Chapter Two: Memory's Tang
Written by Elluxion
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Review, people, review. ;) If you're interested, look up Gemini Star, read the old version, read this one, and compare. I will accept critiques (in fact, do critique, I'll love you for it) but flames will conveniently get mixed up with my toilet paper. Oh, and the person who figures out what detri fawar means will get a dedication and a sackful of chocolates. ;D Elluxion Kinomoto Sakura blinked. God, it's a crime to be up at this time. She allowed her lashes to fall back onto her cheeks lazily, feeling the warmth of the bed cocoon her. Mentally, her schedule drifted through her mind. Katereah propped herself up on one elbow, annoyed gaze directed at the sleepy Clow Mistress. Powerful as you are, you're still bone-lazy. Feeling the folds of the silk nightdress she was forced to don rustle gently against her skin, the dark sorceress's scowl deepened. I can't believe I have to wear this... skimpy thing that's practically non-existent! Watching as the ex-Card Captor toss fitfully in her bed, Katereah shoved her covers back and heaved a deep sigh. It was another long day. She padded off into the bathroom, where she stared miserably at herself in the mirror. How she detested the fake appearance she was forced to wear! Several minutes later, she pushed the door of the bathroom open, and once she saw Sakura awake, she arranged her features into what passed for a welcoming smile. "Good morning, Sakura!" she chirped cheerfully, hoping that she wasn't going to retch. "'Morning," Sakura offered with a half-smile as she stumbled into the bathroom. As the door clicked shut, Katereah immediately switched into another growl, poking at her outfit suspiciously. A prissy white dress finished off with a hem of delicate frills - revolting. High-heeled, pristine white shoes - Katereah shuddered to think of the damage it was causing to her backbone and posture. Mascara and blusher and lipstick slathered on - goop that the world would do better without. Hair carefully arranged in flowing curls - it made her sculp itch at the thought of all the effort she had to put into it. It was damn uncomfortable. Katereah was slender, but the outfit hugged her figure in a way she considered - there was no other word for it - slutty. Even though she was used to these clothes that her false form wore; even though she steeled herself for it daily, Katereah favoured the soft fabric of the loose, flowing robes and tunic she had been wearing since she was ten. As the sound of the tap turned on full-blast reached her, Katereah remembered, her mind floating back to the past. A young girl, who looked about eight but who was, in truth, already ten, looked unseeingly out of her orphanage window. Locked inside her was years of bitter hate and defiance, and her sharp green eyes betrayed the emotions she was battling. Having lost both her parents - her mother at birth, her father in a car accident - Kinomoto Hekiu was spitefully taunted at school for not having any parents or even a guardian. She was also mocked for those strange green eyes, sharp and intense, eyes which they said belonged to a witch. Hekiu was breaking a handful of rules, being out of bed after lights-out, disregarding the warning about not going too near the window, stealing out of her dormitory late at night. But she didn't care. Hekiu was a rule-breaker. She didn't toe the line and she didn't care to. The ten-year-old never showed emotion except boredom, amusement and, of course - anger. Then suddenly she attended to what she was looking at, and drew back in shock before composing her features to a neutral one again. A girl, same age as she, silhouetted against the face of the full moon, on a strange stick the length of a broom. Hovering next to her was some kind of warped teddy-bear with bizarre wings stuck onto its back. Hekiu continued watching until the moonlight no longer permitted her to do so. Then, shaking her head, she rose and prepared to return to her dormitory. Her movements were strangely regal. Then a hiss resounded in the air, shattering the peaceful silence into a million pieces. "Your anger... " Soft as the shadow of a maple leaf, cold as the north wind, the whisper penetrated Hekiu's hearing easily. Her head snapped up, instantly on the alert. She felt fear bubbling up inside of her, making her break out in cold sweat, but she carefully quashed any glint of emotions in her eyes. "It's delightful," murmured the owner of the voice, clearly male. Something stirred within a dark corner, all fluid movement and shadow. Hekiu swivelled her head to face off with that corner, crouched in a stance that indicated she was ready to fight if she had to. "Who are you?" she demanded clearly, her voice unfaltering, yet she could feel the fear root deeply in her heart. Hekiu didn't believe in shadows that went bump in the night, but she knew about kidnappers and murderers and all the disgusting things the world faced. "You're scared, aren't you?" he asked in a tone that could almost be described as gentle. "At least, you should be. I can't tell... you hide your emotions well. Exceptional." Detaching himself from the corner, Hekiu glanced up to see a man that was well-built, hooded and hidden by a cloak and shadows. She closed her eyes, trying to still her trembling as he walked around her, surveying her in the pale moonlight that filtered through the window. The Dark One nodded in satisfaction. She was beautiful. And she should be - the child of one of the most powerful entities in the universe, cousin of Clow Reed's successor, she seemed to be made of magic itself. Vivid green eyes, shaded by long lashes that curled naturally. Silken locks of dark hair, spilling across one shoulder as if it had a mind of its own. Delicate nose, and full lips the color of sakura blossoms. Swanlike neck, which she arched gracefully to counter his gaze in defiance. Soft ivory skin, almost translucent in the cold moonlight that played upon it. "I am known as the Dark One, the Dark Lord," he advised. Taking a deep breath, he proceeded to explain about the Clow Book and the Card Captor. The girl listened, enthralled at his tales, skeptical, yet wanting to believe him. He said that she would be placed into the Card Captor's memory as one of her friends, but it was simply her false form. He paused in his tales as he told her about the power she would be granted. "You will then be placed into the Card Captor's memory as a friend, who knows about the Clow Cards. The true friend will be... taken care of. Will you do it?" A heartbeat's pause, then she nodded, still on guard, still wary. "I will - that is, if all this isn't some kind of lie." "I grant you that it isn't." "How do I believe that you are speaking the truth?" "I control the elements of this world, dark singer." "I am no singer." "You have never tried." A smile played around the corners of the Dark One's lips. "See what I can do." The Dark Lord directed his gaze at the moon outside the window, hands sketching strange symbols with the air as canvas. Clouds began to bubble, to boil and to shroud the moon until it was completely dark. Thunder rumbled and lightning rent the sky in two. "Child's play," he snickered, looking at the young girl who watched - fearless, it seemed. Emotionless. Amazing. 'Stan has raised her poorly,' thought the Dark Lord ruefully. 'I was expecting a challenge; someone pure and uncorrupted. Yet she is already perfect, darker than anyone I have ever known... save myself.' Aloud, his words were different. "If you do not trust me on that count, why don't you sing?" As he spoke, he gave his hand a careless wave, muffling the sounds that they were both making. "Sing for the rain, for a thunderstorm. Let the clouds part and the sky open, and let a torrent of water fall onto the earth." The words were poetical, almost hypnotizing, aimed to relax her and to lighten her guard. But she seemed as tense as ever before, her eyes focused. 'She doesn't even need to be trained,' thought the Dark One. She lifted her voice, and sang, notes harsh and metallic, speaking in a language she didn't even know. She must have been shocked, surprised; again, her face was a mask of normality and even a vague boredom. Her eyes were unreadable. It was as if she had draped a veil across her emotions. The gods of rain then were compelled, and the surge of magic was, without doubt, stunningly present and evident. Rain became hail, and the spattering of hailstones against the roof seemed to shake her from her reverie. "Will you follow me now?" Knowing what she was capable of, Kinomoto Hekiu nodded. He held her and she stiffened in his arms. With a flick of his fingers the windows opened and he leapt through, into the darkness. He released her instantly after they hit the ground, both falling into a roll that came to them instinctively. He protected her through glass and cement, man's creation, but as raindrops, hard as needles, and hailstones, attacked her relentlessly, magic's play, Hekiu was on her own. She shielded herself as best she could, before she found that no pain was coursing through her. She lifted her face. The rainwater's tang was bitter, but it was rejuvinating. It was magical, and she had created that magic. "Your name will be Katereah." Even though the Dark Lord was speaking in a whisper, she heard the words as clearly as if he was shoulder. He stole away into the night, using the shadows for cover as if it was second nature. Hekiu followed, surprised that she was doing the same. "My dearest dark singer." Woohoo! Another chapter done. I adore re-writing - it's so much easier than finding a plot and sculpting the characters, since I've done that before! *grin* Well, review, I want to see how the idea of a horror-genre CCS fic sits with everyone. ;) (On that note, check out White Mist Wolf's CCS fics - she's prolly the only horror-CCS writer in the CCS fandom save me. XDD Oh, and if you read Harry Potter, do take a peek at Carcrashes and Spitfire. :D Elluxion |