Lchan: Yay! 2rd chapter!! Thanks a lot to all you
supercalifragilisticexpialidocious people who reviewed the first one (and
the prologue)! To all who are asking...I dunno when this happens. I'm
sorry. I just put in the characters I want to put in. If it'll help,
Syaoran still hasn't told Sakura his feelings and Sakura's still in the
confusing-emotions stage. No Yue.
Uhm...okay. Please review! Choose really subtle hints of a flame in the form of a comment if you have the urge to criticize wee ol' Lchan's compositions. Peace, people!
II-Hide and Seek
"Syaoran! Syaoran-kun!! Come back!! Don't--!" Sakura yelped, as Syaoran, finding meager strength from who-knows-where and relying mostly on adrenaline, bolted out the door.
Stares from spectators that Sakura's shrieks had acquired gave him a feeling of utter irritation, but, with his powerful ability to ignore, he managed to run by them without cussing.
Sakura, who was behind him, wasn't helping things with her shouting, "Syaoran-kun, come back, your fever!!" and Tomoyo shouting, "Sakura-chan!! He'll get KILLED!!"
He ran on. 'Someone's bound to make a movie of this,' he thought, sarcastically and embarrassedly, even to himself.
As he passed by a caring mother who stood outside a shop with her children, staring at him like all the others, he heard her whisper to her kids in an alarmed voice: "Don't go near, he's carrying a sword...keep away!"
Syaoran's amber eyes widened.
WHAT!?!?
His eyes flicked down, and he realized theyw ere right. He grumbled at his stupidity and turned it back to ball-and-tassel when they ran through an empty street.
"SYAORAN!!!!" Sakura screamed, feeling panic gushing through her heart and her mind--so much that she felt almost numb.
Syaoran didn't respond. It wasn't that he just felt like ignoring her, although that was part of it, but yelling would require too much energy, and he didn't have too much energy.
It was a strange feeling--hot...yet cold...like icy fire-- feverish...uncomfortable...downright h-o-t. And the heat was affecting his lungs, which seemed to be running out of air, like an unreliable supply of breath. Everything was blurry, constantly swimming in and out of focus. Intricate designs on people's shirts became vague splashes of colors, then back again. But he ran on.
Syaoran-kun...stop...yamete, onegai...
'Not a chance...I'm sorry, Sakura...but I can't...I just can't....'
"Sakura-chan, come on! Just help him all you can, don't let him fight alone!! Don't let him fight, if you can!! Let him save his energy!! Hayaku, Sakura-chan!!"
'Daidouji...actually panicking...I'm honored. But she can't expect me to let Sakura fight alone... and risk her safety...no. Not while I'M still around to help, even in this pathetic condition...she is not allowed to get hurt.'
And he ran on, hoping against hope he'd be able to fight properly. The aquarium. That was where the Card was hiding. He could feel its beckoning aura, inviting him to enter the dimension called unconsciousness. His vision blotted a little. He shook his head.
No way was he missing this fight.
No way.
'That Clow Card is going down.'
* * * Aquarium * * *
Strangely enough, only few people were in the Aquarium, only some tourists, a guard, and a couple of bored waiters and a manager in the empty restaurant.
"This place never fails to make me feel...good," Sakura breathed. "It's so...magical..."
"This place is making me feel nauseous," Syaoran grumbled, resisting the urge to raise an icy hand to check his temperature. He bit his lip and tried not to shiver. The cool, air-conditioned air felt almost freezing, the cold contrasting unbearably with the hotness of his fever.
"Syaoran-kun, daijobu?" Sakura asked, her emerald eyes inspecting his auburn ones. Tomoyo inwardly rejoiced, her happiness only short-lived due to the twinge of alarm that shot through her at the same moment.
Syaoran's gaze hardened, his frown darkened, and he looked away to avoid her gaze. He hated being weak, but he hated being TREATED like he was weak even more...even though he WAS weak.
He grumbled. "Stop..." his eyes widened, "...it." An icy gust of wind suddenly seemed to blow past him, go through him, flow through him. "Sakura...the card..." he murmured, the gush of coldness still sweeping through his body.
"I know. Please, Syaoran-kun, let ME fight...er...I mean first," Sakura quickly added. Syaoran's auburn eyes had flashed towards her dangerously at the first phrase, and she bit her lip in defeat.
Tomoyo almost flinched.
Sakura looked around, aware of the people who were innocent of her magic, the people who would freak if the saw her actually DO magic.
"Flush their brains out with the Erase or Memory or whatever after this," Syaoran advised, rather crossly. He was getting impatient, afraid the adrenaline will wear off before he could fight.
"H-hai," Sakura said. His amber eyes scared her so badly, even though she knew she had the upper hand if they had a duel. His was the coldest glare she had ever known in her life!
"Good, now let's go downstairs. No one goes there often," Syaoran instructed.
They trooped downstairs. Sure enough, no one was there. The bottom of the glass pool was as beautiful as the upper portion, but there were fewer fishes.
"It's here. I know it," Sakura piped up, unaware that Kero wasn't with her. She found out later she liked it better that way. "Ditto," Syaoran murmured, softly, his voice not even reaching her. Tomoyo taped the whole thing on the sidelines.
Moments passed...
Silence...
Their attention slowly began to shift from fighting to the still beauty of the water, contained behind the transparent glass. It seemed to glow in its serene azure splendor, inviting them to admire it.
"Sugoi..." Sakura breathed, watching a school of fishes swim past. Even Syaoran was mystified, everything else forgotten by the beauty of the water...
Suddenly, something seemed to slice through the serenity.
That one hint brought the three entranced spectators back to reality. Sakura could once again feel the tension, Syaoran could feel the surge of adrenaline flow through him, and Tomoyo's camera was once again poised in their general direction.
There was a movement in the water again, and a vague, hazy shape appeared briefly, only to dissolve into invisibility again.
"Watery," Syaoran concluded, after a moment of careful thinking.
"WATERY? But how!?" Sakura cried. "Water is right.........here..." Her hand, which had reached into her pocket for her portable magical mediums, came out with a bunch of glossy pink Clow Cards, but not one of them was Water.
Her eyes pierced Syaoran's in fright and realization. "You're right."
"I know I am. But it's gone now. I think it felt its mistress and decided to evacuate."
"What are going to do!?!?"
"Search for it."
"When?"
"This evening."
"But your fever...I haven't forgotten about that, Syaoran!!"
Syaoran, although he was touched by her concern, was annoyed that she thought he was *shudder* w-e-a-k. "You don't have to care so don't," he said, softly, with a touch of defiance.
A voice inside him suddenly piped, 'Hey, stop screaming at the sweetest girl in the world!'
Syaoran, shutting the little voice out with a defensive 'I didn't scream!!' comeback, which was true anyways, turned his back and walked away, not bothering to wait for either girl. He didn't want them returning to his apartment with him. He had plans.
* * *Syaoran's apartment* * *
Syaoran twisted the knob open, feeling the fever's revenge on his stubbornness. He inwardly grumbled and wearily trudged to his room, the nauseous feverish feeling enveloping him, overwhelming and distracting.
He gathered his strength and turned the knob. He couldn't see anything. All his vision offered him was blurry green shades, which he figured were supposed to be the features of his room.
He vaguely remembered walking to the bed.
And the green gave way to inky black.
* * *Later* * *
Syaoran woke up to a cold feeling of a Clow Card's presence. Every inch of him still burned with fever, but he stuck to his resolve to remain strong.
The moon was bright, shining through vast, clear navy blue. Stars dotted the delicate display, some lost wispy clouds still hanging here and there.
These details, of course, weren't given the time to be appreciated.
Undeterred by his worsening condition, Syaoran grabbed his ball and tassel, transformed it into his faithful sword and changed into his battle robes.
Not bothering to tell Wei where he was going and unaware that he hadn't had any dinner, he jumped out the window, thoughts of Clow Cards and Sakura filling his mind. He vaguely wondered what Tomoyo cooked up for Sakura to wear this time, but he was more concentrated on plans of preserving strength and keeping conscious.
A Clow Card in 'Aqua Splash Resort' awaited him...and, more importantly, Sakura was there.
* * *ASR* * *
"HOEEEEEEE!!!!!!!" Sakura screamed.
"Ssshh, it's only me," Syaoran softly reprimanded, emerging from the shadows from where he'd entered.
"Syaoran-kun, why'd you come--I mean...you're here!" Sakura stammered. She gave a sheepish little giggle. Apparently, she hadn't expected him to come. He took it as a personal offense.
Tomoyo was once again happily recording his arrival on tape, her wavy locks secured into a high ponytail. She was happy, of course, that Syaoran came, but unhappy as well, because his fever might prevent sweet S+S moments from shining through. Oh, she cared that he might collapse or something dangerous might happen... Like mentioned, she wasn't heartless. Syaoran was her friend just like he was Sakura's. She was worried about his fever, too!
"You aren't fighting alone," Syaoran told Sakura, after a moment of silence. For some reason, he didn't sound cold or distant for her. Instead of the message he wanted to relay (to conceal his surfacing feelings), which was 'I'll get this one and not you', what Sakura received was 'We'll bring this Card down together'.
Later on, Syaoran realized that this was the reason why she suddenly smiled.
Once again, Sakura was sporting another weird get-up, he noted. Syaoran couldn't find words to describe it. All he knew was that it was fancy, it was blue, and it had a matching fancy, blue headpiece to match, with a touch of Chinese style to it that he found he liked.
He shook his head a little as her features blurred suddenly.
"Get ready," Syaoran said, dismissing the magical moment of intense staring at her beauty and the queer prettiness of the dress on her for future recollection. Besides, the blurring of his vision ruined the whole thing. "It's here."
"Hai," Sakura said, her voice still tinged with worry. Her emerald eyes flicked back to glance at him ever so often, and he found his heart bumping around beneath his ribcage, adding to his discomfort. Finally, he said, "What is it?"
"Syaoran, I..." Sakura paused, bit her lip, and cast her eyes down. After a moment, she said, "Syaoran-kun...please be careful."
Syaoran shifted his gaze towards the water again and didn't reply.
"Syaoran-kun..." Sakura murmured, downhearted at the lack of response. She turned to her key, stretched her palm, and was about to chant, when Syaoran said:
"I will. Stop worrying."
He earned Sakura's smile again. Seconds later, her voice echoed through the resort, ringing with her signature sweet note.
"RELEASE!!"
* * * tbc
Lchan: Okay, I made 'Aqua Splash' up. I'm sorry if this chapter isn't good enough for your tastes, or doesn't quite reach your standards. Bear with me. Please don't stop reviewing. I'm still deciding what would happen during the fight. Ideas, anyone? No flames please. I mean it. Just tell me what you think. No cussing necessary. Okay? Okay.
Uhm...okay. Please review! Choose really subtle hints of a flame in the form of a comment if you have the urge to criticize wee ol' Lchan's compositions. Peace, people!
II-Hide and Seek
"Syaoran! Syaoran-kun!! Come back!! Don't--!" Sakura yelped, as Syaoran, finding meager strength from who-knows-where and relying mostly on adrenaline, bolted out the door.
Stares from spectators that Sakura's shrieks had acquired gave him a feeling of utter irritation, but, with his powerful ability to ignore, he managed to run by them without cussing.
Sakura, who was behind him, wasn't helping things with her shouting, "Syaoran-kun, come back, your fever!!" and Tomoyo shouting, "Sakura-chan!! He'll get KILLED!!"
He ran on. 'Someone's bound to make a movie of this,' he thought, sarcastically and embarrassedly, even to himself.
As he passed by a caring mother who stood outside a shop with her children, staring at him like all the others, he heard her whisper to her kids in an alarmed voice: "Don't go near, he's carrying a sword...keep away!"
Syaoran's amber eyes widened.
WHAT!?!?
His eyes flicked down, and he realized theyw ere right. He grumbled at his stupidity and turned it back to ball-and-tassel when they ran through an empty street.
"SYAORAN!!!!" Sakura screamed, feeling panic gushing through her heart and her mind--so much that she felt almost numb.
Syaoran didn't respond. It wasn't that he just felt like ignoring her, although that was part of it, but yelling would require too much energy, and he didn't have too much energy.
It was a strange feeling--hot...yet cold...like icy fire-- feverish...uncomfortable...downright h-o-t. And the heat was affecting his lungs, which seemed to be running out of air, like an unreliable supply of breath. Everything was blurry, constantly swimming in and out of focus. Intricate designs on people's shirts became vague splashes of colors, then back again. But he ran on.
Syaoran-kun...stop...yamete, onegai...
'Not a chance...I'm sorry, Sakura...but I can't...I just can't....'
"Sakura-chan, come on! Just help him all you can, don't let him fight alone!! Don't let him fight, if you can!! Let him save his energy!! Hayaku, Sakura-chan!!"
'Daidouji...actually panicking...I'm honored. But she can't expect me to let Sakura fight alone... and risk her safety...no. Not while I'M still around to help, even in this pathetic condition...she is not allowed to get hurt.'
And he ran on, hoping against hope he'd be able to fight properly. The aquarium. That was where the Card was hiding. He could feel its beckoning aura, inviting him to enter the dimension called unconsciousness. His vision blotted a little. He shook his head.
No way was he missing this fight.
No way.
'That Clow Card is going down.'
* * * Aquarium * * *
Strangely enough, only few people were in the Aquarium, only some tourists, a guard, and a couple of bored waiters and a manager in the empty restaurant.
"This place never fails to make me feel...good," Sakura breathed. "It's so...magical..."
"This place is making me feel nauseous," Syaoran grumbled, resisting the urge to raise an icy hand to check his temperature. He bit his lip and tried not to shiver. The cool, air-conditioned air felt almost freezing, the cold contrasting unbearably with the hotness of his fever.
"Syaoran-kun, daijobu?" Sakura asked, her emerald eyes inspecting his auburn ones. Tomoyo inwardly rejoiced, her happiness only short-lived due to the twinge of alarm that shot through her at the same moment.
Syaoran's gaze hardened, his frown darkened, and he looked away to avoid her gaze. He hated being weak, but he hated being TREATED like he was weak even more...even though he WAS weak.
He grumbled. "Stop..." his eyes widened, "...it." An icy gust of wind suddenly seemed to blow past him, go through him, flow through him. "Sakura...the card..." he murmured, the gush of coldness still sweeping through his body.
"I know. Please, Syaoran-kun, let ME fight...er...I mean first," Sakura quickly added. Syaoran's auburn eyes had flashed towards her dangerously at the first phrase, and she bit her lip in defeat.
Tomoyo almost flinched.
Sakura looked around, aware of the people who were innocent of her magic, the people who would freak if the saw her actually DO magic.
"Flush their brains out with the Erase or Memory or whatever after this," Syaoran advised, rather crossly. He was getting impatient, afraid the adrenaline will wear off before he could fight.
"H-hai," Sakura said. His amber eyes scared her so badly, even though she knew she had the upper hand if they had a duel. His was the coldest glare she had ever known in her life!
"Good, now let's go downstairs. No one goes there often," Syaoran instructed.
They trooped downstairs. Sure enough, no one was there. The bottom of the glass pool was as beautiful as the upper portion, but there were fewer fishes.
"It's here. I know it," Sakura piped up, unaware that Kero wasn't with her. She found out later she liked it better that way. "Ditto," Syaoran murmured, softly, his voice not even reaching her. Tomoyo taped the whole thing on the sidelines.
Moments passed...
Silence...
Their attention slowly began to shift from fighting to the still beauty of the water, contained behind the transparent glass. It seemed to glow in its serene azure splendor, inviting them to admire it.
"Sugoi..." Sakura breathed, watching a school of fishes swim past. Even Syaoran was mystified, everything else forgotten by the beauty of the water...
Suddenly, something seemed to slice through the serenity.
That one hint brought the three entranced spectators back to reality. Sakura could once again feel the tension, Syaoran could feel the surge of adrenaline flow through him, and Tomoyo's camera was once again poised in their general direction.
There was a movement in the water again, and a vague, hazy shape appeared briefly, only to dissolve into invisibility again.
"Watery," Syaoran concluded, after a moment of careful thinking.
"WATERY? But how!?" Sakura cried. "Water is right.........here..." Her hand, which had reached into her pocket for her portable magical mediums, came out with a bunch of glossy pink Clow Cards, but not one of them was Water.
Her eyes pierced Syaoran's in fright and realization. "You're right."
"I know I am. But it's gone now. I think it felt its mistress and decided to evacuate."
"What are going to do!?!?"
"Search for it."
"When?"
"This evening."
"But your fever...I haven't forgotten about that, Syaoran!!"
Syaoran, although he was touched by her concern, was annoyed that she thought he was *shudder* w-e-a-k. "You don't have to care so don't," he said, softly, with a touch of defiance.
A voice inside him suddenly piped, 'Hey, stop screaming at the sweetest girl in the world!'
Syaoran, shutting the little voice out with a defensive 'I didn't scream!!' comeback, which was true anyways, turned his back and walked away, not bothering to wait for either girl. He didn't want them returning to his apartment with him. He had plans.
* * *Syaoran's apartment* * *
Syaoran twisted the knob open, feeling the fever's revenge on his stubbornness. He inwardly grumbled and wearily trudged to his room, the nauseous feverish feeling enveloping him, overwhelming and distracting.
He gathered his strength and turned the knob. He couldn't see anything. All his vision offered him was blurry green shades, which he figured were supposed to be the features of his room.
He vaguely remembered walking to the bed.
And the green gave way to inky black.
* * *Later* * *
Syaoran woke up to a cold feeling of a Clow Card's presence. Every inch of him still burned with fever, but he stuck to his resolve to remain strong.
The moon was bright, shining through vast, clear navy blue. Stars dotted the delicate display, some lost wispy clouds still hanging here and there.
These details, of course, weren't given the time to be appreciated.
Undeterred by his worsening condition, Syaoran grabbed his ball and tassel, transformed it into his faithful sword and changed into his battle robes.
Not bothering to tell Wei where he was going and unaware that he hadn't had any dinner, he jumped out the window, thoughts of Clow Cards and Sakura filling his mind. He vaguely wondered what Tomoyo cooked up for Sakura to wear this time, but he was more concentrated on plans of preserving strength and keeping conscious.
A Clow Card in 'Aqua Splash Resort' awaited him...and, more importantly, Sakura was there.
* * *ASR* * *
"HOEEEEEEE!!!!!!!" Sakura screamed.
"Ssshh, it's only me," Syaoran softly reprimanded, emerging from the shadows from where he'd entered.
"Syaoran-kun, why'd you come--I mean...you're here!" Sakura stammered. She gave a sheepish little giggle. Apparently, she hadn't expected him to come. He took it as a personal offense.
Tomoyo was once again happily recording his arrival on tape, her wavy locks secured into a high ponytail. She was happy, of course, that Syaoran came, but unhappy as well, because his fever might prevent sweet S+S moments from shining through. Oh, she cared that he might collapse or something dangerous might happen... Like mentioned, she wasn't heartless. Syaoran was her friend just like he was Sakura's. She was worried about his fever, too!
"You aren't fighting alone," Syaoran told Sakura, after a moment of silence. For some reason, he didn't sound cold or distant for her. Instead of the message he wanted to relay (to conceal his surfacing feelings), which was 'I'll get this one and not you', what Sakura received was 'We'll bring this Card down together'.
Later on, Syaoran realized that this was the reason why she suddenly smiled.
Once again, Sakura was sporting another weird get-up, he noted. Syaoran couldn't find words to describe it. All he knew was that it was fancy, it was blue, and it had a matching fancy, blue headpiece to match, with a touch of Chinese style to it that he found he liked.
He shook his head a little as her features blurred suddenly.
"Get ready," Syaoran said, dismissing the magical moment of intense staring at her beauty and the queer prettiness of the dress on her for future recollection. Besides, the blurring of his vision ruined the whole thing. "It's here."
"Hai," Sakura said, her voice still tinged with worry. Her emerald eyes flicked back to glance at him ever so often, and he found his heart bumping around beneath his ribcage, adding to his discomfort. Finally, he said, "What is it?"
"Syaoran, I..." Sakura paused, bit her lip, and cast her eyes down. After a moment, she said, "Syaoran-kun...please be careful."
Syaoran shifted his gaze towards the water again and didn't reply.
"Syaoran-kun..." Sakura murmured, downhearted at the lack of response. She turned to her key, stretched her palm, and was about to chant, when Syaoran said:
"I will. Stop worrying."
He earned Sakura's smile again. Seconds later, her voice echoed through the resort, ringing with her signature sweet note.
"RELEASE!!"
* * * tbc
Lchan: Okay, I made 'Aqua Splash' up. I'm sorry if this chapter isn't good enough for your tastes, or doesn't quite reach your standards. Bear with me. Please don't stop reviewing. I'm still deciding what would happen during the fight. Ideas, anyone? No flames please. I mean it. Just tell me what you think. No cussing necessary. Okay? Okay.