Author's Note: For the purposes of this fanfic, the events of the original CCS and YGO have happened, as has The Darkside of Dimensions. However, we are pretending that Clear Card doesn't exist. As for the Sailor Moon aspect, well, you'll see soon. ;)
Happy Reading!
The Power of Serenity
Chapter 1
A Fresh Start
Sakura set a box on the floor, start a new stack. She straightened up and rotated her shoulders, trying to knock out the stiffness.
"Do you want to take a break?" her father asked, setting a basket full of blankets on the couch. The orange plastic clashed with the forest green upholstery, but it didn't really matter that much. Mr. Kinomoto cracked his knuckles and turned to his daughter.
"Maybe a short one," she conceded. Her shoulders ached and she was breathing heavily. A drink of water wouldn't hurt either.
Mr. Kinomoto clapped her shoulder. "Let's go back to the car."
The two left the half-empty apartment, passing Toya and Yukito on the way out.
"What's wrong?" Toya asked.
"We are going to sit in the car for a minute. Let me know if you need help," their father responded.
"Okay."
Yukito clapped a hand on Sakura's shoulder. His eyes echoed a question that she'd been asking herself. How are you doing? Are you okay?
She offered a strained grin. She'd been having nightmares for the better part of the month. Well, nightmare. It was always the same, and played on repeat until she woke up moaning or screaming and soaked to the bone with sweat.
She was always sitting on the beach, beneath a colorful umbrella with Syaoran and Tomoyo. The sun warm on her neck, and her fingers laced with Syaoran's as they squinted against the sun. The shudder of Tomoyo's camera clicked steadily as she took pictures of the scenery. Suddenly, the tinkling sound of a music box1 echoed over the waves with an eerie melody. Sakura rose to investigate and her friends disappeared from the beach. Unperturbed, she walked toward the water, gliding easily through the waves. Her toes squelched through the wet sand.
Slowly, the water transformed into snow and she |waded through the drifts. White clouds whipped around her, though she felt neither the cold nor the wind, she just kept following the sound. Eventually, a dark shape appeared in the distance. As she drew near, she saw that it was a huge door built into the stone of a mountain. It had been carefully excavated, and the scientists were in the process of trying to open the door.
The leader of the expedition was a young woman who had wild black hair that couldn't be contained by her cap. Sakura watched as she cracked the door opened, and a sense of utter and complete dread ran down her spine.
"No!" she shouted to the woman, running through the snowdrifts, but she couldn't get any closer. "Stop!"
Unheard, Sakura watched the doors blast open, releasing a cloud of black spirits. They swarmed her, chanting with chaotic fervor, "Find the princess. Find the crystal. Kill the princess."
Sakura's heart skipped a beat. "Please. Don't!"
Once again, she was ignored as the spirits flew toward the woman. They surrounded her, slowly merging with her. Sakura watched with horror as the woman's hair turned a fiery red and her lips split with a dark cackle.
Before, she had always woken when she'd been swarmed, but this morning she woke with deranged laughter echoing in her ears and Kero hovering over her, concerned.
Sakura slapped her cheeks, attempting to focus on the conversation at hand.
I'm okay, she mouthed to Yukito, attempting to smile cheerfully.
She wondered if she should counsel with Yue about the dreams. She'd spoken with Kero at length, and he thought they were premonitions, but wasn't quite sure what to do about them.
She caught Yukito's eye again and tapped on her necklace, a sign they developed long ago to let him know that she needed to speak with his other half, and didn't want the Kinomoto men to worry. He nodded.
"Ready?" Mr. Kinomoto said, turning to his daughter.
She nodded and led the way down the stairs.
#
"Okay~" Usagi shouted to her mother as she rushed out the door. She was so late. Her teacher was definitely going to punish her if she arrived in the classroom if she arrived even a second after the bell rang.
She was so consumed by her thoughts that she didn't notice a young man in front of her. A resounding smack echoed through the air as she collided with his slender frame. She fell on the concrete and watched the man shoo a group of boys away from a little black cat.
He shushed and chittered at the kitty, and she snuggled into his arms gratefully. He sighed, relieved, and turned to Usagi.
"I'm sorry," he said, smiling softly. "Are you okay?" He held out a hand to help her up. The man had beautiful silver hair and calm blue eyes, which were nearly hidden behind his wire frames and million-watt smile.
Usagi felt the heat creep up her cheeks as she graciously grasped his hand and hoisted herself up.
"It's fine," she replied, trying to sound casual. Her eyes flitted to the cat, or more specifically, to the bandaids on the cat's forehead. "Poor kitty. Were those mean kids bullying you?"
Carefully, she peeled the bandages off while the young man held the cat securely in his arms. Usagi thought it was a miracle that neither one of them got scratched up. She wadded up the bandaids and stuck them in her pocket, she'd find a trash can later.
She gave the cat a rub on the head. "There you go," she murmured.
In the distance, the clocktower chimed eight times, each ring sending a jolt of panic down Usagi's spine. She waved goodbye to the young man and continued her morning run.
#
"Mew," Luna chirped. She cocked her head to the side. How strange.
"She seemed nice," the young man said, absently stroking her head. Luna couldn't help but purr.
Unfortunately, the boy worried her even more. He was radiating moon magic, which she didn't anticipate. She was here to find the princess of the Moon Kingdom, but what if the princess had become a boy in this life? That would be… interesting, Luna mused. However, she thought she picked up a little tidbit of moon magic from the girl too before she ran off.
How confusing.
Luna shook her head, a little sad that the man had stopped petting her once she did so.
"Mew."
The youth chuckled and resumed his calming strokes.
"Everything okay?" a deep voice rumbled.
The young man turned and Luna saw that the speaker was very tall and very thin, with a dark complexion and piercing eyes. She wasn't sure what to make of this one. Unlike the first man, who was very serene, this one radiated action.
"Toya," the young man replied, a smile lighting up his expression. "Everything's fine. I just rescued this cat from some boys."
"Hmm?" Toya looked at her, contemplative. Eventually, he reached out a hand and scratched her under the chin. "Do we have a cat now, Yuki?"
"I suppose we do," the silver-haired man replied.
"We should take her to the vet."
"How do you know it's a girl?"
Toya turned back to the apartment complex and glanced at the feline. "I just have a feeling. Now let's finish packing so we can go shopping for cat stuff."
#
That night, Sakura's dream was different, but no less… odd. She started off on the beach, fingers laced through Syaoran's. However, when the melody started to drift across the water, a voice echoed from inland.
"Come here," it said.
Sakura stood, releasing Syaoran, who looked at her with puzzled auburn eyes. She smiled tensely and walked away from the water. The sand gave way beneath her feet and transformed into grass. Before she knew it, she was in the middle of a forest, and standing before a great silver archway.
On the other side, a woman stood in a room of ivory and swirling colors. Her hair was forest green and her plum eyes sparkled against her dark complexion. She was a goddess of beauty and wisdom beckoning Sakura to come closer.
Sakura's feet crunched against the forest floor.
"Hello, Sakura," the woman said. "You may call me Pluto. I don't have time to explain, but I need your help."
Sakura nodded as the woman pushed a trading card into her hand. Pluto looked at her with great intensity.
"Listen carefully. Find the owner of this card. The spell to activate it is Moon Prism Power. The attack is Moon Tiara Action."
"How will I know the owner?" Sakura replied. She was struggling to stay focused.
Pluto frowned slightly. "You're waking up," she stated. Then she smiled and shook her head. "As to how you'll know her, you'll just know, I'm certain of it."
She kissed Sakura on her forehead, and Sakura sat up in bed. Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest, like she'd run a marathon in her sleep.
Kero flew over to her, little lion body hovering with a concerned air beside her head. "Another nightmare, kiddo?" he asked.
Sakura shook her head. "No, it was different this time, but it was… Well it was weird."
She reached up to comb her hand through her hair, and noticed that she was holding a card. Puzzled, she flipped it over to look at the front. It pictured a girl masked by sparkling bubbles and a large red, ribbon. Her only discernible feature was her eyes, which where big and bright blue.
"The Silver Princess," Kero mused. "Where'd that come from?"
#
Usagi stared at the paper in her hand, dejected. She'd been late, and Miss Haruna made her stand in the hallway holding two buckets of water until her arms felt like they were going to fall off. Plus her stomach was growling the entire time, and to make matters worse, as soon as she'd been allowed back in, the teacher had slapped this paper on her desk, a bright red thirty marring the upper right corner.
Usagi tried to swallow the lump in her throat. Her mother was going to kill her for sure. Naru nudged her shoulder.
"It's not so bad. There'll be other tests. You can make it up later," she said, attempting to cheer her friend.
"Actually," Umino interjected, straightening his spectacles, "Judging by Usagi's past performance and current work ethic, I doubt she'll get a good enough grade on the next test to really offset this one."
Usagi felt the tears well in her eyes as Naru pulled a book out of her bag and chucked it at their classmate. It hit him in the chest and he yelped.
"You don't have to be so mean about it," Naru scolded. She turned back to Usagi and clapped a hand on her shoulder. "I know! My mom is having a sale at her jewelry store this afternoon. Why don't you stop by and check it out?"
Usagi's spirits brightened rapidly. "Really? But… Awe." She draped herself over her knees dramatically. "I already spent my allowance, and jewelry is so expensive."
Naru chuckled. "You don't have to buy anything, silly. You can just look. Who knows, maybe Mom even has something on sale that even you can afford."
Usagi pursed her lips and stared at a bush on the other side of the courtyard. She didn't really want to go home straight after school and get grounded. But wouldn't it be better to get it over with sooner rather than later? She growled quietly.
"Okay!" she announced suddenly, startling her friends. "It sounds like fun. Let's go after class."
#
Kero grunted and wriggled in Sakura's purse. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" he asked.
Sakura shrugged and put an earbud in her ear. "I don't know, but I have to do something. I'm not going to find the owner of this card just by doing the same thing I've always done."
"Then why not wait for Tomoyo to go with you?"
"You're with me, aren't you?" she responded.
The plush crossed his little arms and pouted at the bottom of the bag. "Well… yeah. But Warrior King IV just came out and I was planning on playing with Spinny today."
Sakura scowled at him.
"Fine! I'll be helpful," he responding, throwing out his arms. "Where are we going anyway?"
Sakura readjusted the strap. "Dunno. Around?"
Kero recrossed his arms.
They walked on, eventually passing a small store full to the brim with ladies. They were crammed in like sardines, eyes glued to display cases full of glittering jewels and gemstones. A large banner stretched across the storefront declaring a HUGE SALE.
Sakura shivered. Something was wrong. She could feel the dark energy emanating from deep inside. She clutched her wand tightly. She suddenly felt woefully unprepared.
She turned on her heel, ready to head back to her brother's to speak with Yue and Kero, develop a plan or something, when a couple of girls walked past her. Sakura sucked in a surprised breath as the sheer force of moon magic hit her square in the face. The girl it was coating had really long blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Sakura fingered the card in her pocket. She looked almost exactly like the silhouette of the girl on the card.
The girl and her friend entered the store, and Sakura stood on the sidewalk, frozen.
Kero peeked his head out of the top of the bag to catch a glance of the blonde. "Kiddo? What's wrong?"
"I think… I think she's the owner."
"That girl?" Kero asked. He pointed at the girl, who was holding a necklace against her neck. "She seems a bit… airheaded."
Sakura walked into the store and leaned against the wall. She did her best to keep her eyes on the girl, but the throng made it difficult. She tapped her foot while her stomach churned. The evil magic was even worse inside the store, almost suffocating.
"If she is the owner, how do I give her the card and explain… What would I even explain? I don't even know what's going on."
"Let's consult Yue. That girl's magic is his realm of expertise, he may have some insight that we don't."
"But…" Sakura trailed.
"She'll be okay."
Sakura glanced at him. "I don't like this place."
"Sakura, we don't have a choice. Not unless we take her with us, and she'd never follow."
Suddenly, the girl frowned at her friend and put the necklace down. She perked up enough to wave goodbye to her friend, then trotted out the door. Sakura followed her, but ducked into an alley the second she got a chance. She pulled out her wand and released it.
"What are you doing?" Kero asked.
"I can't follow her all day, but we need to keep an eye on her. I was going to have Mirror keep an eye on her."
Kero nodded. "Sounds good."
#
"My lady," Rubeus greeted, kneeling before a granite throne. "I've sent one of the sisters to the city. She will retrieve the Millennium Silver Crystal shortly."
The queen ran a finger across the glass of her magic talisman, a crystal ball with swirling dark energy trapped within. "Good," she drawled, eyes never leaving her ball. "You may go."
The vassal saluted, then stood and marched from the room. As soon as he was safely out of sight, he slammed his fist against the wall, bruising his knuckles.
"Tsk tsk tsk, Rubeus," a lady of tall stature and long bright green hair mused, slinking down the hall. "Better control that fiery temper of yours."
"Esmeraude," Rubeus stated, running a hand through his auburn hair. "What do you want?"
Esmeraude smirked. "Absolutely nothing." She walked around him, flipping her hair over a bare shoulder and angling her head at her comrade as she passed by. "Although, you shouldn't embarrass Prince Demande with your attitude."
Rubeus gritted his teeth. If she weren't his superior he'd…
He sighed deeply.
"Yes, ma'am," he replied, shooting her a sidelong glance.
She frowned. "Don't call me ma'am. I'm far too young for that."
"I'll remember that, Esmeraude."
She nodded and continued on her way.
Rubeus waited for an extra moment, then slowly made his way to his quarters. He flopped in one of the velvet covered chairs and lit a fire. He might not like his job, but the digs were decent. He just had to make sure to get that blasted crystal so they could move on from Her Royal Highness.
End of Chapter 1.
Thank you for choosing to read this labor of love. To everyone joining us from The Power of Spirit (the first draft of this story), I'm sorry that it has taken so long to get to work, this extra long chapter is in honor of your patience.
The next chapter will be uploaded by May 1, 2019.
Questions, comments, and criticisms are welcome.
Happy Reading,
Rip