Story: Affinity (chapter 2)

Authors: Tamayo Ginbara

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Chapter 2

 

Sakura waited at the front door for a moment, panting heavily. Even though she was the most athletic of her class, she had run home far faster than she had realized. Most likely because of how fast she wanted to get away from Kaho. She wiped away as many tear stains as she could from her face, wanting to greet her father and brother with a smile so they wouldn't worry. Believing she was presentable enough, she opened the door.

"Is that you, Sakura?" Toya called from the kitchen.

"Yeah, it's me! Is Dad home yet?" Sakura asked in reply, taking off her roller blades and protective pads.

"He said he's sleeping at the university again," Toya replied coolly. "Your dinner's in the fridge. You took so long we ate without you. Where were you anyway?"

"We?" Sakura said, counting on her fingers as if her father wasn't home, who was?

"Yeah, Yukito came over," Toya sighed. "We have a test to study for so I figured we'd have dinner too."

"Y-Y-Y-Yukito-san?!" Sakura became flush with embarrassment, standing straight up and stiff as a board. He was the last person she could bear to see right now.

"Good evening, Sakura-chan," that gentle voice called and the handsome gray-haired boy appeared in the hallway. "We waited for you, but Toya and I really needed to get to studying. You'll forgive us, won't you?"

Sakura nodded shyly.

"I'm glad," he smiled again. It was a smile she knew she didn't deserve. All of her deepest and most personal feelings for him... how could she betray them so easily?

"I... I'm going to go eat now," Sakura told him softly, skirting by without even doing so much as looking at him when she smiled.

"I did the dishes already," Toya announced, rubbing her head teasingly. "You can all my chores tomorrow as thanks."

"Alright," she complied. Toya's eyes rose. Because she was so easy to tease, Sakura's normal reaction was a minor fit, not this obedient behavior. He knew something must have happened today, but decided to put it off for now to study with Yukito.

"Is Sakura-chan okay?" Yukito asked, worried as well.

"I don't know," Toya answered. "I'll ask her later tonight."

 

---

 

After dinner was finished and her plates cleaned, Sakura headed upstairs with her pudding dessert for Kero. She wasn't hungry for it anyway. Without a word, she opened up the door, and as expected, was barraged by her flying stuffed-animal-like companion, Kero. "Sa-ku-raaaa!" he began the moment she appeared in the room. "Where have you been?"

Once she placed the pudding cup in front of him, his annoyance turned to pure rapture. Carrying his treat over to Sakura's desk, he dug in, overjoyed. Still, he had question. "Tomoyo called," he managed to say through his eating frenzy. "She said she heard about something weird and thinks it might be a Clow Card."

"I didn't sense anything," Sakura told him dismally.

"Well, where were you? She's been trying to reach you all afternoon," Kero continued interrogating her. "You know it's your job to capture all the Clow Cards."

"I know," Sakura told him, but Kero went on.

"The very moment a Clow Card might be detected you need to be on the case," Kero continued in his lecturing.

"I know," Sakura said a little louder.

"After all, we can't let the kid and the brat get to it before us. You're the real Cardcaptor. Every single card should belong to you."

"I know!"

Kero became quiet, mashing around his pudding in his cheeks as he stared at Sakura good and hard. Her cheeks were flushed scarlet and her hands balled in fists. She wouldn't even look up from the floor, and every time she breathed, her body shook a little as if quietly sobbing.

"Something happened," Kero deduced. "Where did you go after school?"

"It's not important," Sakura said, but with her feelings worn on her sleeve, it didn't matter what she said. "And even if it was, you couldn't do anything to help!"

"Who couldn't do anything to help?" Toya asked, peeking in the doorway. Both Sakura and Kero froze as still as statues.

"I thought you were studying with Yukito-san, not spying on me," Sakura said accusingly.

"It's a study break," Toya said, walking in. "Do you mind?"

"No," she replied quietly.

"All right, what's going on?" Toya got right down to it. "You're not acting anything like yourself. You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to, but at least give me an idea of whatever happened."

Sakura nodded, and after a few moments, finally spoke. "I went to Tsukimine Shrine today."

"Why were you there?" Toya followed up.

"I was helping Mizuki-sensei," Sakura said quietly without emotion.

"Is this her fault?" Toya asked, his tone rising with assumptive anger.

"NO!" she cried out loud, only to become quiet as a mouse once again. "This is all my fault. There's nothing you can do to help."

"I see," Toya said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well if I can help with whatever happened in the future, you be sure to let me know, okay?"

"Okay," Sakura quietly replied.

"And cheer up already," he added needlessly. "It's weird being home without a monster stomping around the house."

"Oniichan!" Sakura shouted, grabbing her pillow and hurling it at his head.

"The monster's reawakened. Evacuate the village," Toya teased, getting another pillow hurled at him as he shut the door on her. Sakura huffed before realizing that he had cheered her up. Even though he was somewhat of a jerk, he was looking out for her, but even he couldn't possibly understand how she felt.

"Sakura?" Kero called her name.

"I'm fine now," Sakura smiled. "I'll call Tomoyo now and ask her if we can talk about this possible Clow Card tomorrow. I'm too tired to do anything about it tonight."

 

---

 

"The Key which hides the powers of the Dark, show your true powers before me. I, Sakura, command you under our contract. Release!"

Kero anxiously watched from the desk as the Clow Key unveiled its true form. Taking the wand, she tapped the card in her hand gently. "Mirror!"

With a bright glow, illuminating Sakura's room beyond that of the morning sunlight coming in through the window, a beautiful woman with long green hair and a circular mirror emerged from the card.

"Take the form of the one before you," Sakura commanded, and with an obedient nod, the Mirror Card became Sakura's duplicate.

"Sakura, I don't know if this is a good idea," Kero said. "Using her as a decoy is one thing, but this is..."
"It'll be fine," Sakura told him firmly. "It's just for today."

"You say that, but..."

"It'll definitely be okay!" she said loudly, biting her lip in fear Toya heard her.

Kero sighed and conceded to Sakura's will. "If you say so."

With a sigh and a nervous smile, Sakura handed her book bag to her clone. "There's nothing to worry about. I told Tomoyo last night I may be losing my voice, so if the teacher asks you to speak, just look to her and she'll cover for you. I'll meet you at the park after school so I can meet up with Tomoyo-chan."

"I understand," the Sakura clone smiled and bowed to her mistress.

"Have a good day," Sakura waved her clone goodbye from her bedroom door, watching and waiting from the window as her mirror image took off down the road. Sighing, Sakura collapsed on her bed, wondering how she would spend her day off. She didn't want to miss school, but the thought of seeing Kaho again terrified her. All she needed was a day away from her and everything would be fine.

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