Moon at Apogee ~ An XXXholic/Card Captor Sakura Fan Fiction ~ by aishuu Characters: Yuuko/Clow, Yue Summary: The past comes back to bite Yuuko as Clow's final legacy shows up on her doorstep. Set pre-CCS.
Earlier parts: http://community.livejournal.com/quillofferings/ Part Two: Two drifters, off to see the world She met Clow when she was young and foolish. Back then, she had been confident in her powers and believed she understood her destiny well. She was born to be the Dimension Witch, the one being in existence that could touch all the worlds without cost to herself. She existed to provide people what they truly needed. Her mother had been the last Dimension Witch. Theirs was an unbroken line, back to the minute before creation. She had been young when her mother died, but that was understandable. Yuuko had only come into existence because Yuuna had finally tired of life. That was the pattern; one day, Yuuko would probably seek her death as well, burdened by too many hurts from a world that always wanted things, no matter how high the cost might be. The day before she died, Yuuna gave her daughter the only gift she ever would. After drinking tea together, the old witch pulled Yuuko's cup close to her to stare at the leaves. A slight sigh of disappointment rose from her lips, and she uttered a prophecy. "You will never have what you want most," the older witch said, twisting the cup around several times in her hands, seeking the warmth from inside the fragile china. Yuuko had known her mother was going to die the next day, and didn't understand why Yuuna was being so cruel. "I don't really want anything," she said. "You will, and it will only bring you sorrow. Don't be fooled by your pride for we all must bow before the dictates of destiny." It was the last conversation they had. The next day Yuuko buried Yuuna's body under the tallest sakura tree in Ueno Park. It wasn't until later that she realized exactly what the prophecy meant. That was when she met Clow. Their meeting was not particularly auspicious. It was sometime in the 1800's, and Yuuko was living on the continent. She preferred Japan, but eventually her lack of aging was noticed by the locals. They were a superstitious lot, and what they did to witches wasn't her idea of a day well spent. Hong Kong was a noisy city under British occupation, full of foreigners and locals mixing together with suspicion. It was easy for her to blend in; the locals assumed she was one of the foreigners, while the foreigners looked only at her coloring and assumed she was a native. She didn't bother to correct their misconceptions. While she never lied, it didn't keep her from indulging in selective truths. It was a slow day for wish granting, and she had decided to leave her shop and search the city. She took pleasure in the exploring her surroundings, and liked to keep up to date with the latest trends. She'd heard stories about a fortune teller who was never wrong, and wanted to see if they were true. It was dangerous to cast her own fortune, but she liked to know. The shop was located at the end of Bird Street, in a discreet building that looked residential. She glanced up at the three story-building, wondering if this was the right place. There was no sign outside to indicate the wonders that were performed inside, no hint that a seer offered to tell fortunes. It couldn't hurt to look, though, and she pushed her way inside passed the draping curtain to take a look. She stepped into a sparsely, though elegantly, furnished room lacking most of the traipsings of fortune telling. That was either a very good sign, or a very bad one. A man stepped out, dressed in long robes of blue which were lined with astrological symbols. At least he looked the part, she thought cynically. She pulled herself up to her full height, crossing her arms over her chest as she waited for him to speak. "What can I do for you, miss?" he said politely. She felt her hope whither entirely. This was another con man, despite his magnificent trappings. A real practitioner would have immediately recognized her for who she was. She didn't let his disappointment show, instead deciding to have some fun at the man's expense. "Don't you know, fortune teller?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow. He didn't rise to the bait, replying smoothly, "Of course I do, Dimension Witch, but it's only polite to ask," with that blasted smile of his not wavering as he upset her assessment of him. "Would you like a cup of tea as I prepare your reading?" "That would be nice," she agreed, sitting down on the querant's chair. She watched as he prepared the tea in an abbreviated tea ceremony. He had capable hands, she thought. Efficient hands, she amended a couple of moments later when he placed green tea in front of her. The tea was a bitter brew, but he set out a small dish of sweets that more than offset it. She smiled, pleased at his hospitality. "What kind of prices do you charge?" she asked carefully. He pushed his glasses up his nose. "What can you afford to pay, Dimension Witch?" That almost made her laugh. It was rare for someone to try to reverse roles with her. "It depends on how good you are," she replied. "I am the best you will ever meet," he said, with a slight smile curving his lips. Normally she would have been put off by his hubris, but something was telling her that he spoke the truth. "Then what price will I pay?" she asked, testing. "You'll have dinner with me tonight," he said, and then he smiled. "I foresee a great future in front of us." Normally Yuuko would have laughed off the blatant come-on, but she found herself intrigued. Something in Clow's smile hinted that he just wasn't giving her a line, but the truth. *** She woke up the next morning feeling tired and irritable. The late night interruption had disrupted her sleep, and when she finally found rest again, she was plagued by dreams, both of the future and the past. The brief insight they offered was confusing and nonsensical, like most dreams. She was in a poor mood as Moro and Maru helped her prepare for the day. She was tempted to put on her most impressive robes to establish her authority over Yue, but recognized the impulse was petty. Instead she dressed in trendy pants and a halter top that left most of her pale stomach exposed. Her only jewelry was her favorite butterfly pendant, and she left her hair loose. Opening the door to the room that Yue had been given, she was surprised to find he was asleep. He ignored the bed, instead taking a place in the far corner and propping himself up. His wings were gone, tucked away into the magical pocket that kept them safe and out of his way. Sleeping, he looked beautiful but the expression of sadness was still engraved on the still lines of his face. A previously unacknowledged maternal streak in Yuuko made her consider finding a blanket and covering him before she remembered exactly who she was. Yuuko debated internally if waking him would be wise. Some people didn't react well finding themselves in a strange place, and it could throw him off balance. "Maru, can you help Yue-san wake up?" she asked sweetly. It was mean of her to do, but a slight smirk crossed her lips as her servant left the room, returning several moments later with oversized cymbals. Yuuko put her fingers in her ears, smirking all the more as her braided servant dashed them together loudly and with great enthusiasm. The loud "clash!" reverberated through the room, loud enough to wake the dead. Unfortunately, Yue just raised his head slowly, leveling narrowed eyes on Maru. He hadn't even startled. Damn him. He probably hadn't been sleeping since she'd entered, she thought with annoyance. "Good morning!" she trilled, not letting him defeat her. "Time to get up, sunshine! Or maybe I should say moonshine!" She let out a loud cackle, hiding her face behind her left hand. He looked like he was ready to spit something equally sarcastic back at her, but then his face smoothed into deadened neutrality. "Do you always wake your guests in such a manner?" he asked. "Only the ones that need it," she replied, wishing she had thought to bring her pipe so she could blow smoke rings at him. "Even though you don't need to eat, I'd like you to accompany me to breakfast." He rose to his feet, tucking his hands into his sleeves. He didn't acknowledge his acceptance of her invitation, but he didn't disagree. She decided to take his silence as affirmation, and swept out of the room. Yuuko didn't need to glance back to know that he was following her his magic was so close that it tickled her nose, just like a feather would. They made themselves comfortable in Yuuko's main room, where she usually conducted her business and lounged the day away. Maru and Moro appeared not too long after bearing the makings of breakfast fresh fruit, dry cereal and a cup of tea. She knelt at the low table, and Yue took the position across from her. He stared as she ate, and she decided she didn't like that experience. Usually her guests would talk, but Yue was again doing his statue imitation. She dug her spoon into the grapefruit, pulling out a segment of the tart fruit. It looked like she would have to start the conversation. "Do you have any idea of what you would like to do?" she asked. "Do?" "With your life," she said, taking a sip of tea to keep from adding anything on it. "I guard the Clow Cards," he said. "That is my duty." "There's more to life than duty." "It's intriguing you say so, Dimension Witch," Yue said coolly, and it was a slight sign of personality that actually made her like him a bit better. She preferred to deal with him lashing out at her than apathy. There was nothing worse than someone who did nothing. "I enjoy my life, thank you." A thought occurred to her. "Why aren't you with the deck right now?" He frowned, a line of concentration appearing on his too-perfect face. "I couldn't stay there," he said softly as he worked to express what had motivated him to leave. "The cards are quiet and Kerberus is snoring too loudly for me to go back to sleep." There was more to the situation than that, Yuuko knew, but she couldn't keep from smirking a bit. She had heard stories about Clow's sun guardian through their acquaintances, and it was interesting to get confirmation there had been a grain of truth in them. "Where is the deck right now?" "Do you think I'll tell you?" he asked disdainfully. "Couldn't hurt," she said, shrugging. "It's truly a priceless object, and I'd like to get a good look at it." She had seen the deck once before, but wasn't going to hint that to Yue. "I will not allow it to fall into your possession," Yue said fiercely. The air filled with the static of strong emotion and imminent magic. "I cannot possess what I do not earn," she replied, shaking her head. "That is not the way the rules work." He stared at her, not replying. She waited for him to speak again, but five minutes ticked by and she realized that he didn't have anything to say. Mentally she contemplated the possibility of kicking him out, but she knew that her choice had been made years ago, although she hadn't realized it. "You will stay here until I figure out what to do with you," she told him. He nodded, obviously relieved to have someone else take responsibility. "Is my stay paid for?" She wasn't going to admit how much she owed Clow. "It's part of the service. It's not like you're going to be eating me out of house and home." ______________________ Help, I'm fallen into a weird fandom and can't get out! Fanfiction: http://www.midnightrevolution.org/quicksilver/ Fic Journal: http://www.livejournal.com/~quillofferings ____________________________________________________________________________________ Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. 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