Cardcaptor Nadeshiko

 Across the Distance

 by Amazoness Duo

 

 

 

 	“Mama?” the young girl asked from her perch near the top of the stairs.

 She watched the older woman through the rail of the stairs, looking like a young

 prisoner through the bars. The auburn haired girl crouched on the steps in her frilled green nightgown.

 	“Hmm? Yes, Sonomi, darling?” The older woman turned her attention to

 the little girl on the stairs, a small smile spreading across her lips. “Isn’t it past your bedtime?

 	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

 led her out of her room, slowly piecing them into words. She couldn’t even quite

 tell what she wanted to ask, only that something had drawn her here as her 

 thoughts had kept her tossing and turning. “I couldn’t sleep,” she said at last,

 resting her forehead against the rail of the stairwell. She knew it was late. And

 she wasn’t prone to disobeying her mother. But something had kept her from 

 drifting off into sleep, thoughts and feelings that she found difficult to

 understand. At the forefront of all of them was a shimmer of liquid silver hair, and 

 a beautiful, pale girl’s smile. A sigh escaped her lips as the curious feelings

 resurfaced. They weren’t anything new. Far from it, in fact. She had been dealing

 with them for quite some time. But the thought of spending another night lying in

 bed alone and confused didn’t appeal to her at all

 	The mother watched her child for a long moment, Sonomi’s normally

 bright stormy blue eyes looking clouded over, the girl lost in her thoughts.

 “What’s wrong, Sonomi-chan?” she asked curiously. She knew her daughter was

 a very emotional girl, getting carried away with her emotions wherever they

 drifted. In many ways, Sonomi was much more sensitive than her cousin.

 Nadeshiko was a very sweet, loving girl who spent her time marvelling at the

 wonders the world offered. Sonomi, on the other hand, was very emotional.

 When she was sad, she was very sad. When she was happy, she was ecstatic.

 She rode every emotion to its fullest. And when she couldn’t understand her

 feelings, it often frustrated the poor girl. It looked like now was one of those

 times.

 	Sonomi considered the question, looking down at her small bare feet as

 she rubbed them together. A yawn overtook her before she could bite it back for

 worry that her mother would send her back to bed. She really was tired. But sleep

 kept eluding her. “Mama, when did you and papa fall in love?” the auburn haired

 girl asked, looking down to see her mother. She couldn’t quite tell why the

 question was so important, only that it was.

 	Pausing for a moment, Sonomi’s mother thought over the question.

 “Hmm... Well, we met in college. We got married some time after that.” Setting

 down the book she had been reading, she walked to the foot of the stairs,

 looking up them towards her sleepy daughter. Sonomi didn’t look satisfied with

 her answer.

 	The young heiress shook her head, auburn hair fluttering about her face

 in its odd slant hairstyle. “No, not that. When did you know you were in love,

 mama?” Sonomi asked, a tinge of desperation in her voice. She wanted to know.

 But still, college felt so far away. And she didn’t feel like love was that far off. At

 least that meant that she wouldn’t have to worry about Nadeshiko marrying

 anytime soon. That thought was soothing, at any rate. The thought of

 Nadeshiko getting married made her heart scream in protest. She knew she

 wanted her little cousin to be happy, to be loved, but she couldn’t stand the

 thought of someone taking her best friend away from her. She could make

 Nadeshiko happy. Nadeshiko didn’t need some man to stealing her off

 somewhere. Like some princess being stolen away by the talons of some dragon,

 she could see a wedding dress clad Nadeshiko being pulled back from her by a

 man in a tuxedo. Her mind placed a face on the smilingly evil groom. Assistant

 teacher Fujitaka Kinomoto smiled pleasantly as he whisked Nadeshiko away from

 her, leaving Sonomi all alone. Shaking her head quickly, Sonomi tried to banish

 the thought. She had been too concerned lately with how the assistant teacher

 had been spending so much time with her cousin. She hadn’t trusted him even

 when they first met because he had hurt Nadeshiko, and she wasn’t about to

 start trusting him now. Maybe he could see the wonders that Nadeshiko had

 inside of her, but that was exactly why Sonomi would protect her best friend from

 people like him.

 	Biting her lip, Sonomi’s mother ascended the stairs. This was more

 difficult than she had suspected. Her daughter was obviously curious about this

 sort of thing, but she didn’t know whether or not she should answer with a

 fairytale. Sonomi could be rather mature, mostly stemming from her concern for

 her younger cousin, but she also had a rather romantic, dreamy side that

 manifested in her room and her love of cute things, her cousin included. Dolls

 and stuffed animals, ribbons and lace adorned the young Sonomi Amamiya’s

 room. But she couldn’t hide her daughter from the world forever. Life was not a

 fairy tale. Things didn’t always have happy endings. It was with these shadowed

 thoughts that she sat next to her daughter on the stairs, her hands folded primly

 in her lap. Licking her lips, the older woman tried to decide how to begin. Her

 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

 it. Social standing. The good of your family. What type of future you can have

 with this person.”

 	“But what about love?” Sonomi asked. She felt even more confused

 than ever. Wasn’t it all about love? Wasn’t that the most important thing? But

 then, hadn’t she been raised with the thought that she would one day wed and

 continue the family? The sudden thought that she was expected to wed for the

 family, for her station as opposed to because she was in love seemed like a cold

 air of reality blowing over her. She shivered under her nightgown. In some ways,

 it was what she had always expected. The thought of marriage had never excited

 Sonomi the way it did many of the girls she knew. It seemed like something she

 knew she would have to do one day, not something she wanted. Now she

 realized that it was exactly that, not a matter of the heart at all. That frightened

 her. 

 	“Love is like a fairytale, Sonomi-chan. It’s fun to lose yourself in it, but

 in the end you have to come back to reality. Love is a fun distraction. But you

 have to plan for other things, to decide what’s best for you and your family. And

 your heart can’t tell you this,” Sonomi’s mother explained gently, hugging her

 small daughter against her side. Lithe fingers brushed through her daughter’s

 hair, trying to sort through the odd hair cut. Sighing, she shook her head. It was

 best to get away from such a lonely topic. “So why are you suddenly so curious,

 Sonomi-chan? You’ll meet a handsome boy to marry one of these days.

 	Sonomi frowned, shaking her head, her hair fluttering between her

 mother’s fingers. “I don’t like boys. They’re stupid.” The younger girl crossed

 her arms, her stormy blue eyes narrowed. No, she wasn’t the biggest fan of the

 opposite sex. There was just something she didn’t like about them. Especially

 one in particular. His glasses glinted in her mind for a moment. She forced it out

 immediately. 

 	Sonomi’s mother laughed at her daughter’s words, glad to be off the

 topic. “Of course you like boys. All girls like boys, Sonomi-chan. Maybe you

 don’t now, but you will in a few years, trust me.” She found it amusing to see her

 daughter so intent. She would have to remember to point this out to the younger

 girl in a few years when she finally changed her mind.

 	Shaking her head, Sonomi looked up at her mother, the older woman’s

 fingers still in her auburn hair. “I couldn’t like someone who didn’t like pink at

 least a little bit,” the young heiress explained. 

 	Laughing again, the mother grinned. “Sonomi-chan, you get such silly

 ideas. I’m know you’ll find a nice boy one of these days who will make you

 forget all of this nonsense.”

 	Resting her head against her mother, Sonomi yawned tiredly. Her mind

 was made up. She wouldn’t let any of those insects near her beloved Nadeshiko.

 She wouldn’t let any of them take her way, or marry her. She would protect her

 little cousin from them all. They would be happy. She would make Nadeshiko

 happy. Somehow. She knew that Nadeshiko made her happy. If she didn’t need

 to be in love to get married, then she didn’t need to worry about getting married.

 And she wouldn’t let anyone marry her Nadeshiko. No one would take her away.

 No one would hurt her. In her fading mind, she saw a sparkling image of her

 silver haired angel. Her heart soared at the thought, warm and overflowing.

 ‘Nadeshiko-chan...’ she thought resolutely. The small auburn haired girl fell

 asleep against her mother on the stairs shortly thereafter.

 	

 	Light. The first thing that existed was the light. It was white and cold,

 like freshly fallen snow. It encompassed him, pulsing with him. The pulsing was

 silent, but it was there, a slow rise and fall throughout the brightness. Slowly, the

 brightness grew. His eyes burned, but he couldn’t shut them, for he still had no

 eyes. He had no form, only the light. Thoughts spun incoherently like a spider

 spinning its web, thoughts going in every direction and none at all.

 ‘WhyamIwhoamIwhereamIwhenamI?

 	Am I?

 Yes, you are, aren’t you? 

 Please help me. I don’t know where I am. 

 You aren’t anywhere. 

 Who am I? 

 You are the moonlight. 

 Please, I’m scared... 

 So am I.’

 	His mind was the first thing to coalesce, but it was confused and lost.

 He searched desperately for answers within himself, within the light. It took him a

 moment to realize that he was the light. He struggled with this newfound

 knowledge, searching out bits and pieces, working through the jumble of chaotic

 thoughts to paint a picture of just what was going on. His body slowly began to

 form as his mind worked its way back from the brink. He was. He knew that now.

 He existed. That was reassuring, somehow. It was nice to know that he hadn’t

 simply tricked himself into believing he existed. After all, he thought, so

 therefore, he was. At least, he thought that he could think. The idea confused

 him further. In frustration, he discarded the notion. He knew he could spend

 eternity arguing with himself, as he had done just moments before. But had that

 argument been an eternity or a split second? Or had it even happened? He

 couldn’t remember. He could remember the light. The light was everywhere. The

 light was outside of him and within him. Within him? Yes, that was right, wasn’t

 it. He slowly curled his fingers, the bright snowy moonlight shifting through

 them. He could feel his legs drifting underneath him, not touching any form of

 solid ground. Long, feathered wings were outstretched behind him, glowing with

 their own inner light.

 	He looked down to see himself, to try to understand what he was, but

 he could only see the blinding moonlight. He expected the brightness to carry

 some form of heat with it, but it was surprisingly cold. It was the light of the full

 moon. He moved experimentally, glad to know that his limbs were once again

 attached. Once again? Had he been there before? Had he been himself before?

 Yes, something of the sort. He was returning. He was being called back. He was...

 being reawakened. Yes, something was calling him. He was waking up from a

 deep slumber, brought back to fulfil the goals of his master. What goals? He

 asked. But there was no answer. He frowned in the light that bathed him, still

 trying to piece his inexplicable life together. So he was supposed to be here for

 some reason. But what was the reason? 

 	Slowly, memories returned to him. He waited centuries to recall

 everything, reliving every moment of his previous existence. It all happened i

 the blink of an eye, his life returned in a split second. And in this split infinity, he

 knew who he was. He knew what he was. He knew why he was. And a cold smile

 crossed his lips. Yes, it had all returned. He knew everything now. He woul

 accomplish his mission for his master. All would go according to plan. Except...

 Things hadn’t gone according to plan, had they? The girl wasn’t the one he was

 supposed to judge. Something had gone wrong. Horribly wrong. What had

 become of his master’s plan? No matter. He would quickly remedy the situation.

 That was what he existed for. Soon, she would be forgotten and the master could

 pretend this little fiasco never happened. They would go about with the plan

 again afterwards, this time without the little problem that had popped up. He

 would erase it from the pages of history. A cold grin spread over him. It was nice

 to be of use again. 

 	And with all the suddenness of a spring storm, everything was robbed

 from him. His precious memory, his very existence was denied him. In another

 second that lasted for all time, he felt his memories being extinguished, pulled

 away from him with reckless abandon. He screamed into the night as all that he

 was faded from him. “No!” he called out wordlessly. “Don’t take it away from me

 Not again!” But he knew there was nothing he could do. Even the reason behind

 his anger and fear disappeared. But the anger and fear remained, even as the

 words unraveled in his mind. 

 	Again, he was nothing. His mind faded, thoughts disappearing into the

 void. There was nothing. The blinding moonlight disappeared. Darknes

 converged around him, consuming him. And all was dark

 

 	“Mmm...” Sonomi stretched, trying to make sure her form was in top

 shape. She was all alone on the track field at the school, but she didn’t mind. Sh

 was still thinking about what her mother had said the night before. It had staye

 with her throughout the day, making it difficult for her to concentrate during her

 classes. So she didn’t mind having some solitude for the moment. And the best

 way to do that was to get in some practice with her running. That was always a

 good way to get her focus on other things. You couldn’t get distracted while

 running. The only thing that mattered was how fast you could go. It was always

 so refreshing. It was as if she could run away from all that was bothering her,

 leaving it far behind as she outdistanced it. It felt wonderful, free

 	The young heiress was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t hear the

 sound of approaching footsteps. She was far too busy to bother with such

 things. Her mind was focused on the task at hand, everything else seeming hazy,

 distant. Getting into position, Sonomi felt the track beneath her fingers, waiting in

 a crouch at the starting line. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest as she anticipated

 an imaginary signal. Everything around her narrowed, fading away. The only

 thing that existed in this half world was the track and the wind. She had to be

 focused intently on the situation, ready to start at a moment’s notice. And. That

 Was. Now! 

 Like a shot, she was off, throwing herself forward. Every muscle in her

  body worked towards one common goal, to send her hurtling forward to the

 finish line. Her speed was incredible, the ten year old girl darting across the field

 in a blur. Her mind didn’t have time for anything else, no time for concerns or

 distractions. There was still the thrill of pulling ahead, of being the fastest. Of

 being the first to reach the goal. She was almost there. It was always over so

 quickly, but while she was racing it felt like a lifetime had passed. And with that,

 she had passed it.

 Catching her breath, the brunette slowed to a halt, her hands on her

 thighs as she slumped over, catching her breath. The world slowly sprang back

 into existence, as if it had merely been put on pause. Sounds filtered back to her,

 sights slowly coming into focus. A sharp sound caught her ear, making her spin

 around despite being out of breath. To her surprise, the assistant teacher,

 Fujitaka Kinomoto, was clapping, his usual smile on his face. Sonomi stood up

 quickly, trying to breath normally as she crossed her arms. She had no idea what

 he was doing there, but she instantly didn’t trust him. Why wasn’t he busy

 trying to steal away her Nadeshiko? Wasn’t that his hobby, after all? Well, she

 had to admit that it was better that he was there than with Nadeshiko. Though

 not by much.

 “Nadeshiko-chan told me you were fast, Amamiya-san. I had no idea

 how fast. I’m impressed,” the older man said, smiling pleasantly. The young girl

 continued to stare at him, but he only smiled in response. 

 Smoothing down her gym uniform, Sonomi didn’t take her eyes off of

 the assistant teacher, almost afraid that he would run off to find Nadeshiko if she

 let down her guard. She nodded simply, her breathing slowly returning to normal.

 “Hai. Nadeshiko-chan watches most of my races. I never lose. She says I’m like

  the wind,” Sonomi said proudly. If Nadeshiko believed in her, then she knew

 that she could do anything. With Nadeshiko’s belief, how could she fail?

 “Is that so?” Fujitaka asked curiously, still smiling. “She’s such a sweet

 little girl, isn’t she?” 

 Sonomi frowned, flustered by his comment. Of course she was a sweet

 little girl. But she was Sonomi’s best friend. And the auburn haired girl wasn’t

 about to give her up to some... some insect. He was beneath Nadeshiko. She

 wouldn’t let him or anyone have her precious silver haired angel.

 “Nadeshiko-chan is the sweetest, cutest, most beautiful girl there is. There’s no

 one out there like her. She’s perfect. She has the prettiest voice and she’s always

 so bright and happy and her eyes sparkle when she looks at you.” Sonomi took a

 deep breath, trying to suppress the stirrings in her heart. But she always felt this

 way when she started thinking about Nadeshiko. She couldn’t help but notice

 how perfect her little cousin was. It was so blatantly obvious. She saw it all every

 single day that they were together. She took a shuddering breath, closing her

 eyes for a moment. When she opened her eyes, she had her composure back.

 She couldn’t go off on a Nadeshiko tangent right now. She had to keep an eye

 on the assistant teacher. Even if one was much, much more enjoyable than the

 other. 

 “You seem to think very highly of her. You’re lucky to have a cousin

 like her.” Fujitaka smiled, pushing up his glasses. “You’re right. She really is like

 an angel. I almost wouldn’t be surprised if she turned out to be one.” The young

 man had been more and more pleased to have met his young student. She was

 incredibly odd, but he found her fascinating. And apparently, her cousin thought

 so as well. They could both see that Nadeshiko was somehow special.

 “She is. She just only shows her wings to me,” Sonomi replied. She felt

  jealous that he would speak of her Nadeshiko that way. She had always been the

 one to worship Nadeshiko like an angel. She was always the one to dwell on how

 amazingly perfect Nadeshiko was. Now this man who had hurt Nadeshiko had

 the gall to think the same thing. She just wanted him to stay away from her little

 cousin. Nadeshiko was already accident-prone enough. Sonomi had to keep her

 away from trouble. And she definitely considered him to be trouble.

 	Fujitaka laughed at Sonomi’s comment, nodding. “That must be very

 sweet of her, then. I bet they’re very pretty. But I don’t think Nadeshiko-chan is

 the type to keep things like that to herself. I think she would want to share, to

 show her wings to others as well. Don’t you think?” 

 	Clenching her fists, Sonomi could only stare at the assistant teacher for

 a long moment. His question sent a tremor of anger surging through her heart.

 She knew Nadeshiko better than anyone else. How could he insinuate that he

 knew her better? Yet she couldn’t bring herself to agree. Yes, Nadeshiko would

 probably want to share that. But Sonomi silently wished she wouldn’t. Why

 wasn’t she enough for Nadeshiko? Why wasn’t it enough that she was there for

 her? She was lucky enough that no one believed Nadeshiko when she told them

 she had magic, believing it to be just a daydream of the perpetually dreamy girl.

 Sonomi was glad that she was the only one who knew, but she wished it could

 just be their secret, that Nadeshiko would be happy enough with only her auburn

 haired cousin knowing. Fujitaka correcting her didn’t help matters. She could feel

 her nails biting into the skin of her palms as she tried futilely to respond. She

 didn’t want to agree with him, though she knew Nadeshiko well enough to know

 that he was right. 

 Before she could answer, he continued, as if it wasn’t necessary for her

 to reply. “Would you like to race, Amamiya-san? I heard you beat the quickest

 on the boys’ team. You must make some very good competition.”

 Without quite realizing it, Sonomi nodded. Yes, that was right. A race.

 That would make this much better. She could finally beat him at something. She

 could finally prove that he wasn’t better at her, that she was all Nadeshiko

 needed. That sounded perfect. “Hai,” she replied. Bowing to him, she took her

 place at the starting line. She would never let him near her Nadeshiko. She was a

 delicate flower, and Sonomi would protect its blossoms with her all. Nadeshiko

 was not something for this arrogant man to have, to ponder. She was a mystery

 that Sonomi was slowly uncovering. She wouldn’t let him take her away.

 Nadeshiko was her best friend, her cousin, her most precious treasure. She

 wouldn’t let him or anyone else interfere. 

 	“All right. On three,” Fujitaka stated, slowly taking his place. He smiled

 over at the younger girl, his glasses glinting. She simply looked straight forward,

 waiting. He could tell she was ready to give her all. It would be an interesting

 race. Smiling, he looked forward himself. 

 “One.” The two prepared for the inevitable race awaiting them. “Two.”

 Sonomi’s heart pounded in her chest as she waited anxiously for their duel to

 begin. “Three.” And they were both off. 

 Never before had Sonomi forced herself to go as fast as she did. Every

 ounce of her being burned, pushing every forward. The only thing in her mind

 was the goal. She had to reach the goal. It was waiting for her. Nadeshiko was

 waiting for her. She had to show that he wasn’t better than her at everything. She

 had to reach it. She had to be the fastest. Her vision was nonexistent with the

 single exception of the thin strip signifying the finish line. The assistant teacher

 and the young track star were both propelled by awesome forces towards their

 objective. It might as well have been Nadeshiko waiting for them rather than the

 finish line, intense passions stirring to push the two ever faster. 

 To Sonomi’s astonishment, she still hadn’t pulled ahead of Fujitaka. By

 now in most races, she had pulled far ahead of the pack. But she was still side by

 side with him. Her heart pounded feriously, her body trying to force itself to go

 even faster. But it was giving all it had. She was pushing herself as fast as she

 could go. She kept towards the goal, trying to will herself to reach it first. Her

 whole being tried to grip onto it, tried to give her that last bit of energy.

 Somehow, she found it. With a trill in her heart, as sweet as Nadeshiko’s

 singsong voice, Sonomi managed to speed up, throwing her last bit into the final

 seconds of the race. It was all she had, every last ounce of energy inside of her.

 But she had to win. For Nadeshiko-chan. 

 To Sonomi’s horror, Fujitaka began to pull ahead, moving past her.

 Even with her last burst of strength, it wasn’t enough. It was like some cruel joke,

 her final boost pushing her across the finish line right after him. The world

 refused to come back to her this time, her weary body slowly collapsing to her

 knees. The world around her continued to stay a blurry, surreal nightmare,

 nothing else appearing. But she didn’t care. Nothing else mattered. She had lost.

 It didn’t matter who you were when you raced. It only mattered that you were the

 fastest. And Sonomi Amamiya, a girl who had long been the fastest, no longer

 was. The dirt beneath her irritated her legs, but it didn’t seem to matter. She

 couldn’t get the strength to get back up.

 “That was a good race, Amamiya-san. You did a great job,” Fujitaka

 complimented, smiling to the younger girl as he caught his breath. She didn’t

 meet his eye. In fact, she didn’t even seem to see him. He watched her for a

 moment, before stepping back towards the classrooms. “I’ll tell Nadeshiko-chan

 you’re out here if I see her, Amamiya-san,” he called back over his shoulder, still

 smiling. He felt much better now that he’d been able to get some exercise. Now

 back to grading tests!

 Sonomi didn’t hear him. She was too distraught, too broken by her loss.

 How could she have lost to him? How could he have beaten her? She had tried

 so hard! But even then, it wasn’t enough. She hadn’t been able to win, after all.

 She had always been the fastest, but it hadn’t meant anything against him.

 Balling up her fists, she hit them again and again into the dirt until her knuckles

 cried out in pain. Angry, bitter tears fell into the dust bellow, falling onto her

 hands. She’d wanted so badly to beat him, to show that he wasn’t better than her

 at everything. To show that she could take care of Nadeshiko. She had been

 racing for Nadeshiko, to win for her. To beat him for her sake. Even if it hadn’t

 been stated, she had been the reason they were racing, the rivalry behind it. And

 she had failed. 

 “Nadeshiko-chan..” Sonomi got out in a pained sob. Her dirty hands

 came up to her face, smearing some along her cheeks as she rubbed angrily at her

 tears. It wasn’t fair! It wasn’t right! She should have won! Nothing ever worked

 with him. He was slowly trying to take her Nadeshiko away. And then she would

 be all alone, without the most important thing in her life. And she’d just failed to

 beat him at the one thing that she was the best at. What good was she if she

 couldn’t even do that? How could she possibly hope to protect Nadeshiko-chan

 that way? She had always been the fastest. And he had taken that away from her.

 Would Nadeshiko be next? A cold chill settled throughout her battered soul,

 weighing her down like a heavy cloak. 

 “Sonomi-chan~!” Nadeshiko called, wandering about slowly, her eyes

 following every trace of springtime beauty that she happened to cross. Her lazy

 beeline eventually took her towards the field where Sonomi practiced track. Just

 where Fujitaka had told her that her cousin was waiting. She giggled to herself as

 she watched some ants scurrying about a few bread crumbs. “Busy, busy, busy.

 You should have some fun, sometimes, too,” she suggested before moving on.

 She finally caught sight of her auburn haired friend sitting in the field, collapsed

 in the dirt. Nadeshiko tilted her head to the side, dark hair spilling across her

 shoulder. “Sonomi-chan! Hi, Sonomi-chan! Guess what? I just found this really

 cute..” Nadeshiko trailed off, her smile replaced with a curious look.

 “Sonomi-chan?” Was Sonomi crying? Had something happened to her?

  “Sonomi-chan?” she asked again, closing the distance between them.

 	The auburn haired girl looked up quickly, wiping at her eyes quickly,

 struggling to see through her tear blurred vision. She could see a pale angel

 growing ever closer, a curious, worried look on her face. “Nadeshiko-chan..”

 Sonomi got out, wiping more desperately at her eyes. She couldn’t let Nadeshiko

 see her like this. How could she explain it? What could she say? Pushing herself

 to her feet on pained muscles, Sonomi hurried away from her oncoming cousin,

 trying to escape the pain and her tears. She had to get away. To think. To cry.

 “Sonomi-chan?” Nadeshiko asked to her cousin’s retreating form. She

 came to a halt where Sonomi had been, watching after her as the other girl ran off.

 What had happened? What had hurt her cousin so terribly? Kneeling down,

 Nadeshiko ran her fingertip through the teardrops in the dirt. “Poor

 Sonomi-chan.. Please don’t cry,” she whispered. Nadeshiko sat in the dirt, her

 skirt spread out around her. She looked at her dirty, tear streaked finger. The

 image of Sonomi, hunched over and in tears played through her mind. Sonomi

 had always been her best friend. It made her feel terrible to see her cousin in

 tears. And she didn’t know what to do about it. She couldn’t even find Sonomi

 to make her feel better. Sniffling, Nadeshiko began to cry. 

 	

 	“Damn it!” Sonomi punched the locker, her injured knuckles burning at

 the contact. Her head slumped against the locker with an audible ‘clang’. She

 slowly turned around, sliding down the locker. Her legs hurt too much to keep

 standing. Her heart hurt too much to think. She just wanted to sit there until it all

 went away. But she knew she couldn’t do that. She had to fight. She had to do

 something. She had to do anything. But she couldn’t figure out what. Rubbing at

 her eyes with her palms, she let out a wet sob. She hated him. She hated him for

 ever meeting Nadeshiko, for ever hitting her in the head with the softball. She

 hated him for coming to the school, becoming a part of Nadeshiko’s life. She

 hated him for pulling Nadeshiko away during her race with Terrada. She hated

 him for beating her at what she was best at. She hated him for trying to take

 Nadeshiko away. Even if she knew that was silly, that she shouldn’t believe such

 a stupid thing, she couldn’t help it. It felt like he was trying to take her place with

 Nadeshiko. And even though he had hurt Nadeshiko, the angelic silver haired

 girl didn’t mind at all. She was happy to be his friend. And that frightened

 Sonomi. She wanted to protect Nadeshiko, but she didn’t always know how. She

 wanted to keep those boys from hurting her, from snagging her away. But now

 she didn’t even know if she could.

 	“Owww..” Sonomi winced as she got to her feet, her hand resting

 against the cold metal of her locker. With slow, lifeless fingers, she began to

 open it. She had to get dressed, to change clothes. She would need to be ready

 to go home. But for the most part, she simply wanted a distraction. What could

 she say to Nadeshiko? What was she supposed to do about Fujitaka? None of it

 had any easy answers. Right now, she just wanted to curl up in bed and cry

 herself to sleep. For once she was glad that Nadeshiko didn’t live at her house.

 Nadeshiko would certainly want to talk to her, and she didn’t know if she could

 face the other girl at the moment. She couldn’t even face herself. She felt

 miserable, a failure. And it was all his fault. 

 	Something caught Sonomi’s eye from the back of the locker, glittering

 faintly in the sterile light of the locker room. Reaching in, the young heiress

 pulled out a small pendant shaped like a sword. “What’s this supposed to be?

 Did Nadeshiko-chan put it in here?” Sighing, Sonomi held it in her hand. She

 would have to talk to Nadeshiko, wouldn’t she? Otherwise she would only make

 Nadeshiko worry. And she couldn’t bear to hurt her dear cousin. Closing her

 locker, she looked back down at the pendant. Yeah, she couldn’t leave her sweet

 cousin waiting. But before she could take another step, the little broach came

 alive, light splashing through the room.

 

 	Nadeshiko cried softly, shaking her head against the offers of

 assistance, Her hands lay in her lap, her small shoulders shaking with each sob.

 She didn’t know where Sonomi was or what was going on or even why she had

 been crying. She kept seeing Sonomi crying in her mind, filling her own tears. It

 was too sad for Sonomi to have to be crying. 

 	“It’s all right, Nadeshiko-chan,” Fujitaka said soothingly, trying to

 comfort his pupil. “Please, just tell me what’s wrong. I’ll help however I can.” But

 try as he might, he couldn’t coax anything other than ‘Sonomi-chan’ out of the

 pale girl. Whatever it was, she seemed to be taking it pretty hard. She hadn’t

 stopped crying since he had spotted her and he had no idea how long she had

 been crying before that. Something glinted, catching his eye. “You see? She’s

 right there. Your cousin is just fine,” he promised, smiling.

 	Nadeshiko wiped at her eyes quickly, breaking out into a relieved smile

 when she saw Sonomi walking towards them. Getting to her feet, Nadeshiko

 quickly ran towards her cousin, her arms open. “Sonomi-chan!” She felt much

 better now. It was enough to see that Sonomi was no longer crying. She giggled

 happily as she raced towards the auburn haired girl. But something was wrong.

 She slowed as she approached Sonomi. The taller girl was holding onto some

 type of sword, her eyes looking unfocused. Sonomi didn’t even seem to

 recognize her. “Sonomi-chan?” Nadeshiko asked. Sonomi didn’t even look at her,

 instead looking at Fujitaka as he approached. Now that confused Nadeshiko.

 Sonomi always liked to look at her. She always got Sonomi’s full attention. So

 why would she suddenly not have it? Something felt wrong about all this. It was

 like Sonomi wasn’t Sonomi. But how could she not be Sonomi? Unless it was

 someone using Sonomi. 

 	“Are you all right, Amamiya-san? Your cousin was very worried about

 you. She was crying about you. But it seems like everything’s fine now,” Fujitaka

 stated, smiling to the two younger girls. He was glad that problem was over with.

 He couldn’t stand to see the poor silver haired girl in tears. At least that problem

 was over. He felt so relieved.

 	Nadeshiko watched Sonomi for a moment. It finally fitted into place as

 she watched the hand with the sword move. “Sonomi-chan!” Nadeshiko stepped

 in front of Sonomi, but it was too late. Sonomi was faster than she was. The

 auburn haired girl lunged forward, the sword tip glinting as it drove into

 Fujitaka’s side. Crimson rain lit the sky for a split second, some of it landing on

 Nadeshiko’s face while the rest spattered on the grass. For that long moment of

 silence, Nadeshiko watched the red droplets, amazed at how beautiful the blood

 was, as if it were some of the paint left over from God’s paintbrush. It all felt

 surreal. She could see herself next to Sonomi, the other girl’s eyes clouded over,

 their normal depth missing. She could see the blood before her. She could see

 Fujitaka with the tip of the sword in his side. 

 	And everything started up again. “Sonomi-chan! Kinomoto-sensei!”

 Nadeshiko called out, running to her teacher’s aid. The older man stumbled back.

 Luckily, the blow had only been the tip of the sword. He was bleeding, but he

 could still move. Sonomi was moving swiftly, like some jungle cat intent on it’s

 prey. She was circling, waiting for another chance. 

 	“Run, Nadeshiko-chan! You need to get out of here!” Fujitaka yelled,

 his eyes never leaving his magically possessed student. He winced painfully as

 he held his side. It hadn’t been deep, but it still hurt. He saw Sonomi coming

 closer again, sword raised. To his surprise, Nadeshiko once again got in the way.

 “Watch out!” Grabbing Nadeshiko, he yanked her out of the way. Sonomi used

 that moment to duck towards him, slashing again. 

 	“Jump!” Nadeshiko called, her staff striking the Card. As Sonomi

 slashed ever closer, she managed to jump back, pushing Fujitaka with her. She

 kept hopping backwards, out of Sonomi’s range. But he was heavy, and she

 couldn’t keep it up for long. She waited near the fence, trying to catch her breath

 	Fujitaka watched in astonishment at the silver haired girl. What was

 this? Magic? He had the sense not to ask about it. Now was definitely not the

 time. Looking back up, he saw Sonomi once again barreling towards them. He

 barely had time to throw himself into Nadeshiko, pushing her away as Sonomi

 slashed through the fence. “Nadeshiko-chan, you have to get out of here. I’ll

 distract her.”

 	Nadeshiko shook her head quickly, squirming away from her teacher’s

 grasp. “No! I can’t leave Sonomi-chan!” She smiled a faint smile, clutching her

 staff tightly. “Don’t worry. She won’t hurt me. Sonomi-chan would never hurt

 me.” Pushing away from Fujitaka, Nadeshiko ran towards her cousin. 

 	“Nadeshiko-chan!” Fujitaka called out. He collapsed in pain, unable to

 follow her. He watched, mortified as Nadeshiko raced towards her sword wielding

 friend. He was helpless to stop her.

 	Sonomi watched as Nadeshiko came ever closer. She raised the sword,

 still ready to attack. Her eyes focused past Nadeshiko, to the wounded man back

 behind her. She ran towards the oncoming Cardcaptor, ducking to the side and

 past Nadeshiko, still headed for Fujitaka. 

 	Whirling around, Nadeshiko watched, stunned, as Sonomi kept right on

 towards their teacher. She had expected Sonomi to stop before her. She could

 only watch, unable to reach the other girl in time. “Sonomi-chan!” she yelled after

 her, her voice pleading. She had to be able to reach Sonomi. Even if that sword

 was using her cousin, Sonomi had to be in there somewhere. She just needed to

 bring her out.

 	Sonomi stopped before Fujitaka, pulling the sword above her head to

 swipe him in half. Fujitaka just watched her through his glasses, waiting. He

 couldn’t move enough to get out of the way in time. He could only watch and

 wait. With that, Sonomi brought the sword down towards him. He closed his

 eyes as the blade fell, waiting for the pain to follow. But aside from the pain in his

 side, he still seemed to be in one piece. A clang reverberated inches in front of

 his face. Blinking, he found a traditional fan right in front of him, holding back

 Sonomi’s blade. Barely. He forced himself to move, crawling away along the

 fence. He had to get Nadeshiko so they could get out of there. 

 	The girl who had blocked Sonomi’s strike watched her carefully, her fan

 still pressed tightly against Sonomi’s. Leaping back, she landed on the grass, her

 curious weapon still held at the ready. She wore a strange costume, looking

 exotic amidst the two girls in their school uniforms. “Get out of here. I’ll handle

 this,” she said to Nadeshiko, not bothering to look at the Cardcaptor. There were

 more pressing matters. 

 	Nadeshiko shook her head quickly. “No, I can’t! She’s my best friend!

 She needs my help!” She didn’t know who the new girl was, but she could feel

 very strong magic coming from her. Her attention went back to Sonomi. She was

 worried that the new girl might hurt her if they fought for long. There had to be

 something else she could do. Did this have something to do with why Sonomi

 was crying earlier? Is that how the Clow Card found her? She wanted to help the

 Card, too, but she was much more concerned about Sonomi. She didn’t want

 anything bad to happen to her big cousin. Sonomi was always looking out for

 her. The thought of the brunette getting hurt by all this was horrifying.

 	The new arrival tried to size up the situation. She was lucky enough to

 have foreseen this. Her dream had told her bits and pieces of this. But she hadn’t

 gotten there in time to stop it. She had been hoping to keep it from escalating to

 this point. As it was, it didn’t seem like the Cardcaptor was keeping a very good

 handle on things. At least she had gotten there in time to save the man. Now she

 could put a stop to all this and go about her business. To her surprise, Sonomi

 came charging at her. She managed to block the first blow, dodging the next.

 Whoever the girl was that was possessed by the Sword, she had more than the

 Sword’s expert fencing. She had quite a lot of strength and speed as well. She

 moved beautifully, almost like a dancer. Each movement was fluid, graceful. She

 was impressed. And despite her parries, she could feel each blow through her

 fan. This girl obviously kept physically fit. If only she had studied up more on

 her martial arts, this wouldn’t be such a problem. But then, she doubted even

 that would have given her the physical prowess of the other girl. She would have

 to settle for her magic. Which should be more than enough to handle the

 situation. She blocked another blow, searching her mind for the proper spell to

 bring this to an abrupt end. Another thrust ducked low, slipping near her hand.

 With a flick of her wrist, Sonomi disarmed the young mage. The mage watched in

 shock as her fan tumbled end over end, landing at her feet. All magic spells were

 suddenly forgotten as she stared into the cloudy blue eyes of her attacker. It

 wasn’t supposed to go this way. She was supposed to catch the Cards, not be

 done in by them. This was all wrong. She hadn’t foreseen this at all. Her mind

 desperately tried to sort out what had gone wrong, as she told herself again and

 again that this couldn’t happen, that she wouldn’t be able to die because she

 hadn’t seen it beforehand. She stared at Sonomi, disbelieving as the brunette

 thrust forward. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. She wasn’t supposed to.. A

 halo of silvery gray hair blocked her vision all of the sudden. 

 	“Sonomi-chan!” Nadeshiko stood in front of the young mage, her arms

 out. The sword came flying towards her, aimed right for her head. Nadeshiko

 stood and waited, her emerald eyes searching Sonomi’s cloudy blue ones,

 searching for any indication of her cousin. She knew Sonomi had to be in there

 somewhere. She just had to find her. The blade stopped, inches from her head.

 Sonomi just watched her for a long moment, unable to hurt her little cousin. The

 sword slowly fell from her hand, clattering to the grass below. “Sonomi-chan!”

 Nadeshiko yelled happily, rushing to Sonomi. She hugged the auburn haired girl

 tightly. Her exhausted cousin collapsed against her, sending them both to their

 knees in the grass. “Sonomi-chan!” She laughed joyously, pulling Sonomi as

 close as she could. She felt so relieved, so happy. Sonomi was all right.

 	“I.. Thank you,” the new girl said, bowing to Nadeshiko. “You saved my

 life, almost at the expense of your own. I’ll always remember that.” She watched

 the two cousins hugging in the grass curiously, a bit surprised at what she saw

 in the Cardcaptor. She had been expecting something else. Something a little

 more akin to Clow Reed, perhaps. Not some silly schoolgirl. But the girl had

 saved her life nonetheless.

 	Nadeshiko shook her head, smiling brightly. “I knew Sonomi-chan

 wouldn’t hurt me. She couldn’t. She’s too busy trying to keep everything else

 from hurting me. That’s why I knew she wouldn’t let the Clow Card that was

 using her hurt me.” 

 	The young mage nodded thoughtfully. Looking down, she prodded the

 Sword Card with her foot. “You should seal this before it can cause anymore

 trouble.”

 	“Un,” Nadeshiko replied, nodding against Sonomi. The other girl was

 still weak against her, not even fully conscious. But she was safe. And that was

 the important thing. Pulling up her staff, Nadeshiko looked at the Sword. “You

 really need to be more careful, Ms. Clow Card. You could have really hurt

 someone tonight. So I’m going to take you home with me, all right? You can make

 a lot of friends there, I promise. Return to your true form, Clow Card!” Bringing

 the staff down, the Sword disappeared, only to be replaced by a small orange

 brown card with a sword on it.

 	“Don’t worry about your friend. She’ll be fine with a little rest. She

 won’t remember any of the time she was under the influence of the Sword. But

 what about him?” The mage gestured back towards Fujitaka. 

 	“I’ll be fine. I’m just glad you two are all right. I guess you really do

 only show your wings to Sonomi-san.” Fujitaka winced as he came forward, still

 holding his side. He was amazed that Nadeshiko was a magical girl, but somehow

 it seemed fitting. He didn’t want to make her tell him all the details. That was all

 part of her life. He was glad for his glimpse of it, though. Did it have something to

 do with that strange book he’d given her? It seemed so. It was strange that

 something he’d barely thought about had such drastic repercussions. But at

 least everything had worked out. 

 	“Arigato, Kinomoto-sensei!” Nadeshiko replied, smiling. He returned

 the smile, though he still looked a little pale. “And thank you..” Nadeshiko turned

 to thank the young mage who had helped them, but found that she was already

 gone. Nadeshiko glanced around for her, but there was no sign that she had ever

 been there at all. Shrugging off the thought, Nadeshiko went back to hugging

 Sonomi. She felt one of Sonomi’s hands slowly rubbing her back, up and down.

 “Sonomi-chan!”

 	“Nadeshiko-chan...” Sonomi replied, her mind still hazy. How did she

 get there? What had happened? Where was she? She sighed softly, resting her

 weary head on Nadeshiko’s soft shoulder. It felt so nice. She could smell the

 sweet scent of Nadeshiko’s hair against her. She breathed deeply, her aching

 body relaxing. Her earlier worries and pain were forgotten. Only half broken

 fragments of her earlier thoughts floated through her mind. One of them brushed

 past her heart, making her want to hold on tightly to Nadeshiko and to never let

 go. She wrapped both arms around her cousin’s waist, resting against her. “I’ll

 always protect you, Nadeshiko-chan,” she whispered tiredly.

 	Nadeshiko kissed the side of her head, smiling. “I know, Sonomi-chan.

 I’ve always known. And thank you. It makes me happy to know that

 Sonomi-chan will always be there to rescue me.”

 	Sonomi blushed at Nadeshiko’s words, feeling her cousin’s fingers

 rubbing the back of her head. She couldn’t bring herself to move outside of

 Nadeshiko’s embrace, not that she would want to even if she did have the

 strength. The two sat together for quite some time, Nadeshiko enjoying the

 wonders of the life around them and right next to her, and Sonomi simply

 enjoying the wonders that lay in Nadeshiko.

 

 	The image of the two girls rippled and then disappeared as the young

 mage ran her fingers through the water. This was certainly interesting. It

 appeared that things wouldn’t be so simple after all. A small smile crossed her

 lips as she trailed her fingertips through the water. At least her time while

 capturing the Cards wouldn’t be boring. She had the feeling that it would be

 anything but. 

 	“Are you done with your bath, miss?” a voice asked from outside the

 bathroom.

 	“Almost, Wei. I’ll be out in just a minute,” she called, letting herself sink

 lower in the warm water. 

 	“I’ll leave your clothes out on your bed, miss. Be sure to get to bed

 early. You have a rather big day ahead of you.”

 	The girl sighed softly, nodding. “Yes, I know. A very big day.” Sliding

 back into the water, she let it surround her. A big day, indeed. After all, what

 could be bigger than the day when one takes over the job of Cardcaptor?