Standard disclaimers apply—Card Captor Sakura and all affiliated with do not belong to me. They belong to the people who made them, and I am NOT one of them. Dammit.

Note: Thanks to the people who reviewed and liked my story! Thank you so much, I thrive on reviews! And actually, that one idea of a Sakura/Fiery romance thing actually seems like a good idea…I might do that. But, seeing as how I'm loaded down with other fan fictions that I need to finish (Where Shadows Lie, my Gundam Wing story which has taken like, a year or more to get started on again!!!), I might or might not go further into CC. *thinks* I still need to get that Mighty Ducks fic out of my head so it won't bug me anymore, and now there's this one, the three or four Gargoyles series I have going on and the two Gundam Wing stories I have to do…O.o Damn, I watch too many cartoons and write too much. lol

Summary: The Fiery card reflects on a past love and his current position as one of Sakura's cards.

Warnings: Minor swearing, angst, AU, maybe some OOC-ness floating around, some violence, etc…

Brightly Burning

By: The Sadistic Cow

Eurynome69@hotmail.com OR eurynome@christismybitch.com

Flying above the city with a stream of flames blazing behind him, Fiery's thoughts were anything but pleasant. They roamed from the present to the past unequally, comparing his 'life' now to what it had been thirty or so years ago.

'San…you had to leave me, didn't you? I lived only for you…it was you who kept my spirits up, you who showed me that life was more than a battle between I and the other cards. My soul burned only for you, and brightly it did so. Why did you have to leave in the very flames I am made from?' He closed his eyes as he let the wind caress him, mind searching further and further back, into a time and place he cherished and despised all at once.

************

Flashback

Her name was San, and she had just turned ten years old. Her eyes were wide, round, and a bright blue, like the ocean. Her face was round, with a small button nose in the middle, and long, flaming red strands of hair often turned her pale white skin into a pink tinge. Today she was dressed in a blue, flowered kimono, her waist-length fiery hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. She had a bright smile on her face as she skipped to school, holding her books tightly in her arms.

She didn't notice she was being followed by several larger and older boys as she turned a corner and began walking down a hidden street, between several sets of apartments. Garbage and trash cans were everywhere, crumpled of pieces of paper being blown about in an unseen wind as San skipped happily along, the smile never leaving her face even though she was in one of the worst areas of her town. She didn't hear the heavier footsteps over her humming, or the harsh breathing that came from the largest boy.

"Hey, girl," a nasal voice said as a hand seized her shoulder and spun her around. "Gimme your lunch!" San gasped as she came face-to-chest with one of the boys from her school, an eighth grader by the name of Nanaka Tai. He sneered at her as three of his friends joined him, all of them glaring at San.

"T-Tai? What do you want?"

"You heard me!" Tai snapped, annoyed. "Give me your lunch!"

"I'll share it with you, if you want…"

Tai shook her, causing San to cry out and drop her books and lunch bag. "I don't want to SHARE, San! I want the WHOLE thing!"

San pouted, eyes watering. "But…"

Tai was raising his hand, preparing to strike her when a sudden gust of wind blew through the alley, and loose trash abruptly caught fire. Flames began to swirl and dance around the five children, who gasped and watched in growing horror as something rose from the flames. Tai whimpering, letting San go to drop to the ground, her blue eyes wide. A voice spoke from the raging flames that circled them, distaste and anger evident in the tone.

"Picking on little girls…how immature," a young, male voice hissed. The blaze parted to reveal a creature the colour of fire, with flaming hair and amber eyes that glared daggers at the four boys. "Why in the world Clow Reed would want me to exist alongside creatures like you I will never know," Fiery snarled, snapping his wings open to their fullest. "Perhaps you should pick on someone your own strength and size…like ME."

Tai let out a wailing cry, turning on his heels and dashing away, his three little hoodlum friends hot on his heels. San still sat where she was, watching Fiery as he watched the four boys run away, a sneer on his face. "How pathetic…they enjoy harassing those smaller and weaker than they, and the moment they face something that is their equal or better, they run home to their mothers."

Suddenly remembering that he still had an audience, Fiery turned to look at San, who watched him in awe and amazement. He lifted an eyebrow at her. "And what, may I ask, are you looking at?" he demanded.

San blinked. "You…you saved me!"

Fiery snorted. "They would not have hurt you much. They were disturbing my rest with their inane prattle and pathetic threats toward you. I did nothing special."

San smiled at him, and Fiery suddenly felt his mouth go dry. Her face seemed to…light up, with a joy he had never seen on any human's face, and it astonished him. She continued to smile at him, ignoring the strange expression on his face as she spoke. "But you saved me, still…they would have taken the lunch my mother made for me! We don't have a lot, and it was all I had for today. Thank you."

Fiery snorted, shrugging his shoulders as he floated down next to the girl, who continued to gaze at him in absolute wonder. "I said already, that it was nothing. Do not make it any more than it is." Another thought occurred to him, and he gave her a curious look. "Why are you not afraid of me?"

She gave him an equally questioning and curious look. "Why should I be? You helped me, and have done nothing wrong. Why should I be afraid?"

"Because of this," he pointed at his wings, "and this," pointing at the flames that surrounded him. When she only shrugged, he gave her an open-mouth stare. "That is it? Just…" He shrugged, imitating her. She shrugged again, smiled, and nodded. Fiery put his hands on his hips, giving her a cursory look. "You are a strange mortal…" He trailed off, not knowing her name.

"San," she said, sticking out her hand. Fiery looked at the offered hand, then at her sea-blue eyes which sparkled with warmth and mirth. Finally, after a moment, he smiled back and took her hands in his.

"Fiery," he told her.

They shook, and San's smile widened.

* * * * * * * * * * *

He didn't know why, but he had followed the girl to school and then home again. He had watched her for several days, wondering if he should show himself to her again. She would have been late for school that day, and so he had flown her the rest of the way. They had talked idly about things, San mostly asking questions and Fiery answering, though he asked a few of his own. He was a little concerned about revealing himself as a Clow card, but it didn't seem to matter all that much when he was actually with her. She didn't seem to care what he was; she just seemed to enjoy his company.

And he liked that.

* * * * * * * * * * *

It was a few days later before Fiery decided to show himself to her again. Hovering just outside her window, Fiery peered in to see her getting ready for bed. Slightly hesitant, he tapped lightly on the window to get her attention, and she spun around in nervous fear to see who it was. When she saw him, the same smile that had caught his attention the first day came forth, and Fiery, despite all nervous tension at being caught, found he had to smile back.

She ran to the window, flinging it open with a broad smile on her face. "Fiery! You came back!" she said in an excited whisper. He nodded, smiling.

"Yes, I did," he replied. Then, not sure what to say, "Umm…what are you up to tonight?"

San pouted. "Mother says I have to go to bed so that I can wake up in time for school tomorrow," she told him in a soft whisper. At his fallen expression, a wicked grin played across her face. "But I don't always do what mother says!"

With that, San began to climb out the window in her pajamas, to Fiery's shock and dismay. He opened his mouth to say that if she wasn't careful she would fall, when she abruptly launched herself at him. Her arms wrapped around his neck, legs around his waist, and clung to him like a monkey so she wouldn't drop to the ground.

Fiery froze, as shock rendered him unable to move or do anything as San clutched to his neck tightly. She smiled up at him and winked. That seemed to break the amazed trance he was in, as Fiery had to swallow a laugh so her parents wouldn't hear. San smiled again, and leaned towards his ear.

"Can we fly?" she whispered.

Fiery's own smile grew and his eyes lit up. He brought his arms around her waist and flapped his wings as though to prove that they were sturdy. "Of course! It is one of the things I do best!"

* * * * * * * * * * *

They flew for what seemed to be an eternity that night, soaring on the winds and darting through the clouds happily. Cradled tightly in his arms, San's smile never ceased as they spun and careened through the sky, up and down, side to side and every which way until her hair came loose from its bindings and fluttered behind her. She couldn't seem to stop laughing, the light tinkling of her voice sending waves of pleasure and gladness through the fire card's entire being. He made several bad attempts at jokes with her, which only caused her to laugh more. Her laugh was wonderful, full of joy and light with mirth, and he couldn't seem to get enough of it. So he did everything he could to make her laugh.

It was long past midnight when San finally let out a large yawn, and her eyes began to drift closed. Fiery noticed this, and questioned it. She smiled at him sleepily. "No, I'm okay. Can we fly some more?"

Fiery lifted an eyebrow at her. "The Fly card is better suited for that," he told her. "And being a human, you need to sleep more than I." San protested, but Fiery shook his head. "It's time for you to be at home now, sleeping in your bed. We can go flying another time." San smiled at that, and leaned her head against his shoulder as Fiery flapped his wings lazily and turned around, heading back to her home.

They reached it in record time, and Fiery slipped in through the window. He glanced around for a moment before placing San in her bed and bringing the covers up to her chin. She was half-asleep by that time, but fought to stay awake. She blinked lazily at him, about ready to fall asleep at any moment. He began to turn away and leave, but she spoke in a soft, hushed voice. "Fiery?"

He paused, and turned to look back at her. "Yes?"

"Can you come back tomorrow? I want to see you again…" She yawned loudly and Fiery chuckled at the sight.

"Of course," he replied, leaning down toward her. "I'll come whenever you want me to." San smiled, and once again Fiery felt that strange tingling sensation run through him at the sight.

"'K. G'night, Fiery," she whispered, turning over and snuggling deeper into the covers. Her flaming hair spread all across the pillow, and Fiery smiled as he touched it. It was soft, silky and, in his opinion, a wonderful colour. His eyes were gentler than they had ever been as he kissed her forehead and ran a finger across her cheek.

"Good night, San."

To be continued…

I know, I know, this one is kinda short and weird, but…oh well. I think the rating is going to go up a little more, because what I have planned for the next few chapters gets pretty nasty. Later chapters get pretty freaky. Some parts, anyway. Oh well, I hope you like this one and I hope you'll all keep reviewing! It means a lot to me, really.