Clash of Realities
DISCLAMER: I don't own Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE, XXXholic or Cardcaptor Sakura (although I really want to ). They belong to CLAMP forever.
SPOILER WARNING: This fic is set after chapitre 69 of TRC and post manga CCS. Because of this, I strongly advise that readers read the mangas first to be able to enjoy this fic to its fullest THX.
Caption 1: Meeting
Yuuko Ichihara was having a bad day.
Not only did she have a bad hangover, her 'servant', Watanuki was still at school and without him at the beck of her call, she was to suffer until then. While Maru and Moro tried comforting their mistress, she knew only her beloved Eki-Kyabe could end the agony. Also, black Mokona was less active then before, having consumed a large amount of alcohol during one of its drinking sessions with Yuuko. However, a message from its white counterpart was soon to brighten the day.
"They've entered his world." Mokona said cheerfully, all signs of its fatigue disappearing. It then hopped to Yuuko's side and into her hands.
"Oh really?" the weary Yuuko replied. "Looks like I'll be able to met them, the true ones." a smile forming on her face.
Thinking again, her day couldn't have been any brighter.
Kurogane was not in a good mood.
While the method of traveling through dimensions was not entirely pleasant, the undeniable fact was that the white meat bun had taken a liking to drop the four into undesirable situations upon arrival. First was in Koryo which lead to a lot of fighting and then again in Outo / Edonisu which again lead to more fighting. It was like a cycle of good and bad arrivals, this time it was most certainly not.
Greeting the arrivals was a red Honda Civic barreling towards them at over 60 miles an hour, its breaks screeching as the driver tried helplessly to stop the metal machine. Alas, his effort came a little too late as the car maintained on its deadly collision course. Still gorgy from exiting Mokona, only Kurogane with his heighten senses was able to detect the danger. Acting on instincts, he quickly drew Souhi from its scabbard, the blade carving a large vertical arc in front of its master.
Within moments, the danger passed around them, literally. The power of Kurogane's slash divided the vehicle down the middle and its force launched the pieces in opposite directions. In one of the wrecked pieces sat the driver, stoned and shaken but relatively unharmed. As the remains of the car came to a halt some distance behind them, Kurogane casually returned Souhi to its sheath, unaware of the commotion he had caused.
"Good job Kuro-pi!" Fye congratulated, earning him one of Kurogane's growls. "But, we have earned ourselves some unwanted attention. Best we hide until we can blend in." he suggested, nodding towards a dark alley nearby.
There was an unspoken agreement as Syaoran cradled the semi-conscious Sakura and dashed into the alley with Fye and Kurogane trailing closely behind. Mokona, being Mokana, had attached itself to Kurogane as they removed themselves from plain sight. As they waited for the night, Syaoran made detailed observations of the new world they were in. From the fashion and building designs, he concludes that this world is similar to that of Hanshin and the world of the 'dimension witch'. Also, he was able to shortlist their disabilities in this world. They couldn't rely on Sakura's luck for money as gambling didn't seem as wide spread in this world. Apart from that, unlike the other worlds, they were now truly alone without a shred of assistance from the locals. Their clothes became their next liability, one they hope to ditch as soon as night arrives.
"Puuu! Kuro-pi caused trouble again!" Mokona laughed happily, jumping off Kurogane's head as the ninja took a swing at the team mascot.
"Weren't you the one who dropped us in front of that metal contraption?" Kurogane rebuked and promptly began chasing the white creature around. Next, Fye's witty remark turned him into another of Kurogane's targets.
Today was just not Kurogane's day.
"Are you alright, Sakure-hime?" Syaoran asked worriedly as she had asleep till nightfall. Knowing Sakura, every succeeding feather they recover improved her energy and with only a few feathers obtained, she could only stay awake for 10 hours at most while the rest of the day was spend in a deep slumber. And knowing Sakura, she would try her hardest to stay conscious.
She smiled at her caretaker. "I'm alright, Syaoran-kun. I'm just feeling a little-" her stomach gave a low growl, "-hungry."
"Here, you can eat this, Sakura-hime." Syaoran handed her a slightly warm meat bun.
"Thank you." She said, smiling. Taking it with delight, she began nibbling on the food while Syaoran helped himself to another one. Fye had discovered that they were behind a Chinese restaurant and using one of Mokona's 108 secret techniques, they got themselves dinner.
"Where are Fye-san, Kurogane-san and Mokona?" Sakura asked noticing that they alone.
"They went to get some clothes and money. We ran into some trouble when we entered this world." Syaoran explained. He carefully avoided the details so to not worry the princess too much.
"But we are alive and breathing thanks to our very own Kuro-tan!" a familiar voice chipped in. Entering the lightly lit alley were Fye and Kurogane, both carrying a large pile of clothes. Mokona was with them too, resting on Fye's right shoulder.
"Puuu! Kuro-pi was like a ninja, cutting the loud machine into pieces." Mokona said cheerfully (Kurogane: I am a ninja!). The mischievous white creature was then jumping around again, taunting Kurogane in between.
"So Mokona, do you think there is a feather here?" Fye asked after depositing their loot unto Syaoran and Sakura (Fye: We don't know what you would like, so we got everything!). In seconds, Mokona hopped into Fye's palms and entered a deep silence.
Its reply caused some concern among the party. "I sense a great magical power. It feels familiar, yet different. Also, I don't sense any other power anywhere else."
"So I guess we will be moving on then. What a waste of effort..." Kurogane complained. This world has been nothing but trouble for him and if there wasn't a reward at the end of the plight, it was better if they leave. However, the other interpreted Mokona's words very differently.
"Don't you think it's strange? From what I can tell, the people of this world don't know or can't use magic. So how could such a magical power great enough to grab Mokona's attention exist? Also, remember back in the world where we found Sakura-hime's third feather, the magic used by the Ryanban was from the feather but Mokona didn't sense the feather's power. What I can say is we don't have enough information to conclude that it isn't Sakura-hime's feather but we can't say it is either." Syaoran deduced. Thinking for a while, Syaoran turned his attention to Mokona. "Mokona, do you think you can lead us to the source of the magical power?"
"Of course!" Mokona replied enthusiastically. "Just leave it to Mokona!"
"Too bad Kuro-rin, we are staying." Fye said happily. "It's better if we start the search in the morning. But before that, we can't spend the night here, so-" Fye pulled out a ward of bills he 'borrowed' from the clothes shop, "-I suggest we change and go find an inn to stay in."
His suggestion stood unopposed.
Morning arrived early as the party set off, moving away from the city to a smaller town, the town of Tomoeda. As they traveled, Mokona remained still as to not alert the local population to its presence. Still, it did capture some attention –being a cute stuffed toy- but no one knew it was alive. This confirmed the theory Syaoran made that the people of this world had no magical powers.
"You look cute in that, Sakura-chan." Fye complimented, causing Sakura to blush a little. She was wore a red long sleeved blouse, white pelted short skirt and long white stockings. Also, she had a small white handbag which held Mokona.
Trying to blend in, Fye wore a white long sleeved t-shirt and gray long pants while Kurogane wore a short sleeved t-shirt and similar long pants, all black of course. Dressed in a green checked shirt and beige slacks, Syaoran was as cautious as ever, keeping an eye at every inch and corner as they move in the direction pointed out by Mokona.
A little later, they entered a shopping district and proceeded along the road. Along the way, Sakura stopped to admire the assortment of accessories offered in one of the shops while the rest keep a sharp eye for anything suspicious. It was then did something strange happen.
Mokona suddenly jumped out of Sakura's handbag and made its way to a café at the corner of the junction of the road regardless of the onlookers around. Startled by this, Syaoran and gang quickly followed it with Syaoran leading. Mokona then turned into the corner and out of sight, but as Syaoran approached, his heart skipped a beat when he heard a very familiar voice.
"Hoee! Where did you come from?" the voice cried, surprised. "What are you anyway...?"
"Mokona Modaki! Please to meet you! Shake hands!" Mokona introduced, offering its paw. Taking a few staps forward, Syaoran was presented with the view of Mokona shaking hands with another Sakura sitting on one of the chairs. He remembered what his princess wore today and was sure this Sakura wasn't his Sakura; she wore a white long sleeved dress decorated at the edges with pink embroider and an accessory in the shape of the sakura flower on her hair, just above her left ear. But besides that, she looked exactly like Sakura; similar short auburn hair and emerald eyes.
As if she sensed his presence, the Sakura turned and their eyes met. "Syaoran!" she called out, waving. She then got up from her set excitedly and ran to him. It was only after she covered half the distance between them did she noticed the difference.
"You... are not Syaoran, are you?" she said carefully. She received no reply as Syaoran was still too stunned to give one.
Just then, Fye, Kurogane and Sakura came up behind Syaoran. "So, what did we...miss..." Fye started, his words lost when he laid eyes on the other Sakura. Kurogane remained silent, unsure whether to interfere or leave the situation as it is. But then Sakura came into view of the other Sakura.
"Hoeee! Why is there another of me?" the other Sakura cried in disbelieve, getting more and more confused by the minute. Mokona then took this opportunity to jump onto Syaoran and turned to face the other Sakura.
"Puuu! She is the source of the magical power!" it happily told the gang.
Fate then decided to add a pinch of chaos as another approached the group. "Sakura! Did you wait long...?" a call came from across the road. It stopped short as the person realized the situation she was in; one he was soon to enter. "What's going on?"
The boy who arrived wore a green t-shirt, a yellow red-striped jacket, brown long pants and was a dead ringer to Syaoran. So it was not by coincidence that he was also named Syaoran. And surely it came to no surprise –at least not to Fye and Kurogane- that he ran to the other Sakura's side and stood over her protectively, all the while clasping their hands, their fingers entwined.
"Looks like this will be a problem..." Fye said softly, his tone cautious.
Kurogane however caught a lens reflection off the corner of his eye from the direction of the bushes opposite the café. And strangely enough, the feeling he got was very familiar.
To Be Continued... in another Dimension
AN:haven't been writing 4 a long time so don't expect anything...anyone wanna hazard a guess on who Kurogane saw? (you can't get this one wrong ). Anyway, plz R&R every review counts!