid to open it; she'd spent the last few years of her life doing jobs like this. Fear was not the problem, the problem was that she had been awake for four hours now and was in desperate need of a little caffeine. As if on cue, the waitress came with a large mug of black coffee and a bagel. It took all of Sakura's patience to wait as the girl placed everything on the table before she scooped up the mug and took a long sip. "Oooooooh yeaaaaah, that's the stuff." She mumbled contently. Feeling the warmth slip into her slowly, Sakura turned her attention back to the folder and flipped it open. The orders were simple: Some of her peers had been tracking a collection of dark energy that had lead back to a construction sight near her location. She had to enter the sight and find the source. Fine, she could handle that. It didn't explain why she had to do this so freaking early, but she would do it nonetheless. She placed the folder back into the messenger bag from whence it came, along with the bagel and prepared for the job with slow sips of coffee while listening to the inconspicuous munching of Kero having his breakfast.
Soon enough (or maybe too soon in Sakura's opinion, Kero had way too much energy) it was time to get going, and the pair set out for work. They found the place easily enough. The construction sight seemed to be the only building on the street that people had touched in years. The entire area seemed to be completely abandoned.
"Hey!" Well maybe not completely. Sakura turned around to see a greasy looking man standing behind her. He eyed her up and down before grinning like a sleazy fool. Gross.
"You lost girlie? This ain't a place for little chickies like you, ya might get hurt."
Awww, and he was cliché too? How disgusting. Sakura was honestly beginning to think that if she had a nickel for every time she'd heard some thug say that, she wouldn't need her job. Choosing to ignore the tall ball of dirt at her back, Sakura moved forward and headed for the entrance of the sight. Her target was somewhere inside, not here. Thug No. 1 was not pleased with this idea and began run after her.
"You deaf or somethin? Don't ignore me bitch!" He yelled in fury. He reached out to yank her hair, and was about to laugh triumphantly when he realized he'd never made contact. What the hell? Taking another swipe at her, he watched in fear and amazement as his hand passed right through her. Fear shook him to the core, and the man stopped in his tracks, staring at his hand. He looked up just in time to see the girl disappear into the half-made building before him, never looking back once. Was it…a ghost? The thug waited in silence but received no answer.
"I gotta stop drinkin' in the mornin."
Inside the construction sight, Sakura laughed quietly to herself. She loved doing things like that. The reaction was always the same and it never failed to amuse her. A loud snapping sound from above cut her mirth short. Sakura looked up to see a dark fog running along the ceiling. She felt a small movement from her bag before seeing her partner float up next to her with half of a bagel in his paws.
"Well well, this must be the place." He commented offhandedly before taking another bite. Sakura rolled her eyes.
"Gee, ya think? Where is it coming from?"
"Why are you asking me?"
"You're the one who's supposed to know, that's your job remember, so where is it?"
"Hey I do other things, I don't see you sprouting wings any time soon! You think it's easy transforming into a huge animal?"
"Kero that is not the point, just do as you're told and find the target."
"No. Not until you admit that I'm more than some little specter detector."
"Do you have any idea how long it's going to take to search this place? It could get away!" Sakura all but screeched.
"Calm down Sakura," Kero said with cheeky smile. "I was only kidding." His partner shot him a look telling just how funny she found it. Kero sighed in defeat at her sense of humor and closed his eyes. Though she couldn't see it, Sakura felt his aura reaching out into the building and counted down in her mind as she watched him. 5…4…3…2…
"Got it!" Kero announced with a dramatic pose before flying off into the darkness. Sakura smirked to herself as she followed him, so far this mission had proven to be very predictable. Some people might find that to be a drag, but it was something she rarely got and she savored it.
Kero led her to the back of the building and up nine flights of stairs before they finally reached the roof, or rather what there was of it. The black fog swirled across the support beams in thick torrents, looking very much like a coiled snake. The only clear spot was a large circle in the center of the room, and in that circle sat a very upset young man. From her spot at the stairwell, Sakura looked him over and took in his state. His clothes were ripped, showing red welts that had clearly been self-inflicted and he was rocking slowly, chanting as he swayed. This wasn't a good sign, he was a mess and definitely too far-gone if he'd already started hurting himself. Even with that in mind she had to ask, just in case. Her voice came out softly as she spoke.
"Kero, can we save him?" Sakura didn't know why she asked, she knew the truth. Still, she couldn't help but try, even if it was in vain.
"Look at him Sakura. You know he's beyond our help, they always are. Once the Madness takes over all we can do is make sure they don't hurt others, nothing more."
Sakura nodded, he was right. Taking a deep breath, she pulled her bag off her shoulder and pulled out her small bird-like wand. Enough talk, it was time to act. Reciting the incantation she knew by heart, Sakura watched as the small toy grew and stretched itself into her well-used weapon of choice: her scythe. This was her duty; this was why she had joined C.L.O.W. Grabbing the long pink staff, she pointed its' blade menacingly at her target.
"Kenta Minata, you have been corrupted by Madness. For your own good and the good of everyone around you, I must eliminate you. Rest In Peace."
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A/N: Like the idea but have no clue what's happening? Want to get some answers? Want me to update? Then Review! Review! Review! As far as I'm concerned, this chapter is a trial run and I need your input to know if it's worth it to keep going!
