In This Tainted Soul

by Dr Megalomania

Someone's come back from Clow's past and he wants Keroberos and Yue dead, but why? What possible mistake could Clow have made? Go back before Yue, before Keroberos . . . before the cards . . . find out what new evil threatens Sakura and her friends . . .

16. Fear

Well, Hello and welcome to my Little World of Weirdness!

I state for the record that, despite the fact I really, really wish I did, I don't own any of the official characters that will grace this story; it's all CLAMP's! Always has been, always will be! I *DO*, however, own Marcibay Hilligans and Hei-ying Reed!! I also own Mystrasa Kyree, and the dragon isn't mine, it's on loan from my good friend, the Blue Goo! And what the heck . . . I own the mansion as well! [Laughs] Also I don't pretend to have any Mastery over the language of Japanese or any clue as to correct grammatical structure. I put it in and hope it gets across the point I'm trying to make! And I don't pretend to be able to write any sort of accents so please don't hate me! All praise J.K and HP for the term Muggles!!

"Speaking"

*Stress/emphasis*

//Thinking//

In This Tainted Soul . . .

By Dr Megalomania.

Part Fifteen: Fear

The stagecoach swayed from side to side as it travelled down the Reed Mansion's drive. A small white nose pressed hard against the window, the outside was new, and amazing to the tiny boy.

"Papa?"

"Yes, Yue?"

"How do the horses know where to go?"

"The coach driver leads them with the reins."

 Keroberos and Hei-ying sat on the opposite seat, Clow and Yue on the other. It had been two days since Clow had lost his temper with his two eldest guardians. Yue hadn't showed any signs of being particularly affected by the incident but Clow was aware that Yue had snuck into Keroberos' more than once during the day Clow had forbid Keroberos and Hei-ying to leaves their rooms. Clow didn't do anything about it, nor let Yue know that he was aware of the secretive visits. Clow flicked a page over, and smiled, as Yue sank back onto the dusty red seat. "Oh . . ."

Yue glanced up at his two older brothers. Keroberos chuckled, he looked different without his helmet and his wings, but Papa had said that they had to pretend that Keroberos was their pet because . . . Yue frowned as he tried to remember exactly what Papa had said, it was because they didn't want the Muggles to find out about the magic. Yue frowned again. "Papa?"

"Yes, Yue?"

"What are Muggles?"

Clow smiled, Yue was in another inquisitive mood. //Good// he thought as he opened his mouth to answer.

"Muggles. Slang term used by magic persons." Hei-ying sighed, "Most often to describe or taunt the magically-deprived."       

Yue glanced from his oldest brother to Papa, "Really?"

Clow opened his mouth again to answer, but Hei-ying spoke again. "Of course, really."

"Hey!" Keroberos snapped indignantly, "Leave the kid alone!"

Hei-ying sighed sharply and stared out the window, "Stop referring to him as if he was some sort of goat. Yue is going to be the Judgement Maker . . ." Hei-ying gazed at Yue's reflection in the glass, "He should know things like this already."

Yue bit his lips and stared at the floor, Hei-ying was right as always. He hated it when Hei-ying got annoyed like this; it always made Yue feel so stupid. Clow looked up from his book again, at the uneasy silence that had descend in the carriage. Hei-ying was glaring out the window, Keroberos shook his head, and then tried to catch Yue's eye. Yue was staring at the old wood floor of the coach. Clow sighed; once again Hei-ying had forced Yue into a self-doubting silence.

He glanced out the window. "Ah!" He said, "There it is." He allowed a smile to play on his lips as he watched Yue out of the corner of his eye. Yue could never stand it when Clow said things like that. The child instantly snapped out of his melancholy, and jumped up onto the seat again, he pressed his hands against the windowpane again. "What?" Yue gasped as the small town came into view, it was still a while away. Keroberos leapt onto the seat between Clow and Yue, he leant his heavy head on Yue's. "That's called a town." He said proudly, he had only to the town once or twice, but this was Yue's first time. "Muggles live there."

"Really?"

Hei-ying sighed and pressed his forehead against the glass, Yue never accepted a word his brothers said without checking it with Clow first; it was always 'Really?' this and 'Really?' that. Hei-ying's eyes narrowed further, by the sound of it, it was going to be one of those days when Yue *really* should have been drowned at birth . . .

Once in the town, Yue and Hei-ying turned into their false forms. Clow asked the coach driver to return to pick them up in three hours, and turned to look at his creations as they took in the hustle and bustle. Keroberos sat by Yue, who was now in his amber eyed, grey haired form, Yukito. Hei-ying stood slightly off, his face betraying boredom as he glared at his brother. While this was all new to them, he had been visiting the town for nearly a decade.

"Clow REED!" A voice called from behind him, the town's doctor waved from within the crowd. "Reed! How have you been keeping?"

Clow laughed, "Quite well, thank you!"

Louison glanced over Clow's shoulder, "You still have that . . . what did you call it?"

"A lion," Clow chuckled, he turned and patted his cloak, it was the signal that Keroberos had to join him. "Keroberos."

As Keroberos joined Clow, Hei-ying looked at Yue. The tiny boy had stepped behind him, shy of the stranger. "Let go of my robes." Hei-ying spat. Yukito's amber eyes widened, as he stepped away from his elder brother.

Hei-ying turned his attention back to the doctor, who had spotted him. "Hei-ying! You've grown since I last saw you!"

Hei-ying smiled slightly and inclined his head. "It has been a while since I last came to town."

Clow smiled, "We've been away so long because we have a new addition to our family . . ." Clow turned, "Don't we, Yukito?" The little grey haired boy didn't answer, in fact he wasn't there. "Hei-ying, where's Yukito?"

Hei-ying looked around him briefly; "I don't know . . ." he peered off into the crowd disinterested; "He was here a minute ago."

Keroberos growled deeply, his eyes blazing at Hei-ying, who turned and snapped, "Don't you growl at me Keroberos! The foolish boy has probably just wondered off."

Yue gazed thoughtfully into the strange gathering of water, unaware of his now worried family who had split up in the hopes of finding him sooner, he was more interested in this strange pooling of water than he was of the vaguely magical man that was talking to Papa. He knew he shouldn't have strayed so far from Keroberos' side, Keroberos had sat him down after breakfast that day and asked him quietly to promise that he would stay close by.

But then Keroberos had gone closer to the stranger, and Hei-ying didn't want Yue to stand so close to his robes . . . Yue looked at his own robes, //Just like Hei-ying's// he thought proudly. Although he didn't want to be as mean as Hei-ying was, he did want to look as composed as Hei-ying when he grew up. Then the Cardcaptor would really like him! She'd think he was cool and really smart and . . .

Yue cocked his false form's head, there were strange green ripples breaking the thin ice on the water surface.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" A soft voice murmured. Yue looked up slightly, Hei-ying was standing *ON* the water. Yue gasped and pushed his tiny body up high on his toes to see better over the stone wall of the bridge. "How are you doing . . . that?"

Hei-ying smiled, "It's a special power Master Clow gave us . . ."

"All of us?"

"Of course . . ." Hei-ying bobbed slightly, the elegant green ripples increased. Yue smiled, he loved pretty things like that.

"Can I do it?"

"Perhaps . . ." Hei-ying motioned him forwards, holding his black leather gloved hand towards his smallest brother, "You'd have to try it for yourself . . ."

"Really?"

Hei-ying quashed a instinctive 'Of course, really!' in favour of a more luring smile, "Yes, little moonbeam . . ."

"Anything?" Clow hid behind some bushes as Keroberos returned to his large form. The lion's large paws landed softly on the ground.

"No, nothing! Where could he have gone?!" Keroberos growled, Hei-ying hadn't joined them as he was supposed to, //Hei-ying . . . if you have something to do with this . . .//

"What does he look like Clow?" Louison wiped his brow; Clow had become frantic in his search for this latest creation.

"He's just above my knee, with grey hair and amber eyes and should answer to the name of Yukito Tsukishiro Reed . . . failing that saying 'Yue' will return him to his true form . . ."

"Clow," Keroberos snapped, "Calm down, you're babbling now!"

Clow sank to his knees by Keroberos, "Where could he have gone . . .? What possibly could have attracted his attention?"

Louison patted Clow on the shoulder, "Let's have another look . . . you never know, he might be talking to those Muggle magicians we saw . . ."

"Okay," Clow nodded, he glanced up at the sky, " . . .Keroberos . . .?"

"I'll have another look from the air . . ." as soon as Clow was out of sight though, Keroberos turned and headed in the same direction Hei-ying had instantly taken when Clow agreed that it would be quicker if they split up . . .

"What's that under the water?" Yue paused; he could have sworn that there was something moving under the water. He was sitting on the stone brick wall now, in his false form as well.

Hei-ying couldn't have wished for a better scenario if he tried. He had learnt over the last few days that the transformation from false to true form depended on how much fear the true form was sensing. If there was no reason to panic, the full longer transformation took place, this reserved on energy but took a few seconds longer. However once the true form realised there was something wrong, despite the huge amount of energy it took, the more instantaneous transformation took place. If Hei-ying could keep Yue from realising something was wrong for long enough . . .

"I wouldn't think there was anything under the water . . . that just the illusion that my waves cause in the pond."

"Oh . . ." Yue got ready to push himself off the wall when he paused again, "What's a pond?"

Hei-ying sighed, "It's a small pool of water . . . it's not very deep and there is *nothing* moving under the surface . . ."

"Really?"

Hei-ying rolled his eyes, he took a deep breath, if he kept his cool, Yue wouldn't notice that Hei-ying was about to solve one of the most irritating nuisances of his life . . . "Yes, Yue . . . really."

"Oh . . . how do I make the pretty glowy things?"

Hei-ying's eyes slid shut, "I've never really asked why . . . I assume it's the falloff from the magic I dispel while floating above the water . . ."

Yue stare thoughtfully at the glowing green ripples for a little bit. "Why hasn't Clow shown me how to do this yet?"

"Because you are still a little too young to do such a thing!" Hei-ying's eyes slid open as Keroberos stood on his hind legs next to Yue. "And Hei-ying knows that!"

Yue jumped slightly and quickly turned away from the water. He jumped off the wall and landed softly on the stone bridge. "Really?" But Keroberos ignored him, and glared at Hei-ying who was still floating over the water. Hei-ying glared back, silently confirming Keroberos' fears. He had no intention of killing Keroberos anymore; his murderous gaze had slipped off the guardian beast long ago. Keroberos looked at Yue, "Little moonbeam . . ."

Yue clasped his hands behind his back, "Gomen . . . but come look at this!" He pushed up onto his tiny pale toes and stared at the glowing jade ripples. "Aren't they pretty?"

Keroberos placed his front paws on the wall and stared down at the water. He glanced up at Hei-ying; it was the same enticing green waves, beautiful and deadly, that drew Yue. "I thought you promised you'd stay close, Yue . . ."

"I did . . ." Yue looked at Keroberos, why was he being so stern all a sudden?

"But you have broken that promise haven't you? You must always keep your promises Yue . . . you will not make a good Judgement Maker if you ignore the rules!"

"I . . ." Yue was a little bewildered by Keroberos' seriousness. Hei-ying floated over and landed on the cold stone bridge behind him. He bent over and scooped Yue up into his arms.

"Keroberos . . ." Hei-ying rubbed his cheek affectionately against Yue's, " . . . Stop being so mean . . ." he purred slightly as he looked over the bridge into the water. The reflection of Hei-ying and Yue stared back, "No harm was done and our little moonbeam was just curious . . ." Yue giggled slightly as Hei-ying rubbed their noses together, "Weren't you?"

"Well, I . . ." Yue began, but Hei-ying ignored him and looked up.

"We found him!" He yelled, "All safe and sound!!"

Hei-ying smirked down at Keroberos as he walked towards Clow, Yue looked over Hei-ying's shoulder, wondering why Keroberos was so mean and Hei-ying was so nice all a sudden . . . he scrunched up his nose, and hoped Keroberos being so angry at him wasn't going to be a long time thing.

"Pay attention!" Yue pulled his eyes away from the snow, and stared at Hei-ying again. It had been snowing for days, and Clow had said there was a storm coming. Yue smiled, that meant lots of snow would be coming! "Now, you are the . . .?"

"Judgement Maker."

"State your name."

"Yue, the Judgement—"

"Wrong!" Hei-ying slapped his hand down on the book of incantations; "You are the Judge, Yue the Judge. Only others when referring to you will call you the Judgment Maker! Now . . ." he flicked a few pages, "Recite after me. O cards . . . created by Master Clow . . ."

"Aren't I supposed to just say Clow?"

Hei-ying glared at him, but continued, "I said 'recite after me.' O cards created . . ."

"O cards created by Clow."

Hei-ying rolled his eyes, "There is one who desires to be worthy of becoming your Master . . ."

"Clow said the Cardcaptor would be a girl . . . shouldn't I say 'Mistress'?" Hei-ying glared at him, Yue swallowed, and recited, "There is one who wishes worthy of becoming--"

"Stop right there, who *desires*, not wishes! Say the whole thing again."

"O cards created by Clow . . ." Yue swallowed, "There is a girl who desires to be . . ." he froze as the unfamiliar words refused to enter his mind, "Um . . . O cards of Clow . . ."

Hei-ying stood and walked over to Yue's desk, the small boy was had now the appearance of a four-year-old human, his progress had been much, much slower than Hei-ying and Keroberos'. Hei-ying scowled as Yue stuttered, "There is a . . . um . . ."

Hei-ying crouched down beside Yue and picked up the little child's clenched fist. He force Yue's little finger out of the fist and held it tightly. Pulling it back slightly, Hei-ying glared at Yue. "Say it properly."

Yue winced as Hei-ying started to push the finger back further than it was supposed to go, "O cards created by Clow—" Hei-ying pushed it harder, "O cards created by *Master* Clow," Yue spoke quickly, "There is one who wish—desires to be worthy of becoming your Master . . ."

"A Cardcaptor chosen by . . ."

"A Cardcaptor chosen by Keroberos the Appointer, shown the way by Hei-ying the Adviser . . ." Yue licked his lips and prayed he'd get to the end of the incantation faster than Hei-ying could break his finger. He thought about Hei-ying's wing, Clow had set it, and allowed it to heal naturally. Although it had healed completely now, Hei-ying still found flying a little difficult. He got very tired quickly, and complained it felt like the wing had been torn. "To find out if this Cardcaptor truly qualities . . ." he winced again as Hei-ying pushed the small finger past the ninety degree angle, he corrected his error, "Qualifies to become our Master . . . I, Yue the Judgment Maker . . . OOOW!"

Hei-ying snapped the finger back completely. "Judge, you are Yue the Judge . . . not Judgement Maker!!" He stood suddenly and stormed back to the desk, "You will fail the Master, if you keep getting your incantations wrong."

"I think you broke my finger." Yue whimpered; he cradled his hand to his chest. Hei-ying glared at him, and paced back over. Yue flinched slightly as Hei-ying crouched down again. "Give me your hand."

Yue tried not to cry as Hei-ying examined the finger, "You will live!" He spat, "And Master Clow will tell you the same . . . do not bother him with your petty problems."

"I won't . . ." Yue nodded tearfully. Hei-ying often inflicted tiny little injuries on Yue, ever since Clow decided to leave his training to his brothers. Hei-ying was sometimes nice, but when it came to his lessons he was always harsh and expected perfection from Yue immediately. Yue wished Keroberos was here, but Keroberos was with Clow, receiving some more lessons in his incantations, Yue liked Keroberos' lessons, it was always in flying, and his attacks. Keroberos was fun and asked the cards to help with his teaching. Yue had become quite good at shooting his ice arrow at the Move card, and the Woody had provided some challenging obstacle courses. What Yue loved most was the races he had against Keroberos. Yue was almost good enough to fly side by side with Keroberos, and he could already out fly the Fly card.

Hei-ying stood again, "Your lesson with me has ended . . . however I strongly suggest you learn the corrected form of the invocation before your lesson with the Master."

"Yes Hei-ying-san." Yue stood and gathered his books, his finger was very painful now, and he glanced at it. It was beginning to swell; it was the worst injury Hei-ying had ever inflicted, he didn't know how he was going to hide it from Clow in time for his lesson that afternoon.

The snow gusted in endless swirls outside the window.

"So much snow, don't you think little moonbeam?" Clow smiled at Yue, the small boy was completely engrossed in the book he held in his lap. "All right . . ." Clow sighed, Yue was usually more interested in the snow; "Please recite your final incantation."

Yue didn't look up from his writing book, as he murmured, "Please close your eyes . . . Judgement complete . . . I, Yue the Judgemen— Yue the Judge, accept the Cardcaptor as the new Master."

"Well done, now in the unlikely event she fails the judgment, what do you say?"

"This is the end." Yue said softly, "You have lost. The seal on the cards must be broken once again; on top of that the disaster will befall upon this world. The disaster is to forget. If the candidate chosen by Keroberos the Appointer, shown the way by Hei-ying the Adviser . . . cannot defeat Yue, the Judgemen—" Yue pursed his lips together and tried again, "Yue the Judge, the Clow cards . . . and everyone involved with the Clow cards . . .will forget . . . the feeling of . . .of . . ." Yue faltered, and cringed. He had been trying so hard to get this right, even with the pain in his finger; he had tried to get it right. And now, in front of Clow Reed, he was failing. He tried to hold back the tears that had been building all afternoon. "Everyone involved with the Clow cards . . . will forget . . . the feeling of . . . of . . ."

For the first time that afternoon, Yue looked up from his book. Clow was looking at him with concern; his little moonbeam had been unusually quiet since his training had started. Clow sighed and shuffled along the window seat, he pulled the book out of Yue's hands and pick his little cold hands up, "The next line is 'Will forget the feeling of love towards the person they loved the most' . . . Yue?" Clow squeezed his pale hands a little tighter, "Is there something wrong?"

Yue was trying very hard not to wince, Clow sighed and looked down at their clasped hands. That's when he noticed.

He slowly brought his face up to look as Yue. He was silent for a few seconds, as Yue looked away. Clow placed his hand under Yue's cheek and pulled his face back toward Clow. Yue was trying desperately not to cry, as Clow said quietly. "Who did this to you?"

Keroberos shook the snow off his fur, as he stepped back into the mansion. He was coming to look for Yue; he was late for his flying lesson. It wasn't important, since the snow was getting to think to fly in safely. He yawned, it wasn't summer and he didn't like the snow as much as Hei-ying and Yue did. He frowned as he briefly wondered which new pain Hei-ying had inflicted on Yue during their lesson today.

Hei-ying had managed to get Yue to think that if he went to Clow with his injuries, Clow would be impossibly angry with him for not taking his punishment for getting Hei-ying's incantation lessons right instantly. No matter what Keroberos said, Yue staunchly refused to show Clow the little cuts, and bruises Hei-ying wreaked on his pale skin. The injuries were always out of sight, and Yue had really come to believe that the injuries were his own fault.

Keroberos sighed, Yue was becoming very quiet and his false form was always seen when Yue want to hide away from them. It was almost as if Yue thought that by hiding his true form's injuries behind his false form's ever present smile, Clow would never notice the subtle changes in Yue's demeanour. Clow was far too trusting of his creations, Keroberos thought, //Too trusting of *Hei-ying*// he amended. But still, Clow didn't want either Keroberos or Hei-ying to be present at the other's lessons for fear that they would provoke each other into another fight.

//Keroberos! Hei-ying! Come to my study. // Clow's thought angrily rang out loudly, // NOW!//

Keroberos frowned, what had Hei-ying done now? He sighed as he spread his wings and took flight off to Clow's upstairs study. He met Hei-ying just outside the door. "What have you done?" he spat.

Hei-ying frowned, and then hissed at Keroberos, "If he has said something . . . if you say anything . . . I'll *kill* him!"

"Which of you did this?" Clow frowned at his two eldest creations; Yue refused to say anything and sat sniffling on the window seat. Keroberos and Hei-ying looked at each other. Neither had said a word, since they had stepped into the room, and half an hour had past. Clow was fuming, one of his guardians had broken Yue's finger he was sure of it.

"Master?" Hei-ying began meekly, "What is it you are referring to?"

Clow blinked, and then pointed at Yue. "His finger has been broken. Which one of you has done this?"

Keroberos and Hei-ying glanced at Yue, who swallowed. While Keroberos was silently urging him to say something, Hei-ying's jade eyes narrowed. He squeezed his own eyes shut and made his decision.

"Neither of them did it, Clow!" Yue said quickly, "I . . . I broke it myself when I . . . I tripped over earlier."

As Clow turned as this unexpected confession, Yue opened his eyes. Keroberos held his eyes for a few seconds before looking at Hei-ying, who nodded, and turned his attention to Clow. "The foolish boy must learn to be a little more graceful. No judgement maker would ever be taken seriously he continually trips over his own robes."

Clow sank on to the seat, Yue wasn't telling him the truth, and the other two were keeping the reality from him. He stared at Yue, as the small boy turned his attention back on to him, "Why didn't you tell me about it then?"

Yue glanced at Hei-ying, who walked over and placed a hand on Yue's small shoulder. "You didn't heal my wing when I broke it. . . he must have assumed that you would do the same to him."

Clow stared at Yue, Hei-ying was either giving the boy excuses for his behaviour . . . or he was the cause of the fear filled lies Yue was spinning. Clow glanced at Keroberos, Keroberos had a fearsome temper when provoked but he had never shown any aggression to Yue, Clow couldn't believe that Keroberos was the tormenter. But then again he couldn't believe Hei-ying was either, although both had been aggressive to each other, neither had been cruel to Yue before. Clow didn't understand, why were they hiding this from him . . . and which was Yue's tormenter?

"Oh Yue . . ." Clow sighed, and pulled the boy on to his lap, he began to heal the finger, "You must come to me if you ever hurt yourself again . . ."

-------------------

And now it's Time for LEAVE IT TO DR MEGALOMANIA!!

Clow: ALL RIGHT! 'Fess up! Which of you broke his finger!!

DrM: [writes on Weakest Link card] Hei-ying!

Kero: [writes on Weakest Link card] Hei-ying!!

Yue: [writes on Weakest Link card] Hei-ying!!!

Hei-ying: [writes on Weakest Link card] ME!!!!

Ghost of Mister Hilligans: [writes on Weakest Link card] For th' love of --- Damnit Laddie! HEI-YING!!!!!

Clow: I see . . . so none of you are willing to give me the truth! I'm very disappointed.

DrM, Kero, Yue, Hei-ying, Ghost of Hilligans: [crash to the ground, then leap to feet, and sweat drop, quickly change name on Weakest Link cards] Clow Reed!

Anne Robinson: Clow Reed . . . you leave with nothing, with four votes . . . you are the weakest link! [Scary twitch wink] Goodbye! [Turns ice glare on readers] R&R or you too will be the Weakest Link . . . come back for the next part of 'In This Tainted Soul . . .' [Scary twitch wink] Goodbye!