Discalimer: I don't own Rayearth. Clamp does. While I'd like to own Ferio -heck, I'd even settle for Ascot because he's so adorable- I know they belong to Fuu and -possibly- to Umi, who in turn belong to Clamp. I'm not making money off of this, which I have to admit is unfortunate. The extra dough would come in handy now that it's Christmas.

Rating: PG

Notes: No notes. Just fluffyness.



****



Fuu held the camera close as she hid behind the bushes. Pencil tucked behind one ear, and a pen hiding behind another, she waited for the perfect moment. The rabbit held in the gaze of her camera lens perked up the ears in a cute fashion, but she held her breath a moment longer. Today Fuu wasn't going for cute, she was going for detail. The rabbit only needed to come an inch or two closer. Fuu had the camera's zoom has high up as it could go. All she needed. . . .

BEEP! BEEP!

The watch on her wrist blared loudly and the rabbit vanished from sight. Fuu cursed her stupid Christmas gift. It had ruined her shot. None the less, she turned off the camera and shoved it back in her purse. Time to go back to work.

Sprinting from the park, she darted towards the flat and brown building, slipping back into her desk in no time at all. Fuu had her daily schedule timed perfectly. She flicked her computer backed on and leaned back in her chair. Pridefully, she reshined the brand new sign on her desk that read: Ms. F. Hououji, Reporter.

'Reporter,' she thought bitterly. 'I'm no news reporter.' Fuu pulled out one of the letters from the bag underneath her desk. She opened up the letter and started reading. 'I'm no reporter, I'm the response lady.'

'Dear Windy,' the letter read. Windy was Fuu's nickname in the help column.

'There's this girl that I really like. I mean, I really like her. I see her, and my heart starts beating so fast I look into her blue eyes and I start to blush. Pardon the confusing sentence. My brain mucks up when I think about her. Recently, I started refining my appearance trying to get her attention. You know, making sure I looked perfect for her whenever I passed her in the buildings. She hasn't noticed me. Worse, the few times I have tried to say something, it comes out in gibberish. How do I get her to take notice of me, or find the courage to ask her out? Sincerely,

Hopelessly Tongue-tied'

Rubbing her chin, she leaned back and thought. Finding the right words, she began to type away at the keyboard, her slender fingers making it easy work. "Dear Tongue-tied," she said out loud as she typed. "Whoever this girl is, I hope that she admires the fact that you want to impress her so much. Getting her attention may not have to do with looking flashy. Try doing things for her: hold the door open when she passes you by, for example. If talking to her face to face makes you lose your cool, why not try asking her out over the phone? If she agrees to a date, take her to the movies, that way you guys won't have to talk because the people on screen are doing it for you. As a warning, if she doesn't take notice of you, perhaps this isn't the right girl for you. Finding confidence is easy, once you know where to look. Just believe in yourself, have faith that you have the power to overcome any obstacles. You are who you are, and that is all the confidence you need. Love yourself, and other will love you back. . . ."

"Ms. Fuu," a gruff voice said. Fuu stopped talking to herself to look over the edge of the computer. A rough face looked down at her, long with bushy eyebrows and short cropped hair. Her boss, Geo Metro. He held out an envelop to her, with no address. His scarred chin eased his lips into a kind smile. "Congratulations. Here's your first assignment."

Bolting from the chair, Fuu snatched the envelop and stared at it as if it were solid gold. "Really? You really, really mean it? I. . .I actually get to go and investigate and everything?" she excitedly demanded.

"Yeah well, don't get too excited, Hououji," Geo warned. "Everybody else is busy, you're the only person I have left. Even if you are only here on co-op from your high school. The person you're going to be talking to is someone your own age, so hopefully you can deal with them better than other people around here. Who else am I supposed to send? Alcyone? She can charm any city official into dishing the dirt about their party, but ask to her to interview a teenager. . . ." he shook his head sadly. "Besides, it's probably nothing. I don't know how much of a story there is. Good luck anyway," he added, walking off.

Fuu veraciously tore into the envelop, and quickly read. The girl, one Umi Ryuzaki by name, claimed to have been saved by a masked man when she was attacked in the park. Fuu grabbed her jacket although the summer was so nice she doubted she even needed one. 'Mr. Metros' probably right,' she thought. 'It probably is nothing at all. Delusional, maybe. Still, there's something about it all. . .It's probably just my teenage fancy. What hopeless romantic wouldn't like the idea of a real-life Spiderman running around town?'

****



It took two city buses to get to the Ryuzaki residence, a posh apartment building. The building was so high Fuu couldn't even see the top. She knew there was one, somewhere. Hopefully. If Fuu had wings, she certainly wouldn't mind going up so high.

"Where can I find the Ryuzaki residence sir?" Fuu politely asked the man behind the counter.

Around her own age, Fuu was surprised that the brown haired boy could even see her. His bangs came down to the tip of his perky nose. She couldn't see his eyes, but Fuu got the distinct feeling that they were as green as her own. He nearly fell out of his seat, startled out of his daydream. The parts Fuu could see of his face began to turn bright red. "Ryuzaki residence? Topmost floor."

"Thank you very much," she said with a slight inclination of her head. She waited patiently for a name.

Blushing again, the boy itched the tip of his nose in a cute manner. "Oh, my name's Ascot. Everybody calls me that." He leaned his hands upon the counter, standing up to his tall height. Fuu suspected he was so tall he could see into the second floor windows, although she knew that was a blatant exaggeration. "If you go up there. . .I mean, if you're a friend of Miss Ryuzaki, do you think you could tell her I said hello? Please? It would mean so much to me."

She nodded with a friendly smile. Most posh places Fuu had been in had been full of snobs, but the young gentleman behind the counter was cute and well mannered, if somewhat bashful. "I will gladly do so, Mr. Ascot. Thank you again." She nodded her head to the dark haired boy one more time before she headed towards the elevator, briefcase clutched in her hands.

Taking the elevator all the way up to the topmost floor -a frightening seventeen levels up- Fuu stepped off to a small hallway, more a type of closet than an actual hall. Nervously, she rearranged already perfect light brown hair. Fuu pushed her glasses up, the glass beginning to fog as she began to feel out of her league.

'It. . .it couldn't possibly be the whole for. Could it?' she asked herself nervously. Taking a deep breath, she told herself she could finish her first assignment. 'I will make Mr. Geo proud that he sent me to interview Miss Ryuzaki!'

Knocking on the large doors, they soon opened enough to reveal a few strands of shimmering blue hair. Fuu smiled, once again inclining her head in a polite manner she had -most of the time. "Salutations! I'm Fuu Hououji, from the The Rune. I was sent by the editor, Mr G. Metro to interview a Miss Ryuzaki regarding a disturbance that happened recently. Might Miss Ryuzaki be in?"

The door opened all the way. The blue haired girl was stunningly beautiful, though at the moment she was a little too pale with worry. She had blue eyes to match the oceanic colour of her hair, and she was even a inch or two taller than Fuu. Her body looking to consist mostly of legs and a small stomach, her hair was cape behind her. The blue eyed girl had the build of a graceful fencer. "I'm Miss Ryuzaki. I didn't think they would really send anybody over. I'm afraid I'm not prepared for company. Please, come in. . .just mind the mess."

Fuu entered, trying not to gape at the splendour of the room. There were priceless antiques on display in the corner, hovering by beautiful works of art. She recognized Monet and Picassu to name a few. The furniture was top of the line, build for those with expensive tastes and deep wallets. There was not a speck of dust anywhere in the room. 'If this is what the house looks like dirty, I'd hate to imagine what how it looks clean! I doubt I could even be able to breath in the room when it is in that form,' she thought with a smile.

"Would you care for something to drink, Fuu?" Umi asked, shutting the door behind to aspiring reporter. "We have a few juices, and some cola."

"Just some water, please." Fuu turned to look at the beautiful girl, still wearing her smile. "I'd hate to be an inconvenience, however."

"Don't worry. It's no trouble at all. Would you like tap water, Brita water, bottled water, water with ice, or imported water?"

Fuu blinked, feeling her smile vanish. She slammed it back on, sensing that she was the one being inconvenienced. Who knew there were so many types of water in one's kitchen? "Dealer's choice, Miss Umi."

Umi disappeared behind a hanging tapestry, leaving Fuu to look at the expensive art decorating the main room. When Umi returned, she carried a tray of two drinks and sat down, indicating that Fuu should do the same. The girl with glasses sat, sinking into the couch more than one would have expected. Fuu suspected she'd have to lever herself out once she was finished. Umi handed her a glass which she accepted. Taking her own glass of water, Umi's hand began to tremble and she gave up, putting the glass back on the tray. She folded her hand neatly in her skirted lap. "I suppose you want to know how it started."

"Yes. Along with where, who, what, when and why," she said, afterwards hoping she didn't sound rude.

To her delight, Miss Ryuzaki gave a tiny laugh at the joke. "Well. . . ."

"Just a moment, if you will." Fuu dug into her briefcase and pulled out a slab of paper. "I'd like to take notes. Drat! Where in the world are my writing tools? I could have sworn my pencil was in here somewhere!" She rooted around in the briefcase that looked ready to swallow her head.

Umi reach over and pulled the pencil out from behind her ear, stifling another laugh when Fuu began to turn red. Umi settled back down on the couch, wearing a grin that could rival Fuu's in kindness. "Don't worry. I do the same thing. I should see me before a fencing match. I always lose my fencing sword, even though it's right there in my hand."

Smiling, Fuu noticed a tiny shape moving from the doorway. A Persian Blue. The cat skirted over to the couch and jumped up on Umi's lap. The girl cried out.

"Celes! Come on! You've gotta go back into my room! Mother and Father will kill me if they know I have a cat. You'll get your hair all over the furniture and then they'll tear this whole apartment apart trying to find you." Umi blushed, realizing what Fuu must now think of her parents. For some reason, she found herself caring about Fuu's opinion. She put the cat away and returned. "Don't get me wrong, Miss Fuu. Mother and Father are incredibly nice, but it's the one rule they have. No pets inside the house." She gestured around to the expensive furniture and antique furnishings. "They're afraid the pet will misbehave and ruin everything. They like things to be perfect."

"I understand." Although Fuu's parents were not like Umi, she herself was. Fuu enjoyed looking presentable, although she knew that sometimes people needed to get dirty. There had been that one time when she had needed to climb a tree to try and photograph a nesting bird. . . there had been sap stuck to her clothes for days. "If you don't mind my asking, how did you come by the cat, if your parents won't let you have one?"

"That's how this whole thing started," Umi said. She closed her shaking fingers. "You see, I was waking home from fencing practice one day. Yesterday, actually. The school isn't very far from here, part of the reason why my parents bought this apartment. Anyway, I was walking and started hearing this mewing sound down one of the alleys between the buildings. Of course, I went to investigate. Most people here don't let their cats outside, and all I could think of one of the girls in this building wondering where they cat had gone to.

That's how I found Celes. He was sitting in a cardboard box, pawing at his sisters and brothers, trying to get them to wake up. I feel in love with him right then and there. He was the only one of his family left. Lonely, just like. . .I picked him up, and I started to leave. That's when they hit me." She rolled up her sleeve to reveal a nasty looking bruise on her arm. "I would have fought back- I had my sword and everything- but I couldn't let go of Celes. I was afraid that they might hurt him.

I yelled for help, but no one heard me. At least, I thought no one had heard me. The creeps, they started to advance on me. I was so scared. I knew what they were planning on doing to me, and I knew that I could have kicked their ass, but I was worried about Celes. The streets can be a tough place for a cat, even tougher than for a girl like me. Please don't think me a sentimental fool nor a frightened girl."

Fuu smiled and reached over to reassuringly pat Umi's hand. "Don't worry. I will not."

Umi nodded and briefly smiled back, then continued. "The creeps that tried to attack me didn't even get to touch me before he arrived. He was dressed all in black, but I definitely know it was a guy. All I could see were golden eyes. Then, he was gone. The guys that had cornered me had been knocked unconscious, even though it only took seconds for him to come and go. The thing is though, that he carried a sword. Not like mine. It was strapped to his blade, as tall as he was, and kind of curved."

She blushed again, finally taking a sip of the water. "I don't know why I even bothered to write to you guys. It's just that. . .I thought you might be interested. Now that I say the story out loud, it seems rather silly."

The pencil stopped scribbling against the paper. Fuu stared across the table to Umi. "I think it sounds interesting. I would like to continue this story further, if the Editor gives me leave. Do you remember where exactly this attack happened?"

Nodding, Umi raised an eyebrow. "What are you thinking of doing?"

Fuu began to re pack her things, tucking her pencil back behind her ear. "I'm going to go out and investigate. That what reporters do, is it not? To convince Mr. Metro that this is a story worth pursuing, I'm going to need to find some sort of evidence to back it up. It's not that I don't believe you, Miss Ryuzaki. On the contrary, every fibre in my being is telling me that you speak the truth, and that this was not just an act of random samaritanship. I don't think samartianship is a word, but none the less. . . ."

Standing up herself, Umi hurried to her rooms and came back holding a long tube with a strap. She strung it over her shoulder. "Alright then. If you're going to go on a stake-out, then I'm coming with you." Fuu opened her mouth to protest, but a determined look from Umi silenced her. "This time, there won't be cat to stop me from using my sword if those guys reappear. I always thought this neighbourhood was an excellent one, but apparently I was wrong. You're going to need somebody to watch your back."

Knowing there was no way to change Umi's mind, Fuu smiled. "Alright then. How about I treat you to some supper before we go one a stake out? I think I may need a bit more sugar before we go out and try to stay up as long as we can."

Unslinging the protective case of her sword, Umi smiled. "Don't bother treating me to lunch, Miss Hououji. I'll cook us up something. My parents are going out until late tonight, s the company will be fun. No, don't try to wiggle out. You're staying for dinner, and that's final. Besides, I'm an excellent cook, and you wouldn't want to insult my food, now would you? I didn't think so."

Pausing, she stuck out her hand. "Even my parents didn't believe me. They said I was a hopeless romantic and had imagined everything. Of course, I left out the bit about the cat. Please, call me Umi."

"Then you must call me Fuu," the green-eyed girl said, shaking Umi's offered hand. The two friends smiled at each other. This was going to be interesting.



****



"I almost forgot," Fuu suddenly remembered, across the street from where Umi had been attacked. She sat up in the tree, camera in hand should the man with the sword reappear again. Below her knelt Umi, her sword ready to be drawn. Fuu knew the blue haired girl was looking up at her wondering what it was Fuu almost had forgotten, thought Fuu kept her eyes firmly ahead. "The nice boy behind the desk, Ascot, he told me to tell you he says hello."

"Ascot?" Umi repeated, trying to put a face to the name. She already had some colour back to her skin, eager to "kick some ass" as she bluntly put. Fuu hadn't guessed someone so well-raised would be so. . .normal.

Umi pursed her lips, finally recalling the boy named Ascot. "I remember him. He's nice enough, sure, but sometimes I wonder what his problem is."

"What do you mean by that?" Fuu inquired.

Her explanation was interrupted by the sound of wood cracking. The two girls were so intent on looking ahead they had not seen the men that came from behind. They whipped around, shocked. Several shapes lay in front of them. The tallest one was a size that could rival Ascot's while the shortest came up to Fuu's chest.

Umi pointed at them, confused. The moment of shock was broken when she exclaimed. "Oh my god! The rubber robos do exist!"

Only half a second later, she'd whipped out her sword, a long and delicate thing of beauty all to itself. In the hands of Umi, it became a deadly weapon. She pointed it at the shadowy figures. "I don't what you're doing in this neighbourhood," she announced. "But back off of it right now! Otherwise, you'll have to answer to me, Umi Ryuzaki, the best fencer in the Green Acres Private School!"

Wondering is Umi was insane -and later deciding Umi was no more insane than herself- Fuu snapped a picture, temporarily blinding the bad guys. Reaching down, she grabbed Umi's hand and helped haul the taller girl into the tree, where they would be at least somewhat sheltered. She indicated that Umi needed to be as quiet as possible. Hopefully the dark men would not know they were up in the tree and would guess they had run off.

"Where'd they go?" a deep voice asked.

"Maybe they ran away," suggested a voice that was clearly female.

"Up in the tree!" cried the smallest one, the only one who could see up into the tree the two girls were hiding in.

Fuu gripped the tree, raising her legs so that she could kick them when they came close enough. "Umi, I sincerely hope that saviour of yours shows up right about now!" she shrieked when a hand grabbed her ankle and tried to pulled her down. Fuu accidentally dropped the camera, using bother hands to grab unto the nearest branch. She kicked at the figure hidden in the shadows, her foot connecting with soft flesh, but not a powerful enough blow to make him let go of her ankle. The shadowy figure continued to try and drag her down, another hand already reaching up to help him.

Quick as a flash, wind rushed by Fuu. The grip on her ankle suddenly released and she tumbled off the branch to the ground. Landing with a thud, she stared up at a silver blade only inches from her nose. Black cloth concealed everything but the golden eyes that stared down at her. A flash of awareness sparkled in the gems that was the hero's eyes as he saw she was not an enemy and turned to face the other attackers.

Groping in the dark for her camera, Fuu managed to find it and drew it to her eye. She hit the button, and a flash temporarily blinded her. She cursed the camera lightly, knowing she had pointed it at herself. Correcting the camera, Fuu began to blindly flash pictures as the spots stopped dancing in front of her face. She kept taking pictures until her camera was out of film.

Running away, only seconds after he had come, the only people left in between the apartment buildings was the girl in the tree, angry she could not fight; the reported hiding in the grass praying her pictures would turn out, and the hero that still had unsettled business.

He stalked over to the girl with the camera and knelt down to her level. He found himself staring at a beautiful young girl with windswept hair curled about her ears and green eyes hidden behind large glasses. A speck of dirt was smudged on her nose and her cheeks stained with a pink blush. Kinda cute. The expression on her face was an odd mixture of confusion, obstinance, and even a slight amount of love. The hopeless romantic type. Joy.

The masked swordsman held out his hand to her. "Give me the camera," he ordered, his voice muffled from the cloth covering his face."

Fuu knelt on the ground, holding out an empty hand. "Greetings. My name of Fuu Hououji, from the newspaper The Rune. You wouldn't be able to give me an exclusive, would you?"

"Camera," the swordsman repeated. "Now."

"What do I get in return?" she demanded, shocking herself. She really didn't want him to get angry at her.

Somehow she suspected he was smiling underneath the fabric that covered his mouth. His golden eyes seemed to sparkle. He helped her up. "Fine. Keep the camera. But I want something in return. See you again, Shutterbug." The man stared up into the tree. "Try not to get into any more trouble, Ocean-eyes." With that, the swordsman leapt off, disappearing into the night sky.

Umi climbed down from the tree, and both the girls stared after him. "Wow. He can speak." She turned to face Fuu. "Think you can run with the story? What was it he called you? Shutterbug? Hm? Hey Fuu, why's your face turning all red?"