A CCS Fanfic By Card Captor Schlueter (a.k.a. Syaoran-kun)
Memo From The Legal Dept.
We don't own this stuff and we don't care because we have disclaimers. Try to sue us and we'll shred you into coleslaw, got it?
Chapter Seven: I Don't Get No Kick From Champagne.The days after Christmas just seemed to float by for me. More than once during the last week, Kero-Ni had to snap me out of my daydreaming. I had captured some of the cards since Christmas: 'The Snow', 'The Fly', 'The Shield' and 'The Through'. I'd captured them all while wearing that goofy Prince costume Tomoyo had made.
But now, with New Year's fast approaching, I found myself more and more lost in thoughts of Sakura. To everyone around me I must have seemed like an out of it bozo, but that didn't matter to me. I didn't ever want to come down to Earth again.
Of course, I realized that I was now in serious trouble. Touya was not going to stand for Sakura and me and I'm pretty sure my mother won't be thrilled when my letter arrives. It was like that play, "Romeo And What's-Her-Name?" by that old dead English guy. I'll have to ask Eriol for his name. My mom used to own a few of his works including one about a land made up entirely of magic. It was called "Avalon", if I recall correctly. Avalon. What an odd name.
But, I'm wandering off topic.
The last few days I tried to figure out how I had gotten to where I am today. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I started to wonder at exactly what point I realized that I had fallen in love with Sakura. It seemed hard to believe that I once detested her, that I couldn't wait to get rid of her. At what point had I looked into the emerald green eyes and never wanted to look away again?
I know I'm getting sappy. Deal with it.
I guess I have all the time in the world to overanalyze the idea of Sakura and I, but for know I had to worry about getting my tasks around the apartment done and getting ready for the Daidouji New Year's party which Tomoyo had insisted that I come to.
That's Tomoyo for you, I guess.
"I still think you should try to avoid those two," grumbled Kero-Ni. He was trying to explain for the one-millionth time why it was imperative that I avoid Tomoyo and Sakura at all costs. His reasoning was that Sakura was an evil witch and Tomoyo was her spy. I will confess that I have believed some strange things in my life but Kero-Ni was, frankly, out of his tiny mind. I might still be lead to believe such thing about Eriol but not Sakura.
I just rolled my eyes and contemplated the work I had to do today. "Looks like the plants need watering." I said. I decided to use a creative approach, I decided to use 'The Rain' card.
"You're not going to use that thing, are you?" asked Kero-Ni.
"Why not?" I asked.
"That card doesn't like me. It's got a bad attitude."
I shook my head. Talk about weird. "Rain card. Release!" The card glowed for a moment before transforming into its true form. It looked at me briefly and then said "Ohayo!" in the cutest voice you could imagine. Then it giggled and kissed me on the nose again.
"Um… Good morning to you too, Rain card." I said. I was still not quite sure what to make of this one. I instructed it to water the houseplants. It giggled and went off to carry out my order.
"See." I told Kero-Ni "It's harmless." A moment later, I had to keep myself from laughing out loud when 'The Rain' card unleashed a small downpour on Kero-Ni's head. Kero-Ni started shouting. 'The Rain' just stuck out its tongue at him and then darted behind my head to hide from him.
"Why, you little…" Kero-Ni hissed.
"Now, now." I chided while trying to keep a straight face. "Look on the bright side. You needed to get washed sooner or later." I patted 'The Rain' card gently on its kawaii little head before returning it to its card form.
"How can you excuse that bratty little twerp? I'm soaked!" Kero-Ni shouted.
Being a Card Captor isn't all it's cracked up to be.
**
"Good Evening, Li-san." The servant who answered the door at the Daidouji house took my coat and scarf. I hoped she wouldn't notice my sword hidden in the lining. I always kept it with me in case of emergencies. "Tomoyo-san has been expecting you."
For the record, I am used to dealing with people who are rich. There's a good explanation for this. I'm rich. Let's face it, they'd have to be to afford for me to fly over here and have my own apartment. I don't talk about it much since it's not that important to me.
Tomoyo's mother, Sonomi Daidouji, soon greeted me. Sonomi was a woman who stayed up to date in the latest trends or who at least liked to think so.
"Good evening, Li-kun." she said.
"Good evening, Daidouji-san." I replied. "I assume you've had a nice Christmas."
"Yes. We have." A pause. "You know, I've always wondered why you're family sent you here. If that's not too personal a question."
"Not at all." I said politely. "I'm here on matters of great importance to the Li clan. I'm here to act in their best interests."
"I see." replied Sonomi.
"There's a very old artifact, a book, that is of great importance to my family. We managed to track it to Tomoeda. I was sent here to retrieve it."
"Any luck finding it yet?"
"As a matter of fact," I said. "I have."
**
"Li-kun! I'm so glad you could make it!' Tomoyo greeted me in a violently affectionate manner. For a second I thought she might be channeling Meiling.
Lots of people had already shown up, including Eriol and company whom I was hoping to avoid in order to keep my New Year's resolution of not killing him. Yukito was by himself and I didn't see Nakuru, which meant that she was probably clinging to Touya somewhere. Touya was someone else I wanted to avoid. I knew full well that if we met we'd start arguing and eventually I would have to kill him. And then Nakuru would try to kill me.
Not my idea of a relaxing evening.
"So what were you talking to my mother about?" asked Tomoyo "Is she still curious about the Li family fortune?"
"I don't know why she would." I replied. "The Li Clan's wealth is mostly property and ancient artifacts."
"Good evening, Li-kun," said a voice so familiar that just hearing it brought a blush to my face it was Sakura.
"Sakura! You startled me!" I said, my face turning redder.
"I'm sorry, Li-kun." Sakura replied while trying to stifle a giggle.
"Well, well…" There was a voice that caused my stomach to turn. I know everyone thinks I shouldn't hate Eriol. But I do. "We were wondering when you'd show up, Li-kun." I found him smug and condescending but… "I hear you promised Nakuru that you'd stop hating us. That's quite different from most New Year's resolutions."
That twerp. "Now, now, Li-kun. I know you don't trust me that much and you have some pretty good reasons not to. But it is New Year's."
"Actually, it's not you I'm worried about." I replied.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about Touya too much. He has his hands full with Nakuru right now."
"This whole evening will be completely perfect if I can just avoid dealing with another Clow card." I grumbled.
"Yes, they've been keeping you busy, I hear." Eriol said. "It's odd actually. The Clow cards don't generally work together but they seem to be coming after you in teams instead of just one at a time."
"Any ideas why that is, Eriol-kun?" asked Sakura.
Eriol shrugged. "It's a different deck. The cards are bound to have certain differences in personalities from the Clow you have, Sakura. Take 'The Rain' card. When Sakura faced it, the card had a bit of a bad attitude. When Syaoran faced it, it cooperated with him."
"Maybe it has a crush on him." Tomoyo giggled.
I rolled my eyes. "Actually, 'The Rain' is still a prankster." I said. "It listens to me but it keeps picking on Kero-Ni for some reason."
"See?" Tomoyo said cheerfully. "It's jealous."
I shook my head. Why did it seem like we were always talking shop?
Eriol must have sensed my boredom or was bored himself, so he changed the topic. "You know there's a long standing tradition for New Year's Eve. At midnight everyone has to kiss someone."
I almost fell over.
"Just don't let Touya catch you." Tomoyo said.
I felt a blush rise to my face and I planned to say something in protest but I couldn't find my voice. Even Sakura was blushing slightly at this point.
"It would certainly make an interesting story to tell your children someday." Said Eriol.
That time, I fell over. Eriol had apparently traded off talking about the cards for humiliating me. I really don't like him.
"Oh, you should have seen them at Christmas." said Tomoyo. "They were sooo kawaii! I think I'll show the video of it!"
"ACK!" This would not be good. Besides, the truth of the matter was that the tape was probably of limited entertainment value. Sakura and I weren't the best dancers in the world and our first kiss would probably look pretty clumsy. Not that I had complained. "Please tell me you're kidding, Daidouji."
"Why not?" Tomoyo asked. "Everyone will get a kick out of it."
"Yeah, especially me if Touya sees it." Actually, I could pound Touya into the ground if I wanted to but I was not about to incur Nakuru's wrath if I could avoid it.
"By the way," Tomoyo asked Sakura. "I'm curious. Do you know if Li-kun has a birth mark on him anywhere?"
I fell over again. Sakura blushed. "Hoeee, Tomoyo-Chan! What kind of question is that?!"
"Well, it's not like he's going to tell me." replied Tomoyo.
"Daidouji, you are a very strange person." I said shaking my head.
Tomoyo let out a small sigh. "Honestly, Li-kun, you are no fun."
"Thanks," I grumbled. "I try."
"What are you doing here anyways, brat?" Damn it. How could I let Touya sneak up on me like that?
"You're looking better, I see." I grumbled. "Amazing, considering how accident prone you've been lately. You know, Touya, New Year's is a time to resolve to make yourself better. In your case, I'd suggest learning how to duck. Never know when you're going to have to deal with another baton. At least you absorbed the impact with your head so that nothing vital was damaged. That's a start." It was only then that I noticed Nakuru clinging to him the way Meiling used to cling to me. She didn't seem very happy with me either. I ignored it.
"Maybe I'm asking too much." I went on. "Maybe I shouldn't ask you for something that big in one year. Maybe you should just try to get your head out of…"
"Li-kun!" Sakura interrupted.
"Just stay away from my sister, you little jerk." Touya growled just moments before Nakuru dragged him away.
Sakura let out a sigh. "Honestly, why can't the two of you get along?"
"Because I have a reputation to maintain." I replied sarcastically.
When you become a Card Captor you gain a sense for Clow cards. If one is around you can tell immediately. It's kind of like an electric charge. Unfortunately, I was getting some serious voltage at that moment.
"Well, there goes my evening." I grumbled.
"Another Clow card?" asked Sakura.
I nodded.
"Daidouji, you think you can cover for us for awhile?"
"Sure." replied Tomoyo.
"Is there anything I can do?" asked Eriol.
"Yeah," I replied. "Can you lock Touya in the basement until one o' clock?"
**
Sneaking out of the party wasn't difficult. Being a Daidouji affair, the place was packed with everyone who had ever set foot on the Daidouji estate. Sakura and I made our way to the back of the house where we found our Clow card. A tree in the back yard had several small flames burning on its branches.
"Lovely," I grumbled. "It's 'The Firey' card."
"Maybe if we attack it now we can seal it before it gets to strong." Sakura suggested.
"Good idea." I replied. "If I use 'The Watery' and 'The Freeze' I should be able to stop it in its tracks."
Sakura nodded. "I'll use 'The Windy' and 'The Snow' as back-up."
I looked at my watch. It was almost ten-thirty. "Okay. Let's get this over with." We decided to creep a little closer to the card to make the attack easier.
That turned out to be a very bad idea.
A second later we were surrounded by green walls. 'The Maze' card! It was a trap!
"I don't believe it!" I said. "Why are they ganging up on me?"
"I don't understand it either." said Sakura. "The Clow cards rarely work together."
"Worse. 'The Firey' is in 'The Maze' with us." I grumbled. I just hoped there was nothing else in the maze with us.
It took three seconds for my hopes to be dashed. I think that's a new record.
Out of nowhere came a volley of energy blasts. Just what I needed to make my night complete. 'The Shot' card was firing at us. Naturally, being calm, composed and experienced Card Captors we handled the situation by running like hell.
I quickly grabbed the card I needed. "Mirror Card! Reflect 'The Shot' card's attack!" The card glowed and transformed into a mirror, which fired the shots back at the card, effectively disabling it.
"Shot card! Return to your power confined!" I sealed the card and it promptly floated over to me.
"This is really déjà vu, Li-kun." said Sakura.
I nodded. "We can use 'The Through' card to get out of this blasted Escher painting."
"What about 'The Firey'?"
"It'll be easier to capture if we get out of here first." I replied. Sakura and I both used 'The Through' to make our way through the walls of the maze. When I spotted the exit I checked my watch again. It was after eleven now.
"I hope I never have to do that again." Sakura grumbled.
"You and me both." I said. "Maze card! Return to your power confined!" The vast maze disappeared, leaving only its card behind.
No sooner had I picked up 'The Maze' card than we were attacked again. Why does a wonderful and talented person like myself have to suffer like this?
'The Firey' card wasn't wasting any time trying to fry us. It was only through sheer luck that I managed to grab the right cards. "Watery card! Freeze card! Release!"
'The Firey' was too close behind us to mount a defense to my attack. It was swatted out of the air and almost extinguished.
"Firey card, return to your power confined!" 'The Firey' card's form burned away leaving its card behind. I slumped down into the snow, exhausted. "Is it just me," I asked "Or does this job get harder every day?"
**
"I see you made it back," said Eriol. He checked his watch. "And with fifteen minutes to spare."
"So which card was it?" asked Tomoyo.
"You mean which cards." I replied. I held out the three cards.
Eriol seemed quite amazed. "That's quite a capture, Li-kun. Still, its unusual for a card to set a trap like that."
"Could it be a coincidence?" asked Tomoyo.
"It probably is." replied Sakura.
I, on the other hand, was not so confident. The cards had been attacking in pairs and trios, which was not supposed to happen. The sudden chanting of the guests interrupted my thoughts.
"Ten… Nine… Eight… Seven… Six…"
ACK! I was thoroughly unprepared for this moment!
"Five… Four… Three… Two…"
Was Eriol serious about that New Year's tradition? Or was he kidding? I had two seconds to figure out what the hell was going on!
"One… HAPPY NEW YEAR!"
It turned out I didn't need to think about it since Sakura kissed me first, an event that surprised the hell out of me. "Happy New Year, Li-kun." She said quietly.
"Happy New Year, Sakura." I replied. Unfortunately, the moment didn't last. A second later I was yanked off my feet by you-know-who.
"What do you think you're doing, brat?" asked Touya, who had a firm grip on the front of my shirt.
"Touya! Let him go!" shouted Sakura.
"You have no holiday spirit, you know that, Touya?" I told him. Then I promptly kicked him in the shin which caused him to let go of me. I looked at my watch. "Twenty seconds. That's got to be a new record for breaking resolutions." I turned to Sakura. I took her hand and kissed it, a trick Tomoyo had insisted I try sooner or later. "I'm sorry, but it seems I have to run." After that I took off with Touya stumbling behind me shouting.
What am I going to do about that guy?
Next: Sakura is feeling left out of Syaoran's captures and decides to make sure she helps him on his next capture which turns out to be (surprise, surprise) 'The Thunder' card!
Join us for:
Chapter Eight: "Isn't This Where I Came In?"