20 November, 2000

Card Captors

"Dimensions"

By : The MOUSE...........................

Kinomoto Sakura didn't remember much about that Sunday. She had slept away most of it surrounded by the greatest sense of peace and security imaginable. The first time she had awakened it had been near noon and she had received a pleasant shock when her senses had surfaced. A pair of warm, strong arms were cradling her close to a heartbeat. The comforting smell of autumn had filled her nostrils. She had blinked a few times to open her eyes and saw Li Syaoran holding her ever so carefully. His eyes had been fixed on the television where she had heard the news. He had been so warm, his aura wrapping around her much like his arms did, lulling her into a simple and comforting state of security. Sakura had smiled and dared not move as she had closed her eyes again, not wanting this moment to ever end. Sometime after that conscious decision sleep gripped the Card Mistress yet again. The second time she had awakened she had felt herself being carried. She had felt both warm and cold at the same time. That time she hadn't bothered to open her eyes, only tried her best to snuggle deeper into the arms that held her.

"Where are we going?" she had questioned in a small, sleepy voice.

"It's getting late. We're taking you home before Touya or your Otou-san get back." Syaoran's gentle voice had whispered in answer, holding her just a little tighter.

"Okay." and she had drifted off to sleep again.

She didn't remember dreaming that night. There was only a peaceful slumber. When she woke for the third time it was finally Monday morning and she was a good two hours earlier than usual. Sakura felt refreshed and when she stretched the sleep from her limbs she felt no pain. She had to admit, Meilin was an incredibly skilled healer.

"Kero?" she called to her unusually quiet room.

He flew to her in a flash. "Nani? What is it? Are you okay? What can I get you? Where does it hurt?"

"Easy, Kero, easy." she chuckled. "I'm okay. I was just checking to see if you were awake."

"Oh. I haven't been to sleep yet, I was making sure you were okay." He landed on her knees with a concerned expression. "How're you feeling?"

She stretched again with a smile. "I have never felt better in my life. Despite being a pain, Meilin makes an incredible doctor. How did you escape her anyway?"

"I... um... didn't."

"Nani?"

"The she-brat caught me and stuffed me into one of the Li kid's sweat socks. Talk about deadly biological warfare. Ugh!"

"Oh, Kero, gomen." Sakura told him, unable to reign in her laughter.

"Nice, Sakura." Kero grumbled as he turned his back to her, insulted.

She gathered him up in her hands and gently cuddled him against her cheek. "You're right, that was cruel of me to laugh. Gomennasi."

He squirmed slightly, then relented with a grin. "Aw, I could never stay mad at you in the first place. So what's for breakfast?"

She laughed again. "Animated stomach. You stay here. I'll go see what I can whip up. I still have questions to ask you." and she hopped out of bed to jog downstairs to the kitchen.

"Could you possibly sound more like a herd of elephants in the stairs, Kaijou?" her Onii-chan, Touya, greeting with a smirk. He was standing in front of the stove making pancakes and waffles.

Sakura frowned at him in annoyance. "Could you possibly live really far away and stay away? And for the last time I am not a Kaijou!"

"Whatever." he dismissed casually. "So what did you do all weekend?"

"Nothing." she lied, feeling the scrapes on her back begin to itch.

"Well, whatever that nothing was sure got you up early. Must be a record for you."

She glowered at him as he handed her a plate of fresh waffles. "Eat worms and die." Then she turned on her heels and marched back to her room. "I really have to start thinking about getting my own place, just to get away from him." she muttered under her breath. "Kero, I've got waffles." she announced as she walked into her bedroom. "Save me one while I get dressed."

Sakura stood before her full-length mirror and regarded herself critically, mainly at the clothes she had on. They didn't belong to her, she was sure of that. But then, whose clothes were they? They were quite masculine looking. A pair of drawstring cotton pants and a loose, light button down shirt. She suddenly smiled. They had to belong to Syaoran. Goosebumps decorated her skin at the thought that she was wearing his clothes. For some girls it was a kind of fantasy to end up wearing the clothes of the guy they loved. Sakura was one of them. One of her biggest dreams was to someday wear his battle outfit. He looked so handsome in it. She reluctantly stripped of the pants and shirt and stood before the mirror again in her bandages and underwear. She stared at herself, becoming familiar with her new markings. Countless bruises and shallow scrapes decorated her skin, the more serious injuries covered by the bandage wrapped around her whole torso. She touched the bandage with light fingers, suddenly realizing how close she had actually come to joining her Okaa-san in the great beyond. Kero landed on her shoulder, looking at her reflection in the mirror.

"You had all of us pretty worried, Sakura." he voiced softly. "That was the one time I was actually glad that Li kid was around to help. He saved your life."

She smiled. "I know. And I'm glad he was there too." She quickly put on her school uniform and sat at her desk to finish off the waffles Kero had left her. Surprisingly, he had left her more than just one. He must still be worried about me, she thought with a small grin. "Kero, how does one go about finding his or her soul mate?"

"No, you are not going after the Death Card again and that's final!"

"No, I just want to know for future reference. How do I find my soul mate?" she insisted.

He shrugged. "By chance."

"There has to be a quicker way."

"Not really. Might be easier for you to find him, though, since you have magic. You'll just get a feeling."

"A feeling?" She immediately thought of the sensation she felt when Syaoran was somewhere nearby. "What kind of feeling?"

"I don't know. You're talking to someone who doesn't have a soul, remember?"

Sakura sighed. "Oh, yeah. Then is there another way?"

"You could try doing a reading."

"It doesn't give enough details."

"No, but it'll point you in the right direction. Give you some clues into his personality so you can recognize him when you're face to face with him."

She began to nod. "Worth a try then."

She took out the Clow Cards and began to shuffle them with her eyes closed in deep concentration. One by one she laid out nine cards, face down, in a diamond pattern.

"Ancient Cards of Clow,

Give me vision now.

Show me, answer my plea,

Who my soul mate is to be."

A haze seemed to fill the room, the cards' magic beginning to respond to their Mistress's request for true sight. Sakura reached out and turned over the card at the diamond's top point.

Windy.

The Clow Card that connected all the others together through the currents of air and wind.

Then my soul mate knows me, she reasoned with a grin. That makes things easier.

She turned over the middle three cards.

Power, Fight, and Flower?

She frowned. Two cards of strength and one gentle card. The meaning made absolute no sense to the female Card Captor.

A gentle warrior? How can you be gentle and a warrior at the same time?

She was going to reach for the card at the bottom point of the diamond when someone knocked at her door, breaking the delicate spell.

"It's seven thirty, Sakura! If you want to make it to school on time you better leave now!"

Sakura blinked as the last of the mist faded away. She groaned in disappointment. "Okay, domo, Otou-san!" she called back, forcing a smile into her voice. She looked at the cards on her desk for a split second, then grabbed her bag and headed for the door, leaving the cards where they were. "See you tonight, Kero. I'll bring you some pudding."

"Yeah! Pudding! Alright!" he cheered. Then she was gone. Kero looked at the cards still sitting on the desk and slowly walked over to the last card. He turned it over and stared. "The Sword Card? Who...? On, no." he groaned. "As if my life possibly could not get any worse!"

* * *

Li Syaoran sat at his desk in homeroom, idly sketching in his notebook. The pencil danced across the page almost on its own, not under his direct control. His mind wasn't concentrating on what was appearing on the page, his eyes not really seeing the image coming into being. He was a million miles away, his mind stuck in a time warp as it repeated the last twenty-four hours over and over again to his mind's eye. Every shred of his being screamed in agony as he saw the battle Sakura almost lost her life to. But she had survived. She had smiled at him; she had worried about him, and best of all she had dreamt about him. His face turned a subtle pink as he remembered her sighing him name and gripping his shirt in her sleep. He smiled. His beloved Ying Fa. She obviously cared about him, but that didn't mean she loved him. Not like he loved her.

Perhaps she just cares as a friend does for a friend? his mind taunted.

If so, then why does Tomoyo try so hard to get us together? She wouldn't force Sakura into this if she didn't feel the same.

Perhaps...

The question appeared before his mind's eye once again, like it always did. It was the hardest question he had ever had to face.

Do I tell Sakura, beautiful Ying Fa, how I feel about her?

He knew if her told her that he would end up hurting her. He would eventually have to return to Hong Kong, but Syaoran didn't want to without her. And he couldn't ask her to give up everything she had in Tomeda District just to follow him to a land and city she was unfamiliar with. That would just be selfish. He looked down at his notebook and blinked in surprise. There, staring up at him with her gentle eyes and stunning smile, was the object of his unadulterated affection. He smiled sadly and trailed a finger across the cheek of the drawing.

"Hey, good likeness." a voice suddenly praised from over his shoulder.

The notebook quickly slammed shut as he whirled around to come face to face with a smiling Daidouji Tomoyo. He sighed in wary frustration. "By the nine dragons of Kowloon...Don't do that!" he hissed.

She smiled, unperturbed by his tone, and took her seat. "Sorry, but that must've been some really deep thought for me to be able to sneak up on you like that."

Syaoran looked at the cover of his notebook. "Yeah, it was."

"And judging from that sketch I can guess the topic of that thought. Come to a decision yet?"

"No."

"Better decide soon. You know what they say: Love waits for no one."

He frowned. "Who says that?"

"Oh, some wise old person. He or she was right."

He sighed. "I know, I--" Syaoran suddenly froze as a pleasant tingling sensation invaded his senses. She was here! He looked to the door and stood in surprise. "Sakura?"

Tomoyo turned in her seat and was just as surprised as Syaoran to see the auburn haired, green eyed Mistress of the Cards walk into the classroom. Syaoran stared at the vision walking towards them, his mouth going suddenly dry. It didn't matter what she wore, a burlap sack would still look like the finest gown on her. The dark colors of her school uniform, a deep burgundy blazer over a white shirt and blue and red striped tie with a black skirt, only brought out the brightness of her eyes and the almost glowing quality of her skin. He felt his heart thud loudly in his chest and held his breath, hoping to shush the sound before she heard. She smiled at her two friends and took her seat in front of Syaoran and to Tomoyo's left. Her friends could only gape at her.

Sakura raised an eyebrow in question. "Nani, is something wrong?"

"Um... well... no, not really. It's just, well... You're up early." marveled the male Card Captor, suddenly finding his voice.

She pouted slightly with a frown. "Why is it everyone I know keeps saying that? I'm not always late to school... am I?"

Her question and expression were so innocent in nature, her pout making her look like a confused child. Tomoyo began to chuckle as Syaoran fought against his amused smile.

"Always late, no." Daidouji Tomoyo recapped with a giggle. "Almost late, a lot. On time, sometimes. Early, very rare, but then, most of the time you're out all night and not everyone has Li's discipline of being able to stay awake days on end."

He leaned against his desk, arms crossed over his chest. "It was part of my training. The men of the Li Clan, since we're so few in number, have to be strong and have to be ready to defend the rest of the Clan at a moment's notice. Just because I'm here doesn't mean I have to let my training get rusty."

"Maybe not." agreed the amethyst-eyed girl. "But the years you've spent here have mellowed you out quite a bit." she grinned.

He shrugged in non-committal. "I just learned here that feelings aren't as big a weakness as I originally thought they were."

Sakura smiled at him proudly. "Glad you changed your mind."

The warrior/sorcerer blushed fiercely and looked at the floor to escape her bright emerald eyes. How was it someone so delicate and beautiful could make all his strength leave him with a look, leaving him incredibly shy and timid before her?

Card Captor Sakura's smile softened as Tomoyo began to laugh outright. The changes in the young warrior had been subtle and only noticeable to those who knew him well, the few he had allowed to get close and call friends. His strength of body and of will had increased over the years, something that was expected with the more experience he gained in card capting. He was an amazing warrior. But at the same time, somewhere along the way, the stone cold shield around his heart had finally cracked to reveal the real Li Syaoran inside.

Sakura chuckled inwardly.

The great Li Syaoran, direct descendent of Clow Reed, future leader of the Li Clan... my gentle warrior.

She froze and blinked.

Gentle warrior?

Her mind cast itself back to the reading she had tried that morning, to the three cards she had turned over that described her soul mate's personality.

Power, Fight, and Flower... a gentle warrior.

She looked up at Syaoran arguing something she hadn't caught on to with Tomoyo and blinked again. There was almost a glow around him, but no one seemed to notice it. Unnoticed, she took in his appearance in dreamy appreciation like she did every school day. The high school uniform suited him so much better than the elementary school uniforms ever had. A dark green, almost black, blazer over a crisp white shirt, a red and blue striped tie at his throat, and black dress slacks both defined and hid the aspects of his form. Not that anything really needed to be hidden. Sakura bit the inside of her cheek, once again focusing on the slight glow of his aura. Why could she see it now?

Could he be the one?

She abruptly shook her head to clear the thought away before she latched onto it as the truth.

No, baka, that's just wishful thinking. Murphy's Law: If it looks too easy then it's not the real challenge. That applies. You'd know if he were your soul mate. Kero said you'd get a feeling. Besides, you never turned over that last card. That would've made everything clear by depicting something very noticeable about him. No matter how much you want him to be, Syaoran is not your soul mate.

She sighed.

He's just your secret crush... No... Your secret love.

A hand waved in front of her eyes unexpectedly, catching her attention. She blinked out of her thoughts and focused on the happenings around her. Her two friends were peering at her face and, until now, blank eyes in concern. She began to blush, embarrassed that she had zoned out while her friends had tried to talk to her.

"You okay, Sakura?" Tomoyo questioned. "You just seemed so distant all of a sudden."

"Um... yeah, I'm fine. I was thinking."

"About?" Syaoran probed.

She hesitated. "About how we're going to beat the Death Card next time when we don't have the tools we need." she lied.

He went down on one knee before her, the better to look her in the eye, and gripped her hands in reassurance. "We'll find a way to catch it, Sakura. We always do."

The first bell rang and she nodded with a smile that was slowly growing in confidence. "You're right. I mean, we beat the odds so many times even when they were stacked against us. Why am I so worried?"

"Because you know it'll probably hurt?" the videographer suggested, leaning towards them to keep the conversation between the three of them as other students began to file in and take their seats.

"I won't let her get hurt this time." Syaoran answered adamantly, giving Sakura's hands a squeeze. "Once was more than enough."

Sakura returned the squeeze. "And I know what to expect from it this time around. Besides, it's not the Death Card that scares me the most right now. I've been up against it and survived. It's that other card with it... whatever it is."

Clow Reed's descendent looked at her, his thumb inadvertently gliding across the back of her hand in a gentle caress. "I'm not going anywhere."

She freed one of her hands and held up her pinky finger to him. "Promise?"

He hesitated, knowing full well that this was a promise he would end up breaking, but linked his pinky with hers. Anything to get her to smile. Her happiness and well being were paramount to him. "I promise." and the second bell rang.

* * *

A hard pounding drum beat and wild guitar riffs filled the air over the soccer field. With the rest of the squad climbing into the final stack pose, Sakura moved to the beat to end up standing in front of them. Black Cat by Janet Jackson reverberated through the air. Mentally she frowned at the choice of music, too harsh and dark, but she wasn't the captain so she had to go with it. At the song's before last beats she kicked her leg up high, until it was almost perfectly parallel to her body, then dropped into a split with her torso lying along the length of her leg. She raised her torso up to stare forward in perfect synchrony to the song's last note.

Cheers, cat calls and wolf whistles suddenly filled the late afternoon air from the field's concrete bleachers. A few dozen teenage males, fellow students, were there and practically drooling at the sight of the twenty or so girls of the cheerleading squad. Sakura rolled her eyes at them in annoyance. Sometimes their attention was flattering, but for some reason she just felt they were unwelcome today.

A slight tingling sensation abruptly invaded her senses and she jerked ramrod straight. She knew that feeling. Subtle and demanding all at once to the Card Captor's magical sense, Sakura knew this feeling to be the sign of a Clow Card nearby. She quickly stood from her splits, straightening her outfit's skirt, and looked around the vast open practice field.

Nothing and no one.

She frowned.

Something wasn't right.

The feeling tugged at a corner of her mind. She turned in that direction to end up facing the end of the field, just in time to see one of the soccer nets vanish into a dark, shapeless mass.

There you are! she thought with a frown.

Sakura sensed a subtle shift in her feeling of the cloud, as if it had turned towards her, and sure enough it started to drift across the field towards her and the other cheerleaders. There were many gasps of shock and a few terrified screams, but no one ran yet, still too fascinated by the apparition. The Mistress of the Cards looked at her fellow schoolmates, all seemingly frozen in place.

"Don't just stand there! Run!" she yelled at them.

As if one cue the crowd scattered in every which conceivable direction away from the cloud. For her part, Sakura hung back just long enough to make sure everyone had made it off the field and to safety. Then she ran as well. She needed help. Another stronger sensation touched Sakura's senses as she ran towards the corner of the bleacher stands. She smiled, recognizing the feeling. She knew he wouldn't be very far. Just the person she needed. Rounding the corner she came face to face with Li Syaoran already dressed in his battle outfit, his sword in hand.

She blinked. When did he have the time to change?

"Where?" was all he asked.

"Follow me." and she ran back towards the field with the warrior/sorcerer close on her heels. "It's not the Death Card! It's that other one!"

"I was wondering when it'd show up!"

"Any idea which card this is?" she asked as they ran.

"When I sensed it I only got the picture of a door! You?"

"A black hole!"

They stopped just short of the field's edge. The cloud was still there, swallowing up inanimate objects as it floated around at a leisurely speed. Sakura watched it carefully, part of her mind aware of Syaoran taking a step forward to be between her and any attack from the card. She couldn't describe how heart warming it felt to know he cared so much so as to be willing to give his life for her, but at the same time it scared her. What if he did lose his life defending her? It would be her fault. Guilt rose in her throat, but she pushed it back for the moment. There was something else to worry about at that moment. She called forth her sealing wand, her mind working on automatic to piece together was little information she had on this mysterious card.

Door...

A black hole...

What do they have in common? Both have an entrance, a way in.

It swallows things...

It's an entrance, but where's the exit? We learned what that was a few years back in elementary... Oh, what was it? And entrance without a defined exit... Don't know where you'll come out in space, time, dimension...

She snapped her fingers. "Got it!" Sakura pointed her wand to the cloud in challenge. "Portal Card! Reveal yourself in your true form!"

Their sense of the card shifted as it took on a more defined shape, turning to face them. All it seemed to consist of was a simple gold ring with a swirling cloud-like mass at its center. But a magical will was controlling it.

"Portal is a wind element." Syaoran cautioned. "It works on the same shifting currents principle as Windy and the other cards under her. It's only attack is to swallow whatever or whoever is confronting it."

She allowed herself a small smirk. "You're starting to sound like Kero."

He frowned, but she could see a small grin trying to tug at the corners of his lips. "Humph! Insult me later, will you? We have a card to catch."

"Right." There was a chuckle in her voice.

He was going to move away from her when she abruptly gripped his arm, restraining him for a moment. Confident amber orbs met fear and doubt swirling in the depths of sparkling emeralds. He blinked, caught off guard by that look.

"Be careful, Syaoran." she warned, worry now the only tone in her voice.

The young warrior/sorcerer of the Li Clan gave her one of his rare smiles. "Always, Sakura." and he moved to stand opposite her, putting the Portal Card between them.

He frowned as the Clow Card turned from him to the Mistress of the Cards, seemingly in debate to figure out which of the two was more of a threat. Syaoran's frown deepened.

C'mon, you glorified piece of cardboard, pick one of us. And you better pick me or I'll chop you into so much confetti!

As if in response to his mental threat the card turned towards him. The warrior frowned an almost evil smile at it.

That's right, you stack of recycled Language Exams, come and get me.

The Portal Card advanced on his a bit, then suddenly turned to Sakura as if in realization. Now completely ignoring Syaoran the card concentrated its whole self on the female Card Captor and advanced on her. Not willing to give it the satisfaction of seeing her fear, Sakura kept up her hard and determined stare, taking a step back to keep some distance between her and it. She didn't want it to get too close, unsure of what it could do.

"Element! Fire!" Syaoran called out, focusing his energy at the card advancing on his beloved Mistress of the Cards.

Fire appeared from out of nowhere and engulfed the Portal Card. It spun on itself, trying to put out the fire, and shot up straight into the air. Then it vanished from sight. Wary of Clow Card tricks, the Card Captors stood back to back and scrutinized the seemingly empty soccer field turned battle ground. A heavy sense of déjà vu hit them out of the blue. The minute details, such as time and location, were different, but the actions were oh so familiar somehow. Off to the side of the field they could see Tomoyo video taping the action while restraining Meilin who was also dressed in her battle outfit. The Card Captors froze and blinked. That very sight was very familiar. At a thought Syaoran looked to Sakura's cheerleading outfit and hissed a curse. She looked at him in confusion.

"Green and red." was all he voiced.

Sakura looked at herself. The cheerleading squad's colors that year had been just that: a dark forest green accented in bright red. Tears began to burn her eyes in dreaded realization. Her vision was coming true. They hadn't stopped it. She met his amber eyes.

"No." she whispered. "You promised."

Syaoran looked up to the sky suddenly, then met her indescribable eyes with a heart aching look of remorse. "Gomen." and he shoved her away hard, losing the grip on his sword in the process.

She landed a few feet away on the unforgiving ground and looked up in time to see the Portal Card come down on the young warrior/sorcerer, swallowing him whole. The next few instants trickled by as if in slow motion. A now ownerless sword toppled over to the ground as the Portal Card righted itself and waited to see what the Card Mistress's next move would be in response. For what seemed like an eternity Sakura just stared at the spot where Syaoran had been only a heartbeat ago.

"No..." she finally breathed in abject horror.

He was gone... just like in her vision.

Pure anguished anger welled up in her as she slowly got to her feet. The card backed away as if it could sense the danger it was now in for its actions. Sakura raised her wand, her eyes flashing brightly in fury.

"Syaoran!" she screamed with all her might.

With his name on her lips as a battle cry she attacked the Portal Card. She swung hard with her wand, easily connecting with the surprised Clow Card, sending it careening through the air only to have its momentum stopped when it slammed mercilessly into one of the bleacher stand's concrete walls. Furious, sorrowful tears streamed down Sakura's cheeks in unstoppable torrents. She deliberately advanced on the stunned card.

"Portal Card, give him back." she ordered.

The card twitched at the unspoken menace in her voice, but did nothing.

"Give him back!" she shrieked.

Again, it did nothing.

Sakura raised her sealing wand above her head in a move that had become second nature to the reluctant sorceress. "Portal Card, return to your power confined!" she chanted through her tears and brought the wand down hard.

It connected with a glowing rectangle hanging in midair, sending glowing ripples of magic out from it to reach out to the escaped card. An invisible force tugged at the card, sucking it into the glowing form. The swallower became the swallowed. The rectangle glowed for a moment more before easily floating into Sakura's waiting hand, the image of an open door now on the face of the new card.

Sakura looked around the field almost expectantly, hoping the last part of the vision hadn't been true. But it wasn't to be. Nothing the Portal Card had engulfed returned. The last rays of daylight caught the polished blade of Syaoran's sword, catching the Card Captor's attention. She dropped to her knees next to it, trailing her fingers along the surface of the cool steel. Pain rose like bile in her throat as her tears returned with renewed force. She just let them come, dropping to the ground limply like a rag doll.

He was gone.

Syaoran was gone.

Her heart felt shattered into too many pieces to ever be mended.

Her soul was torn and bleeding.

"Syaoran..." she whispered shakily between sobs, hugging his sword close to herself. "You promised..."

To Be Continued...