Darker than Ebony.
Prologue.
By mikim**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**
A small note first:
Touchan, Otousan: variations of the same word: father.
Kaachan, Okaasan: variations of the same word: mother.
Standard disclaimers apply: all belongs to Clamp, except Rei, who is mine.
Rated: R-don't say you haven't been warned.
Period: after the CCS acts, therefore HUGE SPOILERS. You have been warned.
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The garden was secretive and attractive with trees and bushes which gently moved in the light evening breeze. The man was reading, lying on his side, on a wide white wool blanket, his head supported by his elbow, the book in his other hand. He had silver hair and round glasses which reflected the blazing red sun. Playing next to him was a toddler, no more than two years and a half, happily gurgling with some of his soft toys scattered around him.
Regularly, the man would glanced up from his book to make sure the child was within his reach. Rei, the child, was a real bundle of joy, with his dark hair and fair skin. Always laughing, his dark eyes sparkling with wonder, his chubby cheeks always pink from laughter. His white shirt was tainted with a huge chocolate mark on the front and his white socks had been knocked off a long time ago and were resting somewhere in the house. Surprisingly enough the yellow shorts were untouched by chocolate. The small legs were covered here and there of bruises, as Rei couldn't stay in place more than 5 minutes. He was always running around, trying to climb up trees or tables.
The day had been hot and heavy, therefore, man and boy had fled to the sanctuary of the trees where it was much more cooler. Even now, as the sun was about to kiss the day good night, the air was still hot and a little bothersome. The summer was at his full height and the man could hear, from the neighborhood children playing with fireworks, laughing, running after each other. How could little ones have so much energy was a constant wonder to him. Sighing, the man looked up from his book to take a look at the boy, to find himself noise to noise with the little troublemaker.
Yukito jumped in surprise, seeing his little charge so close to him, without him noticing sooner. Knowing that he had surprised the bigger man, the boy's face cracked with a mischievous smile and cupping with his small hands the other's face, he brought his forehead against his guardian's one.
"Boom!" The boy giggled as his and Yukito's foreheads met. Yukito grimaced and rolled his eyes at the boy, eliciting more laughter. It was a game he had learned the day before with the other occupant of the house: knocking foreheads together. Yukito sat up and rubbed his forehead lightly. He would get Touya later for teaching Rei that trick.
A light feminine giggle caught his attention and Yukito looked behind him to find a slender woman, with long black hair, her hand over her cherry lips, stifling with difficulty her laughter in the doorframe, leading the living-room to the garden. Behind her was a tall man, with the same black hair that the woman and he too had difficulty to restrain his laughter. Touya took off his jacket, and loosening his tie, he stepped out in the garden, his dark hair ruffled by the light breeze. Yukito watched his companion coming closer with a scowl on his face but Touya paid his no attention since the small boy was running towards him as fast as his little legs could carry him, his little arms extended, his laughter raising in the night.
"Papa! Papa! Papa!" He yelled with delight and Touya caught him by his middle section, raising him high in the air, eliciting happy laughter from the small one. The woman smiled at the display of energy and too walked in the garden. Yukito stood up and went to greet her, a happy smile on his lips.
"Evening, Tomoyo-chan." Yukito said happily as she walked closer to him. She was dressed in a white summer dress and inwardly, Yukito smiled. She really looked younger than 28 years. She looked no more than 25. Her slender figure compared to the heavy mass of her hair seemed to make her look more frail, almost fragile, like a porcelain doll, right out of her box. Securing the strap of her purse on her shoulder, Tomoyo smiled in response, watching over his shoulder Touya spinning with Rei, faster and faster.
"Good evening, Yukito-san." She answered with her light voice. "Did he behave himself?" She wondered and Yukito shook his head: she always asked the same questions.
Yukito's smile grow fonder and he turned to watch Touya and Rei play as he answered her. "Like an angel."
"I hope he wasn't too much of a bother…" Tomoyo said, looking at Yukito, her purple eyes turning darker with light worry and remorse.
But Yukito waved her worries away, waving his right hand quickly, his left coming to rest on his hip. "Nonsense, Tomoyo-chan."
Tomoyo laughed lightly and turned grateful eyes on him. Yukito was always surprised when her eyes would lit up like they just did: suddenly turning so clear that they looked almost blue. "Thank you, Yukito-san."
Yukito smiled at her, turning to face her. "Nonsense again, Tomoyo-chan." He said, waving his finger under her nose, eliciting laughter again. From the corner of his left eye, he saw Touya, Rei sitting on his shoulders coming closer to them. "Now, here is the big boy." Yukito said, turning to face the grinning pair.
Tomoyo extended her arms to the small boy and as he did the same, obviously yearning to be in her arms, she called him softly. "Rei-chan."
"Kaachan!" He answered, wiggling to get down the shoulders to his mother's arms.
Touya placed him in her arms and Tomoyo flashed him a smile. "Thanks, Touya-kun."
"Hum." Touya nodded and Yukito shook his head at his eloquence. Then, the four of them, while Rei was talking a mile a minute, telling his mother how his day had been, they reached the entrance door of Yukito and Touya's house. There, patiently, Tomoyo let Rei to put his shoes on by himself, helping him with her smiles and gathering him in her arms, they waved their goodbyes. Touya waved a little and dropped his hand, watching the pair, but unfortunately for him, Rei wasn't far enough not to notice. And Rei seeing that his papa had stopped waving, called back, accusing him a little. "Papa Touya!" He called, pointing at him like he was a criminal.
Touya sighed and thought that that boy was too stubborn for his own good sometimes. "Yes, yes, Rei-chan." And Touya had to resume his waving.
"Be careful on the way home!" Yukito called after them, smiling. Every evenings, when Tomoyo would pick him up, Rei would make him sure his Papa Touya would be in the doorway, waving at him, otherwise he would refuse to move, till Touya did as he wished. And Touya always gave up in the end, as it was something he had taught himself to Rei: once he had told Rei he always had to say goodbye whenever he left someone, but then, Touya would have never thought Rei would bring it so far.
Rei answered, yelling happily, waving powerfully back. "Yes!"
Placing his hands around his mouth, so that his voice would reach him, Yukito called a last time. "See you tomorrow, Rei-chan!"
"Bye, Yuki-Touchan!" And the two disappeared behind the corner.
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The shrill bounced on the walls of the old mansion, shook the old porcelains and windows, scared the birds away and echoed in the grand corridors to the infinite. "Eriol-sama!"
Somewhere, deep in the labyrinth called Reed Manor, hidden behind the books, a dark-haired man raised his head while the cat-like creature on his head wondered aloud. "Why is the freak yelling so early in the morning?"
Eriol let a smile cross his lips at Spinel's grunting tone: over the years, his moon guardian sounded more and more like an old man, grunting and grumpy. But, then, only Ruby Moon was able to wipe that façade away, with a flick of her pink hair and a bubbly laughter of her own.
"Eriol-sama!!!!" The voice said a second time and Eriol blinked.
"Ah. It's coming closer." He said and Spinel grumpily rumbled something that Eriol couldn't understand.
"Eriol-sama!!!!!!!!" The excited yell was accompanied by sound of mad running.
Eriol felt Spinel stretch on his head, move a little, then shifting his weight to his front paws, the creature jumped, taking its flight from his master's head to the desk. "Definitely." Spinel answered dreadfully, as he landed softly on Eriol's desk, next to the paper he had been reading.
Eriol smiled, inwardly knowing Spinel was as curious as he was to know what was happening to their hyper companion. Just like he knew the deep bond these two shared, more a sister-brother bond than simple guardians of the same person. He watched his small companion grumble and walk in small circles on his desk, as if he was looking for a place to settle, but then, the door burst open and Ruby Moon, in her human form, yelled happily, jumping at her master's neck, sitting almost on his lap. "Eriol-sama!!!!!!!!!!!!" She said, her smile huge and exuberant. "Mail is here!!!!" His ear almost blew up by her new scream, Eriol smiled wryly and removed her from his lap, to let her sit on the left arm of his chair.
"Mail? That's all?" Indignant, Spinel sat up and glared from the desk.
Eriol pried Nakuru's vice-like arms off his neck and took from her offered hand the white letter, hushing Spinel in a smooth voice. "Spinel, be nice." He admonished gently, an evil glint in his electric blue eyes: Spinel hated whenever he took that tone to use on him.
Nakuru nodded vigorously, her hair flying over Eriol's face. "Yes, Suppi-chan, be nice." She said, reaching for the smaller guardian, who evaded her by flying quickly to his master's shoulder frail security.
"Who's Suppi?" He bit back quickly while Eriol turned the letter to see who had sent him this letter, as if the outside world, namely Spinel and Nakuru daily fight, didn't touch him or happened right next to him.
"Ah," Eriol exclaimed as he read the name, in an excited Japanese handwriting. "It's from Sakura-chan." Eriol smiled fondly, remembering the period he had spent next to his almost-daughter. Testing her had been fun: creating small traps, watching her in her cute outfits, running around the town, late at night, avoiding flying stuffed sheep and giant bears.
Thinking it back, his time in Tomoeda had been the first time he had truly felt alive, as he couldn't find, as he didn't know beforehand how Sakura would react and answer to his magic, if she had had the potential to, if she had had the courage to. But Sakura had proved herself more than worthy to be the next master of the cards: she had proved to be a caring master, loved by her cards, considering them as friends rather than means.
Eriol smiled as the letter rested, closed, in his hands, reminiscing. After separating his powers in half, after leaving Tomoeda, his life had seemed to be so dull and cold. At first, it had been fun, as if he had been rediscovering the world all over again, like he had been wandering in the dark for years and somebody had suddenly turned the switch on. But, then, there had been Kaho. Shaking his head, Eriol refused to let himself go down that road again, after all, it was part of his life and life was never all white or all dark: it was gray, this being the only lesson he had taken from Kaho. A hard-won lesson.
A rude shaking jerked him back to the present time, as Nakuru pulling on his arm, screamed. "Ah!! Open it! Open it! Eriol-sama!"
"Yes, yes." He smiled at her excitement and torn the letter open.
As he eyes scanned the letter quickly, Nakuru couldn't help but ask him several times. "So? So? So?" She eagerly waited for the news of Tomoeda.
"Hum, she and Xiaolang are doing just fine." Eriol said, seriously, teasing her.
"Mou! Eriol-sama!" Nakuru whined. She had been waiting for news of any incoming babies from the card mistress for years, now, but up until now, still no luck. "Quick! Quick!" She shook his arm again and Eriol gave up, smiling at her.
"She's inviting us for their 10th anniversary." He announced and Nakuru jumped from her seat and danced around his chair.
"Yeah! Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" She screamed, hands high in the air, whirling on herself. "Say, say, say, Eriol-sama, let's go!" She said, as she turned to him, her eyes glassy and hopeful.
Eriol said nothing but stared. Then, somewhere, deep in his mind, something clicked and Eriol turned an annoyed eye to his oh so sudden quiet other guardian, who usually didn't miss an occasion to laugh at the other. Spinel seemed to shrink three sizes under his master unblinking eye and finally the cat-like creature confessed his crime. "Alright, I added three sugar spoons in her tea this morning…" Spinel flew to the desk but Eriol's unnerving gaze seemed to grow stronger and Spinel sighed heavily. "Five."
Eriol nodded to Spinel once and turned back to Nakuru, who had clasped her hands together, looking as if the world had stopped turning and Eriol sighed. "It's been a while…" He said, trying to remember when was the last time they had seen each other in person. "Since their wedding actually." He suddenly realized in surprise. It had been so long since he had last seen his other half, his almost-sons and daughter. "Alright, Ruby Moon, we're going." Eriol finished with a smile, standing up.
Nakuru's reaction didn't wait long and Eriol and Spinel followed her jumping form all other the room with their amused eyes for one, malicious ones for the other. "Yeah!! Yeah!! Yeah!!" She screamed, making some dancing figures.
"Stop dancing, moron." Spinel told her, as she knocked into a table, making what was on top of it fall on the ground. "I can't wait for the hang-over." He mumbled to himself, as he followed the other guardian wild dance. But, then he missed Eriol's small smirk.
Eriol turned to his small guardian. "Spinel, I'll start packing, we are supposed to be in Tomoeda in three days, so could you please book some tickets for us?" He asked him.
Spinel looked up to his master and nodded, flying to the computer to turn the internet connection on. "For tonight?" He asked as he launch the connection.
Eriol headed to the door and nodded to Spinel. "Or tomorrow morning." He proposed.
"Yes, Eriol-sama." Spinel said, already surfing on the net.
As his hand reached the doorknob, Nakuru jumped on his back, her arms around his neck. "And me? And me? And me, Eriol-sama? What should I do?" She asked quickly, panting from all her jumping and wild dancing.
Coughing a little, as Nakuru almost managed to strangle him for good, Eriol removed her arms once more and let a smirk cross his lips. "Help Spinel." He ordered her slyly, making sure that his voice reached Spinel's ears.
"Eriol-sama!" The latter squealed in protestation and outrage.
Eriol swung the door open and moved outside, smiling broadly to Spinel as Nakuru danced her way to the computer. "You made her drunk, you deal with it."
"Eriol-sama!!" Spinel cried in fear as Nakuru gathered him in her hands, singing on the top of her lungs.
"Let's go, Suppi-chan! Let's go!" Eriol closed the door behind him and went upstairs, laughing lightly.
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Gniark, gniark, are you wondering what the hell is going on? Are you asking yourself who the hell could be Rei? And from where did he suddenly pop out? And what happened to Kaho and Eriol? Are you? Are you?
Good!
Gniark, gniark.
mikim