Card Captor Sakura Fan Fiction ❯ Clow Card Central ❯ A Time for Reflection ( Chapter 6 )

Notes: After much thought (and a few rude comments), I decided to revise the entire trilogy. I had a better grasp on the original Japanese names, as well as the personalities of the cast, and was persuaded to show it (again, by rude comments). What amazes me is that writers still get flames for calling Syaoran "Li," when that, in fact, IS his family name. Yet half the world over (including me) calls the Saiya-jin Prince "Vegeta" (NOT his true name, by the way), and no one says a thing. Funny how things work.

Anyway, this is the new, true ending to Clow Card Central. I wasn't satisfied with the original one, just took me a year or two to realize it. It settles things between Syaoran and the Cards, and more importantly, Syaoran and Sakura. I have no plans of ever changing it, save for spelling and grammar errors. Which isn't to say that it'll be perfect, but that I'm a stubborn prick and you have to deal with it.

Summary: Syaoran decides that he wants Sakura back…and he's going through ALL the Cards to get her.

Clow Card Central: A Time for Reflection

Li Syaoran took a deep breath, nodded to himself, and rang the doorbell.

A few seconds later, the door opened, revealing Shot. She took one look at Syaoran (and, more importantly, the magical winds around him that were still fading from a recent summoning), and raised her finger to shoot.

Syaoran merely stood there, silently hoping it would work.

Shot fired with a manic grin, frowned when her shot bounced off, and gaped when it headed straight back at her. The blast caught her on the chin and sent her sailing backwards through the air, where she landed on the carpet and didn't move again.

Syaoran smiled to himself and stepped into the house. Today was definitely going to be a very interesting day.

* * * * *

Meiling was not sure how Akira had known, or how he'd gotten there so fast. Still, she was extremely glad he was there.

"I think Syaoran's gone to Sakura's house," she said at once.

Akira frowned. "Without being invited?"

"Yeah. He left me a note. He's not leaving until he sees her."

"Oh, dear." Akira sighed. "I suppose we'd better go act as reinforcements. I really do wish he would think things through when he wasn't angry."

"That's never really been his style," Meiling replied.

"I don't suppose you have The Queen with you?"

She held up the Card, grinning. "Never leave home without it."

"Glad to hear it. Somehow, I think we're going to need it."

Holding hands, they walked towards the Kinomoto home, and were dismayed to find the front door wide open.

* * * * *

Syaoran barely even looked up as Thunder leaped at him from the top of the steps.

Thunder slammed into an invisible wall an inch from Syaoran, grunted in surprise, and was tossed back up the steps, where he hit the wall and crumpled into a heap.

With a sigh, Syaoran made his way up the steps, where he found an Elemental barricade, in the forms of Windy, Earthy, Firey, and Watery. "You might want to move," he advised them.

"You hurt our brothers and sisters," Firey accused.

At that, Syaoran shook his head. "I have not uttered a spell once in this house today. I have not lifted a hand against any Card. All that were damaged, received that damage by their own hands, not mine."

Cleary, Firey didn't believe him. "Twins! Sic `em!"

The two Twins tumbled over her shoulders, cartwheeling straight into Syaoran…and then bounced off him, slamming ungracefully into opposite walls.

"I did nothing," Syaoran reminded them, but Firey had seen enough.

"Girls. Get him."

With feral grins, the Elementals advanced on him.

* * * * *

Sakura woke up in the middle of a small earthquake. This did not surprise her, since she had left the Life Card out again, and because she was still not familiar with all of Earthy's abilities.

Power, though, was not quite so calm. Sensing danger, she instantly threw herself over Sakura, seeking to protect her Mistress from any falling objects.

Sakura could only smile. "Don't worry, Pinky. It's just Earthy. Probably throwing a little tantrum." Then she sensed Syaoran's presence, and sighed. "Or trying to kill my boyfriend. Let's go stop them."

With a nod, Power rolled off her. Together, they opened the door to find all four Elementals circling and attacking Syaoran with restrained (but not really) fury. Clearly, they weren't using their full strength, but they weren't exactly holding back much, either. The reason for that soon became clear.

Syaoran was sitting at the center of impact, looking utterly bored and totally unharmed. Upon spotting Sakura, he smiled faintly. "Should I have called first?"

Sakura smiled back and shook her head. "Probably." She clapped once. "Okay, that's enough, you four!"

The Elementals instantly froze.

"Oh. Hey, Sakura," Firey said slowly. "Nice morning, isn't it?"

"It was," Sakura sighed. "I think you all need a time out. Anyway, I can feel the others need to recover their strength. Pinky?"

Power handed Sakura the Life Card and the Sealing Wand.

"Aw, man," Firey moaned.

Sakura cleared her throat and tapped the Card with the Wand.

At once, a huge portal opened up, drawing all the Cards into it, save Power. The portal snapped shut and faded away.

Syaoran stood up, dusting himself off. "I wanted to call. But I was afraid Shot might answer again…"

"Okay. How did you do that?" Sakura asked, placing a hand on her hip.

"New Card," Syaoran said simply. "I call it The Reflect."

"That was smart of you."

He shrugged. "Not really. I only did it so none of them could say I attacked them. Everyone that got hurt did so because they tried to hurt me."

"So you just let them beat on you until I showed up?" Sakura asked.

"It wasn't like I could feel anything. Plus, it gave me time to think. There are…some things we need to discuss." Syaoran swallowed and looked at Power. "You should be there, too."

Power looked surprised, but nodded. "If you say so, Syaoran."

He smiled. "I thought I was `the Li' around here?"

"To the others, you are," Power replied. "But…if you would prefer I called you something else…"

Syaoran shook his head. "No, it's fine. I just…wondered."

* * * * *

Meiling carefully poked her head into the living room. "It's clear in here, too…sort of."

The room looked as if a localized tornado had suddenly touched down. Chairs were overturned, a table lay on its side, and what had once been a ceiling fan was now in ruin on the floor.

Akira appeared behind her. "It would appear that Syaoran's venture was successful."

"How can you say that?!"

Akira shrugged. "There is no blood."

"…oh. Right." Meiling blinked a few times. "So what do we do now?"

"Seeing as how reinforcements are no longer needed? We clean up," he replied, handing her a broom.

Meiling scowled. "Shouldn't we make sure Syaoran doesn't need help first? Or that he doesn't want to help US clean up this mess?"

Akira smiled patiently. "If Syaoran truly needed our help, I have no doubt that he would be screaming for it even now."

* * * * *

"I can understand that…magical beings only have so many choices where their feelings are concerned," Syaoran said, running a hand through his brown hair. "I, myself, as a sorcerer, have also experienced certain unusual…sensations that were not totally welcome."

"Like what?" Sakura asked, leaning forward.

"…I don't think I should go into it," Syaoran said firmly, his cheeks burning. "But I can understand why Power was drawn to you…in such a way, and I sympathize with her plight."

"Thank you," Power said quietly.

"So you're not mad at her. Right?" Sakura asked.

"No. I was, but…" He paused and shook his head. "I admit that my anger was…largely misplaced and unnecessary. But I saw Power as a threat to my-our-happiness. And that poem-"

"Was a mistake," Power interrupted softly, lowering her head. "I apologize, Syaoran."

Syaoran hesitated. "You shouldn't. It…wasn't really your fault. Sometimes, we feel things beyond our control, and…we make decisions that are not the best at the time."

Sakura smiled. "So you two will be friends now. Right?"

Power lifted her head. "There is…one more matter that I'd like cleared up first."

Sakura looked surprised. "Oh. Really? What is it?"

Power turned to Syaoran. "That night, at the zoo…you wouldn't seal me in my Card form. Why?"

Syaoran looked uneasy. "I…I just couldn't. It didn't seem right. You were Sakura's Card, after all. She'd already sealed you."

"But my brothers Time & Dash were yours, and you gave them to Sakura…"

"Well…that was different. I thought they should be…with the others."

"But they have often told me that you were a fair and wise Master. I believe they miss you."

Syaoran opened his mouth, and then closed it. "They…said that?" he asked slowly.

"Pinky doesn't lie," Sakura reminded him.

"I have…something of a proposition for you both," Power said, stepping back to look at them. "I think Syaoran should possess the Brotherhood of Clow…that is, all the male Cards."

Syaoran looked floored.

Sakura titled her head slightly. "I have always had trouble relating to the guys. Maybe they SHOULD be with another guy…"

"But…Sakura," Syaoran said weakly. "Without them, your magic will be considerably weakened…"

"Then you'll just have to make sure you're all there to protect me, won't you?" Sakura asked with a smile.

"I was also hoping," Power added softly, "that Syaoran would take me, as well."

Now it was Sakura's turn to look shocked. "But…why?!"

"Yes, why?" Syaoran added, obviously confused.

"I want to be with Psychic," Power said simply. "Also, if I am ever to truly learn how to control my emotions, I think it would be best to…start over, under a new Master. That way, if I began to…feel for Syaoran, Psy would be there to help me past it."

"You've given this a lot of thought," Syaoran murmured.

"Yes. Is this acceptable to you both?" Power asked, sounding hopeful.

Syaoran was still hesitant. "I'll agree if Sakura does."

Sakura frowned. "Don't put this all on me!"

"But it is, in the end, your choice, Mistress," Power reminded her. "Only you can release my brothers and I from your service."

"Do you really want to do this, Pinky?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, Mistress. I believe it is best for us all."

Sakura sighed. "Then…I have no choice but to set you free. But I'll miss you…"

Power smiled. "I will miss you as well, Sakura."

Syaoran suddenly blinked and pulled the Reflect Card from his pocket.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked.

"Nothing," Syaoran replied. "I was just wondering how long it lasts. I'm going to need it again when the other Cards find out I'm taking Power away…"

* * * * *

Amazingly, none of the Cards did attack when Power revealed that she and her brothers would be leaving to live with Syaoran. Most of them were too shocked to do anything more than blink.

Finally, Firey spoke up. "You sure about this, Sis?"

Power nodded. "Yes, Firey. I think it is the right choice."

"But are you SURE? I mean, you'll be living with nothing but boys, for crying out loud!"

~We ARE her brothers, you know,~ Dash said in a clicking, annoyed tone. ~It's not as if we wouldn't protect her just as you would, Sister. And we certainly wouldn't mistreat her.~

"It is not a question of whether or not I'll be looked after," Power said firmly. "I have the utmost faith in Syaoran's abilities as a great sorcerer. I would think he proved that to all of you today."

There were some grumbles and grunts, but no one could actually say anything against Syaoran.

"Then it's settled," Power stated after a moment. "We'll be leaving tonight."

"Unacceptable," said a lone voice. "I will not agree to this."

Power looked shocked as Fight stepped forward, scowling at her. "Sister? What's wrong?"

"You can't go," Fight replied simply. "I won't let you. No one else can take my punches. How will I be able to spar if you're not here?"

"I…I could come over whenever you-" Power began to say.

"No. I'm going with you," Fight declared, crossing her arms over her chest.

Power's eyes widened. "What? But…Syaoran said-"

"If he has a problem with it," Fight interrupted, "he can take it up with me personally. But I'm still going with you."

Power shook her head. "But…I made an agreement with Sakura & Syaoran. You can't just…"

Fight stepped closer and leaned down until their noses were almost touching. "I. Will. NOT. Be separated from you." She straightened up and glared at Power, daring her to disagree.

Instead, Power's eyes began to water as she stared up at Fight. "Sister…you…" She trailed off and threw her arms around Fight's neck. "I love you, as well."

Fight blinked and hesitantly wrapped an arm around Power. "I'm not just doing it for you. The Li girl owes me rematch."

"So now you're both going?!" Firey cried in disbelief.

"I had no idea Fight…felt this way," Power admitted, wiping her eyes. "I couldn't possibly refuse her. But you must stay here, Sister. The Elementals would not be complete without you…nor would the others."

Firey pouted. "Yeah, I know. But you're breaking up my running crew!"

"You still have Shot," Fight pointed out.

"DARN RIGHT," Shot added with a nod.

Firey smiled faintly. "Yeah…but it won't be the same with just two of us. You guys were the other half."

"We'll visit often," Power promised. "Syaoran doesn't live that far. And of course he'll be seeing Sakura regularly, anyway."

"HE BETTER BE GOOD TO YOU, THAT'S ALL I GOTTA SAY," Shot growled.

"I have no doubt Fight and the boys will see to that," Power replied.

* * * * *

Some Time in the Near Future…

* * * * *

As he reached his front door and searched for his key, Syaoran suddenly wondered why Sakura had insisted that he keep the Life Card. At the time, she'd claimed that she'd been far too lenient with her Cards, and that they needed to spend some time in their restricted forms. He hadn't bought it then, and he certainly didn't believe it now. In fact, he was even beginning to wonder if she hadn't known exactly what she was doing…

Finally locating his key, Syaoran pushed the thought away and unlocked the door.

Power popped up in his path almost immediately. "Good afternoon, Syaoran. How was school?" she asked, reaching out to take his bookbag.

Syaoran blinked and slowly handed it to her. "The same as I ever, I guess." He paused and scratched his head. "Are you…always going to do that? It's been almost three months, and…I'm still not used to it."

"You do not…wish for me to greet you upon your return?" Power asked, a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Well, it's not that. It's the way you…pop up?" he hazarded.

Power tilted her head slightly. "I do not understand, Master."

Syaoran frowned. For some reason, he despised it when she called him that. It made him feel…old. As much as he'd tried to drill into her that she should use his proper name, occasionally she would fall back into the habit without realizing. Strange how she'd never had that problem with Sakura…

"I would…like to see you coming when you greet me," Syaoran explained. "As in walking towards me?"

"Oh. I see." She smiled. "I apologize for startling you, then."

He waved off her apology. "Ah…it's okay. You didn't mean to."

She nodded and bowed before darting up the stairs two at a time.

Syaoran sighed and headed into the kitchen for a snack. He always had to watch himself around Power, as he wasn't used to dealing with females on such a personal level. Sure, he had his awkward moments with Sakura, but she didn't live in his house.

He was only vaguely aware of passing Dash at the table, until a childish voice rang out behind him.

"Can we get you anything, Master?"

Syaoran paused on his way to the refrigerator and turned around warily.

Dash was indeed perched on the table, eating what appeared to be a sandwich with cheese. Next to him was Little, who was currently beaming at Syaoran as if this were the high point of her day.

That was another thing he hadn't been able to figure out. He could not recall ever agreeing to take Little with the other cards, yet one day she had merely popped up (not unlike Power) at dinner. Even stranger was the fact that she'd somehow retained the ability to keep her largest form, meaning she was always the size of a small girl with elfin features. True to her name, though, Syaoran often forgot she was there.

"Um…what's that you have there?" he asked, indicating Dash's sandwich.

Little brightened. "Oh! That's mustard."

"…and?" Syaoran ventured.

She giggled. "Just mustard, Master. Dash has certain tastes."

"…so I see." Syaoran bit his lip. "I think I'll just have tea."

"I'll get it for you!" And before Syaoran could even begin to protest, she had crossed the kitchen in one bounce and snatched the tea packets from the pantry, then landed at his side in another bound. "Here!"

"Uh…thank you," he murmured, taking the packets from her.

She grinned up at him. "You're welcome!"

Syaoran turned and picked up a kettle. "So…can I ask why it is you decided to stay here?"

"Oh, that's easy!" she replied, bouncing up to snatch the kettle from his hand and then bounding over to the sink to fill it with water. "You agreed to take the Brotherhood, but you probably didn't know that I'm one of them, too!"

"You…are?" Syaoran asked in surprise. "I never knew that…"

"Sakura probably forgot to tell you. People always forget me first, but I don't mind so much now." Little bounced back over and leaped up to place the kettle carefully on the stove. "Anyway, I wanted to stay with my dear, sweet Dashie," she said, throwing a fond glance over her shoulder at Dash.

Syaoran wisely decided not to comment on that. "But I'm not sure I understand. I thought you considered Sakura your mother? Why would you want to leave her?"

Little frowned slightly, the closest he'd ever seen her to being actually unhappy. "It's not that I WANTED to leave her, Master. It's that I NEEDED to. Power told me I should learn to depend on my own strengths instead of others protecting me."

"And…you're learning that here?" Syaoran asked doubtfully.

"Oh, yes! Meiling has been training me every day, and Akira says I might even be ready to practice with weapons soon!"

"Why haven't you asked Fight to train you?"

Little blushed. "Well, she was the first person I thought of. But I'd just slow her down. She hates that."

Syaoran was honestly finding it very hard to believe that Little could fight. But then, he knew she was good at jumping (bouncing, really), and she could move very fast without even realizing she had. With some basic training, she probably COULD hurt someone, if she ever needed to.

"So do you want to be as good at fighting as her?"

Little's eyes widened. "Oh, of course not! I'll never be THAT good. She was…born to do that. You know? I just want to be good enough to hold my own."

"Then you're doing this to prove that you're tough?" he guessed.

She turned to look at him, a surprised look on her face. "No, nothing like that. I'm doing it for you, Master."

Syaoran stared at her, his throat suddenly dry. "What…?"

"A Card's instinctive desire should always be to serve and protect their Master. But when I came here, I couldn't even protect myself. How could I ever expect you to summon me in battle if you couldn't depend on me to help you?"

"I…never thought of that," he admitted quietly.

Little smiled. "We Cards have a different way of looking at things. We are all family, and you…well, you're like a parent. It's your job to look out for us…but at the same time, as we grow stronger in service to you, we only want to protect you in return. That's what any good child would do for their parent, right?"

"Yes, but…none of you ever actually said it," Syaoran pointed out.

"We like to think it's more meaningful if you figure it out on your own. But I don't mind sharing, since you asked."

"No wonder you were all so loyal to Sakura," he said faintly.

Little bounced up onto his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck. "But we're loyal to you now!"

"I noticed," Syaoran replied with a small smile, wrapping his arms around her tiny frame.

"You shouldn't ever doubt that you're worthy of our concern, Master," she chided lightly. "If you weren't, Dash & Time never would've chosen you in the first place."

"But they were the only ones."

Little shrugged and smiled. "Things change…Daddy."

Syaoran's heart skipped a beat as he gazed into her shining, golden eyes. How could he ever have thought the Cards couldn't feel as humans could? Though he was beyond that way of thinking now, the shame still brought a lone tear to his eye.

Little pouted cutely as she noticed the tear. "You're not sad, are you?" she whispered.

"No, Little," he answered, holding her close and resting his chin on her head. "I'm not sad at all."

* * * * *

Power was carefully laying Syaoran's textbooks on his desk when a bright light caught her attention. She gasped as a lone Card flew up into the air and began to spin rapidly. At first, she was afraid something bad had happened.

But then the Card suddenly froze and drifted right into her waiting hands.

Though there was no longer an image on the Card, she knew at once that it was Little's. Power was not certain why it had acted so strangely…until she turned it over.

The back of the Card was now a deep, forest green.

Power smiled and stroked the border gently with her fingers. "He has begun to accept us as his own." She wondered briefly what her sister had done to win Syaoran's trust, but decided it was better not to guess. She would, after all, eventually have to find her own way of gaining his trust.

Cheered somewhat by that thought, she carefully put the Card back in its place and turned to go downstairs. Perhaps there was something she could for her Master in the meantime.

The End.

A quick list of all the "original" cards that I (via various forms of Syaoran) created throughout the trilogy. Note that some Cards can only be used by certain persons. Unless otherwise noted, the user must have some magical ability to begin with.

Create - grants the user the ability to create other Cards (which is not to say it would be impossible to without the Create, it just greatly eases the process)

Heal - grants the user the ability to heal any physical wounds

Multi - grants the user the ability to produce multiple images of themselves or other persons/objects (the greater the number of copies, the more skilled the user must be)

Guard - grants the (non-magical) user the ability to access the powers of a CardCaptor, which include: enhanced strength, increased agility, weapons knowledge (unless you think Tomoyo would normally be able to handle an ax with no problem), various spells/summons, etc.

Life - grants the user the ability to restore certain Cards to their humanoid/animal/action forms

Queen - grants the (female) user the ability to increase their natural attributes (ex.: strength or speed) tenfold

Psychic - grants the user the ability to wield incredible psychic powers (telepathy, telekinesis, etc.)

Reflect - grants the user the ability to reflect or turn back any attack upon the initiator of the attack

Note: There was, originally, a side story that focused on Little, her relationship with Dash, and formally introduced the Brotherhood of Clow (which is why I keep absent-mindedly referring to them). It was really all about being overlooked and mistreated as the smallest Card. Unfortunately, the disk I saved that story on was corrupted, and the story lost, for the most part. I was able to save portions of it, but recreating it turned out to be a lot harder than I thought.

The basic premise was that Little was mistreated by certain Cards (all weather-related: Rain, Snow, Storm), one of which (Rain) had once been a close friend. Through the course of a REALLY bad day, she ended up being found and cheered up by Dash, who then took her to a meeting of the Brotherhood in the attic. They form a plan to help Little get her revenge, and due to Libra's judgment, the guilty Cards were banished to some unknown place for a period of time. Anyway, the Brotherhood includes all the "male" Cards, plus some genderless ones: Time, Shadow, Change, Dash, Shield, Sword, Libra, Thunder, and after some indecision, Little (the only girl). The story would've taken place during Clow Card Central, but before Psychic's appearance.

If I EVER manage to get it done, I will post it at once. Otherwise, that's all you get. Sorry! ^_^