I do not own Tsubasa or any of their wonderful characters, although Sammy Featherstone is my own creation.

~Featherstone

Chapter 7

Now, if I were in a book or movie, I would manage to move in time due to my super athletic abilities. Oh, I don't have those. How about super powers or a perhaps prince charming that can whisk me out of dangers way? Oh, I don't have those either. In fact, this isn't fantasy, this is my life and it is going to probably end right now. Did I care? Maybe slightly because of the pain, which was going to be inventible, considering that a few tons of ancient building were about to crush me into nothing more than a pile of matter. Not to mention the mess that would be left; all unnecessary work which would unsettle a few stomachs. Mostly, I didn't care. I just hoped it would be quick.

I ran a few options through my brain before the rubble fell on me. I could try to run, but I wouldn't get away from the kill zone and it would result in a lot of pain before I would die. I could scream for help and hope that one of the group's members would save me. That could cause another death and if I were to be saved I would constantly be in debt to whoever prevented the inevitable. I can tell you now; I will never be in debt to anyone, too much trouble and embarrassment for me. So, I crouched down, tucked my head under my body and arms before shutting my eyes waiting for the certain blow.

After waiting and hearing a deafening crunch I decided I was alive. I couldn't feel any pain and I could hear people shouting for me. I pulled my head out from under my arms and could see rubble all around me and on top of me. I should be dead, yet there was not a single scratch on me.

'Sammy?'

'Hey, can you hear us kid?'

Daylight broke through the rubble and I could see a few hands pulling it aside.

'One, I'm fine and two, I'm not a kid.'

There was a big enough gap now that I could shove my arm through the mess and try and escape the tomb. I pushed some more aside and pulled myself out only to see the rest of the group, including Fai who had just landed, staring at the spot where I had just emerged, yet not looking at me.

'I'm right here.'

'Where?'

'Oh.'

I looked down and realised that I was invisible again and my Kudan was sitting on the rocks passively looking up at the scene above us. I regained visibility and brushed off the dirt which was covering my jeans and top before climbing down from the destruction. Syaoran and Fai rushed forwards, leaving Kurogane standing back observing the scene above like the Kudan was.

'Are you ok?'

Syaoran just stared at me in disbelief.

'Considering I should have died, I guess.'

Fai waved his hands in front of him and cringed backwards.

'Sorry, it was kind of my fault. Ya see, this girl and I got into a bit of a fight and blew up the side of the house.

I started to question how he did that, then realised that in this world, the Kudans are completely unpredictable and seeing how he had appeared to fly, I didn't question their power. What I did question, however, was how I was alive. I could only come to one conclusion, and that was that my Kudan could stop me getting injured whilst invisible. It was a bizarre idea, although I couldn't see a better explanation.

'It's fine. Now, will anyone care to explain what's going on? Seeing as you left me back there?'

Kurogane walked forward and pointed upwards whilst browsing through a magazine which he had in his hands.

'That girl up there, Primera, she took the bun and Masayoshi hostage, thinking the kid was Syaoran.'

I looked up and saw a girl on the rooftop along with the two ex-hostages. Primera was screaming at a guy on a Kudan in the air, although I couldn't hear the conversation between them.

'And I fought her and won!' Fai chirped.

'Syaoran! Syaoran!'

Syaoran turned his head to see Mokona jumping up and down with its eyes wide open.

'Mokona, your eyes!'

'It's here, the feather is real close by!'

'Where? Who has it?'

'Mokona doesn't know! But Mokona just felt a huge wave!'

I moved away from the building and stood with the rest of the group, interested in the sudden turn of events. I took care not to stand too near any of them and watched as Fai's face lit up.

'So some Kudan has taken it inside itself.'

'But it gets stronger and then gets weaker. What's that supposed to mean?' Kurogane was grumbling to himself.

'Sorata said that Kudan protect their owners. So probably the time that it puts out its greatest strength is when it's protecting its owner.'

Syaoran had a point, considering my Kudan did pretty much nothing for me up until now when it protected me for the debris. Kurogane closed his magazine and then Fai concluded their theory.

'And that means that the way to find the feather is through battle!'

xXx

'Then I accept your challenge.'

'Ready? GO!' Syaoran fought with his fire Kudan against a gang leader named Shogo who possessed a strong water Kudan. They seemed to be fighting to settle something, rather than to find out the location of the feather. Syaoran did a jump and then kicked out with his leg to destroy a falling rock and then landed on the level below us. I was slightly shocked at how a boy younger than me would even have the physical strength to be able to accomplish something like that.

'Hyuu! Syaoran is pretty cool!'

Fai walked over to the edge and leaned over to get a better view of the fighting below.

'You both have faces that say 'Ignore me, I'm a fool' but I see through it.'

Kurogane then turned around to look at me. I was standing further back than they were, fed up with the fighting, more interested in the clouds passing over head.

'Whilst you just have a face that says 'Ignore me.'

I nodded, it was a fair point, and after all, I don't like people coming near me, or talking to me. I just don't like people. There was another explosion over the river as the two fought and I could swear that a shrieking voice was bellowing over the scene. I walked further back to avoid being hit by any miss-fires and carried on watching the clouds whilst the two men had a conversation between themselves.

'Everyone get outta here! Set! Go!'

I gazed back towards the fight, only to see a wall of water heading in my direction. I assessed the situation and decided I was going to get soaked and there was not much I could do about it, so I clawed into the grass and held on so I wouldn't be swept away. The water crashed into me and the force was more than what I expected. It ripped my hands off the ground with the grass and sent me backwards before abruptly stopping when a tree decided to stop my momentum.

'Shit…'

I bought my hand up to the back of my head and rubbed it to try and soothed the pain which was now throbbing and looked around to see where the others had landed up. They, in fact, were laughing hysterically at the fact that I had been swept away. They didn't even have a drop of moisture on themselves. I pushed myself off the ground and looked down to see my cloths completely drenched. Sure, I don't care what I wear, as long as it is respectable in some form, certainly not opaque. I span around to hide my indecency and crossed my arms. They were still laughing.

Another explosion to my right caused me to instinctively cover my head before looking up again. The building was collapsing; Masayoshi and Primera were still stuck on the roof along with Mokona. Masayoshi was yelling and holding onto the girl on the roof, trying to stop her from falling when his Kudan suddenly grew. It became taller than the building and picked up Masayoshi before starting to walk forwards and fire energy down onto the city.

'Mokona found it! The feather! It's in that Kudan!

I turned around to follow the Kudans oath and Kurogane was yelling in disbelief.

'Did I hear right? The feather's in that Kudan? In that Kudan?'

Fai decided to stop laughing and interjected with another one of his thoughtful theories. His personality changed so quickly, it can be hard to keep up with.

'I think I see… Even when he used his Kudan to find us Mokona didn't sense the feather. But when it protects its master the time when it needs the most power is when its protecting someone it cares about from a life-or-death situation. The last time Mokona detected it was also when Masayoshi was in a dangerous situation.'

The Kudan carried on walking and firing. It was going to harm people in the city if something wasn't done to stop it. The boy couldn't control his own Kudan due to the feathers power and it was running havoc. Syaoran stepped forward and talked to Kurogane.

'I'm going to get Sakura's feather.'

'How do you intend to fight something that big? One slip up and you're dead.'

'I won't die; I still have something to see through. I won't die yet.'

Sometimes I wished I had something worth living for, just like he did.

xXx

'Annoying, stupid, idiotic bastards.'

I was walking down the street, murmuring under my breath behind the group. Fai felt the need to keep looking back to view the drowned rat. I felt like a 5 year old who had had an accident and was being led away by an adult who was secretly laughing inside. Well, apart from the fact that this 'adult' was not laughing on the inside, he was laughing so much I wouldn't have been surprised if he had keeled over.

'Oh it's not that bad!'

I glared at him and hunched over still with my arms crossed and water running down my face from the earlier tsunami.

xXx

When we reached the door of the apartment I heard a soft voice speaking in the room.

'Who… who are you?'

I leaned against the wall and realised that this was probably the effect of his price. Sakura wouldn't be able to remember him. I didn't see why he had such a price, considering I only had to give some blood. After a long pause he started to speak.

'I'm called Syaoran. And you are her highness, princess Sakura. If you would be so kind to listen, I'll explain. You are a princess for another world.'

'Another world?'

'And at the moment you have lost your memory. It's in order to find your memories that you are travelling between worlds.'

'By myself?'

'No you have travelling companions.'

'Are you one of those?'

'Yes…'

'You're doing this for a total stranger?'

Another pause.

'I am.'

Fai moved away from the door frame and introduced himself to Sakura so that Syaoran may escape the room. Kurogane walked forward with Mokona and I did the same. I looked at Syaoran's face before I entered the room and it was hung low, tears would surely follow.

'And may I present-'

'I'm Kurogane'

'And this cute one is-'

'Mokona Modoki! But you can say Mokona!'

I walked forwards towards the girl on the floor and crouched down.

'Hey, I'm Sammy.'

'Hello.'

'Excuse us for a moment princess, Kurogane and I have to go get some things ready for a bit. Mokona and Sammy will keep you company.'

'Ok.'

I watched them leave the room, heading off to go and check on Syaoran. I turned my attention back to Sakura. She looked at me, smiled and then held her hand.

'You know, while I was sleeping, I wonder if someone was holding my hand. My hand… Just felt so nice and warm!'

xXx

We said our goodbyes the morning we left and I was soon travelling through the darkness again, waiting for a rough landing when we landed wherever we were going to end up.

'Bye…'

I turned my head to the side and saw my Kudan moving further away from me, slowly losing my form and dissolving into a pure blue sphere. It couldn't come with me, which only made sense seeing as it came from a different world.

'It was interesting… Meeting someone like you…'

I guess I am slightly odd; it was just trying to be polite phrasing what it said like it did. I lifted my hand as a gesture of saying goodbye and silently thanked it for preventing so much pain before I landed in the next dimension.

'Oh… But I didn't do that…'

Before I could question what it said the light faded and a new one started to appear directly in front of me. The Kudan, if it didn't save me… then who or what did?