-1Les Yeux Bleu

By Natsu-chan

Disclaimer: I do not own CCS or IY, so bear with me here if I accidentally OOC-ize someone.

Author's Note: Sorry, readers for the long delay. School's out now and I've finally graduated so I may update much, much more. And please check out my other story No Rest For The Wicked II: Field of Flowers and I highly suggest you read the original comic at w w w . f o r t h e w i c k e d . n e t (Minus the spaces of course) Thanks and happy reading!

When Souta awoke on Monday, he was not surprised to find his sister and - as new and odd as it sounded- nephew sipping tea and munching delightedly on onigiri as they sat at the table, discussing old times. What was surprising was the blue uniform Shippou was sporting.

"You're going to Kagome's school, I'm guessing?" Souta asked dumbly.

"Yup," he replied.

"But, you're like, a thousand years old," Souta said cheekily. Shippou pouted like a child- like Kagome, in fact- and crossed his arms huffily.

"Now now boys," Kagome said, rolling her eyes skyward, "Are you going to behave yourselves or do I have to separate you? Come on now, time for school." She grabbed the three bentos on the counter and handed one out to each of them, but kept the green one for herself. The three Higurashies headed out for school; Kagome making sure the door was locked first while Shippou and Souta chattered on .

"So.." Shippou drawled out, "what's the school like? You got friends kid? Who's this Tsukishiro-sempai? Where's the school at?"

"Whoa, one at a time!" Souta cried out in mock anger. "The school is big but slightly old fashioned looking. Yes, I have a lot of friends. You'll see. At the centre of Tomoeda; kami, you talk too much. Do you get that from Kagome?"

"Yup," Shippou affirmed, but Kagome cut in.

"But he can be such a smooth-talker, just like his Dad," Kagome smiled proudly, but her smile crumbled slowly from her face and a sad frown replaced it. "Shippou, what's the date today?" she asked, a tremor in her voice. Shippou opened his mouth to speak and then paled too.

"What's the matter with you people?" Souta asked disdainfully. Was he the only sane one here? Shippou glared at him.

"Watch your tone, kid. You may be my uncle, but respect to my dad is way more important. It's the anniversary of his death in three weeks." Shippou told him in a rather harsh tone. Souta winced and grimaced at the same time.

"Gomen," he muttered. The rest of the walk was silent, Kagome being very quiet and solemn and Shippou looking sad. The three walked on quietly, the tension thick enough to be cut with a plastic spoon. When they arrived at the school they separated, Souta going to his school and Kagome and Shippou going to theirs.

"We are gathering at the grave?" Kagome asked softly, "I'll get leave from the school. And I'll drive us to Kyoto." Shippou nodded.

"Hey Kagome," came a voice from behind them. They turned and Kagome immediately looked up into beautiful olive coloured eyes.

"Hi, Yukito-kun." Kagome said politely. He smiled at her and looked questioningly at Shippou.

"Oh, this is Shippou Motsure," Kagome introduced them quickly, "He's been an old friend of mine for years and he just moved to Tomoeda."

"Yeah," Shippou said, smiling lightly, "Nice to meet you" Yukito took in his appearance. Shippou had vivid orange hair tied back in a low ponytail and wide green eyes the colour of forests. He was fairly tall, actually-roughly about the same height as Yukito. But it was his facial expression that caught him off guard. He was like a mix of Kagome and a few other people. They stood to their full heights and kept their hands in their pockets a lot. They shared the same sort of smile- but Shippou's was slightly more mischievous and- for better lack of words- foxy. There was a sly air about the new boy and it seemed like the only thing he was sincere about was Kagome. But it his eyes that bothered Yukito the most. As much of a smiley as Shippou seemed to be, he had the same look of despondency in his eyes- the same ones that Kagome had in her eyes, and had ever since the two had met by that large tree in Tokyo.

Yukito was certain now that it was her he met at that shrine that gave him the weird feeling. At first he wasn't quite sure but now he was quite positive. The same regal bearing, soft voice, haunted, tired, cerulean blue eyes. She had looked so fragile and strong at the same time, it scared and comforted Yukito.

"Say," he started, "Kagome, you come from Tokyo right?" She nodded affirmative and he continued, "Have you ever heard of the Sunset Shrine."

"It's her family's shrine," Nakuru interrupted, waltzing right into the conversation. Yukito raised an eyebrow.

"Are you the miko there?" he prodded, trying to see if she remembered him. He saw Shippou flinch for a split second.

"What does it matter to you?" Shippou asked him rather roughly. "You sound like you're snooping through her life or something." Yukito blushed.

"No, nothing of the sort!" he protested, embarrassed, "I was just there over the summer and I was wondering if it was her I met."

"Oh!" Kagome said, brightening up. "I thought we had this discussion already. Greensleeves, remember? But yeah, I thought you looked familiar when I met you here." But she frowned and her brows scrunched up for a moment. Yukito saw Shippou look at her in confusion and she mouthed 'Later.' to him. And for some reason, Yukito felt a spike of jealousy.

When Souta came into the classroom, the first thing he noticed was that he had a twin. The twin would have to be fraternal; it was like he was looking at himself with deliberate mistakes.

First off, the other him had eyes that were more of a violet-blue then his clear cerulean blue eyes. The other boy was his exact height but he was slightly more soft than Souta's toned-ness. His hair had a slightly more violet tint to it than Souta's but everything else was there. The same nose, lips, cheeks, eye shape- though this boy's eyes were framed by a square glasses. But there was a very striking similarity which Souta could not ignore.

This boy had the air of a magician.

But this was not like the few others in his class, who may have the potential. This boy's whole aura leaked magic, but it was sharp and honed like the arrows Kagome used. This boy was well trained and not someone to be trifled with, Souta was sure.

Said boy's eyes locked onto his and it was as if a bolt of lightening had struck him. The mirror image of him smiled a secretive smile. Souta narrowed his eyes warily.

"Oh Eriol-kun!" Sakura bounded past him and stood near Clone's desk- as Souta had so aptly dubbed him. "Nakuru-sempai told me you were out with the flu! How do you feel now?" Souta felt a spark of jealousy before he brushed it off. He walked calmly up to 'Eriol' and forced a smile.

"Hi, I'm Higurashi Souta. And you are?" Souta had to muster a lot of control not to wince when they shook hands. The electrical pulsating feeling that kept crashing over him like waves were amplified by the contact.

"Hanazawa Eriol," Eriol told him smoothly. There was a slight smirk on his face and Souta knew then that 'Eriol' knew exactly what he was doing. Trying to hide his irritation he muttered a "Dozou Yoroshiku" before taking his seat.

"Wow," Sakura said, looking slightly surprised, "Eriol-kun and Souta-kun look so alike!" And that just brought attention to it.

The murmuring started as people began to appreciate the dual eyecandy- well, the girls anyway. The guys mumbled jealously, annoyed. Syaoran looked at them carefully and decidedly hated Souta more- since he posed more of a threat to his getting Sakura than Eriol did.

"Sorry Eriol-kun but I'd have to say that Souta is more eye-candy." Tomoyou declared, causing Sakura to glare at her for a moment before she realized what she was doing and stopped. A large fan of Eriol for the whole year since he had arrived yelled out, "No way!" And so the "Who's better looking" debate began. Souta and Sakura rolled their eyes and shared a look before looking away and blushing hotly. Unfortunately, both Tomoyou and Syaoran saw it. Syaoran gritted his teeth and looked away angrily whilst Tomoyou began to cook up her own plans. Two could play at this game, she decided.

Lessons passed and it was now time for lunch. Sakura, Tomoyou, Eriol, Syaoran and Souta decided to eat under the large oak tree closest to the fence that separated the Junior school from the High School. The High School-ers had their lunch now too.

"So," Tomoyou said, loud enough for everyone at the table to hear. "How are things between your sister, Souta-kun?" Souta, nonplussed, answered.

"We're on better terms now. She's promised to treat me less like a kid from now on." He answered, slightly uncomfortable.

"How would you know about that?" Sakura asked Tomoyou rather sharply. Souta didn't pick her for a confidante right? Does she visit a lot or something? If Sakura had been more wary, she probably would have screamed 'STALKER!'.

"I met Souta in the park," Tomoyou told her smugly. "And then we went to my house to play para para until the rain stopped." Sakura could almost taste the sickly sweet satisfaction in Tomoyou's tone. Before she could reply, their Sempai group visited them.

"Konnichiwa Sakura-chan, Syaoran-kun, Tomoyou-san, Souta-neechan and who is this?" Came the light voice of Kagome Higurashi. Sakura felt a slight twinge of her own satisfaction that Kagome had addressed her with chan and Tomoyou with san.

"Eriol Hanagazawa." Eriol told her, walking up to the fence.

"Related to Nakuru?" Kagome asked matter-of-factly. The others looked surprised except Touya, Nakuru and Eriol himself.

"But how did you know?" Sakura asked, looking very mystified. "Eriol-kun and Nakuru-sempai have different last names."

"It's the way they hold themselves up and expressions and all that," Kagome lied airily, waving her hand in the air in a very easy gesture. In truth, she had sensed the similar auras that was shared amongst the two.

"I'm not surprised," Touya said lazily, "She picked up on Sakura and I being related the minute we met. Said something about eyes but I'm pretty sure I look nothing like the squirt." Sakura flushed and pouted endearingly, before throwing a rock at him through the fence.

"I'm not a squirt!" Sakura muttered dangerously. Souta laughed and put an arm around her in a friendly way. He stage-whispered about siblings.

"Psh," he whispered loudly enough for them all to hear clearly, "Older siblings call us names like squirt and brat because they're jealous that they're old geezers. It's a psychological thing." He finished, winking genially. Sakura laughed along with him while Kagome gave him a frozen look. Not quite up to par with Sesshoumaru's, but enough for Touya, Nakuru and Yukito to inch away cautiously. Syaoran had missed the whole conversation, his mind too busy buzzing with 'Get your arm off of her!' and Tomoyou looked extremely displeased with the whole display. Akito was silently cheering Souta, 'Now that's how you get a girl.' he thought, and snuck a glance at Tomoyou.

Sakura felt so comfortable with Souta's arm around her, and by the way Souta was acting, he was pretty comfortable with it too. He hadn't bothered to take his arm out from around her and she made no move to make him. It felt so right and natural for the two of them to be like this.

"Oi," Syaoran yelled heatedly, "Get your arm off her already!" Amber eyes flashed, and Souta looked at him with arched eyebrows. He slowly took his arm from around her and raised his arms disarmingly. His dark blue eyes lit up and then were unreadable.

"I didn't know you guys were going out or something," Souta said apologetically, but those who knew him well- Kagome heard the undercurrent of mockery in his voice. It was an obvious test to the older people in the party.

"Ano," Sakura said, "We're not going out Souta-kun." And Sakura had just passed. If she had liked Syaoran she wouldn't have said anything. But the most incriminating evidence was when she shot Syaoran a look telling him to stop it and back off.

"Eyy," Shippou laughed, "Kagome, Touya, are you guys already planning the wedding? I can see it now! Sakura all dolled up in a nice white dress, all flowy like with a veil and a train on her dress. Souta in his dashing black tuxedo, and a big cake! Flowers strewn everywhere and-" a rock hit him. Kagome looked at Souta sternly.

"Souta! I swear, one day Shippou-chan is going to get brain damage. Between you and Inuyasha, always smacking him. It's not his fault he says the embarrassing stuff. Thank goodness Sesshou is the more patient type." Kagome said absentmindedly, while patting Shippou's hair. They watched, fascinated. Kagome treated Shippou much like she would a child- their bond was extremely strong.

"He'll be up and about later," Souta said cheerfully, causing a couple of people to face fault. Honestly, life is never dull where the Higurashi's are.

It was late, but they felt the familiar jolt of magick coming from Sakura. Donning their clothes and weapons, they snuck out to trace the magickal energies. Shippou was slightly excited- this was the most he'd done in years. He wore the same outfit as Kagome and Souta and he disguised himself a bit. His hair was now a dark black, the same as Souta's, and now Souta could see a major likeness in appearance between Kagome and Shippou. But Shippou did not carry any weapons and Souta wondered how he fought.

The night was as dark as obsidian, and Souta had to follow the magickal signature he got from Sakura and follow it. Once again it seemed that they were up in the tawny beech trees, well shaded by the dark, flat leaves that unfurled itself and provided decent coverage. But tonight the plants seemed to be a tad darker and the leaves almost seemed to rustle with quivering excitement. They covered the trio more thoroughly than before to a point where Souta had trouble even seeing his hand. He could have sworn he heard Kagome mutter 'Show-off' and it became clear as quartz that Shippou was manipulating the tree. A shock passed through him, followed by a wave of admiration. He had seldom seen magick of this level, it never really being necessary and Kagome not liking to do elemental magick unless completely necessary.

Tonight Sakura was dressed in a black outfit much similar to that of a fairy tale witch, and Syaoran, the Winged Man and the Talking Lion were with her. Tomoyou was not present and Souta didn't bother to wonder on her. Sakura was standing still and Syaoran had out a board. He chanted to it and it left his hands. It glowed a deep shade of purple and then a golden beam of light shot out and pointed out in a different direction. Souta felt a deep heavy magickal aura, as if the being was made of powerful magick and from the direction came a terrible wind. It was a magickal wind, easily recognized as so and Shippou swore slightly when it hit the tree. Looking at each other in the cover of darkness, they made a quick decision. They dropped from the tree like fruit, their feet hitting the ground lightly. Kagome leaned against the tree and watched lazily. Sakura was busy battling the Windy creature, so Syaoran flew to the newcomers, sword raised. Shippou took out a small toy mallet and it enlarged itself. Souta took his eyes off of Sakura for a moment to gaze in awe. The mallet enlarged itself and Souta could see a faint green tinge coming from it. It was a powerful illusion.

The mallet grew and hit Syaoran on its own, startling Souta. But it was a gentle tap and sent Syaoran flying only as far as to with his other companion, the lion. Kagome growled lightly at the boy. "Enough." came her curt command, and Syaoran narrowed his eyes at her. Once again all eyes were on Sakura's battle with Windy. She was holding up her own quite effectively, sending out the Wood to hold it at bay. But while it was strong, it was not quite enough, considering Windy was an elemental card. The winged man made a move to swoop in and save Sakura, when a whistling staff of wood flew by his head. His eyes snapped to the long haired masked one of the trio and she was gazing at the staff. It landed squarely in front of Sakura and the masked female raised a hand, glowing azure with power. The staff too began to glow and a transparent blue shield encased itself around Sakura. It absorbed all of the attacks Windy threw at it and seemed to glow even brighter. The winged man, whose name was Yue, watched as the woman smiled and her hand dropped. The shield glowed red and the attack it absorbed began gushing out at Windy. The creature began to fly away but the attack followed in pursuit. It finally went down and Sakura recalled it.

"RETURN TO YOUR POWERS CONFINED! WINDY!" Sakura shouted, and her magick circle formed under her. The creature was sucked into a pink card. Sakura lowered her wand and returned it to its key form. She wiped her brow and smiled thankfully at the three.

"Thanks, I thought I was a goner there," she said cheerfully. Kagome smiled back, though her eyes were unreadable because of the mask.

"Your powers are quite amazing," Yue said in his steady, cool voice, and the lion, who de-transformed into a winged teddy bear agreed.

"Yeah!" it said enthusiastically in its higher pitched voice, "I haven't seen those spells for hundreds of years!" It flew onto Kagome's shoulder, and Kagome squealed in delight.

"Aren't you just the cutest!" Kagome laughed cheerily. "Do you have a name?"

"Of course," Kero said, basking in the attention, "I'm Keroberos, but you can call me Kero."

"Maybe we should be going nee-chan," Souta told her briskly, "It was nice meeting you all." He tugged on Kagome's sleeve and they bowed low, while murmuring good nights.

"Wait!" Sakura called out. They stopped and turned to look at her. "What are your names?" she asked breathlessly, "I mean, it's nice to know who keeps helping us out."

Kagome and Shippou glanced at one another and smiled. They bowed politely again and in friendly voices said, "We shan't give out our real names but you can call me Cat."

"Fox." Shippou added, also bowing.

Souta thought for a moment before coming up with a nice name that would suit. Then he too bowed low and when he was face to face with Sakura's group again, smiled widely.

"Bird."

End Chapter

Notes: Their names have no major significance, I just thought it was cute. And yes, I do realize that they already know they met at the shrine, I just wanted to put major emphasis on that now. Does anyone get Shippou's last name? I thought it was kinda funny. (It's pronounced Mot-su-ray) Japanese for trouble/complication. Adorable little trickster D