Settling of Scores by firestar385. A Cardcaptor Sakura story.
Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing the Cardcaptor Sakura characters, who belong to CLAMP. Plot and original characters belong to me. None of this is making me any money. Any similarities to other works is strictly a coincidence. All mistakes are mine.
Reviewers, I thank you. Please enjoy this next chapter.
CHAPTER TWELVE
The room where the hearing was to be held was dark and dusty. On three sides of the room were pew-like benches, three rows deep. These seats were filled with elders of the Li Clan. In one corner was a slightly raised platform with a wingback chair where sat the elder in charge of the proceedings, though there wasn't an actual judge. Yelan would have normally sat in that chair as the head of the Clan, but since it was her son being questioned she had to take a seat in the witness stands. In the center of the room was a slightly raised dais where Li Xiaolang stood, waiting nervously for the questioning to begin.
This was the second time Syaoran had stood on that dais, though the first time had been when he was given the sacred duty of collecting the Clow Cards and bringing them back to his Clan. That had been an exciting time. Now, the boy wasn't quite sure what to expect. Even though he knew that he had done nothing to deserve his being disinherited, many of the elders were his uncles or mother's cousins, who would much rather see their own sons as heir to the entire clan.
The elder in charge of the proceedings stood up at exactly noon and started the ceremonial proceedings. It was a big deal that the heir had been disowned, so much care had to be given to tradition in dealing with the situation. As the elder droned on in ancient Cantonese, Syaoran felt himself becoming more and more nervous. He glanced briefly over to where Sakura and Eriol were seated. Sakura gave him a very warm and supportive smile and simply exuded an aura of everything will be all right. Eriol, on the other hand, rolled his eyes and looked exceedingly bored. Syaoran forced himself not to smirk.
Just before entering the dark and dusty room, the three teenagers had met Yelan. The older Chinese woman had raised an eyebrow triumphantly when she saw the scowling reincarnation of Clow Reed. However, Syaoran pushed into the room, dragging Eriol with him, before she could comment on his presence after his adamant refusal during breakfast.
Inside the room, some of the elders had objected to the strange boy's presence at the closed hearing. Eriol, thinking it would be the perfect opportunity to get out of the whole charade without technically breaking his promise to Syaoran, opened his mouth to apologize and then flee. Yelan grabbed his shoulder and forced him to face the whole assembly before confidently telling everyone exactly who he was. It took almost all of Eriol's self control to not let his extreme anger at Syaoran's mother show on his face as more and more interested looks came his way.
Then, one of the elders had suggested that Eriol sit in the seat of highest honor since he was the reincarnation of their greatest ancestor. Eriol refused, saying, "I will sit with Ying Fa or nowhere." Unlike Yelan, the elders decided to honor the wishes of their greatest ancestor and allowed him to remain with the Card Mistress.
It did not escape Eriol's notice that Fujitaka was not in attendance.
"Li Yelan," boomed the elder in charge of the hearing. "As Clan Head, you disowned Li Xiaolang with no trial and no input from any of the older elders. What was your reason for this?"
The woman in question stood up confidently. "Li Xiaolang had been unknowingly put under a spell that progressively weakened him to the point of imminent death. He was very ill. Due to the fact that I did not learn of his illness until it was quite progressed, I had no choice but to break the spell by severing his blood link to Clow Reed." Eriol ignored her sharp glance in his direction. "I did it to save his life."
"Li Xiaolang, do you have anything to say to Li Yelan's account of what happened?"
"No. It is as she said," Syaoran replied seriously.
"Then why is it that you have asked for an audience with the elders?"
"I would like to be reinstated as the heir to the Li Clan now that the spell has been broken. It was nothing that I did wrong that resulted in my expulsion," he said confidently, reciting the words his mother had given him the night before.
"Then the elders shall retire to discuss your request. We will reconvene in fifteen minutes." At his words, all of the elders stood and shuffled out of their seats towards the door that would lead to the private discussion room.
"That's it?" Sakura asked incredulously in a low voice.
"This whole farce is ridiculous," Eriol told her. "They already know what they are going to do and like Syaoran said, he didn't do anything to deserve being disowned. They're putting him through this charade for no good reason."
"You really dislike the Lis, don't you, Eriol-kun?" Sakura's tone was full of worry. She loved Syaoran will all of her heart, but did she want to marry into his family?
"Most of them have good intentions. They're just bogged down in centuries of pointless tradition and ceremony. They are very proud. Do not worry, it is a good choice to marry Syaoran-kun. Just make sure to keep him from becoming as stuffy as these elders."
"I will."
"Besides," Eriol continued in a lighter tone, "the Reeds are just as bad. They're English." This caused Sakura to laugh lightly.
"What do you think will happen to Syaoran-kun?" she asked, serious again. She looked over to where her boyfriend was watching them, wishing that he could be a part of their conversation instead of standing alone in the middle of the daunting room.
"They won't just give everything back to him," Eriol answered. "They'll probably make him prove himself worthy of rejoining the clan by defeating whoever cast the spell on him or something."
"I know that Syaoran-kun can do it," Sakura said with determination.
"Hm," Eriol replied unenthusiastically. The problem was, if that was the case, both he and Syaoran would be trying to defeat the same magician, and only one of them could actually do that. It would take some serious thought as to how they could both come out victors.
The elders filed back into the room and took their seats again. The rest of the hearing played out almost exactly as Eriol had predicted. As Syaoran stood nervously on his dais, the elder presiding over the hearing stood to deliver the verdict. "Being disowned from the Clan is a serious matter, despite the reason behind it. Therefore, it is not within the elder's power to simply return all the rights and privileges to a disowned member. Li Xiaolang, you must prove yourself worthy of your claim to your title and the Li magic. To do this, you must defeat the one who cast this spell on you."
"I understand," Syaoran replied solemnly.
"Then this audience is adjourned," the elder declared. Syaoran bowed respectfully and then darted off the dais toward where his friends were sitting. Sakura stood up to throw her arms around his neck.
"This is good, isn't it?" she asked him.
"I think so," Syaoran replied. "Did you understand what was being said?"
"Eriol-kun helped," she explained. "This isn't what we hoped for, though." Her face saddened.
"It was predictable," Eriol put in his two cents. "Let's go." He was very aware of the hoard of Li elders who were headed their way.
"Okay," Syaoran agreed. It was time to uphold his end of the bargain and he didn't like the stuffy room, anyway. Eriol cast a simple concealment spell since his cover was blown anyway and the three teenagers escaped from the room.
Syaoran slipped into Eriol's room a few minutes after they had parted ways to change into regular street clothes. The English boy was waiting for him. "We should go now," Syaoran said quickly in Japanese. "My mother is already looking for you, as are the elders we slipped away from at the hearing."
"Lead the way," Eriol said in Cantonese to switch the conversation to Syaoran's native language. He swept his arm towards the door.
"Will you cast another concealing spell?"
"I thought you were an expert at escaping this place."
"When I'd use my own concealing spell," Syaoran answered.
"Fine, but I'm breaking the spell as soon as we step outside of the protective wards."
"That's all I need," Syaoran replied cheekily. Eriol cast the spell and the two of them snuck from the room.
"So," Syaoran started conversationally once they had passed the barrier of the Li shield and Eriol dropped his concealment spell. "Do you have a bad feeling about this outing?" At first, the Chinese teen had thought it had to do with sneaking away from his mother and girlfriend and going against his future father-in-law's wishes, but now that they were actually on their way, those were the last thoughts plaguing him. He had a strange sense that it would be a long time before he saw his Hong Kong mansion again.
"Yes," Eriol answered, not making eye contact with his partner in crime. "If we survive this, I'm sure Ruby Moon and Spinel Sun will kill me for leaving them behind."
"If we survive this?" Syaoran squeaked and instantly turned pink since he does not squeak. "You feel that badly about this trip?"
Eriol shrugged. "You probably don't have anything to worry about."
"Wait, stop," Syaoran ordered, grabbing Eriol's arm. "Are you being serious or just teasing me again?"
"About what?"
"Don't play dumb. What exactly are you expecting to happen at the university?"
"I don't know what to expect, Xiaolang. However, in order to see this memory, I'm sure it will take a fairly complex spell since I'm not a blood relation to Clow. So, it will draw that mad magician, wherever he is, straight to us. I'm gambling that he's far enough away that we can leave before he reaches us," Eriol explained.
"But why, if we survive this?"
Eriol sighed and decided to be honest with his cute descendent for once. "This magician that is following me?"
"Yeah?"
"He is the one who cast that spell on you," Eriol admitted.
"What!" Predictably, Syaoran was furious. "Were you ever planning on telling me that?" he practically yelled, despite their need for secrecy.
"Maybe," Eriol hedged. Syaoran tackled him to the ground and they rolled back and forth on the gravel until Syaoran managed to pin the slightly taller boy. His anger had given him an advantage over Eriol's surprise.
"You are such a liar!" Syaoran accused him. "I almost died and you don't think I deserved to know who was trying to kill me? I don't even know why he tried to kill me!" He shook Eriol's shoulders. The English boy had to hold his head up to keep it from smacking on the pavement below them.
"Let me explain!" Eriol cried, unable to dislodge his ferocious descendent.
"You always lie to me! You're probably going to lie again! So just shut up and let me kill you myself!" Syaoran raged.
"Stop it!" Eriol hissed. He summoned enough magical energy to force Syaoran off of him and scrambled to his feet. He grabbed Syaoran by the front of his shirt and hauled the shorter boy into a dark corner where he pushed him up against the wall. "I promise not to lie to you for the next five minutes, okay? Besides, you're causing a scene!"
"You are causing the scene," Syaoran retorted weakly. Eriol released his hold on the Chinese boy and took a step back.
"Look, the reason I said 'if we survive this' and then said that you probably didn't have anything to worry about is because of that spell he cast on you. He was trying to kill me. Me. But he got the spell wrong, and cast it on a blood descendent of Clow, which I am not, but you are. Except for that detail, you and I fit most of the same parameters, namely age and gender. I didn't even know that he was casting the spell until just before your mother broke it. By then, it didn't matter anymore, did it? He wasn't trying to kill you, Xiaolang."
"I still have a right to know who's casting spells on me and why, even if it is by mistake," Syaoran growled.
"Well, now you do. And now, you know who you're supposed defeat or whatever bull your Clan is forcing on you to get your inheritance back."
Syaoran moved away from the wall and brushed off the front of his shirt from their brief tussle. "Okay. If you know that this mad magician is trying to kill you, then why are walking right into his hands by going to see this memory card?" He eyed Eriol critically.
"The only way to make sure that he doesn't cast any more spells erroneously on my friends is to stop him. I know that you think the world would be a better place without me, but I actually want to live a little longer. So, I need to know what I'm up against. If this memory is of that magician, maybe I can figure out why he is after me."
"I don't think that," Syaoran mumbled in reference to Eriol's statement that the world would be better without him, looking a little abashed.
"Thank you."
"Hm." Syaoran paused to think. "I guess we should go see that memory again. But from now on, Hiiragizawa, you have to keep me informed. We both have a grudge against this guy now and no one said that you have to stop him on your own. Once I get my magic back, we'll definitely be able to take on one stupid idiot."
Eriol opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but then closed it again. Eventually he said, "Let's go then." They resumed their trek towards the university. Syaoran kept his eyes open for anyone suspicious looking and Eriol kept his senses on high alert for a yellow aura.
They reached the university without incident, which surprised both of the teenagers. Syaoran led the way to the office where he and Fujitaka had met with the professor Yi Liang. They were dismayed to see that his door was closed and the office was dark.
"Should we wait?" Syaoran asked, glancing down the hall in either direction. Eriol shrugged. He picked up one of the magazines laying on a side table in the waiting area. It was a scientific magazine sporting an article on the cover about the uses of polymeric materials in advanced medicine. Syaoran, taking his cues from the other boy, found a similar magazine and sat down in one of the chairs.
They only had to wait ten minutes before the professor they waited for made his way down the hall towards his office. He wouldn't have even noticed the two boys, who were clearly not old enough to be college students, if Syaoran hadn't been seated in a chair that faced his direction.
"Li Xiaolang!" the professor exclaimed. "Are you feeling better?"
"Yes, thank you," the Chinese boy replied dutifully. "Are you busy now, Professor Yi?"
"I'm never too busy for someone of the Li Clan," the older man answered cheerfully. "What can I do for you? Where is Mr. Kinomoto?"
"It is just me today, Professor Yi, but I brought a friend, Hiiragizawa Eriol. We're both interested in your memory card."
"Of course! Were you able to see the memory after all? I wish I could see it. It would be very interesting to know what naughty secrets the great Clow Reed was hiding, wouldn't it?"
"Er, yes," Syaoran replied hesitantly. "Could we see the memory, again?"
"I don't know," Yi replied, suddenly less accommodating and more plotting. "Your friend doesn't look like he could carry you all the way across Hong Kong like Mr. Kinomoto did if you faint again." Syaoran ground his teeth together at the embarrassing reminder.
"He wants to try to see the memory," Syaoran said when he thought he could control the tone of his voice.
"It's not a toy, Mr. Li. Remember, I told you that only a blood relation of Clow could see the memory. I wouldn't want it to be damaged by being misused."
"We won't hurt it, Professor Yi," Syaoran promised.
"In any case, boys, I really quite busy now. Maybe you could come back another time. Bring Mr. Kinomoto with you." The professor made to unlock the door to his office but his intentions were clear when he hesitated briefly and tried to glance over his shoulder at the Li heir without being obvious. Syaoran clenched his teeth again as he realized the reason for the man's change in attitude.
"If I agreed to have someone from the Li Clan answer some of your questions, would you let us see the memory card again, Professor Yi?" It took all of his self control to not spit out the man's name. He guessed the man's intentions correctly. Suddenly, Professor Yi was very accommodating again.
"That might be an even exchange," he started to agree. Eriol stepped up.
"I'll make you an even better deal, Professor Yi," he said seriously. "I will show you the memory."
"Show me the memory? I don't think you completely understand how these things work, son. Only the person holding the card can see the memory, and then only if that person is a blood relation with great magical capabilities."
"Or if he made the card himself," Eriol added.
"Yes, that too, but Clow Reed isn't with us right now. He died a long time ago."
Eriol glanced down the hall to make sure they were alone before pulling out his key. He held it aloft. "Key with the power of darkness, show me your true power. By the covenant, I, Eriol, command you. RELEASE!" The atmosphere shifted as the strong magic pervaded the small corridor. The tiny key that the magician held grew into a full size staff capped with the symbol of the sun.
"He has reincarnated," Eriol informed the professor.
Yi Liang looked as though he were about to have a heart attack or die of ecstasy, maybe both. He had thought it a lucky day when the heir to the Li Clan had shown up outside his office, but
now he was practically talking to Clow Reed himself. He couldn't believe that his silly horoscope had warned him that he would find trouble at work. He was speechless until Syaoran prodded him to let them into his office. Now that Eriol had unleashed some of his magic, they were in a great hurry.
Syaoran closed the door to the office once the three of them were inside. Yi opened a locked drawer with a key that he kept with himself at all times and pulled out the wooden case that he had stored the memory card in. He handed it to Eriol. Syaoran was minutely disappointment when the other boy didn't fall into a trance immediately like he had done.
"It's not working," said Yi, disappointed. He had been expecting the same reaction as Syaoran. Eriol ignored him and turned to Syaoran instead.
"You said that the memory is not in Cantonese or Japanese?" he confirmed. Syaoran shook his head. "Do you remember any words?" Negative. "Well, it was probably in English then," Eriol deduced. His magic circle formed around his feet again as he prepared to cast the series of spells that he needed. "Memory card," he instructed in English, "show to us what secrets you hold, translated into Cantonese." He threw up the card like Sakura used her Cards. It hovered in the air and Eriol tapped it with his staff. Like a projector, a large image projected from the tiny card onto the wall. It was as Syaoran remembered…
The room was dark, lit only the artificial light of a magicians staff. One man was bound to a stone slab while the person whose memory they were watching looked down on him. The bound man was struggling but he was held in place by many magical runes. Despite his blonde hair falling across his eyes, his features were easily distinguishable.
"I will not let you harm innocent people," said the memory-maker, Clow Reed.
"What right did you have to take my life?"
"It was the right thing to do. I was the only one who could stop you, so I had to do it."
"I will not be destroyed by this."
"I am sure you will finally be put to rest in the future."
"Can you not do it yourself, oh mighty Clow?"
"There is someone else better for the job."
"You will pay for this, Clow Reed. I promise!"
A flash of light and the angry voice was silenced. Stone closed over the still form of a man, his face still set in a scowl, even in death. Magical runes were etched into the stone and then a slip of blue paper came into sight. Another blinding light and then darkness.
The card fluttered to Eriol's outstretched hand. Eriol's expression was guarded but Syaoran could read him well enough to know that something in the memory had bothered him. "Well?" the Chinese heir asked quietly.
"It's him," Eriol whispered in response, his gray eyes still fixed on the now blank wall. "This is why I have no memory of him. Clow made all of his memories into memory cards."
"That was extraordinary," Yi Liang said breathlessly. His face broke into a wide smile. "Could you play it again?"
"I thought it wasn't a toy," Syaoran commented skeptically.
"Well, this boy obviously knows what he is doing," Yi argued jovially. "Are you really the reincarnation of Clow Reed?"
"Yes," Eriol replied grudgingly.
"Oh, I know someone else who would love to meet you! In fact, I have an appointment with him in just a few minutes. He is on a trip here from England and he's been studying Clow Reed for many years. Who better to ask than the wizard himself?"
Eriol and Syaoran looked at each other in alarm. Syaoran quickly turned to the professor to make their excuses. "I'm sorry, sir, but we really have to leave. We are expected somewhere else."
"Oh, it will only take a minute," Yi argued. There was a knock on the door. "See, there he is. He's even early. It was meant to be that you should meet this afternoon."
"We need to leave," Syaoran insisted. He glanced around the room for another way out. The window was their only option. He wished that he had his elemental magic so he could summon the wind to gently lower them to the ground outside.
Yi ignored the protests and opened the door to greet the researcher. "Boys, I would like you to meet Mr. Edward Winston, from London, England. Mr. Winston, this is Li Xiaolang, the boy I was telling you about. The heir to the Li Clan. And this is Hiiragizawa Eriol - isn't that what you said?"
"It is nice to meet you, Li Xiaolang," the Englishman said smoothly with a charming smile. "Since coming to Hong Kong, I have learned much about the importance of the Li family to this area. Eriol, I believe we have already met, back in London."
"You know each other already? Then you must know who Mr. Hiiragizawa really is, Mr. Winston." Yi was amused that the two knew each other before that day, but then he realized that England was really quite small compared to China.
"I do," Mr. Winston said, a dark smile crossing his face.
tbc...
Dun dun dun... So, we're getting into a hopefully more exciting part. Please let me know what you thought.
Also, I'm going appologize in advance... Chapter Thirteen is short. But, I'll try to put Fourteen up relatively quickly to make up for it.
