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     1.2 +++ b/old/stories/CCN6Sword.txt	Fri Feb 19 20:53:12 2010 -0500
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     1.4 +
     1.5 +Cardcaptor Nadeshiko
     1.6 +Across the Distance
     1.7 +by Amazoness Duo
     1.8 +
     1.9 +
    1.10 +
    1.11 +	“Mama?” the young girl asked from her perch near the top of the stairs.
    1.12 +She watched the older woman through the rail of the stairs, looking like a young
    1.13 +prisoner through the bars. The auburn haired girl crouched on the steps in her frilled green nightgown.
    1.14 +	“Hmm? Yes, Sonomi, darling?” The older woman turned her attention to
    1.15 +the little girl on the stairs, a small smile spreading across her lips. “Isn’t it past your bedtime?
    1.16 +	Sonomi nodded slowly, as if not wanting to concede defeat just yet. Holding onto the railing, she tried to work out the jumble of thoughts that had
    1.17 +led her out of her room, slowly piecing them into words. She couldn’t even quite
    1.18 +tell what she wanted to ask, only that something had drawn her here as her 
    1.19 +thoughts had kept her tossing and turning. “I couldn’t sleep,” she said at last,
    1.20 +resting her forehead against the rail of the stairwell. She knew it was late. And
    1.21 +she wasn’t prone to disobeying her mother. But something had kept her from 
    1.22 +drifting off into sleep, thoughts and feelings that she found difficult to
    1.23 +understand. At the forefront of all of them was a shimmer of liquid silver hair, and 
    1.24 +a beautiful, pale girl’s smile. A sigh escaped her lips as the curious feelings
    1.25 +resurfaced. They weren’t anything new. Far from it, in fact. She had been dealing
    1.26 +with them for quite some time. But the thought of spending another night lying in
    1.27 +bed alone and confused didn’t appeal to her at all
    1.28 +	The mother watched her child for a long moment, Sonomi’s normally
    1.29 +bright stormy blue eyes looking clouded over, the girl lost in her thoughts.
    1.30 +“What’s wrong, Sonomi-chan?” she asked curiously. She knew her daughter was
    1.31 +a very emotional girl, getting carried away with her emotions wherever they
    1.32 +drifted. In many ways, Sonomi was much more sensitive than her cousin.
    1.33 +Nadeshiko was a very sweet, loving girl who spent her time marvelling at the
    1.34 +wonders the world offered. Sonomi, on the other hand, was very emotional.
    1.35 +When she was sad, she was very sad. When she was happy, she was ecstatic.
    1.36 +She rode every emotion to its fullest. And when she couldn’t understand her
    1.37 +feelings, it often frustrated the poor girl. It looked like now was one of those
    1.38 +times.
    1.39 +	Sonomi considered the question, looking down at her small bare feet as
    1.40 +she rubbed them together. A yawn overtook her before she could bite it back for
    1.41 +worry that her mother would send her back to bed. She really was tired. But sleep
    1.42 +kept eluding her. “Mama, when did you and papa fall in love?” the auburn haired
    1.43 +girl asked, looking down to see her mother. She couldn’t quite tell why the
    1.44 +question was so important, only that it was.
    1.45 +	Pausing for a moment, Sonomi’s mother thought over the question.
    1.46 +“Hmm... Well, we met in college. We got married some time after that.” Setting
    1.47 +down the book she had been reading, she walked to the foot of the stairs,
    1.48 +looking up them towards her sleepy daughter. Sonomi didn’t look satisfied with
    1.49 +her answer.
    1.50 +	The young heiress shook her head, auburn hair fluttering about her face
    1.51 +in its odd slant hairstyle. “No, not that. When did you know you were in love,
    1.52 +mama?” Sonomi asked, a tinge of desperation in her voice. She wanted to know.
    1.53 +But still, college felt so far away. And she didn’t feel like love was that far off. At
    1.54 +least that meant that she wouldn’t have to worry about Nadeshiko marrying
    1.55 +anytime soon. That thought was soothing, at any rate. The thought of
    1.56 +Nadeshiko getting married made her heart scream in protest. She knew she
    1.57 +wanted her little cousin to be happy, to be loved, but she couldn’t stand the
    1.58 +thought of someone taking her best friend away from her. She could make
    1.59 +Nadeshiko happy. Nadeshiko didn’t need some man to stealing her off
    1.60 +somewhere. Like some princess being stolen away by the talons of some dragon,
    1.61 +she could see a wedding dress clad Nadeshiko being pulled back from her by a
    1.62 +man in a tuxedo. Her mind placed a face on the smilingly evil groom. Assistant
    1.63 +teacher Fujitaka Kinomoto smiled pleasantly as he whisked Nadeshiko away from
    1.64 +her, leaving Sonomi all alone. Shaking her head quickly, Sonomi tried to banish
    1.65 +the thought. She had been too concerned lately with how the assistant teacher
    1.66 +had been spending so much time with her cousin. She hadn’t trusted him even
    1.67 +when they first met because he had hurt Nadeshiko, and she wasn’t about to
    1.68 +start trusting him now. Maybe he could see the wonders that Nadeshiko had
    1.69 +inside of her, but that was exactly why Sonomi would protect her best friend from
    1.70 +people like him.
    1.71 +	Biting her lip, Sonomi’s mother ascended the stairs. This was more
    1.72 +difficult than she had suspected. Her daughter was obviously curious about this
    1.73 +sort of thing, but she didn’t know whether or not she should answer with a
    1.74 +fairytale. Sonomi could be rather mature, mostly stemming from her concern for
    1.75 +her younger cousin, but she also had a rather romantic, dreamy side that
    1.76 +manifested in her room and her love of cute things, her cousin included. Dolls
    1.77 +and stuffed animals, ribbons and lace adorned the young Sonomi Amamiya’s
    1.78 +room. But she couldn’t hide her daughter from the world forever. Life was not a
    1.79 +fairy tale. Things didn’t always have happy endings. It was with these shadowed
    1.80 +thoughts that she sat next to her daughter on the stairs, her hands folded primly
    1.81 +in her lap. Licking her lips, the older woman tried to decide how to begin. Her
    1.82 +daughter watched her hopefully, expectantly. “You don’t always get married because you’re in love, Sonomi-chan. There are many other aspects involved in
    1.83 +it. Social standing. The good of your family. What type of future you can have
    1.84 +with this person.”
    1.85 +	“But what about love?” Sonomi asked. She felt even more confused
    1.86 +than ever. Wasn’t it all about love? Wasn’t that the most important thing? But
    1.87 +then, hadn’t she been raised with the thought that she would one day wed and
    1.88 +continue the family? The sudden thought that she was expected to wed for the
    1.89 +family, for her station as opposed to because she was in love seemed like a cold
    1.90 +air of reality blowing over her. She shivered under her nightgown. In some ways,
    1.91 +it was what she had always expected. The thought of marriage had never excited
    1.92 +Sonomi the way it did many of the girls she knew. It seemed like something she
    1.93 +knew she would have to do one day, not something she wanted. Now she
    1.94 +realized that it was exactly that, not a matter of the heart at all. That frightened
    1.95 +her. 
    1.96 +	“Love is like a fairytale, Sonomi-chan. It’s fun to lose yourself in it, but
    1.97 +in the end you have to come back to reality. Love is a fun distraction. But you
    1.98 +have to plan for other things, to decide what’s best for you and your family. And
    1.99 +your heart can’t tell you this,” Sonomi’s mother explained gently, hugging her
   1.100 +small daughter against her side. Lithe fingers brushed through her daughter’s
   1.101 +hair, trying to sort through the odd hair cut. Sighing, she shook her head. It was
   1.102 +best to get away from such a lonely topic. “So why are you suddenly so curious,
   1.103 +Sonomi-chan? You’ll meet a handsome boy to marry one of these days.
   1.104 +	Sonomi frowned, shaking her head, her hair fluttering between her
   1.105 +mother’s fingers. “I don’t like boys. They’re stupid.” The younger girl crossed
   1.106 +her arms, her stormy blue eyes narrowed. No, she wasn’t the biggest fan of the
   1.107 +opposite sex. There was just something she didn’t like about them. Especially
   1.108 +one in particular. His glasses glinted in her mind for a moment. She forced it out
   1.109 +immediately. 
   1.110 +	Sonomi’s mother laughed at her daughter’s words, glad to be off the
   1.111 +topic. “Of course you like boys. All girls like boys, Sonomi-chan. Maybe you
   1.112 +don’t now, but you will in a few years, trust me.” She found it amusing to see her
   1.113 +daughter so intent. She would have to remember to point this out to the younger
   1.114 +girl in a few years when she finally changed her mind.
   1.115 +	Shaking her head, Sonomi looked up at her mother, the older woman’s
   1.116 +fingers still in her auburn hair. “I couldn’t like someone who didn’t like pink at
   1.117 +least a little bit,” the young heiress explained. 
   1.118 +	Laughing again, the mother grinned. “Sonomi-chan, you get such silly
   1.119 +ideas. I’m know you’ll find a nice boy one of these days who will make you
   1.120 +forget all of this nonsense.”
   1.121 +	Resting her head against her mother, Sonomi yawned tiredly. Her mind
   1.122 +was made up. She wouldn’t let any of those insects near her beloved Nadeshiko.
   1.123 +She wouldn’t let any of them take her way, or marry her. She would protect her
   1.124 +little cousin from them all. They would be happy. She would make Nadeshiko
   1.125 +happy. Somehow. She knew that Nadeshiko made her happy. If she didn’t need
   1.126 +to be in love to get married, then she didn’t need to worry about getting married.
   1.127 +And she wouldn’t let anyone marry her Nadeshiko. No one would take her away.
   1.128 +No one would hurt her. In her fading mind, she saw a sparkling image of her
   1.129 +silver haired angel. Her heart soared at the thought, warm and overflowing.
   1.130 +‘Nadeshiko-chan...’ she thought resolutely. The small auburn haired girl fell
   1.131 +asleep against her mother on the stairs shortly thereafter.
   1.132 +	
   1.133 +	Light. The first thing that existed was the light. It was white and cold,
   1.134 +like freshly fallen snow. It encompassed him, pulsing with him. The pulsing was
   1.135 +silent, but it was there, a slow rise and fall throughout the brightness. Slowly, the
   1.136 +brightness grew. His eyes burned, but he couldn’t shut them, for he still had no
   1.137 +eyes. He had no form, only the light. Thoughts spun incoherently like a spider
   1.138 +spinning its web, thoughts going in every direction and none at all.
   1.139 +‘WhyamIwhoamIwhereamIwhenamI?
   1.140 +	Am I?
   1.141 +Yes, you are, aren’t you? 
   1.142 +Please help me. I don’t know where I am. 
   1.143 +You aren’t anywhere. 
   1.144 +Who am I? 
   1.145 +You are the moonlight. 
   1.146 +Please, I’m scared... 
   1.147 +So am I.’
   1.148 +	His mind was the first thing to coalesce, but it was confused and lost.
   1.149 +He searched desperately for answers within himself, within the light. It took him a
   1.150 +moment to realize that he was the light. He struggled with this newfound
   1.151 +knowledge, searching out bits and pieces, working through the jumble of chaotic
   1.152 +thoughts to paint a picture of just what was going on. His body slowly began to
   1.153 +form as his mind worked its way back from the brink. He was. He knew that now.
   1.154 +He existed. That was reassuring, somehow. It was nice to know that he hadn’t
   1.155 +simply tricked himself into believing he existed. After all, he thought, so
   1.156 +therefore, he was. At least, he thought that he could think. The idea confused
   1.157 +him further. In frustration, he discarded the notion. He knew he could spend
   1.158 +eternity arguing with himself, as he had done just moments before. But had that
   1.159 +argument been an eternity or a split second? Or had it even happened? He
   1.160 +couldn’t remember. He could remember the light. The light was everywhere. The
   1.161 +light was outside of him and within him. Within him? Yes, that was right, wasn’t
   1.162 +it. He slowly curled his fingers, the bright snowy moonlight shifting through
   1.163 +them. He could feel his legs drifting underneath him, not touching any form of
   1.164 +solid ground. Long, feathered wings were outstretched behind him, glowing with
   1.165 +their own inner light.
   1.166 +	He looked down to see himself, to try to understand what he was, but
   1.167 +he could only see the blinding moonlight. He expected the brightness to carry
   1.168 +some form of heat with it, but it was surprisingly cold. It was the light of the full
   1.169 +moon. He moved experimentally, glad to know that his limbs were once again
   1.170 +attached. Once again? Had he been there before? Had he been himself before?
   1.171 +Yes, something of the sort. He was returning. He was being called back. He was...
   1.172 +being reawakened. Yes, something was calling him. He was waking up from a
   1.173 +deep slumber, brought back to fulfil the goals of his master. What goals? He
   1.174 +asked. But there was no answer. He frowned in the light that bathed him, still
   1.175 +trying to piece his inexplicable life together. So he was supposed to be here for
   1.176 +some reason. But what was the reason? 
   1.177 +	Slowly, memories returned to him. He waited centuries to recall
   1.178 +everything, reliving every moment of his previous existence. It all happened i
   1.179 +the blink of an eye, his life returned in a split second. And in this split infinity, he
   1.180 +knew who he was. He knew what he was. He knew why he was. And a cold smile
   1.181 +crossed his lips. Yes, it had all returned. He knew everything now. He woul
   1.182 +accomplish his mission for his master. All would go according to plan. Except...
   1.183 +Things hadn’t gone according to plan, had they? The girl wasn’t the one he was
   1.184 +supposed to judge. Something had gone wrong. Horribly wrong. What had
   1.185 +become of his master’s plan? No matter. He would quickly remedy the situation.
   1.186 +That was what he existed for. Soon, she would be forgotten and the master could
   1.187 +pretend this little fiasco never happened. They would go about with the plan
   1.188 +again afterwards, this time without the little problem that had popped up. He
   1.189 +would erase it from the pages of history. A cold grin spread over him. It was nice
   1.190 +to be of use again. 
   1.191 +	And with all the suddenness of a spring storm, everything was robbed
   1.192 +from him. His precious memory, his very existence was denied him. In another
   1.193 +second that lasted for all time, he felt his memories being extinguished, pulled
   1.194 +away from him with reckless abandon. He screamed into the night as all that he
   1.195 +was faded from him. “No!” he called out wordlessly. “Don’t take it away from me
   1.196 +Not again!” But he knew there was nothing he could do. Even the reason behind
   1.197 +his anger and fear disappeared. But the anger and fear remained, even as the
   1.198 +words unraveled in his mind. 
   1.199 +	Again, he was nothing. His mind faded, thoughts disappearing into the
   1.200 +void. There was nothing. The blinding moonlight disappeared. Darknes
   1.201 +converged around him, consuming him. And all was dark
   1.202 +
   1.203 +	“Mmm...” Sonomi stretched, trying to make sure her form was in top
   1.204 +shape. She was all alone on the track field at the school, but she didn’t mind. Sh
   1.205 +was still thinking about what her mother had said the night before. It had staye
   1.206 +with her throughout the day, making it difficult for her to concentrate during her
   1.207 +classes. So she didn’t mind having some solitude for the moment. And the best
   1.208 +way to do that was to get in some practice with her running. That was always a
   1.209 +good way to get her focus on other things. You couldn’t get distracted while
   1.210 +running. The only thing that mattered was how fast you could go. It was always
   1.211 +so refreshing. It was as if she could run away from all that was bothering her,
   1.212 +leaving it far behind as she outdistanced it. It felt wonderful, free
   1.213 +	The young heiress was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t hear the
   1.214 +sound of approaching footsteps. She was far too busy to bother with such
   1.215 +things. Her mind was focused on the task at hand, everything else seeming hazy,
   1.216 +distant. Getting into position, Sonomi felt the track beneath her fingers, waiting in
   1.217 +a crouch at the starting line. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest as she anticipated
   1.218 +an imaginary signal. Everything around her narrowed, fading away. The only
   1.219 +thing that existed in this half world was the track and the wind. She had to be
   1.220 +focused intently on the situation, ready to start at a moment’s notice. And. That
   1.221 +Was. Now! 
   1.222 +Like a shot, she was off, throwing herself forward. Every muscle in her
   1.223 + body worked towards one common goal, to send her hurtling forward to the
   1.224 +finish line. Her speed was incredible, the ten year old girl darting across the field
   1.225 +in a blur. Her mind didn’t have time for anything else, no time for concerns or
   1.226 +distractions. There was still the thrill of pulling ahead, of being the fastest. Of
   1.227 +being the first to reach the goal. She was almost there. It was always over so
   1.228 +quickly, but while she was racing it felt like a lifetime had passed. And with that,
   1.229 +she had passed it.
   1.230 +Catching her breath, the brunette slowed to a halt, her hands on her
   1.231 +thighs as she slumped over, catching her breath. The world slowly sprang back
   1.232 +into existence, as if it had merely been put on pause. Sounds filtered back to her,
   1.233 +sights slowly coming into focus. A sharp sound caught her ear, making her spin
   1.234 +around despite being out of breath. To her surprise, the assistant teacher,
   1.235 +Fujitaka Kinomoto, was clapping, his usual smile on his face. Sonomi stood up
   1.236 +quickly, trying to breath normally as she crossed her arms. She had no idea what
   1.237 +he was doing there, but she instantly didn’t trust him. Why wasn’t he busy
   1.238 +trying to steal away her Nadeshiko? Wasn’t that his hobby, after all? Well, she
   1.239 +had to admit that it was better that he was there than with Nadeshiko. Though
   1.240 +not by much.
   1.241 +“Nadeshiko-chan told me you were fast, Amamiya-san. I had no idea
   1.242 +how fast. I’m impressed,” the older man said, smiling pleasantly. The young girl
   1.243 +continued to stare at him, but he only smiled in response. 
   1.244 +Smoothing down her gym uniform, Sonomi didn’t take her eyes off of
   1.245 +the assistant teacher, almost afraid that he would run off to find Nadeshiko if she
   1.246 +let down her guard. She nodded simply, her breathing slowly returning to normal.
   1.247 +“Hai. Nadeshiko-chan watches most of my races. I never lose. She says I’m like
   1.248 + the wind,” Sonomi said proudly. If Nadeshiko believed in her, then she knew
   1.249 +that she could do anything. With Nadeshiko’s belief, how could she fail?
   1.250 +“Is that so?” Fujitaka asked curiously, still smiling. “She’s such a sweet
   1.251 +little girl, isn’t she?” 
   1.252 +Sonomi frowned, flustered by his comment. Of course she was a sweet
   1.253 +little girl. But she was Sonomi’s best friend. And the auburn haired girl wasn’t
   1.254 +about to give her up to some... some insect. He was beneath Nadeshiko. She
   1.255 +wouldn’t let him or anyone have her precious silver haired angel.
   1.256 +“Nadeshiko-chan is the sweetest, cutest, most beautiful girl there is. There’s no
   1.257 +one out there like her. She’s perfect. She has the prettiest voice and she’s always
   1.258 +so bright and happy and her eyes sparkle when she looks at you.” Sonomi took a
   1.259 +deep breath, trying to suppress the stirrings in her heart. But she always felt this
   1.260 +way when she started thinking about Nadeshiko. She couldn’t help but notice
   1.261 +how perfect her little cousin was. It was so blatantly obvious. She saw it all every
   1.262 +single day that they were together. She took a shuddering breath, closing her
   1.263 +eyes for a moment. When she opened her eyes, she had her composure back.
   1.264 +She couldn’t go off on a Nadeshiko tangent right now. She had to keep an eye
   1.265 +on the assistant teacher. Even if one was much, much more enjoyable than the
   1.266 +other. 
   1.267 +“You seem to think very highly of her. You’re lucky to have a cousin
   1.268 +like her.” Fujitaka smiled, pushing up his glasses. “You’re right. She really is like
   1.269 +an angel. I almost wouldn’t be surprised if she turned out to be one.” The young
   1.270 +man had been more and more pleased to have met his young student. She was
   1.271 +incredibly odd, but he found her fascinating. And apparently, her cousin thought
   1.272 +so as well. They could both see that Nadeshiko was somehow special.
   1.273 +“She is. She just only shows her wings to me,” Sonomi replied. She felt
   1.274 + jealous that he would speak of her Nadeshiko that way. She had always been the
   1.275 +one to worship Nadeshiko like an angel. She was always the one to dwell on how
   1.276 +amazingly perfect Nadeshiko was. Now this man who had hurt Nadeshiko had
   1.277 +the gall to think the same thing. She just wanted him to stay away from her little
   1.278 +cousin. Nadeshiko was already accident-prone enough. Sonomi had to keep her
   1.279 +away from trouble. And she definitely considered him to be trouble.
   1.280 +	Fujitaka laughed at Sonomi’s comment, nodding. “That must be very
   1.281 +sweet of her, then. I bet they’re very pretty. But I don’t think Nadeshiko-chan is
   1.282 +the type to keep things like that to herself. I think she would want to share, to
   1.283 +show her wings to others as well. Don’t you think?” 
   1.284 +	Clenching her fists, Sonomi could only stare at the assistant teacher for
   1.285 +a long moment. His question sent a tremor of anger surging through her heart.
   1.286 +She knew Nadeshiko better than anyone else. How could he insinuate that he
   1.287 +knew her better? Yet she couldn’t bring herself to agree. Yes, Nadeshiko would
   1.288 +probably want to share that. But Sonomi silently wished she wouldn’t. Why
   1.289 +wasn’t she enough for Nadeshiko? Why wasn’t it enough that she was there for
   1.290 +her? She was lucky enough that no one believed Nadeshiko when she told them
   1.291 +she had magic, believing it to be just a daydream of the perpetually dreamy girl.
   1.292 +Sonomi was glad that she was the only one who knew, but she wished it could
   1.293 +just be their secret, that Nadeshiko would be happy enough with only her auburn
   1.294 +haired cousin knowing. Fujitaka correcting her didn’t help matters. She could feel
   1.295 +her nails biting into the skin of her palms as she tried futilely to respond. She
   1.296 +didn’t want to agree with him, though she knew Nadeshiko well enough to know
   1.297 +that he was right. 
   1.298 +Before she could answer, he continued, as if it wasn’t necessary for her
   1.299 +to reply. “Would you like to race, Amamiya-san? I heard you beat the quickest
   1.300 +on the boys’ team. You must make some very good competition.”
   1.301 +Without quite realizing it, Sonomi nodded. Yes, that was right. A race.
   1.302 +That would make this much better. She could finally beat him at something. She
   1.303 +could finally prove that he wasn’t better at her, that she was all Nadeshiko
   1.304 +needed. That sounded perfect. “Hai,” she replied. Bowing to him, she took her
   1.305 +place at the starting line. She would never let him near her Nadeshiko. She was a
   1.306 +delicate flower, and Sonomi would protect its blossoms with her all. Nadeshiko
   1.307 +was not something for this arrogant man to have, to ponder. She was a mystery
   1.308 +that Sonomi was slowly uncovering. She wouldn’t let him take her away.
   1.309 +Nadeshiko was her best friend, her cousin, her most precious treasure. She
   1.310 +wouldn’t let him or anyone else interfere. 
   1.311 +	“All right. On three,” Fujitaka stated, slowly taking his place. He smiled
   1.312 +over at the younger girl, his glasses glinting. She simply looked straight forward,
   1.313 +waiting. He could tell she was ready to give her all. It would be an interesting
   1.314 +race. Smiling, he looked forward himself. 
   1.315 +“One.” The two prepared for the inevitable race awaiting them. “Two.”
   1.316 +Sonomi’s heart pounded in her chest as she waited anxiously for their duel to
   1.317 +begin. “Three.” And they were both off. 
   1.318 +Never before had Sonomi forced herself to go as fast as she did. Every
   1.319 +ounce of her being burned, pushing every forward. The only thing in her mind
   1.320 +was the goal. She had to reach the goal. It was waiting for her. Nadeshiko was
   1.321 +waiting for her. She had to show that he wasn’t better than her at everything. She
   1.322 +had to reach it. She had to be the fastest. Her vision was nonexistent with the
   1.323 +single exception of the thin strip signifying the finish line. The assistant teacher
   1.324 +and the young track star were both propelled by awesome forces towards their
   1.325 +objective. It might as well have been Nadeshiko waiting for them rather than the
   1.326 +finish line, intense passions stirring to push the two ever faster. 
   1.327 +To Sonomi’s astonishment, she still hadn’t pulled ahead of Fujitaka. By
   1.328 +now in most races, she had pulled far ahead of the pack. But she was still side by
   1.329 +side with him. Her heart pounded feriously, her body trying to force itself to go
   1.330 +even faster. But it was giving all it had. She was pushing herself as fast as she
   1.331 +could go. She kept towards the goal, trying to will herself to reach it first. Her
   1.332 +whole being tried to grip onto it, tried to give her that last bit of energy.
   1.333 +Somehow, she found it. With a trill in her heart, as sweet as Nadeshiko’s
   1.334 +singsong voice, Sonomi managed to speed up, throwing her last bit into the final
   1.335 +seconds of the race. It was all she had, every last ounce of energy inside of her.
   1.336 +But she had to win. For Nadeshiko-chan. 
   1.337 +To Sonomi’s horror, Fujitaka began to pull ahead, moving past her.
   1.338 +Even with her last burst of strength, it wasn’t enough. It was like some cruel joke,
   1.339 +her final boost pushing her across the finish line right after him. The world
   1.340 +refused to come back to her this time, her weary body slowly collapsing to her
   1.341 +knees. The world around her continued to stay a blurry, surreal nightmare,
   1.342 +nothing else appearing. But she didn’t care. Nothing else mattered. She had lost.
   1.343 +It didn’t matter who you were when you raced. It only mattered that you were the
   1.344 +fastest. And Sonomi Amamiya, a girl who had long been the fastest, no longer
   1.345 +was. The dirt beneath her irritated her legs, but it didn’t seem to matter. She
   1.346 +couldn’t get the strength to get back up.
   1.347 +“That was a good race, Amamiya-san. You did a great job,” Fujitaka
   1.348 +complimented, smiling to the younger girl as he caught his breath. She didn’t
   1.349 +meet his eye. In fact, she didn’t even seem to see him. He watched her for a
   1.350 +moment, before stepping back towards the classrooms. “I’ll tell Nadeshiko-chan
   1.351 +you’re out here if I see her, Amamiya-san,” he called back over his shoulder, still
   1.352 +smiling. He felt much better now that he’d been able to get some exercise. Now
   1.353 +back to grading tests!
   1.354 +Sonomi didn’t hear him. She was too distraught, too broken by her loss.
   1.355 +How could she have lost to him? How could he have beaten her? She had tried
   1.356 +so hard! But even then, it wasn’t enough. She hadn’t been able to win, after all.
   1.357 +She had always been the fastest, but it hadn’t meant anything against him.
   1.358 +Balling up her fists, she hit them again and again into the dirt until her knuckles
   1.359 +cried out in pain. Angry, bitter tears fell into the dust bellow, falling onto her
   1.360 +hands. She’d wanted so badly to beat him, to show that he wasn’t better than her
   1.361 +at everything. To show that she could take care of Nadeshiko. She had been
   1.362 +racing for Nadeshiko, to win for her. To beat him for her sake. Even if it hadn’t
   1.363 +been stated, she had been the reason they were racing, the rivalry behind it. And
   1.364 +she had failed. 
   1.365 +“Nadeshiko-chan..” Sonomi got out in a pained sob. Her dirty hands
   1.366 +came up to her face, smearing some along her cheeks as she rubbed angrily at her
   1.367 +tears. It wasn’t fair! It wasn’t right! She should have won! Nothing ever worked
   1.368 +with him. He was slowly trying to take her Nadeshiko away. And then she would
   1.369 +be all alone, without the most important thing in her life. And she’d just failed to
   1.370 +beat him at the one thing that she was the best at. What good was she if she
   1.371 +couldn’t even do that? How could she possibly hope to protect Nadeshiko-chan
   1.372 +that way? She had always been the fastest. And he had taken that away from her.
   1.373 +Would Nadeshiko be next? A cold chill settled throughout her battered soul,
   1.374 +weighing her down like a heavy cloak. 
   1.375 +“Sonomi-chan~!” Nadeshiko called, wandering about slowly, her eyes
   1.376 +following every trace of springtime beauty that she happened to cross. Her lazy
   1.377 +beeline eventually took her towards the field where Sonomi practiced track. Just
   1.378 +where Fujitaka had told her that her cousin was waiting. She giggled to herself as
   1.379 +she watched some ants scurrying about a few bread crumbs. “Busy, busy, busy.
   1.380 +You should have some fun, sometimes, too,” she suggested before moving on.
   1.381 +She finally caught sight of her auburn haired friend sitting in the field, collapsed
   1.382 +in the dirt. Nadeshiko tilted her head to the side, dark hair spilling across her
   1.383 +shoulder. “Sonomi-chan! Hi, Sonomi-chan! Guess what? I just found this really
   1.384 +cute..” Nadeshiko trailed off, her smile replaced with a curious look.
   1.385 +“Sonomi-chan?” Was Sonomi crying? Had something happened to her?
   1.386 + “Sonomi-chan?” she asked again, closing the distance between them.
   1.387 +	The auburn haired girl looked up quickly, wiping at her eyes quickly,
   1.388 +struggling to see through her tear blurred vision. She could see a pale angel
   1.389 +growing ever closer, a curious, worried look on her face. “Nadeshiko-chan..”
   1.390 +Sonomi got out, wiping more desperately at her eyes. She couldn’t let Nadeshiko
   1.391 +see her like this. How could she explain it? What could she say? Pushing herself
   1.392 +to her feet on pained muscles, Sonomi hurried away from her oncoming cousin,
   1.393 +trying to escape the pain and her tears. She had to get away. To think. To cry.
   1.394 +“Sonomi-chan?” Nadeshiko asked to her cousin’s retreating form. She
   1.395 +came to a halt where Sonomi had been, watching after her as the other girl ran off.
   1.396 +What had happened? What had hurt her cousin so terribly? Kneeling down,
   1.397 +Nadeshiko ran her fingertip through the teardrops in the dirt. “Poor
   1.398 +Sonomi-chan.. Please don’t cry,” she whispered. Nadeshiko sat in the dirt, her
   1.399 +skirt spread out around her. She looked at her dirty, tear streaked finger. The
   1.400 +image of Sonomi, hunched over and in tears played through her mind. Sonomi
   1.401 +had always been her best friend. It made her feel terrible to see her cousin in
   1.402 +tears. And she didn’t know what to do about it. She couldn’t even find Sonomi
   1.403 +to make her feel better. Sniffling, Nadeshiko began to cry. 
   1.404 +	
   1.405 +	“Damn it!” Sonomi punched the locker, her injured knuckles burning at
   1.406 +the contact. Her head slumped against the locker with an audible ‘clang’. She
   1.407 +slowly turned around, sliding down the locker. Her legs hurt too much to keep
   1.408 +standing. Her heart hurt too much to think. She just wanted to sit there until it all
   1.409 +went away. But she knew she couldn’t do that. She had to fight. She had to do
   1.410 +something. She had to do anything. But she couldn’t figure out what. Rubbing at
   1.411 +her eyes with her palms, she let out a wet sob. She hated him. She hated him for
   1.412 +ever meeting Nadeshiko, for ever hitting her in the head with the softball. She
   1.413 +hated him for coming to the school, becoming a part of Nadeshiko’s life. She
   1.414 +hated him for pulling Nadeshiko away during her race with Terrada. She hated
   1.415 +him for beating her at what she was best at. She hated him for trying to take
   1.416 +Nadeshiko away. Even if she knew that was silly, that she shouldn’t believe such
   1.417 +a stupid thing, she couldn’t help it. It felt like he was trying to take her place with
   1.418 +Nadeshiko. And even though he had hurt Nadeshiko, the angelic silver haired
   1.419 +girl didn’t mind at all. She was happy to be his friend. And that frightened
   1.420 +Sonomi. She wanted to protect Nadeshiko, but she didn’t always know how. She
   1.421 +wanted to keep those boys from hurting her, from snagging her away. But now
   1.422 +she didn’t even know if she could.
   1.423 +	“Owww..” Sonomi winced as she got to her feet, her hand resting
   1.424 +against the cold metal of her locker. With slow, lifeless fingers, she began to
   1.425 +open it. She had to get dressed, to change clothes. She would need to be ready
   1.426 +to go home. But for the most part, she simply wanted a distraction. What could
   1.427 +she say to Nadeshiko? What was she supposed to do about Fujitaka? None of it
   1.428 +had any easy answers. Right now, she just wanted to curl up in bed and cry
   1.429 +herself to sleep. For once she was glad that Nadeshiko didn’t live at her house.
   1.430 +Nadeshiko would certainly want to talk to her, and she didn’t know if she could
   1.431 +face the other girl at the moment. She couldn’t even face herself. She felt
   1.432 +miserable, a failure. And it was all his fault. 
   1.433 +	Something caught Sonomi’s eye from the back of the locker, glittering
   1.434 +faintly in the sterile light of the locker room. Reaching in, the young heiress
   1.435 +pulled out a small pendant shaped like a sword. “What’s this supposed to be?
   1.436 +Did Nadeshiko-chan put it in here?” Sighing, Sonomi held it in her hand. She
   1.437 +would have to talk to Nadeshiko, wouldn’t she? Otherwise she would only make
   1.438 +Nadeshiko worry. And she couldn’t bear to hurt her dear cousin. Closing her
   1.439 +locker, she looked back down at the pendant. Yeah, she couldn’t leave her sweet
   1.440 +cousin waiting. But before she could take another step, the little broach came
   1.441 +alive, light splashing through the room.
   1.442 +
   1.443 +	Nadeshiko cried softly, shaking her head against the offers of
   1.444 +assistance, Her hands lay in her lap, her small shoulders shaking with each sob.
   1.445 +She didn’t know where Sonomi was or what was going on or even why she had
   1.446 +been crying. She kept seeing Sonomi crying in her mind, filling her own tears. It
   1.447 +was too sad for Sonomi to have to be crying. 
   1.448 +	“It’s all right, Nadeshiko-chan,” Fujitaka said soothingly, trying to
   1.449 +comfort his pupil. “Please, just tell me what’s wrong. I’ll help however I can.” But
   1.450 +try as he might, he couldn’t coax anything other than ‘Sonomi-chan’ out of the
   1.451 +pale girl. Whatever it was, she seemed to be taking it pretty hard. She hadn’t
   1.452 +stopped crying since he had spotted her and he had no idea how long she had
   1.453 +been crying before that. Something glinted, catching his eye. “You see? She’s
   1.454 +right there. Your cousin is just fine,” he promised, smiling.
   1.455 +	Nadeshiko wiped at her eyes quickly, breaking out into a relieved smile
   1.456 +when she saw Sonomi walking towards them. Getting to her feet, Nadeshiko
   1.457 +quickly ran towards her cousin, her arms open. “Sonomi-chan!” She felt much
   1.458 +better now. It was enough to see that Sonomi was no longer crying. She giggled
   1.459 +happily as she raced towards the auburn haired girl. But something was wrong.
   1.460 +She slowed as she approached Sonomi. The taller girl was holding onto some
   1.461 +type of sword, her eyes looking unfocused. Sonomi didn’t even seem to
   1.462 +recognize her. “Sonomi-chan?” Nadeshiko asked. Sonomi didn’t even look at her,
   1.463 +instead looking at Fujitaka as he approached. Now that confused Nadeshiko.
   1.464 +Sonomi always liked to look at her. She always got Sonomi’s full attention. So
   1.465 +why would she suddenly not have it? Something felt wrong about all this. It was
   1.466 +like Sonomi wasn’t Sonomi. But how could she not be Sonomi? Unless it was
   1.467 +someone using Sonomi. 
   1.468 +	“Are you all right, Amamiya-san? Your cousin was very worried about
   1.469 +you. She was crying about you. But it seems like everything’s fine now,” Fujitaka
   1.470 +stated, smiling to the two younger girls. He was glad that problem was over with.
   1.471 +He couldn’t stand to see the poor silver haired girl in tears. At least that problem
   1.472 +was over. He felt so relieved.
   1.473 +	Nadeshiko watched Sonomi for a moment. It finally fitted into place as
   1.474 +she watched the hand with the sword move. “Sonomi-chan!” Nadeshiko stepped
   1.475 +in front of Sonomi, but it was too late. Sonomi was faster than she was. The
   1.476 +auburn haired girl lunged forward, the sword tip glinting as it drove into
   1.477 +Fujitaka’s side. Crimson rain lit the sky for a split second, some of it landing on
   1.478 +Nadeshiko’s face while the rest spattered on the grass. For that long moment of
   1.479 +silence, Nadeshiko watched the red droplets, amazed at how beautiful the blood
   1.480 +was, as if it were some of the paint left over from God’s paintbrush. It all felt
   1.481 +surreal. She could see herself next to Sonomi, the other girl’s eyes clouded over,
   1.482 +their normal depth missing. She could see the blood before her. She could see
   1.483 +Fujitaka with the tip of the sword in his side. 
   1.484 +	And everything started up again. “Sonomi-chan! Kinomoto-sensei!”
   1.485 +Nadeshiko called out, running to her teacher’s aid. The older man stumbled back.
   1.486 +Luckily, the blow had only been the tip of the sword. He was bleeding, but he
   1.487 +could still move. Sonomi was moving swiftly, like some jungle cat intent on it’s
   1.488 +prey. She was circling, waiting for another chance. 
   1.489 +	“Run, Nadeshiko-chan! You need to get out of here!” Fujitaka yelled,
   1.490 +his eyes never leaving his magically possessed student. He winced painfully as
   1.491 +he held his side. It hadn’t been deep, but it still hurt. He saw Sonomi coming
   1.492 +closer again, sword raised. To his surprise, Nadeshiko once again got in the way.
   1.493 +“Watch out!” Grabbing Nadeshiko, he yanked her out of the way. Sonomi used
   1.494 +that moment to duck towards him, slashing again. 
   1.495 +	“Jump!” Nadeshiko called, her staff striking the Card. As Sonomi
   1.496 +slashed ever closer, she managed to jump back, pushing Fujitaka with her. She
   1.497 +kept hopping backwards, out of Sonomi’s range. But he was heavy, and she
   1.498 +couldn’t keep it up for long. She waited near the fence, trying to catch her breath
   1.499 +	Fujitaka watched in astonishment at the silver haired girl. What was
   1.500 +this? Magic? He had the sense not to ask about it. Now was definitely not the
   1.501 +time. Looking back up, he saw Sonomi once again barreling towards them. He
   1.502 +barely had time to throw himself into Nadeshiko, pushing her away as Sonomi
   1.503 +slashed through the fence. “Nadeshiko-chan, you have to get out of here. I’ll
   1.504 +distract her.”
   1.505 +	Nadeshiko shook her head quickly, squirming away from her teacher’s
   1.506 +grasp. “No! I can’t leave Sonomi-chan!” She smiled a faint smile, clutching her
   1.507 +staff tightly. “Don’t worry. She won’t hurt me. Sonomi-chan would never hurt
   1.508 +me.” Pushing away from Fujitaka, Nadeshiko ran towards her cousin. 
   1.509 +	“Nadeshiko-chan!” Fujitaka called out. He collapsed in pain, unable to
   1.510 +follow her. He watched, mortified as Nadeshiko raced towards her sword wielding
   1.511 +friend. He was helpless to stop her.
   1.512 +	Sonomi watched as Nadeshiko came ever closer. She raised the sword,
   1.513 +still ready to attack. Her eyes focused past Nadeshiko, to the wounded man back
   1.514 +behind her. She ran towards the oncoming Cardcaptor, ducking to the side and
   1.515 +past Nadeshiko, still headed for Fujitaka. 
   1.516 +	Whirling around, Nadeshiko watched, stunned, as Sonomi kept right on
   1.517 +towards their teacher. She had expected Sonomi to stop before her. She could
   1.518 +only watch, unable to reach the other girl in time. “Sonomi-chan!” she yelled after
   1.519 +her, her voice pleading. She had to be able to reach Sonomi. Even if that sword
   1.520 +was using her cousin, Sonomi had to be in there somewhere. She just needed to
   1.521 +bring her out.
   1.522 +	Sonomi stopped before Fujitaka, pulling the sword above her head to
   1.523 +swipe him in half. Fujitaka just watched her through his glasses, waiting. He
   1.524 +couldn’t move enough to get out of the way in time. He could only watch and
   1.525 +wait. With that, Sonomi brought the sword down towards him. He closed his
   1.526 +eyes as the blade fell, waiting for the pain to follow. But aside from the pain in his
   1.527 +side, he still seemed to be in one piece. A clang reverberated inches in front of
   1.528 +his face. Blinking, he found a traditional fan right in front of him, holding back
   1.529 +Sonomi’s blade. Barely. He forced himself to move, crawling away along the
   1.530 +fence. He had to get Nadeshiko so they could get out of there. 
   1.531 +	The girl who had blocked Sonomi’s strike watched her carefully, her fan
   1.532 +still pressed tightly against Sonomi’s. Leaping back, she landed on the grass, her
   1.533 +curious weapon still held at the ready. She wore a strange costume, looking
   1.534 +exotic amidst the two girls in their school uniforms. “Get out of here. I’ll handle
   1.535 +this,” she said to Nadeshiko, not bothering to look at the Cardcaptor. There were
   1.536 +more pressing matters. 
   1.537 +	Nadeshiko shook her head quickly. “No, I can’t! She’s my best friend!
   1.538 +She needs my help!” She didn’t know who the new girl was, but she could feel
   1.539 +very strong magic coming from her. Her attention went back to Sonomi. She was
   1.540 +worried that the new girl might hurt her if they fought for long. There had to be
   1.541 +something else she could do. Did this have something to do with why Sonomi
   1.542 +was crying earlier? Is that how the Clow Card found her? She wanted to help the
   1.543 +Card, too, but she was much more concerned about Sonomi. She didn’t want
   1.544 +anything bad to happen to her big cousin. Sonomi was always looking out for
   1.545 +her. The thought of the brunette getting hurt by all this was horrifying.
   1.546 +	The new arrival tried to size up the situation. She was lucky enough to
   1.547 +have foreseen this. Her dream had told her bits and pieces of this. But she hadn’t
   1.548 +gotten there in time to stop it. She had been hoping to keep it from escalating to
   1.549 +this point. As it was, it didn’t seem like the Cardcaptor was keeping a very good
   1.550 +handle on things. At least she had gotten there in time to save the man. Now she
   1.551 +could put a stop to all this and go about her business. To her surprise, Sonomi
   1.552 +came charging at her. She managed to block the first blow, dodging the next.
   1.553 +Whoever the girl was that was possessed by the Sword, she had more than the
   1.554 +Sword’s expert fencing. She had quite a lot of strength and speed as well. She
   1.555 +moved beautifully, almost like a dancer. Each movement was fluid, graceful. She
   1.556 +was impressed. And despite her parries, she could feel each blow through her
   1.557 +fan. This girl obviously kept physically fit. If only she had studied up more on
   1.558 +her martial arts, this wouldn’t be such a problem. But then, she doubted even
   1.559 +that would have given her the physical prowess of the other girl. She would have
   1.560 +to settle for her magic. Which should be more than enough to handle the
   1.561 +situation. She blocked another blow, searching her mind for the proper spell to
   1.562 +bring this to an abrupt end. Another thrust ducked low, slipping near her hand.
   1.563 +With a flick of her wrist, Sonomi disarmed the young mage. The mage watched in
   1.564 +shock as her fan tumbled end over end, landing at her feet. All magic spells were
   1.565 +suddenly forgotten as she stared into the cloudy blue eyes of her attacker. It
   1.566 +wasn’t supposed to go this way. She was supposed to catch the Cards, not be
   1.567 +done in by them. This was all wrong. She hadn’t foreseen this at all. Her mind
   1.568 +desperately tried to sort out what had gone wrong, as she told herself again and
   1.569 +again that this couldn’t happen, that she wouldn’t be able to die because she
   1.570 +hadn’t seen it beforehand. She stared at Sonomi, disbelieving as the brunette
   1.571 +thrust forward. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. She wasn’t supposed to.. A
   1.572 +halo of silvery gray hair blocked her vision all of the sudden. 
   1.573 +	“Sonomi-chan!” Nadeshiko stood in front of the young mage, her arms
   1.574 +out. The sword came flying towards her, aimed right for her head. Nadeshiko
   1.575 +stood and waited, her emerald eyes searching Sonomi’s cloudy blue ones,
   1.576 +searching for any indication of her cousin. She knew Sonomi had to be in there
   1.577 +somewhere. She just had to find her. The blade stopped, inches from her head.
   1.578 +Sonomi just watched her for a long moment, unable to hurt her little cousin. The
   1.579 +sword slowly fell from her hand, clattering to the grass below. “Sonomi-chan!”
   1.580 +Nadeshiko yelled happily, rushing to Sonomi. She hugged the auburn haired girl
   1.581 +tightly. Her exhausted cousin collapsed against her, sending them both to their
   1.582 +knees in the grass. “Sonomi-chan!” She laughed joyously, pulling Sonomi as
   1.583 +close as she could. She felt so relieved, so happy. Sonomi was all right.
   1.584 +	“I.. Thank you,” the new girl said, bowing to Nadeshiko. “You saved my
   1.585 +life, almost at the expense of your own. I’ll always remember that.” She watched
   1.586 +the two cousins hugging in the grass curiously, a bit surprised at what she saw
   1.587 +in the Cardcaptor. She had been expecting something else. Something a little
   1.588 +more akin to Clow Reed, perhaps. Not some silly schoolgirl. But the girl had
   1.589 +saved her life nonetheless.
   1.590 +	Nadeshiko shook her head, smiling brightly. “I knew Sonomi-chan
   1.591 +wouldn’t hurt me. She couldn’t. She’s too busy trying to keep everything else
   1.592 +from hurting me. That’s why I knew she wouldn’t let the Clow Card that was
   1.593 +using her hurt me.” 
   1.594 +	The young mage nodded thoughtfully. Looking down, she prodded the
   1.595 +Sword Card with her foot. “You should seal this before it can cause anymore
   1.596 +trouble.”
   1.597 +	“Un,” Nadeshiko replied, nodding against Sonomi. The other girl was
   1.598 +still weak against her, not even fully conscious. But she was safe. And that was
   1.599 +the important thing. Pulling up her staff, Nadeshiko looked at the Sword. “You
   1.600 +really need to be more careful, Ms. Clow Card. You could have really hurt
   1.601 +someone tonight. So I’m going to take you home with me, all right? You can make
   1.602 +a lot of friends there, I promise. Return to your true form, Clow Card!” Bringing
   1.603 +the staff down, the Sword disappeared, only to be replaced by a small orange
   1.604 +brown card with a sword on it.
   1.605 +	“Don’t worry about your friend. She’ll be fine with a little rest. She
   1.606 +won’t remember any of the time she was under the influence of the Sword. But
   1.607 +what about him?” The mage gestured back towards Fujitaka. 
   1.608 +	“I’ll be fine. I’m just glad you two are all right. I guess you really do
   1.609 +only show your wings to Sonomi-san.” Fujitaka winced as he came forward, still
   1.610 +holding his side. He was amazed that Nadeshiko was a magical girl, but somehow
   1.611 +it seemed fitting. He didn’t want to make her tell him all the details. That was all
   1.612 +part of her life. He was glad for his glimpse of it, though. Did it have something to
   1.613 +do with that strange book he’d given her? It seemed so. It was strange that
   1.614 +something he’d barely thought about had such drastic repercussions. But at
   1.615 +least everything had worked out. 
   1.616 +	“Arigato, Kinomoto-sensei!” Nadeshiko replied, smiling. He returned
   1.617 +the smile, though he still looked a little pale. “And thank you..” Nadeshiko turned
   1.618 +to thank the young mage who had helped them, but found that she was already
   1.619 +gone. Nadeshiko glanced around for her, but there was no sign that she had ever
   1.620 +been there at all. Shrugging off the thought, Nadeshiko went back to hugging
   1.621 +Sonomi. She felt one of Sonomi’s hands slowly rubbing her back, up and down.
   1.622 +“Sonomi-chan!”
   1.623 +	“Nadeshiko-chan...” Sonomi replied, her mind still hazy. How did she
   1.624 +get there? What had happened? Where was she? She sighed softly, resting her
   1.625 +weary head on Nadeshiko’s soft shoulder. It felt so nice. She could smell the
   1.626 +sweet scent of Nadeshiko’s hair against her. She breathed deeply, her aching
   1.627 +body relaxing. Her earlier worries and pain were forgotten. Only half broken
   1.628 +fragments of her earlier thoughts floated through her mind. One of them brushed
   1.629 +past her heart, making her want to hold on tightly to Nadeshiko and to never let
   1.630 +go. She wrapped both arms around her cousin’s waist, resting against her. “I’ll
   1.631 +always protect you, Nadeshiko-chan,” she whispered tiredly.
   1.632 +	Nadeshiko kissed the side of her head, smiling. “I know, Sonomi-chan.
   1.633 +I’ve always known. And thank you. It makes me happy to know that
   1.634 +Sonomi-chan will always be there to rescue me.”
   1.635 +	Sonomi blushed at Nadeshiko’s words, feeling her cousin’s fingers
   1.636 +rubbing the back of her head. She couldn’t bring herself to move outside of
   1.637 +Nadeshiko’s embrace, not that she would want to even if she did have the
   1.638 +strength. The two sat together for quite some time, Nadeshiko enjoying the
   1.639 +wonders of the life around them and right next to her, and Sonomi simply
   1.640 +enjoying the wonders that lay in Nadeshiko.
   1.641 +
   1.642 +	The image of the two girls rippled and then disappeared as the young
   1.643 +mage ran her fingers through the water. This was certainly interesting. It
   1.644 +appeared that things wouldn’t be so simple after all. A small smile crossed her
   1.645 +lips as she trailed her fingertips through the water. At least her time while
   1.646 +capturing the Cards wouldn’t be boring. She had the feeling that it would be
   1.647 +anything but. 
   1.648 +	“Are you done with your bath, miss?” a voice asked from outside the
   1.649 +bathroom.
   1.650 +	“Almost, Wei. I’ll be out in just a minute,” she called, letting herself sink
   1.651 +lower in the warm water. 
   1.652 +	“I’ll leave your clothes out on your bed, miss. Be sure to get to bed
   1.653 +early. You have a rather big day ahead of you.”
   1.654 +	The girl sighed softly, nodding. “Yes, I know. A very big day.” Sliding
   1.655 +back into the water, she let it surround her. A big day, indeed. After all, what
   1.656 +could be bigger than the day when one takes over the job of Cardcaptor?
   1.657 +
   1.658 +
   1.659 +	
   1.660 \ No newline at end of file