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The Labyrinth	By : Capitalist Category: +. to F > Card Captor Sakura Views: 10491 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Card Captor Sakura, nor any of the characters from it, nor do I own Labyrinth. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
Chapter 9
‘guardian’

The path led away from the lake, winding up a gradual slope before it passed between two natural stone pillars that formed the exit arch. On the other side, Touya could see it curve up and into a staircase – stairs that would lead them right back up into the labyrinth.
But his attention lingered on the arch itself, drawn by the elaborate markings. Etched into the stone across the top he could make out a fierce lion’s head, flanked by a pair of wings that stretched to each side. Elegant script had been carved into the right pillar, but the characters were foreign to him.
“What does it say?” Li’s eyes flicked over the message and he set his jaw, clearly unhappy. “Let me guess: not good news.”
“It says this arch is guarded by a fearsome beast,” he translated. “Whose rage and might inspire all who see him to cower in fright. They beg for mercy and cry in vain, all trespassers are vanquished in flame. Unless ye too wish to be flambe, turn back now, this is not the way.”
A beat of silence passed.
“That’s what it really says?”
“Yep.”
Touya uttered a low groan. “Not another beast.” He was still sore from what happened with the last one, and his eyes strayed back to the impromptu bandage on Li’s arm. It was a dull rust red with all the blood that had soaked through, but at least the wound wasn’t pumping blood anymore. The kid ignored it and drew his sword again, gripping the hilt loosely in preparation. Nothing moved; everything was still and quiet.
Cautiously they stepped under the shadow of the arch. The pillars that supported it were not very wide, and it occurred to Touya that if a monster was really that big then there was nowhere to hide just here. He relaxed slightly; perhaps that picture and bad poem were just meant to scare them away from the exit.
A bloodcurdling roar cut through his thoughts and made them both jump.
“WHO DARES?” Li brandished his sword but neither of them could see anything, and instinctively they backed up to one another. “Who DARES cross my threshold?”
Where was it, though? Li turned his head from side to side, fruitlessly searching for the attack, but he saw only shadows.
“Hi!” A round and fuzzy face popped, upside down, right down in front of his eyes and Li yelped. He jumped right into Touya and both of them took a hasty step back. The golden fuzzy face was attached to an equally fuzzy body, small and plump like a child’s stuffed animal and adorned with tiny wings. They fluttered as he righted himself mid-air, looking pleased with himself.
“Did I scare ya, huh, huh, did I? The voice always gets ‘em, the echoes down here are really somethin’, ya know?” A long tufted tail whipped back and forth with delight, and he flashed a grin that was all teeth.
Touya and Li exchanged a glance.
“Who are you?” they asked at the same time. The tiny creature uttered an affronted gasp and drew himself up to his relatively full height.
“Who am I? I’m Cerberus, guardian beast of this archway! It is my sworn task to prevent any unworthy from crossing this gate. All who would defy me will perish!” He shook a tiny fist, and Li raised an eyebrow.
“You’ve got to be joking. You’re the fearsome beast who vanquishes enemies in flame? Everyone crying in vain?”
“Pretty good line, huh?”
“You’re a talking toy!”
“Well I made you scream like a little girl.”
Li bristled. “You did not.”
“Did too.”
“Did not!” Li poked his finger emphatically at the smirking beast, who promptly clamped his large teeth down on it. “Yee-owch!” He waved his hand desperately to shake off his attacker, and flung him hard against the nearest pillar. This resulted in his own pained exclamation, and they traded vicious glares.
Touya smothered a snort. Cer… whatever and Li were proving to be a pretty equal match, which was amusing considering their respective sizes. Runt vs. Extra Runt.
“Stupid toy.”
“Stupid kid.”
“I’m not a kid!”
“Well, I’m not a toy!” The self-proclaimed guardian peeled himself off the rock and shook his head slightly to clear it. “I’ll have you know that this is just my nighttime form. When the sun rises, I look exceptionally cool and scary.”
“Sure,” Li scoffed, then addressed Touya. “We’re wasting time. Let’s go.”
“Right.” They both turned to cross under the arch, only to find him hovering in their path again.
“Hold it! It’s my sworn task to prevent any unworthy from crossing this threshold! No one passes without my say-so.”
Both stared at him, and spoke at the same time. “Say what?”
“You are joking, right?” Li repeated. “How do you think you’re going to stop us?”
“I’m not afraid of a fight!”
“Well neither am I,” Li retorted, and slashed his sword at the annoying creature in an effort to knock him out of the way. He evaded it easily and smirked.
“Ha!”
“Get out of our way!” Visibly frustrated, Li swiped his sword again and again through the empty air, just missing the flitting Cerberus. “Stupid… little… toy!”
It was like trying to hit a fly with a baseball bat, and Touya rolled his eyes at the spectacle. “I can see what he meant about the temper,” he muttered.
“Don’t you start, too,” Li warned. “This is still all your fault.”
“Well you don’t see me hacking away like an idiot and getting absolutely nowhere,” Touya shot back. “Does it ever occur to you that there might be an alternative to picking a fight?” The words were out before he’d even stopped to think about them, and inwardly he cringed with embarrassment. Wouldn’t his father be surprised to hear him talking like this?
“Oh? And what do you suggest?”
Touya returned Li’s scowl with one of his own, then looked at their dimunitive obstacle.
“You said no one unworthy can pass this arch?”
“Yep!”
“So how does one prove worthy?”
“Oh. Um, you have to solve a riddle.”
“A riddle,” Touya repeated, satisfied. Now they were getting somewhere. “Okay, I can solve a riddle. What is it?”
“Uhh….” He scratched his furry head with one paw, looking a bit at a loss. “Lemme think… it had somethin’ to do with a baby. Or was it an old man?”
This time Touya and Li exchanged looks of disbelief.
“You mean you don’t even remember it?” Li wailed. “What kind of guardian doesn’t even remember his own riddle?”
“Hey, it’s been a long time since anyone’s been by!” Cerberus flared. “And it’s not like it’s my riddle, I hate the stupid things. His Royal Moodiness gave it to me. I wanted to play some kind of game of skill, like… oh, I don’t know…”
Touya caught Li’s eye and jerked his head in the direction of the stairs; Li nodded. Surreptitiously they both started forward again while Cerberus was caught up in his tirade.
“…and so then, whoever had the most points would win! But did he listen? No-ooo, and he – hey, wait!” They’d made it several steps past the arch by the time he noticed, and he zoomed to intercept them again. “Where do you think you’re going?”
Li snarled quietly, and Touya fought to keep patience. “Look, Cer… whatever your name is, you don’t even remember the riddle.”
“It’s Cerberus!”
“Cer… Kero,” Touya managed. “And I don’t have the time for this, I’ve got to get to the castle by dawn.”
Kero had been scowling at the massacre of his name, but at Touya’s last words he perked up.
“Oooh, a mission? Is it a good one, really important?”
“Practically life or death,” Touya assured him.
“Will it tick Yue off if you make it?”
“I think so.”
Kero flashed another grin, momentarily startling Touya with those gigantic white teeth. “Excellent! I wanna come, I wanna come!”
“You what?” he and Li echoed.
“It sounds like fun! C’mon, let’s go!” Joyfully he executed a flip in midair and floated closer to the stairs, goading them forward. “Road trip!”
“But,” Touya tried, nonplussed, “aren’t you supposed to be guarding this arch?”
The response was an exaggerated yawn and roll of the eyes. “BORing. Nothing ever happens down here. I could use a little excitement, some exercise for the ol’ one-two.” He punched his little furry fists in the air, and Li couldn’t decide whether to laugh or groan in disgust.
Touya shrugged; if Kero, or whatever, wanted to come along then there wasn’t any point in arguing. And it could be distinctly useful to have a scout with wings in the labyrinth.
“But won’t you get in trouble?”
“Me? Nah.” Kero smirked as they started walking again. “Yue likes me too much too ever stay angry with me for long. I’ve got connections.”

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters

No, Aya-chan, this story has been finished since 2004 and I’m not retouching any of it. Just adding in author’s notes, so as to maintain a current conversation with my lovely reviewers. Hopefully you can see an improvement in writing when comparing PS to this, though I did start the former just six months after finishing the latter.

Scorpinac, were you right?
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- 10
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The Labyrinth