Disclaimer: CCS doesn't belong to me (but if it belongs to you and you're willing to sell something, let me know! ^^ j/k).
The Forbidden Clow Chapter 6: When All Else Fails, Clap Your Hands
The entire classroom seemed frozen, as if time and space weren't affecting it. Both teens just stared at each other like their eyes were glued to the spot. Syaoran took a deep breath, breaking the silence.
"S-Sakura?"
She blinked back at him, almost like she was trying to figure something out. Then she stood up slowly, still gazing at him with a confused expression.
"I thought I..."
Both Card Captors' attentions were suddenly focused to Sakura's desk, where a glowing card lay. Sakura picked it up, as the glow died away and gasped.
"It's the Cupid Card!" she realized, "But how?"
She looked toward Syaoran, who seemed every bit as puzzled as she was. They examined the card carefully, hoping to maybe find a clue about how it was sealed. Instead, the face of a young fair-haired boy holding a bow and arrow greeted them. The image wore a white toga-like garment with a red sash and a matching red tie around his head. Syaoran and Sakura looked to each other, to the card, back and forth, back and forth.
"Did it...do...?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. Do you feel any different?"
Sakura pondered this, before giving him a frown. "Not one teeny bit."
He raised an eyebrow at her and gave the card a weird look. "Maybe it's a fake or something." he suggested.
Sakura shook her head. "I don't think so. It's got the aura of a Clow Card."
Syaoran looked confused. "I thought you couldn't feel the auras of these Clow Cards?"
"After they're sealed, they give their power to me." Sakura explained, "Then I can feel their auras."
Syaoran closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment. "Hmm...Yeah, you're right. I can feel them too."
Sakura ignored him and looked from left to right. "Syaoran-kun...do you hear that?"
He followed her gaze around the room. "Hear what?"
They both stood in silence for a moment, trying to catch any abnormal sounds.
"Safurrraaa!!!" came a muffled call.
"It's coming from your backpack!" Syaoran realized.
Sakura quickly threw her backpack onto her desk and opened it up. Kero's dizzy golden head popped out, looking oxygen deprived. "What took you so long?" the guardian snapped, crawling onto her desk.
Sakura put her hands on her hips. "How was I supposed to know that you stole away in my backpack today?!"
"Gomen. Anyway...WHAT THE??!!" Kero's beady eyes suddenly grew larger. "Sakura! Where's your blindfold!? You were supposed to keep that on!"
Instead of replying to the frantic stuffed animal, Sakura pulled out the Cupid Card and held it right up to his face.
Kero suddenly became proud. "Ah! You sealed it! Well done Sakura!"
Sakura sighed. "That's just it, Kero-chan. I don't know HOW I sealed it!"
"Well, what happened?" Kero asked.
Sakura felt her face take on a rosy hue of warmth. "Well, I was laughing...and then the blindfold fell off, and I kind of...accidentally looked at Syaoran-kun..." Sakura said softly, careful to avoid looking at Syaoran.
"NANI!?" Kero shouted, "So now you're..."
Sakura waved her hands in front of her nervously. "Whoa Kero-chan, calm down. It didn't work."
Kero raised a tiny eyebrow. "What do you mean 'it didn't work'?" he questioned.
"Just like I said, I don't feel any different at all."
Kero flew into the air, crossing his arms. "Then this can only mean one thing!" he announced.
Sakura and Syaoran blinked at him. "And that would be...?" they asked simultaneously, leaving the question hanging open.
"Sakura, it can only mean that you're already in love w-"
Sakura quickly wrapped both her hands around the tiny creature's mouth, to prevent it from spilling her secret. "Jeez Kero-chan, what are you talking about?" Sakura laughed nervously then lowered her tone so only Kero could hear, "Not one more word about that or you can kiss dessert tonight goodbye." Kero made a little noise that sounded like a gasp and nodded his head. Then Sakura let him go, gasping for breath.
"Hello over there!" Syaoran said, waving his hand in an annoyed fashion, "I'm still here. Could you please repeat that?"
Kero opened his little mouth to speak, but quickly shut it as he caught a death glare from Sakura.
"Nevermind, Syaoran-kun! It wasn't important." Sakura assured, trying to fake another laugh.
Syaoran didn't seem to buy it. He frowned, crossing his arms over his chest in disbelief. "You could at least tell me what he said."
Sakura gave Kero a conk on the head. "He doesn't know what he's talking about, too many years cooped up in that Clow Book must have made him go crazy!"
Syaoran rolled his eyes, giving up. "Whatever."
*****************************************
"So you still won't tell me what that stuffed animal told you?"
Sakura offered him a small smile. "Please understand, Syaoran-kun, I can't." she pleaded, "For now at least, I can't tell you." 'But hopefully I'll have the courage to someday…' she thought.
Kero suddenly flew out from Sakura's slightly-open backpack, facing the two young Card Captors. "I sense a black Clow Card..." he reported, tiny eyes darting back and forth.
Sakura stopped in her tracks, as did Syaoran. "Where? Which one?"
"It's nearby." Kero answered, "But I can't tell which one it is."
Syaoran went on the defensive, releasing his sword while standing protectively in front of Sakura. "Whatever it is, it's going to have to get through me first." he stated firmly.
As if in answer to his challenge, a blue flash of light rammed into Syaoran, knocking him down face-first on the sidewalk, then disappearing without a trace.
Sakura was to his side in an instant. "Syaoran-kun! Are you alright?" she asked, kneeling down beside his fallen form. He groaned in reply, then...laughed.
'He's laughing?' Sakura thought, trying to get a look at his face, which still seemed to be lying on the pavement.
He suddenly turned around without warning, a maniacal grin spread across his face, still chuckling silently. Sakura fell back on her bottom in surprise. "Syaoran-kun...?" she whispered, feeling a sudden chill.
Syaoran stood up quickly, reaching for his dormant sword.
"Sakura! Don't let him get a hold of his sword!" Kero shouted desperately.
Sakura went to kick the sword with her left foot, but he picked it up before she had the chance. He loomed over her, no longer laughing, but still grinning. He raised his sword, ready to attack, and Sakura just sat there wide-eyed and frozen, like a deer caught in the headlights.
"SAKURA! MOVE NOW!!" Kero shouted.
Sakura blinked just as realization hit her and rolled out of the way just as the sword came down with a *clank* where she had just been. She barely had time to blink before he came charging at her, taking another swing. Thankfully he missed. Sakura slowly got to her feet and quickly leapt to her right side, dodging another rough swing.
"Kero-chan! What's wrong with Syaoran?!" Sakura cried out, trying to run away from him.
"I think the Chinese gaki is temporarily insane!" Kero replied.
"What do we do!?"
Kero looked to be trying to pull some of the hair out of his head. "I-I don't know! I don't remember this card!" Kero answered, "For now, RUN!"
Sakura stopped her feeble attempts at dodging and changed tactic, darting for the park. She looked behind her as she ran, only to find the crazy Syaoran still on her trail.
"Kero-chan! Why is he following me?!" Sakura pouted.
"Probably because you're the first thing he saw after the card took control of him." the miniature guardian beast replied, "So you're kind of the target."
"Hoe?!"
"There's no need to be worried, Sakura. You just-"
"I'm worried about Syaoran!" Sakura interrupted.
"The Chinese gaki is chasing you around with a sword and you're worried about HIM?!"
"HAI! Kami-sama knows what that card did to him..." she spoke sadly.
Kero patted his mistress's shoulder. "No need to worry, Sakura. The gaki is going to be just fine."
He stopped and glanced behind them. "He just needs your help to seal the card." Kero said comfortingly.
'That's right...I've got to help Syaoran.' Sakura thought.
"Kero-chan, listen up!" she yelled, "Go back home and get the cards!"
"Which ones?" Kero asked.
"The new ones, the white ones. As soon as you have them, bring them to the park." Sakura instructed.
Kero nodded and flew off down the street.
Sakura halted midrun and turned to face the card-affected Syaoran. "Okay Syaoran, be a good boy and follow me." she said, trying to lead him into the park. It seemed to be working. The seemingly-possessed boy was following right along behind Sakura, closer and closer to the park entrance. He was gripping his sword tensely and grinning, ready to charge at a moment's notice.
Without warning, Sakura turned and dashed into the park, making a sharp right as she entered. Staying completely silent against the entrance wall, she only had to wait a few seconds before Syaoran's figure came running in after her. She took this opportunity to get lunge at clueless crazy guy, in an attempt get the sword away from him.
But the plan backfired. Syaoran caught sight of her before she could reach the sword and took a swing at her before she could manage to stop her momentum or block the oncoming blow. She let a tiny cry out as the sword sliced open the side of her right arm. Cradling the newly injured arm, she ran further into the park in some hopes of losing him. 'I just need another chance to get his weapon away.' she thought, wincing a little from the pain in her arm.
She could hear Syaoran somewhere behind, slashing at metal, wood, whatever got in his way. 'How do you capture a card like this?' she thought, making her way over to the swing sets, 'Does Syaoran have to prove something to it on his own?'
She approached the abandoned swings, Syaoran following closely after her. They played a little game of cat and mouse, running around the swings. That ended quickly after Syaoran chopped through the swingset bars, causing the whole thing to tumble down. Sakura didn't have many places left to go. She saw King Penguin in the distance, and decided to take her chances with climbing it. It would be a lot easier to fend off Syaoran from on top the penguin's head. Making a quick left, she sprinted toward the large blue and white penguin.
'Dammit Kero-chan...Where are you?' she thought, pausing for a moment to pick a long stick up off the ground.
Before the wild Syaoran could completely catch up with her, she began climbing up the penguin one-handed. 'Now if I can just make it to the top...'
*CLANG* *Clik Clak Clik Clak*
'Damn...' she cursed mentally.
She looked down, despite her best efforts not to, to see Syaoran following her up the ladder. She took a deep breath and quickened her pace. She faulted slightly in pain, as the tip of his sword caught her ankle, but pushed her way to the top successfully. Then with newfound confidence, she turned to her attacker, rotting wooden stick facing toward the approaching warrior. He came to the top step of the slide and blinked at the stick she was holding out threateningly in front of her.
Then he started laughing at the useless weapon she held in her defense. Sakura shook slightly, but held her ground. "D-don't make me use this, Syaoran." she warned.
He laughed some more and sliced the stick into about ten pieces, leaving Sakura holding about two inches of wood in her trembling hands.
Just as he was about to bring the sword down on her, a familiar yellow creature came flying to the rescue, just in the knick of time. He managed to drop the cards into the top of the penguin where Sakura was standing and then faulted the incoming blow of the sword, by getting smacked by the hilt. Syaoran teetered from the block and fell back onto the ground with a thud.
Sakura peered over the edge to make sure he was alright. He apparently was, because he was on his feet again. She quickly checked on Kero, but he seemed to be unconscious.
Turning back to her protector-turned-attacker, she quickly pulled out the star key. As he was trying to make his way back up the slide again, she called forth her wand and quickly searched through the cards for an idea.
'That's it!' she thought, standing to full height.
"REFLEX CARD!" she called, slamming her wand into the image of the fox, "RELEASE!"
The gleaming white animal appeared and waited for further instructions. Sakura pointed to angry Syaoran with her index finger. "Humble him by the clap of my hands." she said.
The card bowed its head and magically enveloped Syaoran in white light. Then Sakura clapped, and Syaoran went flying off the slide and onto the ground, landing on his butt. Sakura laughed at the look of utter surprise etched onto his face. 'Now all I have to do is keep this up until Syaoran can seal the Card.' she thought with relief.
Sakura gathered her cards and carefully made her way down the slide, coming to a stop near the no-longer-grinning Syaoran. He got up quickly and charged at her again, but she simply clapped her hands and he fell back down again.
It continued on like that for awhile. Syaoran would charge at her and she would clap her hands, making him fall back down. It wasn't until after a few minutes of this that Sakura realized something.
With every clap, the Reflex Card was taking a substantial amount of her magical energy. And she was starting to feel tired.
She stood defiantly, clapping her hands again, refusing to give in to the increasing fatigue. If she wanted to help Syaoran, she had to keep this up. But it didn't seem to be helping much. It was almost as if he became even more determined after every fall. Like he knew that she was becoming weaker from the use of the card.
With another clap, she fell to her knees, unable to support the injured ankle any longer. No...She couldn't give up now; she had to keep going. No matter how much her body was screaming, she couldn't let Syaoran down. She had to buy him the time to prove himself to the card. 'Would Syaoran ever give up?' she thought. She felt a small smile cross her face. No, Syaoran would never give up, ever. He would go to the bitter end if he had to. He was strong. Sakura lifted her head up in newfound courage.
She had to be strong too.
Ever so slowly, Sakura lifted herself up to her feet again, refusing to back down. 'C'mon Syaoran...I know you're in there somewhere. Fight this! I'll do whatever is in my power to help.'
Being careful of her ankle, she started backing up. The more time she could stall him, the better. The crazed Syaoran growled in frustration and lifted his body of the grass of the park, coming full force at the Card Mistress again. Sakura inhaled deeply and clapped her hands as hard as she could.
To her amazement, not only did Syaoran fall down a little harder, but he went flying back about twenty yards. 'That ought to hold him for a little while.' she thought, limping toward a tree in the distance.
She winced from the horrible pain in her arm. It was searing, like it was burning in an internal fire. Approaching the tree, she heard a groan in the distance. Apparently the fall didn't affect Syaoran too much. She was thankful for that, if he had been hurt, it would have been her fault. She couldn't live with that kind of guilt.
When she reached the tree, she turned around to face him. No worries, if he got too close, she would clap again. He approached a little more slowly this time, a little more cautious of Sakura's power. She raised her hands in warning and he took an unsure step back.
"That's right you crazy card! Just stay back." she voiced, "If you stay where you are, I won't clap."
The card controlling Syaoran's body paid no attention to her and started walking forward again. Sakura frowned. 'It's not going to back down.' she realized.
As the he came closer, he broke into a trot. Then a run. Sakura took a deep breath and held it. Ignoring the pain that shot through her right arm, she mustered up all the strength she possibly could.
Syaoran came to an abrupt stop, bracing himself for the incoming fall.
*CLAP*
..........Silence.
Sakura blinked in abrupt realization.
It didn't work.
The imposter in Syaoran blinked a few times too, staring at her in confusion. Then it grinned, coming forward with its sword poised above its head. Sakura inhaled sharply.
"Wha...What?"
She clapped again.
Still nothing.
Again and again and again and....nothing. The insane Syaoran began to chuckle as he got closer and closer. 'I'm out of magic!' she realized, falling to the ground, 'Now what can I do?'
She looked up to see Syaoran's body hanging over her, prepared to deliver the final blow. She gazed into his fiery amber eyes, trying desperately to reach her secret beloved within them. But she couldn't reach him. His eyes were reflecting with a strange blue light, hiding the true amber color too deep for her to get to. If this was it, she was ready to face it. She just wished she could have done more to help him.
'I'm sorry, Syaoran...I tried.'
As the sword began its heavy descend, she shut her eyes tightly, awaiting her impending death......waiting for the cold steel to pierce her skin.
But it never came.
She opened one eye in question and gasped. Syaoran seemed frozen in place, not even moving an inch. And the blade of the sword was just centimeters from reaching her head. She stayed where she was, risking a shaky gaze up at him. His eyes were opened widely, looking down on her in surprise.
"Syao.......ran?" she asked weakly, struggling to get the name out.
He blinked at her and then gasped, throwing his weapon aside. "Sakura!?"
She smiled up at him shakily. "Syaoran....you're alright?"
Without wasting a precious second, she gathered what was left of her energy and hugged him around the legs. "I'm...glad...I was...so worried..." she breathed.
Syaoran bent down to return the hug, but she had passed out. That's when he saw her profusely-bleeding arm.
He panicked. "Oh KAMI-SAMA...Wh-What happened!?!?"
Realizing how quickly she was losing blood, he gently placed her on the ground and removed his uniform shirt. He did his best to tie it as a bandage for her arm, applying pressure to halt the bleeding. He paused for a moment and got to his feet, going to retrieve his sword. About three feet from it, he stopped.
It had blood smeared on it.
His mind was racing. No....no....NO! He had hurt his angel, his goddess, his beloved! He had taken too long in proving his strength to the still-nameless card. And now the lovely green-eyed angel had suffered for it.
"Why?...Why!?" he yelled.
He stopped yelling abruptly, noticing something that was lodged underneath the hilt of the sword. It was a Clow Card. He squinted in the dimming light of the park to get a better look.
The Possession.
He barely resisted the urge to tear it in half. 'Baka Card!' he cursed mentally, jamming it into his pocket.
'How low can a card go?' he thought, changing his sword back into a pendant, 'Using me to attack Sakura...'
Placing the pendant over his head, he ran back to Sakura's side, gently picking her limp form into his arms, being extra careful not to upset her.
He couldn't bring her home like this. Fujitaka and Tomoyo would ask too many questions, and Toya...he didn't even want to know what Toya would do to him. 'Not like I don't deserve it.' he thought shamefully, brushing back a few locks of her honey auburn hair.
He looked down at her pale face, trailing his fingers down the side of her cheek. 'I'll make it up to you, my cherry blossom.' he vowed silently, 'I'll wait on you hand and foot until you're a hundred percent better, and I'll never leave you un-protected again.'
He lifted her up a little farther and tilted his head down to hers, kissing her lips softly. "I promise." he whispered gently into her ear.
*****************************************
The scent that woke Sakura attacked her senses in bliss. It was all around her, that sweet, tangible smell that she could never get enough of.
Cinnamon.
It was Syaoran's scent. Sweet and strong at the same time. She could smell it in the blanket she was clutching to, the pillow, the whole area that surrounded her was filled with it.
'Wait a minute...blanket?...pillow?'
She opened her eyes into the light of the room, squinting against the brightness of the sun. 'Where am I?'
Wrapped in a green blanket, the smell of cinnamon and the faint smell of honey hovering in the air...this definitely wasn't her room. But she felt strangely secure here, just sitting up in the cherry-wood bed. She suddenly felt a jolt of pain go through her arm and moaned softly. Looking down at her arm, she gasped. The entire thing had been bandaged. But who had taken care of her? Where were they now? Where was Syaoran? Was he okay?
The large oak door suddenly swung open, revealing a tray, closely followed by a handsome young man. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she looked again. Not just any handsome young man, he had messy brown hair, gorgeous sunset-amber eyes...
"Syaoran!" she gasped.
He walked into the room and sat on the bed next to her, placing a tray on her lap. "Are you feeling better?" he questioned, his tone voicing his concern.
She nodded, unable to get any words to come out of her mouth.
He gestured toward the tray. "I brought you breakfast." he said, "There's a nice warm mug of honey milk, pancakes, bacon, and some toast."
"Syaoran?"
"Hai?"
"Where am I?"
Syaoran felt his face flush involuntarily. "You're in my room."
Sakura blushed too, realizing where she had been sleeping and why she could smell cinnamon. "A-arigato." she voiced softly, "For making breakfast, taking care of me, and letting me stay here."
"That's the very least I could do." Syaoran replied with regret, turning his head away, "After what I've done."
Sakura placed a kind hand on his shoulder. "It wasn't your fault, it was the card that did it." she assured, "Forget about it."
He gave her a tiny smile in reply, and she smiled back whole-heartedly.
"Did you seal the card then?" Sakura asked.
"Hai." he answered, pointing to the nightstand, "It's over there."
Being careful not to spill the tray, she reached over to the little table and took the card. "The Possession." she read outloud.
She placed the card back on the nightstand and turned back to Syaoran and smiled. "I'm glad you weren't hurt."
"It would have been better me than you." he muttered to himself.
"How did you seal it?" Sakura asked curiously.
Syaoran's face started to burn an unhealthy red color. "Ano, I...It's hard to ex-explain." he stuttered, then decided to change the topic, "You should eat before the food gets cold."
She nodded and picked up the mug of honey milk, faltering slightly as pain shot through her injured arm. Syaoran's blush quickly died away and he held a hand out toward her.
"Need some help?" Syaoran asked, placing one hand on the bottom of the cup to steady it for her.
"I-Iie. I think I've got it."
Syaoran's hands insisted on helping guide the cup anyway. He didn't let go until she put it back down. He made a move to help her eat the rest of the food, but she pushed his hand away. "Syaoran, I'm not a baby."
He smirked. "You were once."
She playfully smacked his arm with her good hand. "Don't even start."
She sighed and stretched out her arms a little. "You should go get yourself some breakfast, I'll be fine on my own."
He seemed to silently agree and took his weight off the bed, heading for the door. "I'll be back to check on you in a little while." he said, walking into the hall, while leaving the door slightly ajar.
Sakura looked down at the tray of assorted breakfast foods and took the fork in her left hand. She tried spearing a piece of her pancake, but she kept dropping the fork. 'The one time I wish I was a lefty.' she thought with a groan. She tried using her right hand, but it hurt way too much.
"I knew you would have trouble."
She abruptly dropped the fork again and turned to the doorway.
There stood Syaoran leaning against the frame, a smug smile on his face. She felt her face go red in embarrassment, realizing what a klutz he must think she was. "How long have you been there?" she questioned.
He shrugged and walked back to the bedside. "Long enough to see that you need help." he stated.
She was about to protest, but he quickly took the fork and from its position and brought the food up to her mouth. "Open the hatch so the plane can go in." he teased in a baby voice.
Sakura mocked an angry face. "Mou, Syaoran!"
He chuckled. "I was just kidding. I'm only trying to help."
"I know." she admitted, biting off the piece of waiting pancake.
Syaoran was anxiously awaiting her reaction as she chewed.
"Yummy!" she exclaimed, "Sugoi, Syaoran! You're a great cook!"
He blushed slightly at the comment adding to the intensity of her smile, and helped her eat the rest of her meal.
When they were done, Syaoran stood up, slowly followed by a shaky Sakura. "Whoa there!" he warned, making sure she didn't fall, "Where do you think you're going? You've got to watch that ankle of yours."
"I'm okay." Sakura said, standing up on her own, "It's never going to heal right if I never walk on it."
"Then at least let me help you." Syaoran reasoned, putting an arm around her shoulder.
Sakura was about to thank him, but she felt something in her right arm. 'Pain?' she wondered. No, it wasn't pain.
"Sakura, do you feel that?"
"I feel something in my arm…"
"Me too." Syaoran agreed, looking around his room suspiciously.
Before they could question each other any further, they were engulfed in a bright purple light.
"What's-What's going on?!" Sakura yelled.
The light disappeared as quickly as it came, leaving Sakura and Syaoran staring at each other in confusion.
"Oh my Kami-sama, what happened to us!?"
"We're...WE'RE...AGGHHHHHH!!!"
~To Be Continued…
That's all for chapter 6, you'll have to stay tuned for chapter 7 to see what happens next. Don't worry, everything will be clear next chapter ^^ I'll give you a clue. It's not anything like the Change Card if that's what you were thinking. Please don't flame me about Syaoran, it was the CARD that was doing that, not him. Anyways, thank you for your time ^_^ If you could spare the time to review, I would be very grateful. Gomen if my stories take a while to get out on Fanfiction.net, but I write pretty long. Have a great day, Minna-san! ^^ ~Manda-chan
Japanese terms: gomen-sorry nani-what arigato-thank you sugoi-wonderful/amazing Mou-an expression of annoyance Kami-sama-god baka-stupid/idiot iie-no hai-yes hoe-Sakura's favorite expression/word gaki-brat ano-um/uh