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Here's the next installment of the Cardcaptor Wendy story! Thanks for the reviews, favorites, and follows! So enjoy!

Jump for Joy? The Jump Card's Appearance!

The next day, the sun was shining brightly once more, and the goalie felt a bead of sweat trickle down his face as he tensed in preparation. As the ball zoomed toward the goal, he threw himself to the side, but it was no good. The ball hit the net with a satisfying swish, and the girls in the stands erupted in cheers for the handsome forward who had made the point.

Natsu, as usual, paid no attention to his fans as he took a moment to pause and try to get his breath back. Jellal was helping the team that week, and he slowed as he passed by Natsu and gave a congratulatory clap on his friend's shoulder.

"Nice shot."

From across the yard, Wendy leaned against the chainlink fence that separated the schools and watched her brother play.

"I feel sorry for Asuka…I hope they catch the culprit soon."

"But they say that not only did he leave no fingerprints, there wasn't even any trace that anyone was ever there." Chelia gave a little sigh and rested her chin in her hands.

Behind them, the teacher made a mark in his clipboard and motioned for the next student in line to make the box vault. The boy struggled in his jump and ended up clambering over the obstacle, and the teacher sighed.

"Actually, I heard a disturbing story."

"Disturbing?"

"I was speaking to my mother after I got home, about how there was a burglar at Asuka's house, and she said…"

The teacher beckoned again, and the girl almost fell off in her attempt to clear the vault. He just managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Why did his students insist on being the klutziest class in the entire school?

"A shop where something bad happens to you when you buy things there?" Wendy repeated in disbelief. "You don't mean…getting something stolen?"

"Yes."

"And that's Lisanna's shop?"

At last, the teacher thought, seeing whose name was next on his list. Someone that can actually clear the vault.

"Dragneel!"

"I can't say that for sure. It's a rumor in the toy store industry."

"Dragneel!"

"But don't worry about it too much - "

"Dragneel!" For the first time, Chelia noticed their teacher staring at them, clearly irritated.

"Oh, Wendy!"

Wendy gulped when she saw her teacher's face and hurried to jump the vault. She cleared it easily.

The two of them went directly to Twin Bells after the last class had finished, and found Lisanna still arranging toys.

"Welcome."

"Hello," Wendy said cheerfully, then felt her blood drain from her face. Chelia saw what she was looking at and gave a little gasp of her own. Lisanna studied their faces warily.

"What's wrong?"

"Lisanna…over there." Wendy raised a trembling hand to point to the pile behind the shop owner. A round panda was resting innocently on top. "That's Asuka's…"

Lisanna whirled around and made a whimpering sound in her throat.

"This again."

"Again?"

"The same thing happened in the shop that I had previously owned in another town," Lisanna began to explain. Her face had gone curiously white and she seemed to have trouble breathing. "Many times in a row. And then the rumors started – that if you shop at my place, your house will be robbed. And the thief was never found. People started thinking I was the thief." She gripped the counter's edge. "Maybe I should just stop being a shop owner."

Both Wendy and Chelia were dismayed. What would Asuka say if she heard this?

"That can't be!" Wendy said hastily. "That would be a waste; this is such a lovely shop!"

Lisanna didn't seem to have heard her.

"There's no way I could have done it by myself," she murmured. "I – I was engaged. He was a designer. But he died in an accident. He loved plush toys, and he told me that he wanted to sell toys that he designed in his own shop."

"Lisanna…"

"If I quit, he'll be sad. But I can't do this anymore."

Her shoulders slumped under the thick masses of her white hair, and she closed her eyes. Both girls were silent, not knowing what could they do, or if indeed, there was anything to be done. Neither knew how to reach out to the sad young woman.

Happy scratched his furry chin thoughtfully.

"A Fiore Card that collects plush toys? I don't think there are any strange Cards like that. Isn't this probably caused by something else?"

Wendy and Chelia both looked at him hopefully.

"Can you make sure for us, Happy? You can tell if a Fiore Card is present."

"Well, if it's a case-by-case thing."

"If a Card is the problem, I think I can do something about it," Wendy elaborated, her voice pleading. "Please, Happy?"

It was so hard to resist those green eyes. The little cat melted.

"Oh, all right. I'll go with you then."

Darkness had fallen, and Lisanna was rather surprised that one of the girls had returned to her store. Chelia fixed her with a guileless expression and clasped her hands.

"Lisanna, that tea from the other day was delicious. I would really like to know how you brewed it." She asked.

"S-sure," the woman stammered. She'd never thought her tea was anything exceptional. "That's fine with me."

Happy breathed a sigh of relief as the woman and the girl disappeared into the back room of the store.

"All right, that part went well."

"We'll look for the Card now, Happy. A round panda is the suspicious one."

"So, we have to find a panda." They entered the store and he floated around the shelves, searching. Wendy went directly to the pile in the back, then frowned.

"It was here this afternoon…" She turned to see Happy sidling up to a stuffed pink cat with a flirtatious gleam in his eye.

"Say, good-looking…"

"What are you doing?" she hissed irritably. Happy grinned and shrugged, then quickly began to search again.

"The point," Lisanna enunciated, "is to let the water cool down a little after boiling."

"Is that so?"

"Well, I have to get back to the shop." She began to step forward, and Chelia quickly intercepted her.

"Er, Lisanna, I heard that Sri Lanka used to be called Ceylon in the past, and that Ceylon tea is called that because it's picked there."

"Really? So Ceylon was the name of a country. I didn't know that at all."

"And milk tea is supposedly good for improving your stomach's condition."

Wendy swallowed a groan as she bumped her leg into a table. Tomorrow there was bound to be a bruise.

"If you're not quiet, we'll get caught," Happy said disapprovingly.

I know that, Wendy thought irritably, but before she could reply, Happy perked up.

"I feel a Fiore Card!"

"Where?"

"Under here."

Wendy ducked and caught sight of the panda lolling about beneath the table. It began to bounce away, and she tracked it, pouncing on it before it could escape.

"Got it!"

But Happy was still frowning as he studied the panda.

"Drat, it got away!"

"Got away?"

"Maybe it moved to another toy."

"And did you know," Chelia lectured, "that video editing doesn't involve cutting and pasting tape? Editing a video involves copying the scenes that you think are good. But when you copy the video quality drops, right? So, you have to use a good camcorder and good tape, and then a good VCR…"

Lisanna was staring at her, a glazed look in her eyes. Chelia flushed and frantically tried to think of a way to keep the conversation going.

Wendy, if you don't hurry, I'll run out of things to talk about!

"No." Happy shook his head at the animal that Wendy was holding. "Nope. Nope. Not that one. Not that one either. No. Nope."

It seemed to Wendy that she held up every toy in the store, but Happy shook his head firmly at them all.

"Digital video has the best video quality of them all," Chelia babbled. "Although it's nice that digital video can be copied perfectly, there is a tough problem caused by copyrights. And oh, recent camcorders have a long battery life. They have become very useful. Until recently, I had to take a ton of batteries with me for every shoot. And they were really heavy…"

"I feel a presence here for sure," Happy declared, scowling at the shelves of toys. Wendy was rooting around in a box for another toy to check.

"Maybe it's not here anymore -" She lifted out the last one by its ears, and Happy stiffened.

"That one! That's the Jump Card!"

Huh?

Then Wendy noticed that the little pink animal she'd selected had beady green eyes and was staring at her mockingly. All the toys in the store began to float up from the ground, and then they picked up speed, zooming around the store and banging into the walls.

"Well, well, well, the little Cardcaptor has finally paid my shop a visit!"

Wendy turned around to find herself facing a man with armor covering his whole body. He wore a silver helmet on his head and his tongue was sticking out of his mouth.

"You're the one causing all this chaos?! The Jump Card!" Wendy gritted her teeth as she clenched her fist.

"That's him alright; Bickslow can use manipulation magic. Don't look into his eyes though." Happy advised.

"Aww come on guardian, cut me some slack. It's not every day you find a new Cardcaptor. Let me make this experience one she'll never forget." Bickslow chuckled before sending the stuffed animals to surround Wendy.

Wendy gasped as the stuffed animals spun around her. I can't find my way out! She thought.

And that's where we're cutting off today. What happens next? Find out next time on Cardcaptor Wendy!

As always, please review and keep reading!