"This child, her name is Sakura you say, right?" the witch asked
"Yes" Syaoran answered. It took all his strength to keep his voice from trembling.
The witch then turned her red eyes to him and asked, "And your name is…?"
"Syaoran"
He was kneeling in front of a little house, surrounded by a few of the tallest structures he had ever seen in all his travels. Syaoran was beginning to understand what the High Priest had said about this being a different world – everything about this place felt unfamiliar to him; everything from the grass below his feet, the air he breathed… even the rain which fell gently all around him felt different from the rainfall back in Clow.
Clow kingdom…
Suddenly, everything that happened in Clow kingdom hit him with full force. The underground passage, the wings, the feathers, Sakura's cold body which he was still holding, the injured King, the black armoured soldiers lying in a pool of their own blood… all the images flooded into his mind one after the other, faster than he could process them. His body threatened to collapse under the pressure when he felt a familiar grip on his right shoulder. Throughout the journey from Clow to this place, Ayame had not taken her hand off his shoulder, the hand she had placed when they were standing in front the High Priest.
Syaoran raised his head to look at the crown princess. Ayame's face was a picture of perfect calm as she observed the Dimensional Witch, who had moved towards them and was now gently touching Sakura's forehead. Syaoran's heart grew heavy as he tried to put himself in her shoes, to understand what she was going through – she had to say goodbye to her injured brother and now she was here with him, desperate to save her younger sister. It was impossible for her to be as calm as she projected herself to be. 'She is keeping it together, for mine and Sakura's sake' He took a deep breath and drew strength from the Princess' hand. He needed to stay calm too; he had to, if he wanted to help save Sakura.
"This child has lost something very important, hasn't she?" the witch asked, her eyes filled with sorrow.
"She has lost her soul," Ayame answered, pulling up the hood of her cloak to shield her face from the rain, "The fragments have scattered across various worlds"
The Dimensional Witch took a step back and studied Ayame carefully. Her deep red eyes bore into the princess' lilac ones with a small frown, as if assessing them. Ayame's eye twitched in irritation but she held the witch's stare unflinchingly. After a few long seconds, the frown melted away to make way for a small smile. "So… this is how the universe it worked out…" she said quietly, her voice barely audible in the pitter-patter of the rain.
"What… what do you mean by that? I don't understand!" Ayame asked, mirroring Syaoran's confusion.
The Witch ignored the question, addressing a young, bespectacled boy standing behind her, "Watanuki, go to the storeroom. There is something I need there" She then looked at the sky with a smirk and said, "They're coming"
Syaoran had no time to ask what she meant by that. He held Sakura closer to him when the ground to his left began to shift and rise up; while to his right, a part of the sky seemed to drop down. Ayame's tightened grip on his shoulder told Syaoran that she was just as surprised as the bubbles burst, revealing two young men – one dressed in black, holding a long sword; the other dressed in white furs holding a staff.
Both of them spoke at the same time.
"Who the hell are you?" the man dressed in black growled, not caring about how obviously rude he sounded.
"Are you the Witch of Dimensions?" asked the other one politely.
The Dimensional Witch regarded both of them with an amused smile before holding her hand out to the man with the sword, "You first"
"I'm Kurogane" he said gruffly, still not caring to change his manner, "And where the hell am I?"
The Witch, also noticing his rough attitude, mockingly answered, "Japan"
The answer only annoyed Kurogane, "Well, I came from Japan, lady and this ain't it!"
"This is a different Japan" the Witch said cryptically, clearly not interested in giving Kurogane a straight answer.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean!?" he snarled.
She ignored Kurogane's comment and turned to the other visitor. "And you will be…?"
The man curtsied elegantly and said, "I'm a Celes country wizard. Fai D. Flourite"
'Are they both from another world too?' Syaoran wondered.
"You know where you are, right?" the Witch asked.
"Yes" Fai answered, "A place where wishes can be granted at a proper or high price"
"So then tell me, what is your wish?"
Again, both men answered together.
"I want to return to where I'm from" Kurogane said, while Fai said the exact opposite, "I want to never return to where I'm from"
"Hmmm… now that's very difficult… for both of you…" the Witch said thoughtfully, "No… for all four of you. Those wishes you have, if you pay separately, it won't be enough. But… if you pay together, it might just reach the mark"
Syaoran felt Ayame move restlessly behind, surely facing the same dilemma – what did all of this mean?
"What the hell are you talking about!?" Kurogane snarled.
"Please be quiet, Kuro" Fai whispered teasingly.
"IT'S KUROGANE!"
"All four of you have the same wish" the Witch continued, ignoring the little exchange between Fai and Kurogane, "Syaoran and the crown princess want to go to different worlds to collect this young girls' memories. Kurogane, being from a different world wants to go back home. Fai, you want to go live in a world other than your own. All of you want to go to different worlds for your own reasons. It's not possible to grant each one of your wishes… but together, it can be done"
'So… it means I will have to travel with them?'
Syaoran looked at his possible companions. He couldn't think of a pair more unlike each other. The man called Kurogane was all rough and rude, not at all caring for his surroundings. On the other hand, the wizard was calm and polite and elegant, well at least he appeared to be. He had been prepared for a tough journey, he knew searching for the feathers was not going to be easy… but he had not expected to be accompanied by two strangers from another world.
'It doesn't matter' he told himself, 'I just have to keep moving forward with everything I've got'
"DAMMIT!" Kurogane yelled out in frustration, startling Syaoran.
"She asked him for his sword as payment" Ayame answered his unspoken question softly so that only he could hear, "He isn't very happy about it"
"When this is over I will comeback for it!" he said, handing over his sword, "You can count on it!"
Syaoran saw a fire burning in the warriors' fierce, bright red eyes – there was no doubt about it; he will come back for his sword.
"Your payment" the Witch said, turning to Fai, "Will be the tattoo on your back"
"Will this wand not do?" he asked, holding out the staff in his hand with a smile; but Syaoran noticed that it didn't quite reach his brilliant blue eyes.
"The price has to be your most valuable thing" the Witch replied quietly.
"I guess I have no choice then" he sighed, his cheerful demeanour slipping as he shook his blonde hair out of the hood of his cloak.
Almost immediately, Fai's back glowed and an image appeared. The phoenix shaped tattoo then floated and came to a halt near Kurogane's sword.
"Now… Princess Ayame" the Witch said, "You have to give up the silver bracelet on your left wrist as payment if you wish to go on this journey"
'How did she know Ayame-san's name… she never told her…' Syaoran wondered.
Ayame slowly took her hand off Syaoran's shoulder to look at the said bracelet. It was nothing special – a simple chain bracelet attached to which was a small pendant shaped like a crescent moon. But Syaoran knew that it was very special to her; it was the only thing she had left of her mother, the late Queen Nadeshiko.
Ayame took a deep breath as she held out her left arm. "Take it"
Syaoran saw Kurogane turn around sharply as Ayame spoke, his eyes widening in surprise. But he didn't think much about it, all his attention was focused on the princess.
"Are you sure?" the Witch asked, her eyes narrowing. To Syaoran, it looked as if she was hoping that Ayame will refuse to make the payment and forfeit.
But she didn't back down. "I have never been surer"
The Dimensional Witch let out a defeated sigh, "Very well then"
With a small 'click', the bracelet removed itself smoothly from Ayame's wrist and floated over to where the tattoo and sword were.
The sound of light footsteps caught everyone's attention. The young boy whom the Witch had sent in earlier came back, carrying two, plump creatures with big ears. Both of them had a round jewel fixed in the middle of their foreheads. The Dimensional Witch picked up the white creature, leaving the black one with the boy.
"Her name is Mokona Modoki" she explained "She will take you to different dimensions"
"You have another one right there" Kurogane said, pointing towards the black creature, "I will take that one"
"That one is only for communication" the Witch replied, smirking at Kurogane's attempt to run off on his own, "All she can do is communicate with the white Mokona"
"Mokona can take you to another dimension, but she can't control where you land. Your wish becoming true is only by luck… but…" she added with a mysterious smile, "There is no such thing as coincidences in this world, there is only destiny. All of you were destined to meet each other"
'Destiny? Was it Sakura's destiny to lose her soul?' Syaoran shook the thought out of his head.
"Syaoran…"
"Yes" he replied, bracing himself.
"To you, your most important thing is your relationship with that girl" the Witch said quietly, "So that will be your payment"
"No…" Ayame gasped as Syaoran's heart began to pound in his chest.
"What does that mean?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Even if she gets all her memories back, you will not have the same relationship with her as before" the Witch explained, "She will never remember you"
'She will never remember me…?' Syaoran thought, the gravity of the situation slowly sinking in.
"No, you can't! You can't do that to them! There has to be something else!" Ayame shouted desperately.
"What is she to you?" the Witch asked him, ignoring Ayame's protest.
What was she to him? She was the warmest, kindest person he had ever known. She was curious sometimes to the point of being reckless. She was over active and clumsy. She was the one who would always try and help everyone around her. But what was she to him?
"My childhood friend…" he heard himself say, as if the words were tumbling out of his mouth on their own accord, "The princess of my country… and someone who is very important to me!"
"I see" the Witch said sympathetically, "Are you ready to sacrifice your relationship with her in order to save her"
Syaoran looked at the unconscious Sakura in his arms. He remembered how all those years ago, it was Sakura's warm smile that taught him how to smile; she was the one who taught him how to laugh. Now, it was his turn… his turn to bring the smile back on the face of his best friend. But did he have the strength to do it, knowing that when she does smile back at him again, it will never be as it was before?
'Yes I do have the strength' a voice inside him spoke up as his shoulders trembled just so slightly with emotion, 'No matter what pain I have to go through, I will do anything, give up anything, to bring that smile on Sakura's face again!'
"Syaoran…" Ayame whispered.
"I'll go" Syaoran finally replied, tightening his grip on Sakura, "I will not let her die!"
"Alright then" the Witch said, tilting her head with a smile.
She then addressed both Ayame and Syaoran, "Even though Mokona will take you from one world to another, you will have to look for the feathers on your own. Travelling through the worlds will be tougher than you think. People you know from past worlds, will have separate lives in separate worlds. If someone is nice to you in one world, there is no guarantee that they will be the same when you see them in another world. There are worlds where common sense can't be understood, living standards and rules are different in different worlds; some worlds are torn apart by war while some are filled with liars. You will have to keep travelling through all this, searching for the feathers without knowing where, or when they will be gathered. But, you two are still determined right?"
"We are ready to do whatever it takes" Ayame replied while Syaoran nodded in agreement.
"Readiness and sincerity are qualities that are indispensable to accomplish anything. Qualities you are properly provided with" the Witch said, releasing Mokona. The winds began to gather around the little white creature, lifting her up.
"Now… please get going"
The words seemed like confirmation to Mokona, who sprouted huge, magnificent wings from her back. A magic circle appeared at their feet and the ground began to liquefy and rise around them – just like it had in Clow.
As everyone was thrown into the tunnel with the moving lights, Syaoran held Sakura closer to him.
'Just hang in there Sakura, you are going to be fine'
XXX
"You should wipe yourself dry, Kuro" Fai smiled, holding out a towel, "Or else you will catch a cold"
"Catch a cold, catch a cold!" Mokona sang in her squeaky voice, hopping around him.
"I won't catch a cold…" Kurogane growled, clenching his fists, "AND MY NAME IS KUROGANE!"
Kurogane sat down in the corner of the square room and folded his arms over to chest to keep his irritation in control. All he wanted to do was to get back home. Why did it have to be so difficult? First he had to give up his sword to the Witch, then he was swallowed up by a pork bun with wings, only to end up in another strange world with those weird buildings again. It was bad enough that he landed hard on his butt, then he had to end up carrying both the brown haired boy and his princess into this room because he refused to let go of her even when he was unconscious. Not to forget that annoying blonde mage who kept coming up with one annoying nickname after another. And then there was her…
Kurogane looked at the petite figure lying in the other end of the room, wrapped up in her magenta cloak, the gentle rise and fall of her chest visible as she slept off the effects of the travel. His heart had skipped a beat when the Witch addressed her as Princess Ayame, then he had almost immediately dismissed it as coincidence; two people can have the same name after all. But when she spoke, her voice was just too familiar for him to ignore anymore. He remembered the Dimensional Witch saying something about same people in different worlds… no… it can't possibly be happening.
"Kuro-chan is staring at the Princess again eh?" Fai teased.
'Dammit' he cursed himself, 'That mage noticed'
"Mokona remembers!" the little white creature chirped, "Even when we landed, the first thing Kuro-puu wanted to do was to see her face"
"Stop calling me names, you stupid pork bun!" Kurogane scowled. He had no obligation to explain himself to these nut jobs.
Kurogane let out an irritated sigh as Fai and Mokona burst into a fit of giggles. He was just about to close his eyes and ignore everything around him when a small movement caught the corner of his eye – all the shouting and giggling had finally woken her up.
"Where am I?" Ayame asked sleepily.
"She's finally awake" Fai said, looking over at Kurogane to see his reaction.
"Sakura! Syaoran!" Ayame cried out, as if she suddenly remembered everything that happened a while back and rushed to the side of the kids immediately.
"Both of them are still asleep, but they seem to be ok" Fai said reassuringly.
"That's good" she sighed, lowering the hood of her cloak.
Kurogane's heart hammered away in his chest as his eyes widened with surprise. For all these years, he had always wondered what she would have looked like if she had survived. Now he didn't need to, the answer was sitting right in front him. The hair, the eyes, the relieved smile – there was no mistaking it.
'No!' he told himself, 'Don't get emotionally carried away. It's not possible'
Ayame had removed her cloak and was now busy removing the shoes from the feet of both the kids.
"Can you hand me a towel…? Ayame trailed, looking at Fai.
"You can call me Fai" he answered, smiling as he gave her a fresh towel, "I did wipe them both tentatively"
"Mokona helped too!" Mokona sang as she hopped into Ayame's lap.
"Did you now…" Ayame asked playfully, tickling Mokona behind her ear, "Thank you"
"And you are…?" Fai asked.
"Oh right! I'm so sorry" Ayame said, as she gently began to wipe the boy's face, "I'm Ayame"
'What kind of a name is Ayame anyway?' 'Don't say that! It means Iris flower' 'You're no flower! Look at how dirty your clothes are from all the tree climbing' 'Hawwww! Kuro-chan you meanie!'
Kurogane shook the memory out of his head, irritated with himself.
"Syaoran, you're awake!"
The brown haired boy had woken up now, though he seemed to be a little on edge. "Ayame-san… where are we…?"
Ayame gently took the boy's hand in hers said, "It's alright Syaoran, we seem to be safe for now"
"Oh we are, don't worry!" Fai reassured them, "A lovely young couple gave this room when you both were asleep. I'm sure it's ok"
But Syaoran and Ayame weren't listening, they were busy looking at the young girl.
"Ayame-san, she is so cold…" Syaoran said, distressed.
"I know" Ayame said gravely, "We need to find a feather… fast"
Suddenly, Fai lunged towards Syaoran, reaching for something that seemed to be behind his back, startling everyone.
"Ummm… Fai-san, what are you doing?" Ayame asked.
"Will this happen to be what you are looking for?" Fai asked, straightening up.
Kurogane leaned forward to get a closer look. Fai was holding what looked like a soft, white feather. It had a pink, heart shaped design on the centre.
'That can't be a soul fragment' Kurogane thought, frowning.
"It was stuck to Syaoran-kun" Fai continued, handing over the feather to Ayame, who held it carefully, "It's the only one though"
"Ayame-san, it is a fragment of Sakura's memory!" Syaoran said, lighting up a little. "But how do we give it back to her?" he added with a small frown.
Ayame seemed to be contemplating the same question. Her eyes darted to and fro between the feather in her hands and the girl called Sakura.
"Now what if I do this…" she said to no one in particular, as she slowly placed the feather on the girls' chest.
'Like that is going to… No way!'
Kurogane held his breath as Sakura's chest began to ripple and the feather slowly sank into her.
"Her body is gaining warmth" Syaoran said, finally cracking a smile.
Ayame placed a hand on the girl's forehead and breathed a sigh of relief, "She would've died if it wasn't for that feather"
"I guess it was a happy coincidence that the feather got stuck to my clothes…" Syaoran said.
"There is no such thing as coincidence, there is only destiny" Fai said, capturing everyone's attention, "That's what the witch said right? Syaoran-kun must have caught the feather unconsciously, to help her"
Kurogane knew what bullshit sounded like and he knew that the mage was full of it. He seemed to be taking everything that was happening a little too calmly, as if he had expected all this to happen. That annoyingly cheerful smile, the easy going attitude, the way he just happened to notice the feather stuck to the kids' clothes… Kurogane wasn't buying any of it. Blondie was hiding something; he would bet his sword on it, if he had one that is.
Kurogane ran his eyes over the others to see their reaction to Fai's little explanation. It looked like the boy seemed to buy it – he was now smiling at the mage who was busy tickling Mokona. But Ayame was regarding Fai quizzically, as if she was trying to figure out what he was hiding. She had the same doubts as Kurogane.
'She always has been a little too smart for her own good' a voice inside him spoke up, but Kurogane chose to ignore it.
"So how are we going to search for the feathers?" Fai asked.
At this, Mokona hopped up and down excitedly singing, "Mokona knows! Yes she does!"
"Really?" Ayame said curiously, picking up Mokona, "Tell me, how?"
"Just now there was a strong wave from the feather" Mokona explained, waving her tiny arms, "If it is close, I'll know. When I catch a wave, Mokona will become like this" Saying that, Mokona opened her eyes with a sound which went 'Mekyo!'
Kurogane hadn't noticed before that Mokona always kept her eyes closed. Now seeing them, he understood why – it had to be one of the strangest sights he had ever seen. Mokona's eyes were deep violet in colour and they were huge for a creature that size, but that was not the disturbing part. It was the lack of any life in them. Kurogane felt that he would fall into those blank eyes and lose himself if he looked at them too long. Syaoran seemed equally unnerved by the sight and the look on Ayame's face told him that it was taking every ounce of her self-control not drop Mokona. Fai, on the other hand seemed undeterred, amused even.
'Again… it's as if nothing fazes him' Kurogane thought, glaring at the mage.
"It will be great" Fai chipped, "If the feather is close by, Mokona will sense it"
"Will you tell me when the feathers are close by?" Syaoran asked.
"Just leave it to me!" Mokona sang, thumping her chest.
"Thank you, Mokona" Ayame smiled, kissing her on her forehead.
"Mokona likes it" the white creature giggled.
'This is just great!' Kurogane cursed.
He had just too many weird things for one day. He wanted go back home. He wanted to go back to Shirasagi Castle and fight day in and day out. He had not signed up to go on some stupid journey. He would tolerate his so-called travelling companions because he had no choice. But there was no way he was going to be pulled in to this chase for some glowing feathers. Not a chance.
"Whether or not you get to search for the feathers is up to you," Kurogane said after getting all his thoughts in order, "But this treasure hunt of yours has got nothing to do with me"
"Ah yes! I forgot to introduce him" Fai said with a flourish, "This is Kuro-tan!"
"MY NAME IS KUROGANE!" he roared before he could control himself.
He took a deep breath to calm himself and continued, this time fixing his eyes on Ayame, "I came here to return to my world. That is my only purpose. I have absolutely no intention of helping you"
Kurogane patiently waited as Ayame's lilac eyes viewed him curiously, a small smile playing on her lips. "I understand" she finally said. "Yes" Syaoran said, "It is our problem. We will do our best to handle it without getting you involved, Kurogane-san" "And we also apologise in advance for any inconvenience we might cause you during our search" Ayame concluded.
Kurogane couldn't help but be astounded. He expected some form of rebuke, something on the lines of 'Why won't you help us?' or 'How can you be so insensitive?' But he didn't expect them to accept his decision so easily, let alone apologise for any possible trouble they might cause. Kurogane looked at them to check if they were lying. The boys eyes were clear, the sincerity in them plain for everyone to see. Ayame's eyes shone with the same sincerity, but her lilac eyes also showed a slight glint of mischief, as if she knew exactly what was going on in his mind and was amused by it. It was just a guess of course but he was pretty sure that was the case – he had received the same look before after all.
"What about you?" Kurogane asked Fai, trying to divert the attention from him, "Are you going to help these two?"
"Hmmm… I will" Fai said, "Returning to my world isn't my priority. I'll help as long as my life is not in risk. There isn't anything else to do"
"Yo!" A voice announced.
A young man carrying a bowl of food and a young woman carrying a tray of tea walked into the room. Kurogane recognised the two; they were the ones who gave them this room. Syaoran and Ayame both looked on edge while Fai just waved at them.
"Relax you guys" Fai reassured them, "This is the couple I told you about, they gave us this room"
"Yeah, relax!" the man said energetically, "You came from Yuuko-san's place right?"
"Yuuko-san?" Syaoran asked.
"The Witch Nee-chan" the man answered, setting down the plate of food he was carrying, "The Witch of Dimensions or the Far East Witch; she's called by many names"
'So the Witch has a name huh?' Kurogane thought, 'Will have to remember that when I go to get my sword back'
The young woman handed Syaoran and Ayame a futon. They both tucked Sakura in comfortably as the man introduced himself, "I'm Arisugawa Sorata"
"I'm Arashi" the young woman said, now distributing steaming cups of tea to everyone.
"By the way everyone," Sorata said with a dreamy smile, "This is my lovely wife. Engrave that in your minds" He then turned to Kurogane and patted him on his shoulder, "So, if you flirt with my honey, I will kill you"
Kurogane could feel his blood boil, "WHY IS IT ONLY ME!?" he yelled.
"By the way, did Yuuko-san give you this?" Sorata asked, picking up Mokona.
"The name is Mokona Modoki!" Mokona squeaked.
Mokona then explained the entire situation to Sorata, who listened to the whole thing with no question; which surprised and annoyed Kurogane. How can anyone accept such a ridiculous story!
"Well I have to say you guys are lucky" Sorata said thoughtfully.
"In what way?" Fai asked, sipping his tea.
"Because, this is the first world you guys arrived at… and there is nothing but happiness" Sorata said as he walked towards the window. "Here it is – The Republic of Hanshin!" he said, pulling the windows open.
Kurogane moved to the window to get a better view – and it was a marvellous sight to behold. Buildings of various shapes and sizes spread out till as far as the eye could see, some adorned with elaborate decorations in the shape of various animals, while some had flat surfaces with moving pictures mounted on them. But one thing was common among them all – the lights. Lights of every imaginable hue and shade danced everywhere; some twinkling, some blazing, some moving slowly, some dancing. The lights were so bright that a multi-coloured glow extended into the pitch black night sky, making the stars in look dim.
"This is amazing" a voice whispered with awe.
Ayame was standing right next to Kurogane, her lilac eyes wide and shining with wonder as she drank the sight sprawled out in front of her. Kurogane couldn't help but smile at her childlike innocence.
'Don't cry Kuro-chan… we will meet again. I am certain of it'
Those parting words had never made sense to him. But now, as he stood next to the young lady who was the spitting image of the little girl he had held so close to his heart, he felt he was beginning to understand. May be there is no such thing as coincidence after all.
XXX
A/N: Hey guys, how you doing? This chapter was really fun to write – both Syaoran and Kurogane are pretty great characters and interpreting their emotions was a good mental exercise. Also, I have chosen to use the female pronoun for Mokona rather than the traditional usage of male pronouns… I don't know, but Mokona always felt like a 'she' to me. What do you guys think?
BTW! A completely unrelated question – are there any Doctor Who fans out here? If you are reading this, please, please, please… pretty please let know in the reviews or PM me.
Thanks! :D
Until the next time ;)