Going In Almost Completely Blind

[zachycards]

Movie 1: A Trip To Hong Kong!: An Array Of Arrows!

Location: At The School
Time: Nighttime During Spring Break And A Couple Weeks After Sakura And I Had Our Encounter With The Fire Card At The Fairgrounds And We Had Captured The Fire Card

For both Sakura and I, Spring Break was going great. Well, about as normal as you can get for two siblings that were also CardCaptors. And tonight was no exception to that, as both Sakura and I were once again going at it, as we both flew on our respective winged staffs across the school grounds, as we attempted to capture yet another clow card, which happened to be the Arrow card. But, because this was us capturing a clow card, we were dressed up in another one of Madison's battle outfits each. Sakura was dressed up in an outfit that was green with white accents. And I was dressed up in a similar outfit, except it was light blue with darker blue accents. And right now however, Sakura and I were busy doing our best to try and outmaneuver an array of arrows that were being shot at us by the Arrow card spirit. It was while Sakura and I were about to pass one of the many trees on the school's property that things started to get interesting, "Element, Lightning, Descend!" a familiar male voice yelled. And withing a split second, an arrow that was about to land in front of Sakura and I, was instantly fried by the bolt of lightning. "Thanks for the save Li!" I said, thanking him. "Don't take your eyes off it!" Li said as he turned his attention back to the Arrow card spirit, which had conjured up another arrow, and was now poised to launch it at him. It was at this point that Sakura and I figured, that now as good a time as any to wrap things up. Sakura then pulled out the Windy card, to which we both turned to each other, nodding in response to each other, and then raising our respective staffs, "Windy card, come to our aid, Windy Release And Dispel!" we chanted in unison as we hit the Windy card at the same time with the tips of our respective staffs. And once the Windy card spirit had appeared and blew a powerful enough wind to distract the Arrow card spirit for a brief moment. I then pulled out the Jump card, to which we once again raised our respective staffs, "Jump!" we chanted in unison as we hit the Jump card at the same time with the tips of our respective staffs. And once wings had appeared on the sides of our respective shoes, and we had jumped over the Arrow card spirit, each doing a flip in the air, and then landing back down again. We then raised our respective staffs one final time. "Return to your power confined, Arrow card!" we chanted in unison as we swung our respective staffs down at the same time. And with that the Arrow card was sealed. It was at this point after the now sealed Arrow card had landed in my hand, that Meilin decided to speak up from the sidelines. "Li deserves that card far more then they do!" Meilin whined. "Well Meilin, it would seem that Sakura and I deserved it more!" I said inwardly to myself, clearly annoyed with her whining, due to a tickmark being visible on my face, despite my very best effort to hide it. "Well, it looks like you've got a fan club" Madison said to Li, referring to Meilin's comment about Li deserving the Arrow card more then Sakura and I. However, Li could only give a perplexed expression in response to what Madison had just said. "That was a great job Sakura, you too Zachary, the Arrow card really had it in for the two of you" Kero said as he flew down to both to Sakura and I "Do I know how to choose two Cardcaptors or what?" he said as both Sakura and I smiled.

Location: At Maggie's Shop
Time: Later The Next Day

Later the next day, at the Twin Bells shop. Sakura and I were browsing, since we had a lot of spare time with it being Spring Break and all. It was after we had each made our respective purchases that Maggie suggested that we both try our luck at a contest that the town was currently running. It consisted of people who had made a purchase reaching their hand into a box and pulling out a colored ball, the ball then determined what sort of prize they would receive. It was as I took my turn, after Sakura had gone and had taken her turn, that Maggie was explaining that many have tried, but none had one the grand prize yet, which was a trip for five to Hong Kong. But, it was when I pulled my hand out, with the ball in my grasp, that I realized that it was gold colored. This, of course caused Maggie to be a bit perplexed, largely since because the ball i pulled was gold colored, meant that I had won the grand prize. This not only shocked me, but Sakura as well, since she had also pulled a gold colored ball as well. It was then that we both knew, that this was going to be a trip of a lifetime.

This may have been a trip of a lifetime, but it had quickly become a trip that had gone completely off the rails. Over the past several days, Sakura and I had been having several weird dreams. These consisted of us both being in an underground area somewhere in the city, and over the progressing dreams, we were confronted by a mysterious women dressed in a peculiar outfit, that seemed to be emanating an aura of pure evil from her. A previous day, a quick chase took place after Sakura and I took off after a pair of mysterious birds through the shopping district of the city, and we then fell under a trance like state in front of an abandoned well after having followed those same birds to that abandoned well. But thankfully, before we both fell into the well and into certain trouble, Li stepped in, and snapped us both out of our trance like states. But not before we both wound up losing our balance, and falling into the water of the abandoned well, leaving both of us soaking wet. After Madison bumped into Meilin at the shopping district, and after everyone had met up again. It was decided that we would spend the night at Li's house, at least according to his mom for some odd reason. However, it was during the night, that Sakura and I once again had the same dream, only this time we both got had gotten injured in that dream. And despite both of us having woken up, we both discovered that the injuries we had sustained during the dream were anything but imaginary. A day or so after that, it was decided that Sakura, myself and Li would confront this evil spirit. And after going back to the abandoned well, and a huge battle, we managed to barely escape with our lives intact. But not before the evil spirit decided to angrily ask Sakura and I where Clow Reed was. It was at this point that Sakura and I realized that this evil female spirit was interested in only one thing, and that was to get revenge on Clow Reed. Which unfortunately, was going to be a little bit difficult, seeing as how he had died a long time ago. A day after the battle, and a decision was made to go at this again. Sakura and I were dressed up in another one of Madison's battle costumes each, and we once again made our way back to the abandoned well, for one final battle against the evil female spirit. (a/n: Sakura's battle outfit is the same as the one from the movie, and mine is the same, minus the ribbons and frills, and is light blue and has dark blue accents instead.)

Location: Somewhere In Hong Kong
Time: Nighttime Several Days After Sakura And I Won The Trip For Five To Hong Kong And A Short Time After Sakura And I Entered The Abandoned Well Dressed In Our Battle Costumes

This fight was quickly starting to get out of hand. Sakura and I now found ourselves bound by the evil female spirit in the wraps that were part of her outfit, both of us unable to move. "Where is Clow Reed!?" the evil female spirit asked. "Clow Reed is dead, he died a long time ago" I said in a depressed sounding tone of voice in another attempt to get her to see the truth. And it was at this moment, that the wraps binding Sakura and I seemed to be loosening slightly. It was then, that we took this to our advantage, and broke free, leaping into the air. And once we had landed on the ground again, without me having to say a word, I pulled out the Arrow card. Sakura, realizing what idea i had, nodded to me, to which i returned one in response. And without having to say a single word more, we then raised our respective staffs, "Arrow card, come to our aid, Arrow Release And Dispel!" we chanted in unison as we hit the Arrow card at the same time with the tips of our respective staffs. And once the Arrow card spirit appeared and began firing her array of arrows, it was after about a minute of back and forth, that an arrow wound up hitting its mark. And after a brief conversation with the evil female spirit, she wound up fading away. However, as Sakura and I congratulated each other on a job well done, I just somehow knew, that despite having done all of the things we had already done up to this point, we still had a long way to go with regards to the clow cards.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 41: Stormy Weather!: Knee Deep In Snow!

It was after Kero, Sakura, Li and I had escaped the swirling vortex of snow, that Sakura suddenly realized that she was missing her watch from her wrist, which had been given to her as a present. It was then that Sakura looked back at me, Li and Kero with a determined look on her face, and also a hint of anger, "We're using the Fire Card!" she said as we all found our way onto the entrance structure to the park. And with great haste, Sakura pulled out the Fire Card. Without wanting to challenge her actions, seeing the mood Sakura was currently in, I raised my respective staff, as did she. "Fire Card, come to our aid, use your power to melt all the snow, Fire Card, Release and Dispel!" we chanted in unison as we swung our respective staffs down and hit the Fire Card at the same time with the tips of our respective staffs. And once the Snow Card spirit was seen being chased by the Fire Card spirit, Sakura and I once again raised our respective staffs, "we command you to return to your power confined, Snow Card!" Sakura and I chanted in unison as we once again swung our respective staffs down at the same time. And with that the Snow Card was captured. "Well, now we know what happens when Sakura gets mad" Kero said. "And I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end when she's like that" I said in a somewhat nervous tone of voice.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 42: The Show Must Go On!: What It Is Like To Have Your Voice Stolen!

It was really becoming a real head scratcher for the three of us. Not only had Madison literally had her voice stolen by a Clow Card, but we now had to think of a way to draw it out and get Madison's voice back in time for her to sing at the school's festival. It was then that Sakura had an idea to use the Song Card, since it had copied Madison's voice when we had captured it, to sing in an effort to draw out the Voice Card spirit. I then pulled out the Song Card, and Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs, "Song card, come to our aid, let us hear your beautiful voice, Song card, Release and Dispel!" we chanted in unison as we swung our respective staffs down and hit the Song card at the same time with the tips of our respective staffs. Once the Song card spirit appeared, and started singing in Madison's voice, it didn't take that long at all for the Voice card spirit to appear. Thankfully, before it could escape, Li used his element talismans to seal off the windows so that it couldn't escape. Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs, "we command you to return to your power confined, Voice Card!" we chanted in unison as we swung our respective staffs down at the same time. And with that, the Voice Card was sealed.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 43: A Berry Strange Day!: Under Lock And Key!

It was just a very dire situation. Neither Sakura or myself could get hold of Kero so that he could give us any information regarding the Lock Card, that unfortunately, had locked not just the two of us in a room, but Li and Meilin as well. It was only when I came up with the idea to have both myself and Sakura insert both of our respective keys in both keyholes of the door that the true form of the Lock Card spirit finally revealed itself. Sakura and I then took our respective keys out of the doors keyholes, "key of clow, power of magic, power of light, surrender the wand, the force ignite, Release!" we chanted in unison. With our respective staffs now in hand, we then raised them, "we command you to return to your power confined, Lock Card!" we chanted in unison as we swung our respective staffs down at the same time. And once the two card halves materialized on the tips of our respective staffs. And the Lock Card spirit was sucked into our respective card halves. And once the two card halves were combined into a whole clow card, the Lock Card was sealed.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 44: Under The Weather!: A Chance Of Cloudy Weather!

Location: On Top Of One Of The Many Buildings In Tomoeda With Li And Meilin
Time: Early In The Evening

This situation was starting too look really really bad. Not only was Sakura feeling under the weather, but she was even having a rough time standing up straight as the both of us stood on the roof of the building, as both Li and Meilin stood behind us. "Sakura, I you need to focus, I really need your help here if we are going to capture this card" I said with a severe hint of worry in my voice. "Element, Lightning, Come To My Aid!" Li said as he used his lightning element talisman to draw out the Cloud Card spirit. It was then that I raised my respective staff. However, as Sakura attempted to raise hers, she began to falter slightly. Meilin then came behind her and decided to support her. It was then that I decided that thanks to Meilin's help, Sakura would be stable enough to help the both of us seal the Cloud Card. It was then that me and Sakura, who now had the help and support of Meilin behind her, raised our respective staffs, "we command you to return to your power confined, Cloud Card!" Sakura and chanted in unison, with Meilin still supporting Sakura, as we swung our respective staffs down at the same time. And with that, the Cloud Card was captured.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 45: Dream A Little Dream!: A Prophetic Dream Of The Future!

This was starting to get very very weird. It started like any normal trip to Tokyo for Sakura, me, Li, Meilin, Madison, and Kero. But this quickly turned to being very strange once Sakura and I went inside the ground floor of Tokyo Tower. We instantly collapsed, to which this was then followed by both of us once again having the same recurring dream of us on top of the same building, facing Tokyo Tower, our respective staffs clenched in our hands, and the dream ending shortly thereafter. And once Sakura and I came too again, we were instantly made aware, by Li, that this had all been the work of a clow card. Which was actually under Sakura's foot, as Li had pointed out. But both of us needed to act quickly, because Li was, at the moment, stopping time, so that we both could set to work on capturing the card. So, once the clow card spirit, which was in the form of a light blue butterfly, had picked this particular moment to try and escape. And without wanting to waste anymore time, or have Li completely lose his hold on his magic, Sakura and I pulled out our respective keys, "key of clow, power of magic, power of light surrender the wand, the force ignite, Release!" Sakura and I chanted in unison. With our respective staffs now in hand, we turned our attention to the clow card spirit, which was now by the entrance door. Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs, "we command you to return to your power, confined!" Sakura and I chanted in unison, as we swung our respective staffs down at the same time. And with that, the clow card was sealed, which turned out to be the Dream Card.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 46: The Sands Of Time!: Dealing With The Sands Of Misfortune!

Location: Flying Across The School Grounds With Li
Time: Around Midday And After School Had Let Out

Sand, why did it have to be sand? That seemed to be the question going though my mind as Li, Sakura and I continuously flew across the school grounds on both of our respective winged staffs, with Li hitching a ride on Sakura's winged staff, whilst dodging a huge wave of sand that seemed to chase after us with malign intent. And it was only once Sakura and I had used the Water Card to saturate the sand, and Li helped out by using the Freeze Card. Sakura and I then finally touched back down on the ground, and then raised our respective staffs. "We command you to return to your power confined, Sand Card!" we chanted in unison. And once the Sand Card spirit was sucked into both of our respective card halves, that had materialized on the tips of our respective staffs. And once both hard halves had then combined into a complete clow card, the Sand Card was captured and sealed. But even though it wound up landing in Sakura's hands. She decided to let Li have it instead. But rather then ask him why she had chosen to let Li have it, I decided not to pry. And I instead decided to appreciate the fact that the three of us had managed to capture another clow card. But none of us would realize at the time, that this was only the beginning of what was lying in store for us.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 47: A Strange Intermission!: From The Darkness Comes The Light!

Location: In The Pitch Darkness Of What Used To Be The Schools Auditorium
Time: Unknown

It seemed like it had been an eternity since the darkness had surrounded both Sakura and I. However, it dawned on us that even though we were in total darkness, we both seemed to be glowing. It was then that the both of us realized that it wasn't just the Dark Card that was behind this, but the Light Card as well. And once the Light Card spirit had revealed its true form along with that of the Dark Card, Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs, "Light and Dark Cards, we command you to return to your power confined, Light and Dark!" we chanted in unison as we swung our respective staffs down at the same time. However, just before both the Light and Dark card spirits disappeared and became clow cards once more, each one of them then decided to tell us both one more thing. "Believe in yourself, you're both the chosen ones!" "The Final Judgement will come from Yue!" And though neither of us knew it at that current moment, things were about to soon get that much more interesting for the both of us. And unfortunately, I would soon be faced with a choice, that depending on the outcome, would have an everlasting effect on the events that would follow. But more on that at a much later date.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 48: Meilin's Story!: Of Twins And Duplication!

Location: Somewhere On The Streets Of Tomoeda With Li And Meilin
Time: Sometime Early In The Evening

It really was a case of double trouble wasn't it? Apparently Sakura and I were confronted with a clow card that had the ability to duplicate anything and everything. But that was the least of our worries. When we first had attempted to capture the Twin Card spirit, it had failed, spectacularly. And that was largely due to the fact that we had tried to capture only one of the halves of the Twin Card spirit. Thankfully, with the help of Li and Meilin, Sakura and I finally got the Twin Card spirit tired out enough to where we were now able to capture it. Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs, "we command you to return to your power confined, Twin Card!" we chanted in unison. And once both halves of the Twin Card spirit was sucked into both of our respective card halves, that had materialized on the tips of our respective staffs. And once both hard halves had then combined into a complete clow card, the Twin Card was captured and sealed.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 49: The Last Card! Caught In An Earthquake! (Part 1)

So, as it currently stood, it had been just a couple of days, since me and Sakura, had captured the Twin Card, with the help of both Li, and Meilin. However, as it currently stood, we were both sort of preoccupied at the current moment. Which was further confirmed by the overwhelming fact, that both of us, along with Li, were currently on board a train, and we were currently passing by Tokyo Tower.

"I mean, what happens next, there is only one more Clow Card left to capture," I heard Sakura say, while looking at Tokyo Tower from the window of the moving train. And it was only once I had also, turned my attention towards Tokyo Tower, that I was then brought back down to earth, so to speak.

"Oh, that's right...I forgot about that recurring dream that both me and Sakura had been having for quite a while now...I really do wish that I knew more about that dream...But, seeing as how I hadn't watched anything past episode 5 of the Nelvana Dub version of the anime...I am still very much, Going In Almost Completely Blind," I thought to myself, as I continued to stare off in a bit of thought, at Tokyo Tower, as the train continued to pass it by.

A little bit later, at an archery range. Me, Sakura, Li, and Madison. Along with Kero, who the moment, as per usual, was currently hiding in my school bag, so that he wouldn't be seen. And you might now all be asking yourselves, as to why we were all currently at an archery range, correct? Well, as was currently the case, we were watching an archery tournament of sorts. And who should be participating in it but Julian.

And to be completely honest. Well, not like I haven't been completely honest throughout the entire length of this fanfic, but I digress.

Anyway, Julian was currently participating in the archery tournament. However, the most significant factor here, was that Ms. Mackenzie, was also participating. And as it currently stood, they were both versing against each other, going shot for shot, in the current final match of the tournament.

And not to be surprised here or anything, but both of them, were incredibly good at it. Never mind the fact that they kept getting bullseye after bullseye, but like I said, this was the final match of the tournament, so I wasn't really as surprised as I should've been.

This was basically due, to what I had heard Sakura say earlier, while we were on board the train, and were passing by Tokyo Tower.

"I still can't seem to get what Sakura said back on the train out of my mind...It is as if, once both of us have captured, and sealed the final Clow Card, then things, won't be exactly over yet...In fact, it might actually seem, as though me and Sakura's adventure, will only be just beginning," I thought to myself, in quite a deep thought.

Only for me to be brought back out of my deep thought, when I couldn't help, but overhear Ms. Mackenzie, speak in the most hush of tones, a single word, "Yue."

This was then followed, quite weirdly I might add, by Ms. Mackenzie, letting go of the arrow, that she had already had drawn back in the drawstring of her bow. Which, once it had whizzed through the air, towards the target, wound up embedding itself, quite a little bit of a way from the target, that the arrow in question, was intended to hit.

In fact, the arrow, had actually embedded itself, on the outside fascia, of the target row itself. And if I had to take a quick educated guess, as to how far that was, I would honestly have said, that it was far enough outside of the target, to be considered to be worth zero points.

However, my thought was then interrupted once again, by everyone except for me, then starting into a round of claps. And this was then followed during this, by Li of all people then speaking up. "Ms. Mackenzie missed that by a mile, something must've distracted her," I heard Li, say over the noise of the people clapping.

And this, not surprisingly, caused me, to once again, go back into deep thought. "Well Li...I would assume, that it was more then likely due to Ms. Mackenzie saying the word, 'Yue." Wait a sec, here!...I remember now, the Light and Dark Cards, back when me and Sakura had captured and sealed them both in the auditorium weeks back, did say something along the lines, of 'the Final Judgement, will come from Yue." So then that would mean...hold on...lets not just jump to conclusions here...get a hold of yourself...Still, if what the Light and Dark Cards said was true, then I have a strange feeling, that me and Sakura, as well as everyone else involved with the Clow Cards, might soon be locked, in a fight, for our very lives," I thought to myself, with a now all too visible shocked expression, now plastered across my face.

A few hours later, at a nearby sculpture garden. Me and Sakura, had sort of lost track of Kero. Well, when I say that, Kero, had sort of flown off somewhere.

But, it was only once we had come across Kero, again, who had been conversing with Ms. Mackenzie. That I was then now starting to realize, just that much more, that everything, regarding me, Sakura, our friends, as well as the Clow Cards, were not even the least bit close to being over with.

In fact, before me and Sakura, had happened across the conversation, that had been taking place, between Kero and Ms. Mackenzie, I couldn't help, but overhear a small bit of the conversation.

"So, you haven't told either of them yet?" I heard the unmistakable voice of Ms. Mackenzie ask Kero.

"No," I then heard the unmistakable voice of Kero answer back.

"Not about the Final Judgement?" I then heard Ms. Mackenzie answer back.

Which once, she had said that, a small look of shock, then found its way onto my face. Only this time, it was far less obvious, then when I had been such, back at the archery range, during the archery tournament.

Now, fast forward to a couple minutes later, and I couldn't help, but then get, an all too familiar feeling, which was then followed, by quite a few, ground like tremors, then vibrate, through the ground beneath me.

"Well then, it looks as though the last Clow Card is about to reveal itself...let me just let Sakura know," I began, only to stop somewhat dead in my tracks, when I then realized, that Julian, was currently present.

"Oh, well this is clearly not the most ideal...hmm...Well, it would seem, as though things, have now gotten quite a bit more complicated," I thought to myself, as a sweatdrop, now made itself visible, on one side of my face.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 50: The Last Card!: Caught In An Earthquake! (Part 2)

Okay, so things regarding the current appearance of the final Clow Card, hadn't exactly gone according to plan. In fact, as a large boulder like pillar, now suddenly shot up from the ground. Which was then quickly followed by several more, in almost rapid succession. I couldn't help, but then overhear, the now unmistakable sound, of the ground, now starting to shake in just that much more, of a violent manner.


And, as the cracks in the ground, now started to quickly branch out across the ground. And as I took notice of this, I then, wound up stopping completely dead, with my face, then turning an almost complete, sheet of white.


For what I was actually looking at, was Madison, who at the moment, was in the direct path, of the current branching cracks in the ground.


However, and thankfully, I was then able to breath out a short sigh of relief. And the reason?...Well...


"Madison, lookout!" I heard the voice of Sakura yell. As she then managed, to get over to Madison, and get her out of the way of the branching cracks in the ground, just in time.


"Sakura, Zachary, use your magic!" I then heard the unmistakable voice of Kero yell. And this, not surprisingly, caused me to look at Kero, in almost complete disbelief.


"What, here?!" I heard Sakura then yell in response.


And to be honest, I didn't question Sakura's response to what Kero had just said, in the slightest.


"But, Julian will see us!" I heard Sakura say in response.


"Use the Sleep Card!" I then heard Li yell in response.


And with Li then having said that. I then turned my attention to Sakura, while giving her an expression, as if to let her know, that given the currently unfolding situation, neither of us, really had any choice in the matter. And to be honest, Sakura, pretty much knew this as well.


And so, with Sakura, then nodding to me, and me nodding back to her in response. We then both, pulled out our respective keys.


"Oh key of Clow, power of magic, power of light, surrender the wand, the force ignite, RELEASE!" Me and Sakura chanted in unison, as the all too familiar sand, then started to whip through the air around us both, and in an instant, both of our respective keys, were once again, in staff form.


And not wanting to waste anymore time, I then pulled out the Sleep Card. To which me and Sakura, then raised our respective staffs. "Sleep Card, come to our aide, release and dispel!" Me and Sakura chanted in unison, as we hit the Sleep Card, at the exact same time, with the tips of our respective staffs.


And, with the all too familiar appearance, of the Sleep Card spirit, and with it flying through the air, whilst putting everyone to sleep, besides, me, Sakura, Li, and apparently, Ms. Mackenzie as well. Me and Sakura, then set to work, on capturing and sealing, the last, and final Clow Card.


A short time later, on a nearby building, after me and Sakura, had had a less then safe run-in with the Earth Cards physical form. And after we had both tried, and failed, to attack the Earth Card, with the Water Card. And, when I say that...well...


"Are you kidding me?!" I said out loud.


"It just grew back!" Sakura chimed in right after me. As the Earth Card spirits head, had simply just grown back even after the Water Card, had managed to slice it off so easily.


I then took notice, of Kero, now somewhat short of breath, on the roof of the house, that the three of us were currently on. "Kero are you alright?" I asked him.


"Yea I'm fine, but you can't defeat Earth with just an attack card," Kero said to me in response.


"Then, how are we both supposed to defeat it?" Sakura asked in response.


"You both can do this, just search for a card that has never let you both down," Kero then said.


And to be honest, I couldn't help, but have a sweatdrop, then make itself visible, on one side of my face. "Okay Kero, not really the most helpful of advice, but I guess it is advice nonetheless," I thought to myself.


And, after a short bit, of me and Sakura, using the Jump Card, to dodge quite a lot, of the Earth Card spirits attacks. And while me, Sakura, and Kero, were midway through one of our jumps, and were currently high above the ground. Me and Sakura, couldn't help but notice, the sheer amount of damage, that was being caused, by the Earth Card spirit.


"It's causing so much damage," Sakura said.


But, it was while I had been looking on, alongside Sakura, at the still mounting damage, that was being caused by the. I then couldn't help but notice, that the trees surrounding the mounting damage from the Earth Card spirit, had not been knocked down.


"Wait a second, Kero told me and Sakura, to search for a card that has never let us both down, and trees wrap themselves around the earth all the time, so maybe," I thought myself, as I then, without having to think very much about it, reached into my pocket, and then pulled out a Clow Card.


"Hey Sakura!" I yelled to her, while holding up the Clow Card, that I had just pulled from my pocket. And yet, even though I had not shown Sakura the identity, of the Clow Card in question, I could somehow tell, from the look on her face, that she knew almost immediately what my plan was.


And so, without wanting to waste even another second, and once we had both landed back down on the ground again. Me and Sakura, did a quick heel turn of sorts, as we both, then started to make our way, towards the Earth Card spirit.


"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on a sec here!" I heard Kero yell out to us in somewhat of a protest, as if he thought, that we were crazy.


But thankfully though, both me and Sakura, were quick to explain to Kero, our logic for doing this.


"Kero, you said for me and Sakura to search for a card that has never let us down!" I said, with a now very determined look on my face.


"So we both know that this is it!" Sakura said shortly after.


And with both of us having said our separate statements. Me and Sakura, then set to work, with capturing and sealing the Earth Card spirit.


"Wood card, come to our aide, use your vines to help us both trap Earth. Wood, release and dispel!" Me and Sakura, chanted in unison, as we hit the Wood Card at the exact same time with the tips of our respective staffs.


And a split second later the Wood Card spirit then appeared and began soaring towards the Earth Card spirit. And a second or later, the Earth Card spirit had then been bound, by the Wood card spirits many vines.


"Seal it!" I then heard Kero say to me and Sakura.


And, with me and Sakura, quickly turning to each other, and then nodding. We both then raised our respective staffs.


"Earth Card, we command you to return to your power confined, Earth!" Me and Sakura chanted in unison, as we both then swung our respective staffs down, at exactly the same time.


And, with the Earth Card spirit, then being sucked into both of our respective Clow Card halves, which just like all the Clow Card captures before, then formed together to form a whole and complete Clow Card, the Earth Card was sealed.


But even though the final Clow Card had now finally been captured. I somehow still knew deep down, that this, was still very much, far from being over.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 51: The Final Judgement!: A Fight Like No Other!

Although it had been a long and tiring day for Sakura, me, and everyone else, I just knew that things weren't going to get any easier anytime soon. And this was largely due to the fact that earlier in the day, shortly after Sakura and I had captured the Earth card that Kero had then transformed into his true form.


To make matters even more complicated, once Sakura and I made it back to the area where everyone else was after capturing the Earth card, we were then told to seal it as usual with both of our names.


This also wasn't made any less embarrassing due to the fact both me and Sakura were once again dressed up in another one of Madison's card capturing outfit ensembles.


Sakura was dressed up in a pink outfit with yellow accents, while i was dressed up in an outfit that resembled a medieval knight.


However, once Sakura had finished signing her name, that was when things started to really kick off.


Julian who had been knocked out by the Sleep card during Li, Sakura and I's battle with the Earth card began to glow and then angel wings sprouted from his back.


While all the while, Li, Sakura and I stood there in utter disbelief.


Once the glowing had stopped and the angel wings had parted, an entirely different individual stood in Julian's place.


Earlier we were told that like Kero showing his true form that another individual would manifest himself by the name of Yue.


I just knew deep down that this was him and whatever was this Yue had planned and what was about to happen would not be easy.


"It's been a long time Keroberos," Yue said.


"Yes it has," Keroberos said in response.


"You were careless, the Clow Cards should've never escaped," Yue said.


"Perhaps, but you know as well as I do that nothing happens by accident, Yue, I knew that you were close by, waiting, preparing," Keroberos said in response.


"Why didn't Julian tell us?" Sakura asked.


"I don't think he knew," I thought to myself in response.


"Yue kept his true identity hidden from him, he didn't know, without the final card I could only sense your presence," Keroberos said in response.


This was then followed, by Keroberos, turning his attention, to Ms. Mackenzie. "And you, you have magical powers as well, I thought for a time that you could be the judge. But, you helped both Sakura and Zachary. It was then that I realized that you couldn't be the judge. It is not the judges job to help others find their way," Keroberos said, while he, towards the end of his statement, had given a sort of side-glance towards Yue.


"Wait a second here Kero, what did you realize?" Sakura asked Keroberos in a somewhat confused sounding tone.


However, it was then that Yue decided to interject by flying over to get a closer look at both me and Sakura. "So we finally meet Sakura and Zachary, the first two candidates to be the masters of the clow cards, chosen by Keroberos. And yet, I sense another that has the cards," Yue said, obviously referring to Li.


"Their is no point in passing Final Judgement on those who are unable to capture all the cards themselves," Yue continued.


"Sakura and Zachary both have learned much, I have faith that they will both pass the test," Keroberos said in response.


"You seem confident," Yue said. "By tradition, the final decision belongs to you," Keroberos said in response.


"Then let the Final Judgement begin," Yue said.


"I am Yue, the judge, Final Judgement belongs to me," Yue said to Li who stood opposite him on the other side of the top of the structure facing him.


"You may use all of the cards at your disposal, try and defeat me," Yue said, as he conjured up large chunks of crystals from his right hand and began firing them towards Li at astonishing speed.


Only a second or two later, Li was struck in his left side by a crystal and was nearly knocked off the building.


It was at this point that Sakura began to rush towards the fight to try and save Li and was almost immediately stopped by an invisible barrier.


As Sakura continuously pounded on the barrier as I looked on from a couple feet away with a very concerned look on my face.


She constantly begged Keroberos to help, but unfortunately Keroberos said that no one could help him and that it was his fight and his fight alone.


It was at this point that Li decided to use one of his fire element talismans on Yue. "Element, fire, come to my aide!" Li chanted as he hit his talisman with the blade of his jian.


As the fire from his element talisman consumed Yue, Li at first thought that it had worked, but as the flames dissipated and Yue was shown not to have even a scratch on him, it became clear that Li would have to try something else.


"You cannot defeat Yue with just fire alone!" Yue said as to which Li promptly pulled out another element talisman.


"Element...wind!" He started to chant, to which Yue then responded. "It's no use, i thought a direct descendant of clow reed would be more of a challenge." Li then decided to pull out the Time card to try and see if that would give him some sort of an advantage.


As the Time card landed near the roof, Li hit the Time card with the tip of his Jian. "Time!" He chanted.


But it was only after he looked up after Time card had frozen everything around him that Yue was not in front of him.


It was then that Yue's voice was heard from behind him. "Time is one of the cards under my protection" to which he then used Time's powers to freeze Li, and then followed up by speaking. "This is the end," Yue then said, to which the night was then filled by Li yelling.


It was then that Li reappeared on the ground in front of me and Sakura. As he woozily swooned back and forth, he gradually began to speak, "he took...all of my cards" he said.


"What, all of them?" Sakura exclaimed.


"Be careful Sakura, he is very powerful," he then turned to me and said "you too Zachary."


It was shortly after Li had told me and Sakura to be careful that Yue decided to speak. "It is now time to call upon the next candidates," to which both Sakura and I immediately felt another presence take over both of us to which we both faded out of view of everyone on the ground.


"Sakura, Zachary!" Madison exclaimed as she witnessed both of us fade out of existence.


It just seemed to go on forever as I stared off into nothing, waiting for everything around me to materialize again and for Sakura to reappear again beside me.


I just couldn't shake the feeling that something just wasn't right.


"I see we have a new player in the game," a disembodied voice called out from the void. I immediately perked up. "Who are you, show yourself!?" I said in a commanding tone.


"Oh come come now Cardcaptor, you know as well as I do that you don't belong here," the disembodied voice fired back.


"What are you talking about?!" I exclaimed.


"I know all, and I see all, I am everywhere, and also nowhere," The disembodied voice said.


"Oh, so you are basically God, is that what you are saying?" I asked half expecting the voice not to answer.


"Well, not exactly. Lets just say I am the keeper of this dimension and all who pass through it. Do you remember when you filled out that form Cardcaptor?" The disembodied voice asked.


"Vaguely, but yes, I remember," I said in response in a somewhat nervous tone.


"When you filled that form out and wound up in this dimension, you upset the balance between your dimension and this one, and the only way to compensate was to erase any trace of your former life in your dimension," the disembodied voice said with a hint of regret in its tone.


It was then that a look of utter shock and horror found it's way onto my face as I fell to my knees.


"You, you can't be serious right, you have to be lying!?" I said with utter disbelief and anger in my voice.


"I'm afraid it's true Cardcaptor, with every choice someone makes there must always be some sort of equal sacrifice. However, there is a way for you to fix this," the disembodied voice said.


It was then that I rose to my feet and stared off into the void once again. "And what would that be?" I asked half expecting not to hear the answer.


"I want you to throw the Final Judgement," the disembodied voice said.


It was at that moment that the feeling of reprieve welled up within me, like i knew that I actually had a chance to go back to my normal life. Every fiber of my being wanted to scream out yes. But then I remembered something, I remembered back to all of the fun I had had on my journey with Sakura and her friends while capturing the clow cards, and how much I would hate it if I let Sakura down if i deliberately didn't try my hardest to help both of us succeed. I then also remembered something else, by my own fruition i am competitive, I used to play a competitive trading card game back in my former life, and I always played in a very aggressive and competitive manner. This went against everything I was as a person in my former life when it came to being a competitive player for a full 16 years, and there was no way that I was going to go against that. There just had to be someway to go get my former life back without throwing the Final Judgment and risk losing everything me and Sakura worked so hard for. I knew I would think of something eventually, but right now I had to deal with the task at hand. It was then that a feeling of anger welled up inside me as then said into the void "Not going to happen, I don't care who you say you are, but I care enough about the friends I have made in this dimension to protect them and fight to the bitter end. So what if I don't belong here, you will just have to deal with the fact that I am here to stay. However, I will still think on your offer." "So be it fool, you may have the will to convince everyone else that you belong here, but you will always be an outcast to me!" The disembodied voice said in response. And with that everything got very bright. (a/n: and you may now stop listening to the song)


"Zachary, Zachary are you there, earth to Zachary," Sakura's voice called out to me as I slowly snapped out of my stupor. "Wha...what happened?" I exclaimed as my eyesight finally returned to normal. I then placed a free hand on the side of my head to try and take understanding of the current situation, to which I then slowly turned to Sakura with a quizzical look on my face. "You zoned out for a moment there, but be ready, you and I have a test to pass," Sakura said in response. "Oh...right," I said as I once again turned my attention towards Tokyo Tower.


"I now call upon the final candidates," Yue said. But as Sakura and myself prepared ourselves for what lay ahead, I couldn't help but remember what that disembodied voice had said to me in the void. But only time would tell as to whether or not I would do something that I was strongly against.


It had just been only seconds since I had snapped out of my stupor. However, it was only then that an idea had finally come to me that would hopefully not only help Sakura and me win the Final Judgement against Yue, but it would also allow me to get my former life back should I want to ever return home again. I then turned to Sakura and decided to ask her about what she thought of my idea. "If it is at all alright with you, I would prefer it if you took the lead and I follow you," I said in a somewhat confident and yet nervous tone of voice. "Okay sure, but I don't quite understand why you want me to lead Zachary," Sakura responded back to me in a somewhat confused tone of voice. "Oh trust me it will be fine," I said in a semi confident tone of voice. "I just hope for the sake of both of us that it works, for if it doesn't, I don't have a former life to go back to if i choose to return home," I thought to myself. It was only after I had finished my sentence and Sakura had agreed to my idea that Yue once again spoke up, which turned both of our attentions back across the way to Tokyo Tower, "In order for you both to be masters of the cards that you've captured, in order to pass judgment, you must use them, to defeat me" Yue said. It was then that Sakura decided to speak up "Defeat you, but Julian, no I won't!" To which I almost proceeded to look upon Sakura with a look of what almost said, "you've got to be kidding me right now, this is not the time to be deciding to play passive Sakura." Only to be interrupted from doing so by Yue gazing upon us both from afar with glowing blue eyes and saying the words "come here." Immediately afterwards, both me and Sakura's eyes glowed blue and then our pupils went blank, which was instantly followed by Sakura pulling out the Jump card. Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs and then hit the Jump card with the tips of our respective staffs. To which white wings appeared on the sides of both of our shoes. "We will...come...to you," we both said in a trance-like sounding tone of voice. "Sakura, Zachary!" Keroberos yelled out to us as me and Sakura, whilst still in our trance-like states then began to leap off the building we were on and then proceeded to leap from building to building on our way to Tokyo Tower.


It was only after Sakura and I had landed down on the roof at the mid-base of Tokyo Tower that we were then brought out of our trance-like state, well when i say landed down, I would say that we both landed face down. To which Yue then turned to us and then said, "and now, the Final Judgement will begin." However, while me and Sakura were getting back to our feet, Sakura was saying that she was still adamant on not defeating Yue since she was still concerned on hurting Julian. To which once I had gotten back to my feet as had Sakura that I then proceeded to say to Sakura that whether Yue was Julian or not, this was something with a lot at stake, but rather than worry her, i decided to keep it to myself until after this was all over and done with. But, all of the sudden, Yue decided to go on the offensive and deliver a upward strike on Sakura, followed swiftly by using the same tactic on me, sending the both of us backwards a good distance and nearly knocking us both off the edge of the tower. Yue then decided to follow up by using the same crystal shard attack that he had used on Li in their battle. But thankfully, right before that attack hit, Sakura and I both got to our feet, Sakura was able to pull out the Fly card, and we both were able to use it to then get away on our now respective winged staffs. But, as we both flew round a corner of the tower and out of sight of Yue, for the moment, Yue then came down from out of nowhere and came to rest on one of the parts of the tower. "You realize you two cannot defeat me, by simply running away," he said. In fact, it took only a few seconds before he then caught up with the both of us, conjured up crystal shards from one of his hands and then blew us both skyward. This was then followed by both me and Sakura getting pummeled upon by several more of Yue's attacks as the pain started to mount on the both of us.


Meanwhile on the ground, Li was starting to get restless watching both me and Sakura taking constant punishment from Yue, so much so that at that point, he couldn't bear to watch it any longer. "That's it!" he shouted as he proceeded to charge forward whilst brandishing one of his elemental talismans, only to be stopped by Keroberos. "No don't, if anyone attempts to help them Sakura and Zachary will lose the Final Judgment instantly," Keroberos said trying to stop Li from doing anything he might regret. "I can't just stand here and watch them get hurt," Li responded back in a very pained tone of voice. "Have faith, they are both stronger than they seem," Keroberos said to which he then followed up by saying, "they may soon get through to him yet."


Back atop Tokyo Tower, Yue had finally relented on his attacks against me and Sakura. But it was only after Sakura and I had once again gotten to our feet that Yue, once again, began to speak. "If neither of you are going to try, then the Judgment is already over," It was at that moment that Yue through his own magic, conjured up a blue aura crescent shape that resembled that of a bow. Yue then conjured up a long blue object that resembled what looked like an arrow, to which Yue then used his magic to pull the arrow back on the bow as if he was getting ready to fire it at us. "I've got to...think of something, I need to think of a card," Sakura said with her head down. I then turned to Sakura. "If you have any ideas I am listening, because right now, you're the leader, I am just the one following you in this," I said. It was then that Sakura pulled out the Wood card, to which Sakura and I then raised our respective staff. "Wood!" We chanted as we hit the Wood card at the same time with the tips of our respective staffs.

It had just been a split second or two after the tips of both Sakura and my respective staffs had hit the Wood card. It was then followed up by Keroberos shouting from the ground "No, not that one!" he shouted. For it was immediately after that the vines of the Wood card spirit began to emerge from the glowing card, shot forward, and almost made it to Yue, but right before they did, Yue fired the arrow that he had drawn back from his bow. The arrow then whizzed through the air before embedding itself in the ground right next to where Sakura and I were standing. A split second after that, the vines of the Wood card spirit retreated and began to make its way towards the both of us. Sakura made an attempt to start running, whilst I tried to take off right after her. But unfortunately before either of us could get more than two steps forward the vines from the Wood card spirit caught both of us by our legs, and then began to entrap us. Once it had encompassed the lower portion of both of our bodies, it then brought us both up off of the ground. Yue then came to rest on one of the many vines of the Wood card spirit. "Wood is one of the cards controlled by the Moon, the rightful candidates would've known that," Yue said. "The Judgement is over, the Clow Cards require a stronger master than the two of you," Yue continued. "So, we lost, but what will happen to them?" Sakura asked. "Without a master, the cards will be unsealed once again," Yue said. "Please, let us try again, we can do it," I said in a confident tone of voice. "That is impossible," Yue said in response, to which both Sakura and I stared back with very shocked looks on our faces. "It is forbidden for a candidate to take the Final Judgment twice, to ensure that this didn't happen, Clow Reed decreed that anyone having anything to do with the Clow Cards, would forget this chapter in their lives, forever..." Yue said.


Back on the ground, Li decided to chime in. "What is he talking about?" Li asked. "If Sakura and Zachary lose, everyone will forget everything that happened since the seal on the book was broken, even the cards. Clow Reed didn't want anyone to suffer, the bonds we all made would be painful to lose, especially for Sakura, Zachary and the Clow Cards, they care the most for those who sealed them, It will be as if none of this ever existed for any of you," Keroberos said.


"Everyone will forget, even us," I thought to myself. "Neither of us will remember Kero or the cards," Sakura thought to herself. But it was only after both of us thought about it for a second or two that neither one of us was going to let that happen, and we were going to continue to fight. It was then that Sakura and I started to struggle with the vines that bound us. "We can't let that happen," I said, as my right hand holding my staff moved for a moment as I struggled for a moment to try and get free, which immediately caught Yue's attention. "LET...US...GOOOOO!" Sakura yelled as the both of us charged forward with all of our might whilst still very much bound by the vines that entrapped us. "I see you have a determined spirit Sakura and Zachary," Yue said as the vines now started to get tighter and began to further entrap the both of us. "However, I am not as sentimental as Keroberos," Yue continued as the vines still continued to circle and entrap me and Sakura. "The only one I answer to is Clow Reed himself," Yue continued to say.

Back on the ground, Li could only look on in shock as the vines of the Wood card continued to entrap me and Sakura. It was then that Li yelled no at the top of his lungs as if that would somehow change what was currently transpiring right in front of him. However nothing would change what was currently now set in motion by the hands of fate.

Back near the top of Tokyo Tower, the vines from the Wood card were just about to completely entrap Sakura and I, but not before Sakura and I had one final thought each. "Julian, its too late, we're all going too...forget!" Sakura said as she blacked out. "I'm sorry Sakura, I'm so sorry, I tried my best, but I guess in the end, it just wasn't enough to protect you. At least I leave this dimension, and am now heading home knowing that I tried my hardest to protect you," I said, as a tear welled up from my left eye and started to find its way down the left cheek of my face as I then too blacked out. Or was I?


Once again, as I opened my eyes, I found myself staring off into nothing. But this didn't make any sense, I should've been back in my room back in my dimension just waking up from the previous night. "I've got to admit Cardcaptor you're very clever" An all too familiar disembodied voice once again began to ring out from the dark abyss. "I thought we were done with this already, I did as you asked, I had Sakura lead during the Final Judgment, I only followed her moves, so technically, I wasn't throwing the Final Judgment, and yet at the same time, I was," I said as a smirk found it's way onto my face. "I know Cardcaptor, that is why I admitted to you being very clever," the disembodied voice responded back in a semi sarcastic tone. "Oh, okay then...so about me going back home to my dimension..." I began saying. "Yes, what about it?" the disembodied voice asked in a quizzical sounding tone of voice. "If it is alright with you, I would like to head back to Sakura and her friends, I owe it to them to protect Sakura since fate put me as her brother," I said in a somewhat confident tone of voice. "I'm afraid that that is no longer an option, since you lost the Final Judgement, as did she," the disembodied voice said in response.


It was then at that moment, that I heard a noise echo through my head, that sounded like the chiming of a bell. I then saw a vision of a womanly arm holding a familiar metallic object that looked antique in nature. It was not even a second after that, that the world around me once again got very very bright. But not before I said one last thing as did the disembodied voice "I guess we will have just to see about then won't we?" I said. "Just remember Cardcaptor, there will come a time when you will wish you headed back to your dimension when you had the chance," the disembodied voice said, as my vision blurred and I then blacked out.


Back atop Tokyo Tower, it was only a minute or so after the vines from the Wood card spirit had completely covered and entrapped Sakura and I that the vines then were loosened completely, and then flew out in a circular motion in all directions, leaving the both of us free. "Impossible!" Yue exclaimed as he was taken aback by Sakura and I's sudden escape from entanglement from the Wood card's vines. And once Sakura and I had landed back on the mid-base of Tokyo Tower that the both of us realized exactly why we had been set free. Standing on the mid-base of the tower just in front of us, was Ms. Mackenzie, wielding the exact same metallic antique that I had seen in my vision. "Ms. Mackenzie!" Sakura exclaimed. "Fancy meeting you here," I followed up with. "You two did it, welcome back Sakura and Zachary," Ms. Mackenzie said. Immediately after that the metallic antique like object disappeared. "The Bell!" Sakura exclaimed once it had vanished from view. "It disappeared because it fulfilled its purpose, you two will not be able to begin again," Ms. Mackenzie said.


It was then that I turned to Sakura and decided that it was finally time to finish this. I then turned my attention to Sakura. "Sakura, you still have the lead, so it is your decision on how we proceed here," I said. We both then turned out attention to Yue. "The clow cards brought us all together, neither myself or Zachary are going to let you take that away," Sakura said in a very confident tone of voice. Sakura then turned to me and just said the words, "repeat after me, and do what I do." As she then raised her respective staff above and in front of her, to which I did the same shortly after as we both chanted in unison together, "Oh staff of clow, guide my actions now!" To which both of our respective staffs responded by having their respective eyes shine blindingly bright. So bright in fact that they took everyone on the ground and even Yue by complete surprise. "Okay Sakura and Zachary, raise the seal!" Ms. Mackenzie said from behind us. Without having to think about it even once, both Sakura and I raised our respective staffs above our heads, to which they shined even more blindingly bright. Unbeknownst to us, shooting stars, or what looked like them now started to shoot across the sky in rapid succession. "They're returning to them," Yue said. "They've chosen Sakura and Zachary" Ms. Mackenzie said. "RELEASE!" Me and Sakura yelled in unison as the light then began to shine even brighter. Once the light had faded, both Sakura and my staffs looked completely different from when the light had first shone. Apart from both still being our respective colors, both now had a ring on top rather than a bird head with a golden star in the middle, a white wing was present on each side of the ring.


Back on the ground, Keroberos stared on in awe at the transformation that both me and Sakura's staffs had just gone through. "The staffs, they changed," he said.


Back atop Tokyo Tower, Sakura knew next what had to be done, Sakura pulled out the Windy card, turned to me, to which I nodded. Sakura then threw the Windy card up into the air. And as it spun end over end, Sakura and I began to chant "Windy card, form a cage and trap Yue, WINDY!" We chanted in unison as we raised our respective newly transformed staffs towards the spinning Windy card, only to have them both stop a single inch from it, causing the card to stop spinning end over end. A split second later, the Windy card spirit shot forward from the card and began making its way towards Yue. Yue then looked upon the Windy card spirit "The Windy card...it could never..." Yue never was able to finish his sentence before the Windy card spirit began to encircle and entrap him and form a protective sphere around him. The sphere then began to make its way toward the mid-base of the tower right to where Sakura and I were standing. It was once the sphere containing Yue had touched down on the mid-base of the tower that Sakura started to speak "We couldn't quit, we'd miss everybody too much, my dad told me that you can keep someone close to your heart forever, as long as you remember," she said as she made her way over to Yue followed a split second later by me. "That's why I couldn't have you have us forget, Sakura and I are no Clow Reed, but we do know how important friends are, and we will give it our best shot," I continued off of Sakura in a somewhat confident and still nervous tone of voice.


It was once we had made our way over to where Yue was that the sphere encapsulating him that vanished completely and I outstretched my hand to Yue, while Sakura did the same. "For you see, we don't want to be your master Yue, we want to be your friend," Sakura continued off of me in a kindhearted tone of voice. It was then that Yue stood up and told the both of us to close our eyes, to which we obliged. Yue then stretched his wings out and said, "The Final Judgement is over, I Yue, recognize Sakura and Zachary, as the new masters." To which the scenery around us faded away and was then replaced by a starry one.


It seemed to last forever as Sakura and I floated in place with our respective staffs at our chests and our eyes closed. It was then that a figure approached us to which Sakura and I then opened our eyes, and floated to the ground. It was when Sakura and I had touched the ground completely and had gazed upon the figure more closely that Sakura immediately realized who it was, I then realized shortly after. "You're..." Sakura started to say. "So we finally meet, I've been watching you both personally, the cards need a strong master, but they also need a person with a strong heart. That is where both of your strengths lie, Keroberos and Yue, have chosen well," the figure said. "You must be...Clow Reed!" I said. "So did you give me and Sakura the new staffs?" I asked. "No you made them all on your own, your staffs are not ruled by the power of the sun or the moon, but by the power of your very own stars, take care of your powers, your stars are tiny lights now, but they burn bright, and they will always light your way," Clow Reed said in response as both Sakura and I once again rose up off the ground and once again closed our eyes. And then everything then went black.


It was only after Sakura and I had touched the ground after everything had gone black that I had just realized what had happened. I had not only become the master of the clow cards, as had Sakura. But upon doing so I had taken away whatever chance I had left of returning to my former life back in my dimension. However, I didn't really see that as such a bad thing. Before I could dwell on that for another second, I heard a familiar voice calling Sakura and my names. It was then that we both turned around to see Li and Madison running towards us from the distance. "We did it!" Sakura yelled. "You bet we did!" I chimed in. But it was as the four of us congregated together that I then felt a bad feeling hit me. But rather than act on it, I pushed it to the side and continued to congratulate Sakura and myself on a job well done. However, that bad feeling I had just felt was only a stepping stone for what was to come.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 52: The New Transfer Student!: Unlocking The Keys!

Although only a few months had passed since both Sakura and I had been declared masters of the clow cards. Things had returned to normal. Well, as normal as they could've gotten. In me and Sakura's bedroom, Kero was looking out the window, Sakura was at our desk doing something, and I was on my bed sitting down cross-legged, looking ahead in deep thought. And yet, I still was having trouble getting over that bad feeling that I had felt back several months ago. It was almost as if it was a warning, telling me to be ready for what was to come. "What a beautiful morning it is," Kero said. "So how does it feel to be the masters of the clow cards, champs, any different!?" Kero said as he turned towards Sakura and then to me while I still sat on my bed. "No, not really," I said as I turned to Kero with my response. "I just wish there was a clow card that could've done my summer homework for me," Sakura said. "I don't think clow reed created one Sakura," I said knowing that she was joking. "I guess you're right on that one Zachary," Sakura said in response.

A considerable time later, Sakura and I had sensed a presence at Penguin Park. And so, the both of us, along with Madison, Kero, and Yue, went off to investigate. "Well, we've captured all of the clow cards, so what could be behind this?" Sakura asked to no one in particular. "I think you have to remember Sakura that the world of magic is always changing, and that even though all of the clow cards are now captured, that isn't going to be the only thing that winds up being what we face," I said in response to what she had asked. But as soon as I had finished my sentence. Huge vortexes of water shot up from the ground. "Where did those come from?!" I thought to myself. And it was then that I somehow knew that a whole new slew of problems was about to rear its ugly head. It was then that I decided to pull out my key, followed quickly thereafter by Sakura doing the same, "key of clow, power of magic, power of light, surrender the wand, the force ignite, RELEASE!" we chanted in unison, only this time nothing happened. "Release!" we said again, but again nothing. We then proceeded to try a couple more times only to be met with the same result. "This is really bad, how are either of us going to use the clow cards when neither of our keys are responding to our chants?" I thought to myself.

After a bit of a struggle with the water vortexes, and a stunning realization that neither myself or Sakura's respective keys were responding to our original chants. It became more and more obvious to the both of us that when and if those vortexes showed up again, neither of us would be able to defend ourselves, and on top of that we also would be unable to use the clow cards to protect everyone as well as ourselves. "This is extremely bad, if neither myself or Sakura can get our keys to respond before those vortexes reappear again, whenever that may be, then this could very well be the end for not just the both of us, but everyone that we hold dear," I thought to myself as we set off on our way home with everyone else. Not aware that I was ultimately right, this was now literally a case of sink, or swim.

It had been one harrowing week of events, this was largely due to the fact that at school, a new student had joined our class by the name of Eli Moon. At Tori and Julian's school, a new student had joined by the name of Ruby. To make things a bit more complicated, Eli had decided to befriend Sakura. Li had mixed feelings about it, while I was completely nervous about the whole thing, seeing as how Eli Moon was one of the characters that I knew nothing about when I had watched the show back in my world. The only thing I could do unfortunately, like Li, was stay cautious and keep my wits about me.

It had only been a day or two after our first encounter with the water vortexes, and ever since then a freak amount of rain had been falling over the town. And yet still, it showed no signs of letting up. A short time later, me and Sakura once again sensed the same presence at Penguin Park, and just like before we both went to investigate along with everyone else. Only this time, both of us knew, that if neither of us could get our keys to work, then we would be in serious trouble.

A short time after we had arrived at Penguin Park, the same water vortexes from before showed up again. And, just like before, me and Sakura pulled out our respective keys. "Key of clow, power of magic, power of light, surrender the wand, the force ignite, RELEASE!" We chanted, but just like before, nothing happened. We then proceeded to say release several more times with the same result. It was then that the water vortexes began to move and chase after everyone. Keroberos told Yue to take both me and Sakura and get us someplace safe before he was swallowed up by one of the vortexes. Yue did try his best to keep the both of us safe, but it was only a matter of time before he too was swallowed up by one of the vortexes. A vortex then came and swallowed both me and Sakura up as well. It was then that I noticed that everyone, including Madison, had been encased by a vortex. "We have to do something, otherwise they'll drown," I said. "We can't let that happen," Sakura said as she took her key, clutched it in her right hand, looked at me, who with some hesitation nodded, and followed suit. "We won't!" Sakura said as two gold circles showed up right behind the both of us, but rather than the original seal of clow, both had a star in the middle and a sun on one side of the circle and a moon on the other. "That's it, we've been calling out the wrong words!" Sakura said. "I figured there was something amiss when neither key was responding to our original chants," I said, realizing it as well.

It was then that Sakura put her arms out in front her with one hand on top of the other both in a open fist. Taking her example, and with a hint of hesitation, I followed shortly after, "Oh key of the star, with powers burning bright, reveal the staff, and shine your light, RELEASE!" We chanted in unison as both of our respective staffs appeared in a gold flash of light in between our hands. Which once they did, we were both set free from the vortex. Sakura then pulled out a card, turned to me, to which I nodded, still with a hint of nervousness and still with some hesitation, only to realize that when Sakura threw the card up in the air and before we even had a chance to even hit the card, it floated back down again. "Hold on, why wont it work?" I thought to myself. It was then that Sakura looked at her staff and said, "If the staffs have changed, then maybe the cards need to change too." It was then that Sakura threw the card up into the air, and as the clow card spun, we both raised our respective staffs "We call upon the powers of our stars, ancient forces near and far, clow card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, Star Card!" We chanted. The clow card then stopped spinning, to which it changed from its original color to being blue on the front and pink on the back. A split second later the Fire Card spirit emerged form the newly transformed card and evaporated all of the water vortexes, freeing everyone. It was then that I somehow knew, that this was the start of something truly special. And yet, I still nervous, knowing full well that this was still unknown territory that I was venturing into. But, at least now both me and Sakura could finally use our respective staffs to defend ourselves, and also use the clow cards to defend ourselves, as well as everyone else.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 53: The Dangerous Piano!: A Dangerous Encounter!

Despite both Sakura and myself holding our own in the battle with the vortexes and turning the fire card into our first star card. It was not made aware to either of us that this would ultimately have a downside to it that would wind up cascading into today.

It was just after both Kero and Yue came to our side that both Sakura and I collapsed. "The card is drawing its power from their stars now" Keroberos said.

Both Sakura and I lay in our respective beds, both exhausted from the night before. But, as I lay there, I couldn't help but shake the feeling that this was only just the beginning. It was a minute or so later that the clow book on our desk began to glow, and an all too familiar voice spoke to both of us. "From this point forward the clow book shall bear both of your names" it said as the light from the clow book faded. The book now had both of our names on it, the left side was pink and the right side was blue, and the same symbol that was now on the star cards now adorned the back of the book as well as the front.

It had not been that long since the music rooms piano had suddenly come to life, and began chasing after, Madison, Sakura and I. But a short time later, both Sakura and I found ourselves on the roof with the piano. It was then that Sakura had an idea. To which she then pulled out the Song card. I recognized what Sakura wanted to do instantly, so we both raised our respective staffs as the song card spun "we call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, song card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, Star Card!" we chanted in unison. A split second later the card stopped spinning and once again displayed the same color on the front and on the back, like that of the fire card, along with the new symbol. And shortly after that, the song card spirit appeared. And as the piano crept slowly towards the edge of the roof, the song card spirit continued to sing in am effort to guide it off. Which of course, it did. And with that, the threat was taken care of as the piano fell from the roof and broke into many pieces when it hit the ground. But even though we had both avoided certain danger and possible injury. I just knew that things weren't going to get any easier anytime soon.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 54: The Threads That Bind!: The Threads Of Fate That Bind Us All!

Things had returned to normal, at least for the moment since the incident with the piano. However, it was becoming more and more obvious that the presence that Sakura, myself and Li were sensing at each of these incidences, resembled a lot like Clow Reed, which didn't make any sense since he had been dead for centuries.

After Chelsea had revealed to both Sakura and myself of a teddy bear kit that she had bought and built from the towns craft store, Sakura decided to go and buy one for herself, and, after some convincing from her, I decided to buy myself one as well. At the towns craft store, Sakura and myself were joined by Eli, who at the time was buying a lot of balls of string. And yet, neither of us thought of this as the slightest bit strange.

It was a short time later, that both Sakura and myself decided to meet up with Li and Madison in the town square. However, after we had all met up and started conversing, Sakura, myself and Li, once again began to feel the presence of Clow Reed. It was then that Li's body began to move of its own accord, to which he used his jian and went after sakura first, then after me, this continued on for a considerable amount of time, until Li decided to use his water element talisman to expose the fact that a huge amount of strings was causing him to do this. It was then that Sakura and I knew exactly what had to be done. We then pulled out our respective keys, "Oh key of the star, with powers burning bright, reveal the staff, and shine your light, Release!" Sakura and I chanted in unison. And, with our respective staffs now in hand, I then pulled out the sword card. I then threw the Sword card up into the air, "We call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, sword card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, Star card!" Sakura and I chanted in unison as both of our respective staffs were then changed to swords in a flash of light. We then used our swords to cut through the strings that bound Li. However, neither of us would know it yet, but off somewhere else, an all too familiar kid was watching us, and he knew that until the final test, neither Sakura, myself or Li must find out who he truly is.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 55: An Attack Of The Teddy Bears!: Of Swords And Flight!

Things had once again returned to normal since yesterday. And, in the schools courtyard, both me and Sakura were currently hard at work putting together both of our teddy bears from the kits that we had both purchased at the craft store the night before. "There, finished!" Sakura said as she took a scissor and cut a loose thread away from her now completed teddy bear. "Well done Sakura," I said, as I too completed my work on my bear. However, it seemed that my congrats were a bit premature as Sakura seemed to not be happy with how her bear had turned out "No matter how many times I do this it always seems to look like Kero," Sakura said. It was then that I took a look at my bear, only to realize that the same was the case for my bear as well. "It appears that we both have had similar issues with this haven't we?" I said as a sweatdrop found its way down the back of my head. A short time after Sakura had gone back to work on writing a letter that she was intending to send out to Ms. Mackenzie that Eli happened to venture over to us. And still not knowing any information about him, I remained somewhat on edge, but decided to pass all of that to the side for the time being. It was when Eli noticed both of our bears, realizing that we had gotten them at the craft shop, that he then asked to see both of them. With hesitation from both me and Sakura at first, we gave both bears to him. And after Eli suggested that the ears of our bears needed to be a little bit shorter. Me and Sakura reached into our respective bags to pull out our scissors. But, as our attention was focused on doing that, we weren't able to see Eli enchant one ear of each of our bears before he handed them both back to us.

Later that night, just outside of Julian's house, me and Sakura were once again dressed up into another one of Madison's costume ensembles. Except, this wasn't to capture a clow card. It was to visit Julian. "This is so embarrassing, why do we have to wear one of your costumes to go to Julian's house?" Sakura said looking very embarrassed. "You think I wanted this either Sakura, I'm no less embarrassed in this situation then you are right now," I said also feeling just as embarrassed.

Things had very quickly just gone off the rails. Both me and Sakura were in the process of handing our respective teddy bears over to Julian when all of the sudden both of our respective teddy bears grew to an enormous size. And to make matters worse, Madison was now in grave danger, me and Sakura would now have to act fast to deal with the current situation. I knew that the solution to this problem required both the use of the Sword Card and the Fly Card. However, when I had told my idea to Sakura, that was when the fundamental flaw to the solution immediately became apparent. So, to explain the situation to all of you a bit further and more in depth, this is how things currently stood, we couldn't use the Sword Card and the Fly Card simultaneously because both required the use of our staffs to be in different forms. It was then that Sakura put the Fly Card to her chest. And it was then that I somehow knew deep down that things were going to turn out just fine. I then pulled out the Sword Card, I then turned to Sakura, who nodded. I then threw the Sword Card into the air as Sakura did the same with the Fly Card. "We call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, Fly Card discard your former might, and draw your power from our might, Star Card!" we chanted in unison. And just like all the times before, the two cards stopped spinning and the Fly Card now displayed its new design and colors on the front and back. And a split second after that, rather than have our staffs grow the wings like they did when we used the Fly Card, they instead appeared on our backs like that of an angel. "Sword!" We both followed up by chanting in unison. Our respective staffs then transformed into swords, and with our transformations now complete, we spread our new wings and took off upwards towards our respective teddy bears heads. And after dodging a couple swipes from both of them, Sakura and I charged through the air with our respective swords drawn back in a thrusting strike. And as we both passed by our respective bears ears, our respective swords sliced through the ears that held the enchantments like a knife through butter. And once the both of us touched down on the ground again. We knew that we had both done a great job in finding a solution and executing it in a flawless manner. We only hoped that any further situation that presented itself in the future would only go as smooth.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 56: Trouble At The Park!: Taking Counting Sheep Literally!

It was another normal day at school as Li, Madison, Sakura and I sat outside in the school courtyard. Well, not exactly since Sakura and I had almost passed out during class and Li had had to catch the both of us from almost falling out of our seats. But, it was while we were both zoning out that we both had a vision of us both dressed in what appeared to be another one of Madison's battle costume ensembles, only we were in a field, followed by us running down a hallway. And, as we passed one of the doors, we both stopped and took a look inside, only to be greeted by the familiar forms of both Keroberos and Yue, who appeared to be facing towards a large chair near the center of the room. And after that our vision ended. Back to our conversation in the courtyard, Sakura and I were explaining to Li and Madison about last night and how Keroberos and Yue had been unable to turn back into their borrowed forms. But thankfully, we were able to transform the Shield Card into a star card and use it to solve the problem. And earlier that night we had transformed the Bubbles card also.

It was later that night, after getting a call from Li to come to Penguin Park to investigate something strong that he had sensed. And, once again, both Sakura and I were dressed up in another one of Madison's battle costume ensembles. And to tell you the truth, we were both very thankful that no one else was at the park besides, Sakura, myself, Li, Madison and Kero, because both Sakura and I felt somewhat embarrassed to be wearing them. "I am sure glad no one else can see either of us in these outfits because i gotta tell ya, i am not loving this" I thought to myself knowing that Sakura more than likely felt the same way. But putting those feelings aside for the moment, we all took off running towards the penguin park slide after Li, Sakura and I had sensed that the source of the magic force was coming from there, with Sakura and I in the lead. And, it didn't even take a second for Sakura and I to notice the giant hole that was in the ground near the penguin park slide. And once both Sakura and I had determined that it was in fact clow reeds magic coming from the hole in the ground. Both Sakura and I then pulled out our respective keys "key of the star, with powers burning bright, reveal the staff, and shine your light, Release!" we chanted in unison. With our respective staffs now in hand, I then pulled out the Fly card, and without a second of hesitation, threw it into the air as both Sakura and I then raised our respective staffs shortly thereafter, "FLY!" we both chanted in unison, and just like before, a pair of wings sprouted from our backs like those of an angel. And with one last turn to one another and a nod of determination to each other, both Sakura and I took off and dove down into the hole.

It was when we made it to the bottom of the hole and the wings on our backs vanished, that things started to get somewhat strange. Not only was the magical force stronger down there, but up top, it was quickly becoming apparent that something was tragically wrong. Kero, after he had seen Sakura and I disappear into the hole, decided to try and join us. However, when he tried to do so, he was instantly stopped by an invisible force field. Li then tried to use one of his lightning elemental talismans to try and break the forcefield, however not only did he fail to do so, he also nearly wound up hurting kero as well. Kero then decided to transform into his true form and fire a ball of fire at the forcefield, but like Li, it had no effect. And unbeknownst to all of us, in a cluster of trees near the park, we were being watched by 3 individuals. "Oh my, that boy sure tries his hardest doesn't he?" one of them said as she watched Li desperately pound on the force field. "He may as well give up, he will never break through a spell that strong" another one of them said. "His determination definitely is one of his best qualities" an all too familiar individual of the three said.

Meanwhile, back in the bottom of the hole, Sakura and I were now in a very dire situation. As in, we were now being crushed by hundreds of stuffed sheep. And Sakura and I now had to quickly think of a card to get us out of this mess. Sakura suggested both the Water and the Fire cards, but I ultimately dismissed them since the Water card would only fill the hole up, and the Fire card would wind up burning us. I then suggested the Erase card to Sakura, since not only would it get rid of the sheep, but we also would not have the risk of getting burned in the process. Sakura agreed to my idea, to which she then pulled out the Erase card. And once she had thrown it up into the air, we then raised our respective staffs "we call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, Erase card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, Star Card!" we chanted in unison. And once the Erase card had stopped spinning and showed the new colors design and symbol on the front and back, the Erase card spirit appeared and began taking care of all of the stuffed sheep. And once that had been done, I once again pulled out the Fly card, turned to Sakura, who nodded in response, to which I threw the Fly card up into the air and we then both raised our respective staffs. "FLY" we once again chanted in unison, and just like before, the all too familiar wings sprouted from our backs, and we took off skyward towards the top of the hole and back towards our friends.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 57: Running Out Of Time!: Me And Sakura Make A Rash Decision!

Things had once again returned to normal, and both Sakura and I were taking the time to tidy up the yard on the side of the house. And unfortunately, both Sakura and I were still feeling exhausted from the fact that the more clow cards that we seemed to transform into star cards, the more energy we seemed to lose. This became abundantly apparent that as both Sakura and I were sweeping a part of the yard, we both started to waiver slightly, and we would've almost toppled over, had we both not used our respective brooms as leverage to sturdy ourselves. A short time later, Eli stopped by and offered to help. Like before, I was still on edge when it came to him, but yet again i chose to put that aside for the moment. However, while Sakura and I were busy doing other things around the yard after Eli had offered to move Tori's bike, neither of us were able to see Eli place his hand over the seat of Tori's bike and enchant it.

Later that night, with Kero also being in the room, Sakura and I came in and then collapsed on our respective beds. We then decided to take a look at the star and clow cards that were presiding in the transformed clow book that had our respective names on it. However, when Sakura went and touched the clow cards after the star cards had been removed from the book, as did I, we both noticed that they both felt cold and distant. Kero explained that because the star cards were drawing their powers from us, the clow cards as a result were now starting to lose their magic over time. Sakura asked Kero what could happen if the clow cards lost all of their magic. Kero then went on to say that those cards spirits would be set free and would cause all kinds of havoc. Knowing Sakura all too well, I knew that she wasn't going to be taking what Kero had said lightly. "We need to do something before their powers fade completely Zachary!" Sakura said as she turned to me with an expression of despair on her face. "I understand that Sakura, but we can't just go and make rash decisions!" I said in response. Unfortunately, my response to Sakura may as well have fell on deaf ears, as she decided at that very moment to go and hastily pull out her key. And not wanting to challenge her actions, seeing as how I didn't even attempt to do this back when we were capturing the Snow card (a/n: see chapter 40). When Sakura had had her watch, which had been given to her as a present, ripped from her wrist and had gotten very mad as a result. I decided at that point to follow suit, as I too pulled out my respective key. Because, when it came to Sakura, and her wanting to do something, it was very difficult for me to want to challenge her actions if she was this set on really doing something and instead just tell her no. "Key of the star, with power burning bright, reveal the staff, and shine your light, Release!" we chanted in unison. I then with a thought of knowing that this wouldn't end well, threw several of the untransformed clow cards up into the air, to which they then spread out into a circle around me and Sakura. With both of our transformed staffs now in hand, we proceeded to point each of our respective staffs at each of the cards, saying each corresponding name, and transforming them into a star card. However, when we got to the Dash card, both of us had almost exhausted all of our magic, and not only did it not change over to a star card, but it then went rogue, escaped out the window, possessed Tori's bike, and then took off into the night.

A little bit later after the rogue dash card spirit took control over Tori's bike and took off into the night. Kero, Sakura and I had taken off after it, and while on the way, Kero had scolded the both of us for making such a brash decision when it came to transforming all of those clow cards into star cards in rapid succession. Well, he had scolded Sakura for making the decision, and me more for not willing to challenge her actions or the decision to go through with it. It was then that I suggested using the Loop card to trap the rogue Dash card in a continuous loop so that we both could give ourselves a better chance of catching it. Once Sakura agreed to my idea, I pulled out the Loop card, threw it up into the air and then Sakura and I raised our respective staffs, "we call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, Loop card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, star card!" we chanted in unison. And once the Loop card stopped spinning, and had taken on the symbol and design like all of the other transformed star cards, a familiar line appeared on the street. And once Tori's bike that had been possessed by the rogue dash card spirit passed over that line, it was trapped in a continuous loop. And after a few more tries, Sakura and I managed to catch it. After the Dash card spirit escaped from Tori's bike and struggled for a few seconds in Sakura's embrace, Sakura and I comforted it, allowing it to calm down. And once that had been done, we transformed it into a star card like the others. And while this had been a long and harrowing chase, deep down, the both of us somehow knew that we still had a long way to go. But, after a discussion with Kero, we decided that we were only going to transform the clow cards into star cards at least one at a time when the time seemed appropriate, rather than making a rash decision like this again.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 58: A Calendar Of Memories!: Making Eternal Memories!

A few days had passed since the incident involving Sakura and I had had our rash decision incident involving turning several of the clow cards into star cards in rapid succession, and our chase with the rogue Dash Card spirit. But that was now the last thing on both of our minds. After Mr. Avalon had given us our mother's old calendar. And we had both learned about our great-grandfather (the two had previously met, though we both had remained unaware of his identity) and how he had disapproved of his granddaughter's marriage to Mr. Avalon. Hoping to set things a bit better, Sakura and I wound up hand making a gift, and we both wound up using the Flower card to decorate it, along with a letter about how happy our mother was. Madison's mother wound up delivering it to him, and he wound up making peace with Mr. Avalon. And as a thank-you present, Sakura wound up receiving our mother's old dress from our great-grandfather, which our mother had worn when she had unknowingly met him.

 

[zachycards]

Chapter 59: Stuck In A Fairy Tale!: Me And Sakura In Wonderland!

It was two days after the incident with the rogue dash card. And during those two days, Sakura and I went to visit her grandfather, after we were told to bring him a card as a gift. And the short and sweet of was that Sakura and I wound up transforming the Flower Card into a star card to help us with decorating the card. And while Sakura and I were still asleep in our respective beds in our room, we were both once again having the same dream that we both had had a couple days ago in class. The exact same dream that caused both of us to almost fall out of our seats at our desks at school had Li not jumped in and stopped us from hitting the floor of the classroom. It was after Sakura and I finally woke up after our dream had ended that Sakura hopped out of bed, and then proceeded to put on her school uniform in preparation to go to the school. After she was done putting on her school uniform, I then proceeded to put on my school uniform as well. And with both of us now dressed, and with a quick look to Kero, who was still sound asleep in one of our desks drawers. We headed downstairs, with me just behind Sakura, put on our respective roller blades, and took off down the street towards the school.

It was a little bit later in the day, and Sakura and I were busy on one of the school courtyard's many benches reading a book called "Alice In Wonderland", well, Sakura was the one holding the book, while I was sitting right beside her, as the both of us silently read the book. It was while we were both reading the book that Eli turned up and offered a leaf that we could both use as a bookmark to keep our spot in the book. And like every other time, I was still on edge when it came to trusting Eli. But, since Sakura didn't seem to have a problem with him, I decided that for the time being, to trust him, even though I was still a little on edge. However, that leaf that Eli had offered the both of us, had been enchanted by him, while the both of us had had our heads down at the book while we had been reading. After a little conversation in which Sakura said that wonderland seemed like an interesting place and that like a place that both her and I would like to visit, Eli interjected by saying that we might be visiting it real soon. Neither Sakura or I knew what he meant by that, so we both decided to pass over what he had said. But, we would never know, that his words weren't anything to be taken lightly.

A short time later, at the school library. Li was busy studying a book in Japanese in order to challenge himself, Eli was studying off of a copy of the exact same book as Li, and Madison, Sakura and I sat at one of the nearby tables. And after a conversation between the five of us, and after Li and Eli went off to put their books back, Sakura and I went to touch the leaf that was being used in the Alice In Wonderland book as a bookmark. However, as soon as we both touched it, it began glowing red, and before each of us knew what was going on, we were both sucked into the book, and out of sight of Madison. "Sakura, Zachary!" Madison yelled as the pages in the book flipped by rapidly until the book closed completely. It was when Li came over and Madison explained the situation to him that Li reacted just how anyone with magical powers would react if his two best friends were suddenly sucked into a book, he asked Madison that we did what, and then proceeded to use his magic to scan the book, "A very powerful spell has been put on this book" Li said. But despite Madison's helpless yell and Li's discovery of the spell, neither of them could help us. Because whether we liked it or not, we were now stuck in a fairy tale.

It was after some time had passed and after some running around by both Sakura and I. Which wasn't the most not embarrassing thing since both of us looked quite ridiculous in the outfits we were put in when we wound up in the book. Sakura was in a pink outfit with a tutu black stockings, and red shoes. Whereas I had on a similar outfit, except no tutu, my shoes were blue, I had long blue socks, and I had a light blue outfit on top. And after running into a lot of the book's many characters, who for some reason resembled most of our friends, we decided to try and use some of the clow cards that we hadn't transformed yet to our advantage. Both Sakura and I then pulled out our respective keys "key of the star, with power burning bright, reveal the staff, and shine your light, release!" we chanted in unison. And with our respective staffs now in hand, I pulled out the Big card, threw it up into the air, and as the card spun in the air, Sakura and I raised our respective staffs, "we call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, Big card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, star card!" we chanted in unison. It was then that the Big card stopped spinning and displayed the symbol and design and colors on the front and back just like all of the star cards that we had transformed previously, and almost immediately Sakura and I started to grow, and we didn't stop growing until we were both 50ft tall. It was when we had stopped growing that we both had realized our mistake "Now we're too big!" Sakura yelled with enough force that it cause all of the grass and trees i the vicinity to be blown back. "Sakura, you need to stay calm and focus, I need us both at our best if we are going to find a way out of here" I said in a low enough tone of voice so that Sakura could hear me, and also so that it wouldn't generate a shock wave like Sakura had done. "Thanks Zachary, I needed that" Sakura said. "You're welcome Sakura" I said with a reassuring smile. It was then that I had the idea to use the Little card to reduce our size. So, without saying a word, I pulled out the Little card, turned to Sakura, who nodded meaning that she understood exactly what I was planning to do, and once I had thrown the Little card up into the air, we then once again raised our respective staffs, "we call upon the power of our stars, ancient forces near and far, Little card discard your former might, and draw your power from our light, star card!" we chanted in unison.

A little later on, after Sakura and I had transformed the Big and Little cards into star cards, we happened upon a giant board game that was being played by two familiar individuals. The first one we both recognized immediately as Madison, although she introduced herself as another character from the book, and on the other end of the board was none other than what looked like Kero. But, when Sakura and I went over to him and proceeded to call his name, it became very apparent that this wasn't Kero. He proclaimed himself to be the Queen Of Hearts, to which he then transformed into Kero's true form and then proceeded to chase after Sakura and I. Luckily, during the chase, I had pulled out the Fly card, to which both of us had then used it to take off skyward and back towards the leaf bookmark that we had recently noticed had appeared in the sky.

It was right after Sakura and I had made it out of the book, that Li and Madison breathed a sigh of relief. And after Li and Madison hugged the both of us. Well, technically Madison hugged both of us, Li hugged me, whilst he was a bit hesitant to hug Sakura for some reason, so he wound up not doing so. And whilst all four of us reminisced about Sakura and I's wild journey inside of the book, all of us knew that whatever or whoever was doing all of this was going to have to answer for it and pay dearly.