Dragon's Eye, Phoenix' Wing

Chapter 3

Allen was sitting with Van trying to comfort him because the young king was greatly troubled by the talk he had with the boy. Allen himself was troubled too after Van explained everything.

So they learned that Syaoran went to Hitomi's country in order to capture magical cards, his family was noble, and how he managed to get his wings and his dragon identity in the first place. Although Syaoran never showed his wings to Van or to anyone else, they knew enough to know that he was both a dragon and a phoenix?

Allen that that it was madness. However, in truth there was nothing else to believe, and having a dragon being a human child was enough to drive one crazy all by itself. The child from the Mystic Moon has a lot of mysterious secrets.

" He just seemed to have lost all hope, for everything." Van explained quietly. " He always ponders on death. Probably if he wasn't captured as a dragon he would have killed himself right then."
" Well, be glad then, that he is still here."
" For how long, Allen?" Van asked. " I fear for him. What if he takes it into his head to do it here?"

There was a hushed silence, then both men rose and rushed up the stairs.



Syaoran was covered snugly with blankets and his breathing was deep as he lied there in the dark room. Both Allen and Van sighed with relief.
" We're going to have to keep a close eye on him." Allen whispered to Van.
" Hai." Van agreed. They froze when the child shifted and murmured something.

Van beckoned Allen inside and closed the door behind them.
" What in the world are you doing?" Allen asked. " Our presence might wake him."
" True, but if we are careful enough, we might know what he's dreaming about." Van pointed out. " That way we can find out more things about him and figure out a way to help him."
" Good heavens!" Allen answered, and they crept closer to the bed.



Hitomi was greatly distressed because this time she couldn't contact Van. She had an idea of what he was doing up there; he must be fussing around with Syaoran, and she didn't mind really. But he could at least tell her what's going on, and if they made any progress in healing the boy's wounded heart.

She knew more now. Over the past few days, through dreams and visions, she knew the whole story and was anxious to tell Van.

But what was Van doing?

She knew about Syaoran. She knew that the child was in deep sorrow and deep pain as well as in danger of doing something rash. Right now she knew that Van had developed some kind of bond with the boy, and hopefully a close one. The boy needs friendship and Van would be the one to give it to him.

But what was Van doing? Hitomi asked herself again. It doesn't make sense. He's not answering me. Is the kid in trouble?

Suddenly, an image of the child appeared in Hitomi's mind. The boy was the same sad one that she had last seen, but this time the child seemed to be staring at her.

Hitomi. I need your tarot cards, and with them, the Sakura Cards. For at dawn of the fourth new moon from today, there shall be darkness all over until death claims either Gaea or myself. Find the Sakura Cards in the yellow house in Tomoeda near Penguin Park, and ask for the Hikatoshis. They are the descendants of Kinomoto Touya, and they will know where the book lies. Remember, time presses, and if you wish to be rejoined with your beloved, do not make the same mistake I once made...



" I am not going to allow him to do that." Van answered almost furiously as he stormed down the hall, with a very distraught Allen Schezar behind him.

" I'm not saying that you must allow him to die out there." Allen explained. " I'm only saying that if you want to see Hitomi again, it's obvious that he has to go somehow. That at least is what he's suggesting when he said that."
" Since when did you suddenly understand what was it? Cantonese?" Van asked.
" I did not understand Cantonese, but it's obvious that Syaoran made the listeners able to listen. Hitomi undoubtedly has no reason to understand Cantonese either. It's probably some sort of spell that you told me about."
" Listen. This boy is very crafty. If he wants to die, he's going to figure out a way, and undoubtedly he is going to lure the cards to do it. The only reason he hasn't done it yet is because there is always someone there, and he doesn't feel comfortable doing it and he knows we'll stop him. What better way then to use the other magic?"
" But don't you get it, Van? He's a dragon and a phoenix. Don't you think he should be able to use his own powers?"

This seemed to have wakened Van slightly because he was silent for a long moment. Allen and the King looked at each other for a moment.
" Exactly." Van suddenly lowered his gaze at his hands. " I don't understand. If there is a darkness wouldn't Syaoran be able to overcome it?"
" Apparently not."
" And what did he mean by the mistake?"
" Obviously something related with you and Hitomi's relationship, I'll warrant. But notwithstanding, I do believe you need to make a decision about Syaoran's fate and yours. It's either Hitomi, or Syaoran. The question is what consequences come after."



" Obviously he heard." Syaoran muttered to Millerna during the next morning while they ate breakfast together. " They both heard. Otherwise first of all, they'll be right here eating with us."
" Heard about what?" Millerna asked.
" I'm not really sure." Syaoran looked worried. " I think they're thinking that I'm going to go crazy and commit suicide." He remembered suddenly that Millerna didn't know. " Obviously, even if I am that mad, I'd wait until a better chance comes. The truth of the matter is, Gaea and Earth are drifting further and further apart." He forgot that Millerna calls it the Mystic Moon, but the princess still knew what he was saying anyway. " Someone was taking control of that. He either has more power or equal power as I do, so I don't know what he's doing. I was hoping that Hitomi wouldn't take it the wrong way and not bring me the cards because if she doesn't, we can all bid farewell to Gaea."

Millerna was silent for a moment.
" Do we have a lot of time?" She asked.
" We do have some time." Syaoran answered. " But we still need to hurry."
" And what do you plan to do with those cards?"
" First of all, Sakura's cards have the ability to tell the future like the tarot cards. They also have a strong offensive power. I know how to use them."
" And if something goes wrong?"
" Then I die."
" So those two are right then."
" I guess. It's either Earth or Gaea. The guy can attack here and I might be able to fend him off alone without the cards, but I definetely won't get rid of them. Then he's going to the Mystic Moon and kill Hitomi off there to lure Van and Escaflowne. Speaking of Escaflowne," Syaoran realized that Millerna was of the same mind as Van and Allen, " What is that thing?"
" It's a type of armor. Why?"
" The truth is, and I really think Hitomi had something to do with this, but every time I get close to it, say, several meters away from it, my powers just get pressed down and I can't use them anymore."
" You mean, flying around, going through things, and becoming invisible like you did yesterday to Merle?"
" About as much, but that's just a drop of water in the ocean. I'm just worried if Escaflowne goes out while whoever is doing all of this attacks, I might not be able to fend him off."
" Do you know who it is? You keep referring to that person as " He"."
" I know it's a ' he', that much I know. I know he's an immortal, that much I know. I don't know what type though."
" How many types are there? And what are they like?" Millerna was very interested. She decided that later she might tell Van and Allen, but kept from thinking that lest Syaoran heard her.

" There are several types." Syaoran smiled, and it was the first time Millerna ever saw him smile. She thought that he looked adorable when he was smiling, and there was a kind of tender light in his eyes, heartwarming and true. " There are the Dragons. They are considered the highest ranking along with the Phoenixes. The Dragons have power over the sea and the sky. They can raise storms and control the flow of wind. It was said that most Dragons are calm and quiet, and there were very few of them. They were well disciplined and well respected because they had the best temper. The ' human among apes', as you may say. We love the water and the air. We have the ability to heal and make life, or to sustain life if we wished."

" The Phoenixes...they, well, they're much more hot tempered. Cantankerous.
They are proud and are feared. They're considered primitive though, I don't know why. Maybe because they're wild and enjoy their freedom. They hate being caged up. Like Dragons, they rule the skies, and rule the flames. Should one of them drop into the water, it is deadly for them, because their feathers and their body are made of controlled flame, and since the water puts it out, their bodies will slowly turn to ash, and the only way to help them is to light a fire and let it creep along their bodies so that it dries all the water; otherwise they'll become dust. They have powers of destruction and birth as well and rank as high as the Dragons, but Phoenixes are more abundant because no one had ever killed one yet. They are very careful and very wily." Syaoran laughed. " Well, I shouldn't say ever killed one," He sighed.

" Then there are Forins. You probably never heard of them-they're land dwellers. They are kind of like deer, only larger, much larger. They have fur as white as snow, and tall antlers like trees. But their whole body is made of stone and crystals they're fascinating to look at. Pieces of white jade, white gold, silver, all things that can be imagined. They never ventured out of the immortal realm because Men are greedy and might kill them for their bodies. They are rather weak, if you ask me."

" Another one, and they are slightly stronger, are unicorns. You might have heard of them. They come usually in white, and instead of mane under their necks, they have them over their necks, much like the horses on the Mystic Moon. Horns stand on their foreheads, made of white gold, usually, and such power was in them! They are beings of purity and their horn gives them protection and blessing. They too, are land dwellers."

" Some others live in the sea. I knew one of them. She was a Nakten. Her species has long smooth bodies with flippers instead of legs, a long slender neck and a graceful head. Long tails with great muscles lash out to help them swim. They always bore the best voices, and their song enchants even the wildest and coldest of hearts."

" You speak...as if that was long ago."

Syaoran looked at Millerna for a long time before answering.
" It was long ago." He answered.



" Blasted lizard." Merle licked her fur. " When I get at his neck he'll learn. Hmph."

The said ' lizard' swayed his way into the room casually and picked up a chicken leg while he flew past the table.

Merle blinked curiously as she watched the dragon deal with the leg. He was more graceful than a swan when he was a dragon. His long neck arched stylishly as he nibbled timidly at the meat. He ate very slowly. It was not animalistic.

Merle waved her tail and the dragon blinked at her. She purred. The dragon answered with a low rumble in his throat.

" You know, it's not polite to eat when it's not time." She scolded.

Syaoran snorted and went on eating. He clicked once, dismissing her. As if he cared about rules!

Giving a wide yawn after feeling full, ( He only finished a third of that very small piece of chicken and it was mostly bones anyway,) he tossed the meat to Merle. Merle growled and skittered back. Syaoran made a noise that sounded like laughing and rolled on his back as the chicken lifted by itself into a bucket.

" What in the world are you doing?" Merle asked.
" Dlrdlrdlrdlrdeee!" Syaoran chirped.

Merle cocked an eyebrow and tilted her head. " Huh?"

Syaoran at that moment decided he was thirsty, so he rolled back on his stomach and walked over to the table. He looked very much like a lizard.

Once he got his head onto the table, he nosed around for something to drink. Wine. Wine. Wine. Wine. Wine. Wine. Wine. Wine.

More wine.

Even more wine.

Hmm, what's this? Oh. Wine.

Wine.

Frustrated now, Syaoran decided to just drink the blasted wine. He licked and immediately spat it out.

What in the world was THAT?!



Merle was watching him with an amused look in her eyes as the dragon slumped off sulkily and curled up below the table. She decided to get under the table and poke at him, just to annoy him.

It was to her fortune that Syaoran at that moment was in the mood for playing with her, otherwise she'd have been soaked.

Actually, she was soaked anyway.

" MREOW!" She shrieked, as a squirt of water splashed into her face. " Hey!" She was about to retort, but then a whole bucketful of water fell on her.

" Ow! Hey! I'll get you for this!" But Syaoran was clicking along with laughter and squirting water at her. Merle had enough of this! She scampered off, and Syaoran flew off behind her, squirting water and purposely missing her but forcing her to keep going.



Van and Allen were sitting at the table with Millerna and Mr. Mole when they heard a commotion down the hall.

" Meow! Mreow! Stop! Matte! Stop that! Grrrr!"
" Cli cli click! Clicliclicliclick! Tweeet!"

Standing up in alarm, Van wondered what happened this time.

Merle came scampering into the room and hid behind Van. Along came this small dragon, green and giggling all over. Van noticed that Merle was drenched and the dragon was tumbling around the air in laughter. He wondered what Syaoran's laugh sounds like in human form, but in dragon form it really was both kawaii and funny.

The dragon squirted water over his head and onto Merle's. Van decided to move aside and let Syaoran have some fun. Merle wouldn't have that. She ran behind Allen, and hissed. Syaoran clicked again and squirted water. This time Merle dodged. She ran behind Millerna, and Syaoran suddenly fell silent.

Merle wondered what happened and peeked out from beside Millerna's legs. To come face to face with a pair of golden eyes and a green, small snout.
" MREOOOW!!!" She cried, jumping back in alarm. The dragon giggled, squirted more water into her face, then decided that he was tired and curled up in Van's arms.

The humans of the scenario were laughing so hard they could hardly stand up. It was hard to tell which was more hilarious-a wet cat, the giggling dragon, or the whole situation. Merle had the reputation of bring laughter to a lot of things and this happened to be one of them, and a serious one too!

Merle hissed at Syaoran, and his response was another squirt of water at her face. She growled and strolled off, tail waving unhappily. That was not funny. She thought.

Syaoran casually looked after her without concern and then crawled on top of Van's head. Van laughed.
" I wonder what would happen if we painted something like this." He chuckled. " It would make an amusing picture!"

So that was how it started. Van Fanel, Lord of Fanelia, Friend to all baby Dragons, signed by Mitch Scholin, hung on the wall of his private quarters.

It was after that single experience when Syaoran decided he did not like posing for paintings, as it could take many hours at each day and many days. Even as a human boy he did not have many paintings, although he claimed that he did have quite a few of him and some other people when he was at home. Syaoran never did mention where that home was.



Hitomi came to Fanelia on the night of the sixth moon, carrying the books with her. She was dressed for the winter so she had sweatpants and sweaters and she carried with her a bag of many clothes, along with her tarot cards and the Sakura Book she got from the descendants of Touya. She arrived in Fanelia in the same pillar of light as the one that had carried herself and Van there before.

She was very nervous about seeing Van. Although they had kept close contact the last several years, she hadn't seen Van's face at all. Briefly Hitomi wondered if Van had changed, if anything had changed, and how Fanelia came to be in the first place.

Hitomi ventured through the streets, trying to ignore the stares at her. She was feeling very self conscious about her clothes but that was a small matter now. She wanted to see Van and that was the most important thing.

Entering the palace she was stopped by two guards.
" Who are you?" They asked.
" I'm-Hitomi-" She started,
" Hitomi!"

Hitomi looked up to see a boy leaping from the high wall. She cried out for his safety but the boy landed without harm.

Syaoran rushed up to her. He glared at the guards for a second before turning back to her.
" You made it." He said. " Safe and sound too."

Hitomi looked at Syaoran and noticed that he had grown much thinner and pale from the vision she had last seen. She thought about how Syaoran was once healthy, with rosy cheeks and strong hands, and still was after the mass murder.

" So what are you planning to do, Yukito?" Touya asked. " The kid doesn't even have insurance here, or health care, for that matter! You can keep him here in your house for the time being, but then what are you going to do when he gets sick? And then you can't legally support him if the government finds out, and they will, trust me. The Li clan's disappearance will eventually lead to the gaki, and they're going to get you for this!"

" I don't know what to do, in truth." Yukito answered " I only know that the first thing we should do is to do something about the gods, and then we can concentrate on Syaoran and his future afterwards."

Just then the child opened the door groggily and peeked out.

The two tall teenagers immediately changed their topic.

" So, did you see that game yesterday?" Touya asked casually, although his teeth were slightly clenched.
" Iie. I was here doing homework. How did it go?"
" It was pathetic. Our high school got their butts kicked. Seriously, I think they choose too many overweighted individuals."
" I know what you mean." Yukito smiled at Syaoran kindly. " How's our little hero today?"

Syaoran didn't answer. He didn't feel like talking about the incident the night before, when he rescued Sakura from several strange gods.

" Since when did the kid become the silent type?" Touya asked.
" Yukito-san, I need to call Eriol." Syaoran suddenly said.
" Go ahead." Yukito answered. " Phone's over there."

Syaoran dragged himself over there and Yukito whispered to Touya,
" He lost a lot of weight. What am I to do?"
" How should I know?" Touya whispered back. " Sakura always wolfed down everything at home. I was never met with this situation. The kid's depressed. He still looks strong enough though."
" But what if he gets sick? What IF he gets sick?" Yukito asked. " Does your father know anyone who studies medicine? Do YOU know anyone who studies medicine?"
" By gods, Yukito!" Touya exclaimed. " Yue, Moon Guardian, Judge of the Clow Card Masters. I thought you would know enough already! Adopt him!"

Syaoran suddenly turned around, his golden eyes glowing with an unknown fear, and the two older boys stopped and could not move anymore.



 Hitomi looked at the child that had once been so lucky and healthy, now reduced to a skinny bundle of bones. She followed him inside, her mind still dwelling on what happened afterwards.



" First of all," Eriol began, " We are very good friends of his, and we care about him. Tell us what you want with him and we may consider. Otherwise," Eriol stamped his staff on the ground firmly, an expression of his power and rank, " Our relations end now."

The expression on the gods was unreadable; it was hard to tell whether they're amused or worried. Finally one of them spoke.

" Seven years ago," He began, " The child woke up at night to the shadow of Death and saw it and recognized it. The following morn his father disappeared, never to be found. Ever since then the child unconsciously called us for aid, his trauma incurable by any mortal means, and his mother afraid to interfere. Two months ago, the child again woke up at night to the shadow of Death and recognized it as the same shadow that had taken his father years before. The same night his family was murdered and the boy was left an orphan. His calls ceased and we found him. The Phoenixes and the Dragons found him at the same time and wish to take him to our world, but we live in different places. The child does not recognize us and is afraid. Iie, we do not wish to harm him. We simply want to take him home."

" Really, Syaoran-kun?" Sakura asked her trembling friend. " Is it true? When you were three years old you saw that shadow?"

Syaoran did not answer. He only huddled against Yue's body and hid his face in Yue's shoulder.

Eriol carried on a look of doubt.
" Then why do you two fight?" He asked.
" We fight for the child." Answered the Dragon God. " The Phoenixes are proud and want him and love him. We live in a higher rank and love him as well. Over the past seven years we watched over his aura and protected him and felt him grow with his powers. We felt his despair and loneliness. We felt his love."

Syaoran huddled even tighter against Yue, who comforted him softly, stroking his hair.

" Come to us, child." The gods called. " Come to us. Come to us, come back to your home, where you may live in all the light of the worlds..."



 Hitomi looked at the boy who came from the immortal world. He didn't go until his friends were killed by the same magicians that had attacked Sakura. She wondered if the boy thought of Sakura now that she's here, with Sakura's possesions and all.

Syaoran was remembering a time long ago when he was with his dear aunt from the Phoenix side. He remembered how the warmth enveloped him, how the love caressed him. He felt Hitomi shift behind him with unease and a sad smile graced his lips. Hitomi now had long hair. She looked like that aunt.



Van was slightly alarmed at the sudden appearance of King Chid and the sudden disappearance of Syaoran. Chid told him that there was something along the horizon against Fanelia and might come and attack him, and Chid was offering alliance.

Van was certain that whatever it was was coming for Syaoran by some unknown instinct. He ordered the officials to look for the boy and bring him to the throne.

However, when the guards came back, Van nearly fell over. Not only was Syaoran there, but Hitomi as well!

" Hitomi!" He cried, standing up and rushing to her. They hugged as if they'll never meet again.
" I am so glad to see you!" Van cried, forgetting that he didn't want Hitomi to come back if it meant Syaoran was to die. All he knew was that he loved Hitomi, that Hitomi loved him and they are together again. And from the silent tears in her eyes he knew that Hitomi was thinking the same.
" Van." She whispered.

The two were so engrossed with each other that they didn't notice Lord Chid and Syaoran slinking off into the hall.