You Set Me Free, You Give My Heart Wings Part One (Contin.): The Beginning
So, is everyone here?
Everyone: Yes!
You all used the bathroom already, right?
Everyone (slightly annoyed): Yes!
Anyone want to go and get snacks before we begin?
Everyone (even more annoyed): NO!
Sheesh! I just wanted to know 'cuz I'm not stopping the fic halfway through for someone.
Ms. Sinic & Max: Start the damn thing already!
Psycho: And put more ghosts and stuff in it!
Sakura: No! Don't put any ghosts in it!
Li: I'll protect you, Sakura.
Ameoba Boy: Everybody just shut the hell up so she can get this over with!
{Disclaimer}
Raye: Do I own CCS?
(Sarcastically) Hmm, let's think for a moment.
Of course not, you idiots!!
I own Patience, Hope, Sage, Jade, Josuah, Celos, Aku Darkness, and anyone else mentioned that did not make five-minute appearances in CCS.
There, I think that takes care of everything.
Ameoba Boy: What about-
Raye: I SAID, I think that takes care of everything.
Amoeba Boy (meekly): Yessum. . .
Chapter Four: A Talking, Flying Fox Scares The Hell Out Of Sage....
Sage's luck seemed to have turned around. On further exploration of the town, Sage discovered it wasn't as small as he had previously thought. And, much to his pleased surprise, he actually obtained a job he was looking forward to starting. He had accidentally stumbled onto the mechanics shop simply titled The Garage, and had grinned when he saw the prominetly painted sign, "Help Wanted".
Despite having been a drifter much of his life, the twenty-two old Sage was quite adept at working with cars and machines. At first, the owner of the shop, known only as Tim, had been wary of hiring him without any credentials or schooling background. But Sage had convinced the burly Tim he was well suited to the job when he single-handedly repaired a stalled engine.
With a new job to look forward to, one he could actually enjoy, Sage's spirits were lifting. To him, it had seemed as if his meeting with Patience had turned his luck around.
"My suitcases are packed, Kero's sleeping in my bag, and I've already stocked up on magazines and gum for the flight," Sakura said cheerfully to Madison.
Madison smiled and nodded over at her own pile of luggage. "Clothes, cameras, and neccessities all packed away."
"The guys should be here any moment, shouldn't they?" Sakura asked worriedly, glancing up at the clock. Madison nodded and double-checked to make sure her camera was properly shut off.
Sakura's nerves were especially uptight today. Li had decided to follow Sakura's plan with informing his mother of the trip to America, and Sakura was worried for his sake. What if Li got into major trouble with his mother?
The phone beside the tv rang, startling Sakura into jumping in fright. Sakura scooped it up and willed her voice to remain calm.
"Sakura?" The voice on the other end of the line had a heavy french accent.
"Grannie?" Sakura asked in surprise. She hadn't expected to hear from her grandmother. . .
"You did get my letter?" Grannie Marie's voice was concerned.
Sakura nodded vigorously, then blushed in embarrassment. "Of course, Grannie. But you really didn't need to pay for the trip-"
"Nonsense!" Marie cut it. "It is a good cause, and I know neither you nor your father 'ad enough money for the trip."
Sakura blushed again. "But Grannie, I could have found another way to pay for the trip." She argued hollowly.
Grannie Marie laughed. "Ranea wishes to speak with you, but so does Jean and Jacque."
"But 'em on the speaker phone!" Sakura said eagerly.
"'Ello, Sakura!" Three voices chimed over the phone.
"Hi! How's everything?"
"Jean put another frog in my bed yesterday, Sakura!" Ranea's voice exclaimed. The french maid was obviously furious with her boyfriend. "Can you believe that?!? Boys are so immature!"
"But Ranea deserved the frog!" Jean argued. "Why, I'm not saying."
"Are you excited about your trip to America?" Jacque's voice came in soft and kindly. The elderly man had been Grannie Marie's butler for more than four decades, but just a few years ago the two had married. Sakura had been ecstatic with having Jacque as a grandfather, never remembering her paternal grandfather, who had died shortly after Sakura's seventh birthday.
"Oh, yes!" Sakura said happily. "And Yue said that all three of the new Powers are around twenty or so. I hope the girls are nice; I think I'd die if they weren't."
Madison giggled softly from her bed. Sakura hadn't really grown up after all of these years. . .
"Well, we must be getting off the phone now, Sakura." Grannie Marie said. "But you take care in America, and write us as soon as you arrive."
"I will, Grannie," Sakura promised devotely. "Love you."
"We love you, too!" All four of Sakura's extended french "family" chorused. "Goodbye!"
Sakura hung up the phone just as Li and Shawn knocked on the door.
"You're bringing all of this?!?" Shawn exclaimed hopelessly, staring at the immense mountain of luggage.
"Careful, Li. Kero's in that one," Sakura said as Li slung a yellow bag over his shoulder.
"I'll be careful," Li promised as he headed for the door, bumping the bag roughly against the doorframe as he left.
Sakura and Madison grabbed two suitcases each and headed for the door after their boyfriends, flicking off the lights and locking the door behind them as they left.
"Julian's meeting us at the airport," Shawn managed to gasp out as they descended the stairs.
"Thank goodness Grannie sent me the money for the tickets," Sakura whispered confidentially to Madison. "I don't know how I could have come otherwise."
"Mother's paying for Shawn's ticket as well as mine," Madison said as she carefully stepped down the steep staircase. "She could have paid for yours, too."
Sakura shook her head firmly. "I'm not depending on charity to help me out, Madison. The only reason I accepted Grannie Marie's money is 'cause she's family."
"Where did Li get enough money for the tickets?" Madison whispered. "I didn't know part-time at the car wash paid enough for plane tickets halfway across the world, and Li already said as much that he couldn't depend on Mummy Dearest for the cash."
Sakura shrugged with a sigh. "I didn't ask, he didn't tell. He got the money somehow, and I'm just hoping that it was by legal means."
Sage had just finished work, and was walking back to his hotel. It had been his extreme good luck that Tim's sister Janet ran the local hotel, and Tim had convinced her to allow Sage to stay there until he got back on his feet.
Sage rather liked his hotel room. It was small, but good enough for him. And it even had a small fireplace, which made the room feel more homey to Sage. He had grown up in Washington, Oregon, and his parent's house had a large, welcoming fireplace.
Lighting a fire in the fireplace, Sage dropped beside it with a groan, rubbing gingerly at his sunburned arms. Even though it was summer, the air-conditioning in the hotel was on non-stop, and Sage felt much better when the fire was blazing.
Turning on the tv, Sage channel-surfed for a while before falling asleep beside the fire.
It was past midnight when Sage woke. He looked down at the hot coal that had landed on his leg. Brushing it off with a mutter, Sage rubbed at the reddened mark the coal had left.
"Should put out the fire," Sage mumbled wearily.
A shower of sparks flew from the fire, landing on Sage. He scrambled away with a stifled curse. He stood and brushed furiously at his singed clothes. Satisfied that he was in no danger of catching fire, Sage glared over at the fire.
And froze as he saw the tiny form outlined within the flames. It was cat-like in shape, with a bottle-brush tail. Sage took a step back, rubbing at his eyes to clear them. He must still be asleep and dreaming; there couldn't possibly be some sort of creature in the fire-
But then the form solidified. And hovering from the crackling fire was a strange ~creature~, fox-like in build. Sage knew his mouth had dropped open, but he was too busy pinching his arm to care. He must be imagining things. . .
The fox creature-- red in uniform with orange eyes, ears, stomach and two tiny butterfly-like wings-- yawned, landing before the fire-grate, fixing Sage with a peering look.
"Hello," the thing spoke in a dark, husky voice. Smoke drifted about the creature's nostrils. "My name is Celos. Who are you?"
The plane ride was fairly uneventful. Sakura sat between Li and Julian, and Madison and Shawn sat behind them. Kero, for once, slept through the entire plane ride, safe within the overhead compartment. Sakura was inwardly glad about this, for Kero had never agreed with plane trips, always turning green before the plane had even lifted off.
Julian and Shawn both fell asleep halfway through, and Madison was busy reading with headphones blaring. Sakura decided now was as good a time as any to talk with Li about her worries.
"Li, do you think your mother'll be expecially mad?" Sakura asked with a worried expression.
Li sighed. "She shouldn't, because it's a better reason to go than most. But, Sakura," Li said suddenly, seeing Sakura's worry. "Don't worry about it. I can more than handle my mother if it comes down to it. I'll be fine."
"I'm just worried that she'll demand you come home or something after all this," Sakura whispered fearfully.
Li turned slightly in his seat, his amber eyes locking with Sakura's emerald. "Do you want me to stay with you and the others after all this?" Now it was Li's turn to sound and look worried.
Sakura smiled. "Of course, Li." She dared a quick kiss. "Life wouldn't be the same without you here with me. I love you, Li. That's why I'm so worried you'll leave."
Li smiled softly and took Sakura's hands in his. "I love you, Sakura. I'd never do anything that would hurt you, and I'd never leave you on my free will. I'll always stay with you."
Sakura smiled, her fears laid to rest. "Thank you, Li."
Kero snored and mumbled sleepily, turning inside Sakura's bag and nestling his head against her silk shirt. "Mmmm. . . pop tarts in vats of maple syrup flavored pudding. . .
Yummm. . ."
Sage looked absently down at his black-and-blue arm. No amount of pinching could wake him out of this extremely strange dream. . .
The creature named Celos swung his tail back and forth, leaving wisps of smoke in its wake. "Who are you?" He repeated, not at all impatient.
Sage sighed and gave in. It didn't hurt to go along with dreams. "My name's Sage."
Celos's eyes fairly glowed, his tail swishing back and forth rapidly. "It is good to meet you, Master Sage."
"~Master~ Sage?" Sage repeated in confusion. Celos nodded gravely, bobbing his head in a refined, courtly way.
"You are my Master. Father Time woke me from my sleep, and sent me to find my Master. And you are he, Master."
Sage sighed and dropped into a squashy armchair. "I'm sorry little creature, I'm not your Master. I'm just plain Sage."
Celos shook his head furiously. "Oh no, you ~are~ my Master, you are. And my name is Celos, not little creature." Celos's eyes abruptly saddened. "But if you don't want to be my Master. . ."
"Oh, that's not it at all," Sage said hastily. The poor thing looked on the verge of tears, and Sage didn't like to make anything, not even dream creatures, cry. "It's just that this is a dream and I'm sure to wake up any moment now. Sorry."
Celos smiled suddenly. "But this isn't a dream, Master. Of course it's not. It's all quite real."
Sage smiled patronizingly. "I'm sorry, Celos. Things like you just aren't real. And I know I'm still asleep because if I weren't, then I'd be talking to something out of my imagination and that would mean that I'm going crazy. And I'm not." Sage paused in doubt. "Or, at least I think I'm not."
Celos hovered up on his orange feathery butterfly wings, darting over to Sage.
"Ow!" Sage exclaimed, jumping back, as Celos's tiny front teeth nipped painfully at his fingertip. "What did you do that for?!?"
Celos sat on Sage's knee with a pleased grin. "To show you that you're not dreaming. And you're not crazy. Not too much. Father Time always jokes that all magickers are crazy."
Sage sucked furiously at his burning-hot fingertip, studying Celos as he did so. The fox creature was a pleasant warmth on his knee, but from his flashing eyes and the smoke drifting about his nostrils, Sage had the impression that Celos was hotter than he looked. "Magickers? Now what are you talking about?"
"You and the others like you, Master," Celos said happily, washing at his red-furred face with his front paws, delicately combing his ears with his orange-tipped claws.
"Others like me?" Sage repeated dully. His mind was slowly beginning to whirl. All of those strange things that had been happening to him lately, and now this strange creature's appearance. . .
"You're a sorcerer, Master Sage." Celos said solemnly. "You created me lifetimes ago with your elemental magic. Don't you remember?"
Patience woke with a start.
She sighed as she swung her legs out of her bed. She'd had such a strange past two weeks. . . First that incident with the whispering voices and the wind, then the meeting with Sage, and then the mysterious repair of her now favorite Mercedes Lackey book. . . Not to mention the strange dreams she'd been having as of late.
What had Father Time been talking with her about in this dream? Patience tried to remember each dream after she woke so she could write it down in her journal. She was keeping careful track of every strange occurance.
Now she remembered! He'd been saying something about the new teachers, and something about creating a magic-creature. . .
Patience sighed and hurriedly wrote the dream down under the day's date. She wouldn't worry about it. Dreams were harmless. She should worry about the other strange things that had been happening not only her, but Hope as well. . .
Just yesterday Hope had told her that while she was out in the woods, she had begun sketching a jaunty blue-bird. Halfway through the sketch, the bird began hopping along the branch and out of sight.
In dismay, Hope had called out to the bird to "please stay still for only a moment longer!" It was much to her surprise when the bird seemed to freeze in half hop, almost unnaturally. She had hurriedly finished her sketching and hurried off, somewhat spooked by the strange occurance.
And then there was the near-accident Hope had barely avoided. It still sent shivers up and down Patience's spine when she thought about it.
Hope had been exploring when the rocks had begun to tumble down the hillside she was walking beside. Hope had heard the rocks just in time, and had barely managed to dive out of the way. Or so she had told Jade and Josuah. But Hope had secretly confided in Patience that the rocks had been seconds away from overtaking her. She actually told Patience that she had screamed out in fear, throwing up her arms in a vain attempt for protection. And the rocks had miraculously veered away at the last second, even though Hope was positive there was no natural reason why they should.
All in all, strange things were happening quicker than Patience was willing to deal with.
Sakura sighed as she stretched and looked about with shining eyes, out the windows of the bustling airport.
"Wow! How beautiful! So this is Colorado?"
Julian nodded with equally shining eyes. "Sort of breathtaking, isn't it?"
"So where are these three new Powers living at the moment?" Madison whispered to Sakura. She paused, eyes closed, and ran a hand across a giant map of Colorado pasted on a wall.
"Here," Sakura said, opening her eyes to look down at the tiny city her finger had landed on. "Rocky Woods."
"Then let's get going and not waste any time," Li said.
Sakura nodded with a look of adventure about her eyes. "I can't wait to meet them!"
Rocky Woods is a fictional city, and I'm sorry if the name was lame. My brain was more fizzled than usual while I was writing this chap, so nothing's as good as I wanted it.
*SIGH* O-well, at least I tried.
Do you like? Any problems with it? If so, write and complain, er, I mean, suggest some different ideas to me.
Next chap's got the CCS Gang meeting the three new Powers, ghosts that aren't really ghosts, and Yue scaring the *BLEEP* out of Patience.
Stay tuned folks! Love, y'all! *(^-^)*
So, is everyone here?
Everyone: Yes!
You all used the bathroom already, right?
Everyone (slightly annoyed): Yes!
Anyone want to go and get snacks before we begin?
Everyone (even more annoyed): NO!
Sheesh! I just wanted to know 'cuz I'm not stopping the fic halfway through for someone.
Ms. Sinic & Max: Start the damn thing already!
Psycho: And put more ghosts and stuff in it!
Sakura: No! Don't put any ghosts in it!
Li: I'll protect you, Sakura.
Ameoba Boy: Everybody just shut the hell up so she can get this over with!
{Disclaimer}
Raye: Do I own CCS?
(Sarcastically) Hmm, let's think for a moment.
Of course not, you idiots!!
I own Patience, Hope, Sage, Jade, Josuah, Celos, Aku Darkness, and anyone else mentioned that did not make five-minute appearances in CCS.
There, I think that takes care of everything.
Ameoba Boy: What about-
Raye: I SAID, I think that takes care of everything.
Amoeba Boy (meekly): Yessum. . .
Chapter Four: A Talking, Flying Fox Scares The Hell Out Of Sage....
Sage's luck seemed to have turned around. On further exploration of the town, Sage discovered it wasn't as small as he had previously thought. And, much to his pleased surprise, he actually obtained a job he was looking forward to starting. He had accidentally stumbled onto the mechanics shop simply titled The Garage, and had grinned when he saw the prominetly painted sign, "Help Wanted".
Despite having been a drifter much of his life, the twenty-two old Sage was quite adept at working with cars and machines. At first, the owner of the shop, known only as Tim, had been wary of hiring him without any credentials or schooling background. But Sage had convinced the burly Tim he was well suited to the job when he single-handedly repaired a stalled engine.
With a new job to look forward to, one he could actually enjoy, Sage's spirits were lifting. To him, it had seemed as if his meeting with Patience had turned his luck around.
"My suitcases are packed, Kero's sleeping in my bag, and I've already stocked up on magazines and gum for the flight," Sakura said cheerfully to Madison.
Madison smiled and nodded over at her own pile of luggage. "Clothes, cameras, and neccessities all packed away."
"The guys should be here any moment, shouldn't they?" Sakura asked worriedly, glancing up at the clock. Madison nodded and double-checked to make sure her camera was properly shut off.
Sakura's nerves were especially uptight today. Li had decided to follow Sakura's plan with informing his mother of the trip to America, and Sakura was worried for his sake. What if Li got into major trouble with his mother?
The phone beside the tv rang, startling Sakura into jumping in fright. Sakura scooped it up and willed her voice to remain calm.
"Sakura?" The voice on the other end of the line had a heavy french accent.
"Grannie?" Sakura asked in surprise. She hadn't expected to hear from her grandmother. . .
"You did get my letter?" Grannie Marie's voice was concerned.
Sakura nodded vigorously, then blushed in embarrassment. "Of course, Grannie. But you really didn't need to pay for the trip-"
"Nonsense!" Marie cut it. "It is a good cause, and I know neither you nor your father 'ad enough money for the trip."
Sakura blushed again. "But Grannie, I could have found another way to pay for the trip." She argued hollowly.
Grannie Marie laughed. "Ranea wishes to speak with you, but so does Jean and Jacque."
"But 'em on the speaker phone!" Sakura said eagerly.
"'Ello, Sakura!" Three voices chimed over the phone.
"Hi! How's everything?"
"Jean put another frog in my bed yesterday, Sakura!" Ranea's voice exclaimed. The french maid was obviously furious with her boyfriend. "Can you believe that?!? Boys are so immature!"
"But Ranea deserved the frog!" Jean argued. "Why, I'm not saying."
"Are you excited about your trip to America?" Jacque's voice came in soft and kindly. The elderly man had been Grannie Marie's butler for more than four decades, but just a few years ago the two had married. Sakura had been ecstatic with having Jacque as a grandfather, never remembering her paternal grandfather, who had died shortly after Sakura's seventh birthday.
"Oh, yes!" Sakura said happily. "And Yue said that all three of the new Powers are around twenty or so. I hope the girls are nice; I think I'd die if they weren't."
Madison giggled softly from her bed. Sakura hadn't really grown up after all of these years. . .
"Well, we must be getting off the phone now, Sakura." Grannie Marie said. "But you take care in America, and write us as soon as you arrive."
"I will, Grannie," Sakura promised devotely. "Love you."
"We love you, too!" All four of Sakura's extended french "family" chorused. "Goodbye!"
Sakura hung up the phone just as Li and Shawn knocked on the door.
"You're bringing all of this?!?" Shawn exclaimed hopelessly, staring at the immense mountain of luggage.
"Careful, Li. Kero's in that one," Sakura said as Li slung a yellow bag over his shoulder.
"I'll be careful," Li promised as he headed for the door, bumping the bag roughly against the doorframe as he left.
Sakura and Madison grabbed two suitcases each and headed for the door after their boyfriends, flicking off the lights and locking the door behind them as they left.
"Julian's meeting us at the airport," Shawn managed to gasp out as they descended the stairs.
"Thank goodness Grannie sent me the money for the tickets," Sakura whispered confidentially to Madison. "I don't know how I could have come otherwise."
"Mother's paying for Shawn's ticket as well as mine," Madison said as she carefully stepped down the steep staircase. "She could have paid for yours, too."
Sakura shook her head firmly. "I'm not depending on charity to help me out, Madison. The only reason I accepted Grannie Marie's money is 'cause she's family."
"Where did Li get enough money for the tickets?" Madison whispered. "I didn't know part-time at the car wash paid enough for plane tickets halfway across the world, and Li already said as much that he couldn't depend on Mummy Dearest for the cash."
Sakura shrugged with a sigh. "I didn't ask, he didn't tell. He got the money somehow, and I'm just hoping that it was by legal means."
Sage had just finished work, and was walking back to his hotel. It had been his extreme good luck that Tim's sister Janet ran the local hotel, and Tim had convinced her to allow Sage to stay there until he got back on his feet.
Sage rather liked his hotel room. It was small, but good enough for him. And it even had a small fireplace, which made the room feel more homey to Sage. He had grown up in Washington, Oregon, and his parent's house had a large, welcoming fireplace.
Lighting a fire in the fireplace, Sage dropped beside it with a groan, rubbing gingerly at his sunburned arms. Even though it was summer, the air-conditioning in the hotel was on non-stop, and Sage felt much better when the fire was blazing.
Turning on the tv, Sage channel-surfed for a while before falling asleep beside the fire.
It was past midnight when Sage woke. He looked down at the hot coal that had landed on his leg. Brushing it off with a mutter, Sage rubbed at the reddened mark the coal had left.
"Should put out the fire," Sage mumbled wearily.
A shower of sparks flew from the fire, landing on Sage. He scrambled away with a stifled curse. He stood and brushed furiously at his singed clothes. Satisfied that he was in no danger of catching fire, Sage glared over at the fire.
And froze as he saw the tiny form outlined within the flames. It was cat-like in shape, with a bottle-brush tail. Sage took a step back, rubbing at his eyes to clear them. He must still be asleep and dreaming; there couldn't possibly be some sort of creature in the fire-
But then the form solidified. And hovering from the crackling fire was a strange ~creature~, fox-like in build. Sage knew his mouth had dropped open, but he was too busy pinching his arm to care. He must be imagining things. . .
The fox creature-- red in uniform with orange eyes, ears, stomach and two tiny butterfly-like wings-- yawned, landing before the fire-grate, fixing Sage with a peering look.
"Hello," the thing spoke in a dark, husky voice. Smoke drifted about the creature's nostrils. "My name is Celos. Who are you?"
The plane ride was fairly uneventful. Sakura sat between Li and Julian, and Madison and Shawn sat behind them. Kero, for once, slept through the entire plane ride, safe within the overhead compartment. Sakura was inwardly glad about this, for Kero had never agreed with plane trips, always turning green before the plane had even lifted off.
Julian and Shawn both fell asleep halfway through, and Madison was busy reading with headphones blaring. Sakura decided now was as good a time as any to talk with Li about her worries.
"Li, do you think your mother'll be expecially mad?" Sakura asked with a worried expression.
Li sighed. "She shouldn't, because it's a better reason to go than most. But, Sakura," Li said suddenly, seeing Sakura's worry. "Don't worry about it. I can more than handle my mother if it comes down to it. I'll be fine."
"I'm just worried that she'll demand you come home or something after all this," Sakura whispered fearfully.
Li turned slightly in his seat, his amber eyes locking with Sakura's emerald. "Do you want me to stay with you and the others after all this?" Now it was Li's turn to sound and look worried.
Sakura smiled. "Of course, Li." She dared a quick kiss. "Life wouldn't be the same without you here with me. I love you, Li. That's why I'm so worried you'll leave."
Li smiled softly and took Sakura's hands in his. "I love you, Sakura. I'd never do anything that would hurt you, and I'd never leave you on my free will. I'll always stay with you."
Sakura smiled, her fears laid to rest. "Thank you, Li."
Kero snored and mumbled sleepily, turning inside Sakura's bag and nestling his head against her silk shirt. "Mmmm. . . pop tarts in vats of maple syrup flavored pudding. . .
Yummm. . ."
Sage looked absently down at his black-and-blue arm. No amount of pinching could wake him out of this extremely strange dream. . .
The creature named Celos swung his tail back and forth, leaving wisps of smoke in its wake. "Who are you?" He repeated, not at all impatient.
Sage sighed and gave in. It didn't hurt to go along with dreams. "My name's Sage."
Celos's eyes fairly glowed, his tail swishing back and forth rapidly. "It is good to meet you, Master Sage."
"~Master~ Sage?" Sage repeated in confusion. Celos nodded gravely, bobbing his head in a refined, courtly way.
"You are my Master. Father Time woke me from my sleep, and sent me to find my Master. And you are he, Master."
Sage sighed and dropped into a squashy armchair. "I'm sorry little creature, I'm not your Master. I'm just plain Sage."
Celos shook his head furiously. "Oh no, you ~are~ my Master, you are. And my name is Celos, not little creature." Celos's eyes abruptly saddened. "But if you don't want to be my Master. . ."
"Oh, that's not it at all," Sage said hastily. The poor thing looked on the verge of tears, and Sage didn't like to make anything, not even dream creatures, cry. "It's just that this is a dream and I'm sure to wake up any moment now. Sorry."
Celos smiled suddenly. "But this isn't a dream, Master. Of course it's not. It's all quite real."
Sage smiled patronizingly. "I'm sorry, Celos. Things like you just aren't real. And I know I'm still asleep because if I weren't, then I'd be talking to something out of my imagination and that would mean that I'm going crazy. And I'm not." Sage paused in doubt. "Or, at least I think I'm not."
Celos hovered up on his orange feathery butterfly wings, darting over to Sage.
"Ow!" Sage exclaimed, jumping back, as Celos's tiny front teeth nipped painfully at his fingertip. "What did you do that for?!?"
Celos sat on Sage's knee with a pleased grin. "To show you that you're not dreaming. And you're not crazy. Not too much. Father Time always jokes that all magickers are crazy."
Sage sucked furiously at his burning-hot fingertip, studying Celos as he did so. The fox creature was a pleasant warmth on his knee, but from his flashing eyes and the smoke drifting about his nostrils, Sage had the impression that Celos was hotter than he looked. "Magickers? Now what are you talking about?"
"You and the others like you, Master," Celos said happily, washing at his red-furred face with his front paws, delicately combing his ears with his orange-tipped claws.
"Others like me?" Sage repeated dully. His mind was slowly beginning to whirl. All of those strange things that had been happening to him lately, and now this strange creature's appearance. . .
"You're a sorcerer, Master Sage." Celos said solemnly. "You created me lifetimes ago with your elemental magic. Don't you remember?"
Patience woke with a start.
She sighed as she swung her legs out of her bed. She'd had such a strange past two weeks. . . First that incident with the whispering voices and the wind, then the meeting with Sage, and then the mysterious repair of her now favorite Mercedes Lackey book. . . Not to mention the strange dreams she'd been having as of late.
What had Father Time been talking with her about in this dream? Patience tried to remember each dream after she woke so she could write it down in her journal. She was keeping careful track of every strange occurance.
Now she remembered! He'd been saying something about the new teachers, and something about creating a magic-creature. . .
Patience sighed and hurriedly wrote the dream down under the day's date. She wouldn't worry about it. Dreams were harmless. She should worry about the other strange things that had been happening not only her, but Hope as well. . .
Just yesterday Hope had told her that while she was out in the woods, she had begun sketching a jaunty blue-bird. Halfway through the sketch, the bird began hopping along the branch and out of sight.
In dismay, Hope had called out to the bird to "please stay still for only a moment longer!" It was much to her surprise when the bird seemed to freeze in half hop, almost unnaturally. She had hurriedly finished her sketching and hurried off, somewhat spooked by the strange occurance.
And then there was the near-accident Hope had barely avoided. It still sent shivers up and down Patience's spine when she thought about it.
Hope had been exploring when the rocks had begun to tumble down the hillside she was walking beside. Hope had heard the rocks just in time, and had barely managed to dive out of the way. Or so she had told Jade and Josuah. But Hope had secretly confided in Patience that the rocks had been seconds away from overtaking her. She actually told Patience that she had screamed out in fear, throwing up her arms in a vain attempt for protection. And the rocks had miraculously veered away at the last second, even though Hope was positive there was no natural reason why they should.
All in all, strange things were happening quicker than Patience was willing to deal with.
Sakura sighed as she stretched and looked about with shining eyes, out the windows of the bustling airport.
"Wow! How beautiful! So this is Colorado?"
Julian nodded with equally shining eyes. "Sort of breathtaking, isn't it?"
"So where are these three new Powers living at the moment?" Madison whispered to Sakura. She paused, eyes closed, and ran a hand across a giant map of Colorado pasted on a wall.
"Here," Sakura said, opening her eyes to look down at the tiny city her finger had landed on. "Rocky Woods."
"Then let's get going and not waste any time," Li said.
Sakura nodded with a look of adventure about her eyes. "I can't wait to meet them!"
Rocky Woods is a fictional city, and I'm sorry if the name was lame. My brain was more fizzled than usual while I was writing this chap, so nothing's as good as I wanted it.
*SIGH* O-well, at least I tried.
Do you like? Any problems with it? If so, write and complain, er, I mean, suggest some different ideas to me.
Next chap's got the CCS Gang meeting the three new Powers, ghosts that aren't really ghosts, and Yue scaring the *BLEEP* out of Patience.
Stay tuned folks! Love, y'all! *(^-^)*