A/N: Uhhh. Hi. ^_^; This is [almost] a rewrite of The Wolc Cards, an incomplete CCS fic of mine I might take off soon, if I haven't already. The only difference is that I've finished making up the whole set of 'new' cards, and I've renamed it with a slight alteration in the main storyline, so I thought it deserved a new and (hopefully) better start. *winces at the seeming inaneness of the original*
Disclaimer: I'm gonna do it once and get it over with. I do not own CardCaptor Sakura, but I do claim partial rights to the new set of cards. ^_^ Note that a part of it was contributed by readers of The Wolc Cards, so I'll give the credit where it's due. If you just KNOW you made so-and-so card but wasn't given credit, please tell me, m'kay?
Some Things to Take Note of:
~This fic is based partially on the anime, partially on the manga, since my knowledge of both tend to blend together. I haven't watched the anime since I borrowed my friend's Japanese (Chinese subbed) version of the series and realized how badly it was dubbed. -.-
~I'm most likely going to get the seasons' time frames and stuff wrong since I live in a place with only sun and rain, so can some kind soul please enlighten me on this? ^_^ Also, I'll probably find stuff like the school holiday's and stuff useful, 'cuz I think it's different over here, too. ^^;;
~In-plot note: Takes place after Eriol's 'judgment day' (or rather, night) fuss; Syaoran hasn't left, nor confessed (More fun to write ^-^).
~Another in-plot note: Eriol is still residing in Tomoeda, with his um……guardians. ^^;; Nearly all his powers are intact; unlike in the manga where he gives half of his magical powers to Fujitaka (Clow's 'other half'), here he only enabled him some magical sight. (Why? To see Nadeshiko, of course ^_^ Pardon me if the spelling's incorrect)
All right, now that the important things are taken care of, on with the story! ^_^
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Prologue: Of Books and Dust Bunnies!
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All was quiet in the small town of Tomoeda, Japan. Overhead, the canopy of stars twinkled kindly upon those who chanced to gaze upon them, bathing the land below in soft starlight; the crescent moon cruised leisurely through the velvet sky, like a paper boat gliding across the smooth surface of a tranquil pond. Crickets chirped from the long grass, a continuous undertone to the noises of the night; a lone owl hooted eerily from an unknown perch, while a light breeze brushed the tips of the grasses and the leaves with the gentleness of a lover's touch, adding a muted rustling to the subtle nocturnal symphony.
Underneath the floorboards of a certain ancient mansion, with a long, generally unknown history of magic, something quivered and settled again into it's constant shimmering. It had been radiating a subdued glow ever since the new Cards Mistress had performed the final transformations; now it hovered on a transformation, itself. The light pulsed softly, uncertainly for a few moments, before seemingly making up it's mind.
Gradually, the aura of light extended, until it's confines were suffused in a soft, silvery glow. Several seconds later, it flashed blindingly, then shot effortlessly through the wooden boards and into the sky above the mansion, changing nothing within the house except a conversion in the general cleanliness, towards the better end.
As it hovered in the sky, the glow around it illuminated the item of power. It was similarly built to the Book of Clow, except that it exuded a more feminine taste. It was bound in thin, fine silver, and the clasp that held it shut was of the same metal. The leather of the cover was a light blue-green, reminiscent of the boundless oceans, and it's inscription was artfully penned in a delicate silver. A magic circle, whose moon dominated, took up the middle of the front, with a winged, wolfish fox underneath it, loosely bound in silvery, braided silk; while a simple, yellow tinted winged sun, also freely bound in braided silk, guarded the back. And above the magic circle, in slender, flowing script; 'The Ying' was embossed.
The Book hovered and spun rapidly, seemingly searching for something; as it spun, it ascended rapidly into the dark sky, until it became a tiny speck, nearly invisible to anyone standing below. Suddenly, it came to a complete halt, then exploded into a myriad flurry of silver light, the shards of radiance diving helter-skelter to the earth.
As the last speck of light disappeared down beneath, a much-dimmed Book drifted for a moment longer, then transformed into a silver, blue-green streak of light, arrowing towards a building, which it melted into the roof of, and was seen no more.
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The half-reincarnation of the great sorcerer Clow Reed, always a light sleeper (he had to be; living in the same house as his so-called 'guardians' was always hazardous to one's health and home, unless he could wake up early enough to stop the trouble), shot awake at the featherlike touch of a familiar magic. Groping for his glasses, he snapped them on, blinked owlishly in the dark, then magicked the light on.
Waiting patiently, he was rewarded with a stronger burst of the magic……then blinked as the dust bunny he had been cultivating in the corner, between his closet and the wall, disappeared before his eyes, and everything else was suddenly squeaky clean. Turning a look of anguish at the heavens…….er, ceiling, he was extremely pleased when the ghost of an exasperated sigh brushed past his ear, and his dust bunny was restored in all its glory.
"Thanks," Eriol whispered under his breath, magically fussing with the dust bunny, reshaping it minutely. A phantom chuckle drifted past, then abruptly, the feeling of amusement ceased, and he was alone again.
The sorcerer sighed in relief; he had been carefully nurturing the bunny out of boredom, but now it had become something of an obsession ever since he had been able to get it to look vaguely like a bunny. Nakuru had nearly swept away his precious half-formed dust sculpture in a cleaning mania a few weeks back; he had woken up just in time to cast a protection sphere around his beloved dust bunny, saving it from utter destruction.
Eriol blinked rapidly and shook his head. What was becoming of him? The self-satisfied, smug, conceited, haughty, superior, arrogant, high-and-mighty…….(he ran out of synonyms) him was concerned over a dust bunny?
'I must be mellowing,' he thought, taking off his glasses. 'Can't be helped, I guess.' Putting out the light and lying down, he could help but think one thought before he turned his mind to sleep. 'My precioussss……'
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Well? Ya like? XD If you do, leave a review, hmm? ^_~ Rather short, but it IS a prologue…….With a Twist. XD Hopefully I can get chapter 1 up…….soon. .O The more the reviews, the faster I update! ^_~
Dawn the Espeon, signing off. ^_^