Li’s apartment complex , early school morning…

Tapping his foot impatiently outside the bathroom, Syaoran shouted across the door, “Are you finished yet?! You’ve been in there an hour!”

“Wait!” Sakura called from inside, the running water drowning her voice.

After another while, Syaoran shouted, “That’s it! If you’re not coming out this second…” He grabbed the doorknob open.

Shrieking, Sakura threw a bottle of shampoo at Syaoran’s face with full power, shouting, “I’M TAKING A SHOWER RIGHT NOW!”

“OUCH!” Syaoran dropped backwards, and the bathroom the door slammed shut.

Yawning, Meirin came out of her bedroom in her light yellow pajamas, and asked, “What’s all the commotion? I can’t get my beauty sleep.”

Rubbing a bruise forming on his forehead, Syaoran stood up from the floor and grumbled, “I’ve been waiting an hour to use my own bathroom.”

Trying to stifle a giggle, Meirin replied solemnly, “And you tried to go in while she’s taking a shower? EWW!!! I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU TRIED TO GO IN WHILE SAKURA’S WAS TAKING A SHOWER!!!”

“IT’S NOT LIKE THAT!”

Finally, Sakura came out of the steaming bathroom in an over-sized blue t-shirt and jeans with ends up folded five times. Her hair was tied into a perfect ponytail high on top of her head with a pretty red ribbon lent by Meirin. “Sorry I took so long, Syaoran-kun. Is your head okay? I didn’t mean to throw the shampoo bottle at your face. (Yeah right, muttered Syaoran fingering his purple bruise.) It’s my first day back to school in a couple of days, so…”

Sakura smiled, the golden highlights in her hair brought out by the new ribbon. Meanwhile, Syaoran sighed in exasperation. She did look good, though. When she first came to their house, a couple of days ago, she looked half dead. Now, she looked like her old self.

“Oh yeah, Meirin-chan, do you mind if I borrow one of your school uniforms?” Sakura asked pleadingly. She hadn’t had time to go pick up some clothes at her house yet. Her foot, though still swollen, was almost healed, with the help of Syaoran’s healing spells. It still hurt once in a while when she was tired, but she could move around almost normally. Still, the incredible pain she had endured the night when she faced the Joker was vivid in her mind, maybe slowing down the process of healing slightly. Yet, Sakura was eager to go back to school, especially after staying home (at the Li’s) for two days. She’d been bored to death.

Jokingly, Meirin asked, “What will you do if I don’t lend you any clothes?”

“Hoe-e.” Looking down at her over-sized clothes, Sakura sighed and pulled up the jeans, which were sagging again. In the past few days, Meirin had wickedly refused to lend her some of her clothes. Instead, she lent Syaoran’s clothes, which were hopelessly big on Sakura. After all, he was taller than her. (“Why does she have to wear my clothes?!” he had protested.)

“After school, we’ll go to your house to pick up some of your stuff,” Syaoran said. “On a second thought, that is, if you promise to limit your time using the bathroom to 30 minutes…”

“Sorry!”

******
School…

Tomoyo was thrilled when she heard Sakura’s news at school and turned ecstatic. “What! Your staying with Syaoran-kun?! Sigh. You should have told me that your brother and father and Kero-chan’s all away! You could have stayed at my mansion. There’s plenty of room. Is your ankle all right? I can’t believe it! You’re staying with Syaoran-kun!”

“Hoe! With Meirin-chan as well. And don’t say it so loud… People might get the wrong idea…” Sakura sweat dropped.

“Oh ho ho ho…” In a sly whisper, Tomoyo asked, “So, what type of pajamas does Syaoran-kun wear at night? Blue, green? Stripes, hearts?”

“Wh-wha~ What kind of question is that?” Sakura flamed red.

“For your information, he doesn’t sleep at night, anyway,” Meirin informed them. Then she turned star eyed. “But I remember when we were five, he used to have the cutest blue pajama with teddy bears on it. I had a matching red one.”

“REALLY?!” They giggled.

“Why are you guys staring at me like that?” Syaoran scowled suspiciously as he looked up from his work.

“NOTHING,” they all echoed.

 It’s good to be back at school and be active, Sakura thought. It’s a good thing that the Joker hasn’t been seen since that night…

“’Kaitou Magician, Thief of the Night, Strikes Again!’” Naoko read off the headline of the Tomoeda morning newspaper. “This time, he was seen at the museum, where Queen Lisianne’s diamond necklace was exhibited. But he didn’t steal anything and disappeared before anyone could even get near him.”

“Kaitou Magician?” Sakura frowned.

Remembering how they had met him last time, Tomoyo asked. “I wonder why he’s in this neighborhood. There’s not much to steal here.”

“There’s something strange about this all,” Syaoran said, sitting down in a chair next to Sakura. “I think we better find out more about that thief.”

“Romeo! It’s rehearsal time now!!!” Meirin jumped from behind Syaoran, who was seriously thinking, why does he have father’s ring?

“GAH! You scared me!”

******

“Is your leg okay enough to practice your routine for the Circus Carnival?” asked Tomoyo later on that day to Sakura. “The Circus Carnival is going to be held in a few days! Hmm, it’s too bad I wasn’t there to tape Syaoran’s marvelous scene, crashing through the window to save the girl he cares for! There’s something hopelessly romantic about the guy knowing when the girl is danger, merely by instinct! Like a beautiful shoujo manga! Still maybe the hidden camera I installed in your house taped it!” Glancing at Sakura’s bandaged leg she added, “Oh, sorry. I feel bad about the accident and all… but~”

“He he he… It’s okay. My leg’s good enough to practice on, thanks to Syaoran-kun.”

“Oh ho ho! Isn’t Syaoran amazing? He learned healing spells after he went back to Hong Kong. I wonder why!” Tomoyo placed her hand to her cheek.

Sakura sweat-dropped. Tomoyo seemed back to her old self. Little did she know that Tomoyo’s house was currently in turmoil. “Tomoyo-chan?”

“Yes, Sakura-chan?”

“You seem a little different… Is something the matter? You look tired.”

“Oh. It’s nothing. Really. I’m just tired because I’m really busy these days…” Tomoyo sighed. She really hated keeping secrets from Sakura. Yet, some times there are things that even your best friend can’t understand.

~~~~~~

Flashback to a few days ago at Tomoyo’s house…

Ring ring. Picking up her phone, Tomoyo said, “Hello?”

“Hello, Tomoyo-san…” A deep man’s voice hesitated, then continued brightly. ”So, how are you these days? Next year, you would be in high school, wouldn’t you? My how fast you grow…”

Her heart skipped a beat. “Otou-san?” Abruptly, Tomoyo asked, “Why did you call me?”

“Why?” Daidouji-san, her father seemed baffled on the phone. “I-I just wanted to talk to my daughter, and keep up with how you’ve grown.”

“Well, it’s a little too late for that, isn’t it?” Tomoyo was surprised at the iciness in her voice, so unlike her normal tone.

Dismayed, he continued, “I’m just—“

“It was nice hearing from you, otou-san. Thanks for showing concern, but please don’t bother calling again. I don’t need a father like you. And don’t bother Mother, either. She has enough troubles without you. I’m sorry.” Slowly, Tomoyo clicked off the phone.

“Wait! Wait, Tomoyo-san! I just—“ Daidouji-san was greeted only with the beeping on the other side.

Flopping back on her lacy bed, Tomoyo gazed up at the ceiling. I don’t need a father… I’ve lived all these years without one. In my memory, I can see my mother… Of course she was always busy with her work when I was a child, but she loved me. And there’s my best friend Sakura-chan… Syaoran-kun, Meirin-chan… With all my friends, I don’t need a father… Yet, why, why do I feel like crying? I never cry, because I remember my mother once saying proudly to her friend that even when I was little, I didn’t cry. Maybe like Syaoran-kun. We have that in common… I don’t want to show this self to Sakura-chan… But I want to talk to someone, who can understand me…

She dialed some numbers and placed the receiver to her ears. The tone began to ring. “Eriol-kun?”

~~~~~~

“Tomoyo-chan? Tomoyo-chan?” Chiharu asked, holding a bench with Takashi. “Where should we put the bench down for the Circus Carnival equipment?”

Tomoyo’s flashback was interrupted. “Huh? Sorry! The bench? Why don’t you put it… oh, just leave it there.”

“Okay…” They set bench down right in the middle of the doorway, preventing people from moving in and out. To Takashi, Chiharu whispered, “Tomoyo-chan seems worried about something.”

“A girl has many problems that she can’t talk about,” Takashi replied.

“Since when did you know that?” Chiharu asked, thoroughly impressed.

“Ever since I met you in kindergarten,” he answered, matter of fact-like.

“HOE-EEEEEEEEEEEEE! This is so hectic!” Sakura’s turned spiral-eyed as students rushed here and there to prepare for the Circus. She was busy catching up from missing two days of school. Some people were getting the decorations up, others practicing stunts, and still others adjusting costumes and props.

“Sorry Sakura-chan, can you give the three magician costumes to Eron-kun, Aki-kun, and Syaoran-kun, and the clown ones to Chiharu-chan and Takashi-kun, and take the acrobat one to Meirin-chan, and keep the other one; the sequined ringmaster costume is for Erika-chan with the whip, and the pink and white striped apron is for Naoko-chan, and the gypsy skirt is for Rika-chan…” Tomoyo asked, fumbling in a swarm of colorful costumes.

“Okay…” Looking doubtfully at the pile of clothes, Sakura began searching for various students.

“Eron-kun! Aki-kun! Syaoran-kun! Here’s your costumes!” Sakura picked out the magnificent magician’s costume with the traditional black top-hat and tails. For an exotic twist, Tomoyo had added long flowing capes, as well. Probably Tomoyo had seen too much of Kaitou Magician on the news.

“SHHH! Don’t bother them!” A bunch of girls said.

“Hoe?” Sakura peered over the head tops of various girls who were oohing and ahhing over something. She could hear a consecutive whooshing and thudding sound.

“How does he do that?”

“Cool, it’s like a real knife thrower!”

Syaoran was practicing knife throwing onto a board. Tied in the middle was a dummy, since the teacher wouldn’t allow a real person to be used. Outlining around the dummy was neatly pinned knifes.

Erika, flipping back her glossy hair then announced to the crowd of students, “The next stage of the marvelous Magician Blademaster!”

This time, Syaoran held three knives between the fingers of each hand, and threw them out. Again, it surrounded the dummy neatly. Everyone cheered.

On the side, Tomaki told Sakura, as he took the costume, “He was hopeless at the other magic tricks, to that’s his back up performance…”

“Really?”

“Yup. Li-san, do the card trick on Kinomoto-san!” Tomaki said, winking to her.

“Do I have to?” Reading the magic tricks book, Syaoran held out a deck of cards to Sakura. “Uhh… Pick a card from the deck, and I’ll guess what it is.”

She picked it out a card. Ace of Hearts. Still looking in the book, Syaoran read out loud in a flat voice, “Now I will look in your mind. Remember what the card is, and put it back into the deck. You may shuffle it.” Sakura shuffled the deck and handed it back to him. With a straight face, Syaoran looked through the cards. Everyone waited. Perspiring, he continued to look through the cards. What the heck am I supposed to do? Finally holding up a card, he asked, “Was it a King of Diamonds?”

All the girls cheered. “Wow! Incredible! He’s really great at it! Li-kun is amazing!”

Sweat-dropping, Sakura replied, “No. It was Ace of Hearts.”

Syaoran sweat-dropped after her and hung his head down. Eron commented, “See, he’s really hopeless at it!” Taking a top hat, he swirled it around elegantly and out of it fluttered several pigeons. Again, everyone cheered. “Now, that’s how you’re supposed to do it,” Eron announced.

“Wow, that’s marvelous, Eron-kun!” Sakura clapped.

Turning red, Syaoran exclaimed, “I can do that too!” Taking his top hat, he did an intricate trick of throwing it into the air and turning a flip to catch it. Then, he ran a hand over the top hat, and…

Everyone waited. And waited. And still waited.

Syaoran peered into the hat. “Hey, the fake bottom is stuck!” Just then, out fluttered a pigeon, pecking at his head. “Ouch!”

Sakura giggled, but stopped when Syaoran glared at her. Aki caught the pigeon and handed it back to Syaoran, who looked dejected by his failure.

At that moment, Sakura and Syaoran both straightened up. Out of the corner of their eyes, they saw a person leap from one roof to the next one. Together, they ran to the other side of the building, leaving everyone else in confusion. When they reached a secluded part of the school, they panted for breath, gazing up.

From the top of a tree, a young man with black sunglasses slipped out. From head to toe, he was dressed in a casual black, down to black gloves, and black shoes. This time, he didn’t have a cape on, probably since it was daytime. If he stepped into a crowd outside, he would look relatively normal. It was difficult to see his face because of the shadow of the tree, but his sandy colored hair was spiked up, with only his long bangs let down, giving a rather devilish look. A silver skull dangled from his pierced left ear. From a chain around his neck hung a bright blue sapphire ring. The real, live, Kaitou Magician…

“I don’t get it. Why does he have that star sapphire ring?” Sakura frowned.

For the first time, the Kaitou Magician spoke; his voice had a peculiar smooth, elegant drawl to it, as if he could hypnotize his listeners with it. “I’d watch out over there if I were you,” tilting his head to another section of the school. Then he jumped off the tree, over the school gate and melted into the traffic outside. Before he completely disappeared, he called, “We’ll see each other again, soon!” The only person Sakura knew that had such flawless athletic coordination was Syaoran.

“Do you feel it?” Sakura asked as she tore her attention away from the Kaitou Magician, the mystery thief. “The Joker is out there again. We’ve got to prevent more accidents!” Too late. When they reached the spot, the Joker had already disappeared. This time, it had only spilt the red paint all over the signs that the students had been painting for the Circus for five hours.

“Sakura-chan! Where were you? We’ve got to practice our number!” Meirin exclaimed.

“Okay.” After practicing their acrobatic routine several times, Sakura remembered that she still hadn’t finish handing out the costumes.
 
 

By the end of school, Tomoyo came up to her again. “Did you give everyone’s costumes?”

“Hoe-e!!!” Sakura sweat-dropped, for she was still holding half of the pile of clothes.

******

“The Kaitou Magician is younger than I thought he’d be, only a teen, I think,” Sakura commented to Syaoran and Meirin as they made dinner. Carefully, she stir-fried the beef with vegetables. “I wonder why he said we’ll meet soon again.”

“That’s not a worry. We’ve got to get Syaoran to learn some proper magic to perform for the Circus Carnival, or else Eron-kun will laugh his head off at him,” Meirin announced, stirring the soup.

“I know proper magic,” Syaoran replied. “But I can’t very well go up on stage and do this, can I?” He let a flame of fire burst from the oven he was cooking at. “Or this?” He let a spoon levitate into the air, then dropped it down again into a bowl.

“I know!” Sakura jumped up enthusiastically. “Let’s teach you flower trick!” She took out the Flowery Card and handed it to Syaoran. “I’ll lend you this card, so that you can have plenty of flowers to practice with.”

“Can you lend cards like that?” Syaoran asked.

“It’s okay, since it’s you.”

For a second, Syaoran looked surprised… So, she does trust me, after all… Sakura… What kind of strange situation is this… Now, how exactly did she end up staying at my house? It was in ways uncomfortable. Sharing bathrooms, cooking, doing laundry together, living in next door rooms, seeing each other all day…

“SYAORAN!!!” Meirin shrieked.

For a second, Syaoran blinked as he heard a hissing in from the oven with smoke swiveling up.

“You just burned our dinner!” Meirin stamped her foot and pouted. “Do you know how hungry I am. How could you do this? You’ve never burned our food before!”

“Hoe… We still have the soup… Never mind.” At that moment, the over-boiled soup, which was neglected by Meirin, had flowed over the pot and spilt over the rim.
 
 

That night, Sakura had another nightmare. Two young men faced each other, both having cloaks fluttering in the black night. A blue gem twinkled merrily in the darkness. Then, both figures disappeared in a swirl of flower petals.

“Syaoran!” She tried to run after them in vain.

A girl dressed in a Chinese outfit with black pigtails on each side of her head glared at her. “It’s all your fault, Sakura.” Then, tears started streaming down her face. “Didn’t you know I love Syaoran? It’s all your fault… If you didn’t exist, Syaoran would always have been there for me. I despise you Kinomoto Sakura.” Meirin turned around and walked away.
 
“Wait!” Dropping down on her knees, Sakura sobbed, “It’s all my fault.”
 
 

“It’s all my fault…” Sakura bolted up awake in the unfamiliar surroundings of the Li guest room. Meirin… Quietly, she walked out into the living room, in her pale blue pajamas, colliding right into someone.

“OUCH!” They both collapsed onto the floor.

“Who’s there?” A male voice demanded, quickly moving in a Chinese martial arts choking position with his arm around her neck.

Gasping at the grip, she whispered, “Hoe-e! Let go!”

After a while, he asked, “Sakura?”

“Who else?”

“What are you doing wondering around the house in the middle of the night?”

“What about you?”

“I asked first.”

“I-I had a nightmare and I couldn’t sleep…”

“A nightmare?”

“Yes… I was looking for someone, and I kept on calling that person’s name… but he disappeared. I always dream different versions of it. This time, I saw the star sapphire ring, and two people with cloak, and…”

“Sshhh… Don’t get too excited. It’s just a dream,” Syaoran soothed.

“What were you doing?”

“Me? I was thinking how to get that ring back. I bet he stole it from Shing-san’s mansion in New York.”

“Did you think of a good plan?”

“Hmm? Not yet… See what I was practicing? I can finally do a magic trick now.” Eagerly, Syaoran said, “Look in my hands. I have nothing, right?”

“It’s too dark to tell,” Sakura replied honestly.

“Anyway, I go like this, and here!” Syaoran drew out a soft pink colored Chinese peony, his favorite flower, from his fist.

Smiling, Sakura took the flower, breathing in the deep fragrant aroma. The Flowery card always produced the most beautiful and fresh flowers. “You improved a lot. You were practicing this all night?”

“Well…”

“You don’t like being beaten by Eron-kun, don’t you?”

“IT’S NOT THAT!”

Stretching, Meirin stumbled out of her room, switching on the living room lights. “What’s going on here?” Then here eyes turned round to see Syaoran and Sakura almost on his lap, sitting on the living room floor.

Jumping up, they shouted, “It’s not…”

“Okay, what am I supposed to think when I find a boy and a girl sitting in the living room in the dark in each other’s arms? Not only the first time either. I still remember at the camp. Ahhhhh! Syaoran, how can you do this to me…” Meirin ranted, pacing around the room with an aghast face.

“No, we just bumped into each other because of a nightmare and I was practicing flowers and it was dark so we couldn’t see and…” Syaoran stammered nonsensically, flushing red.

“Right.” Meirin shook her head in disbelief. “That really makes sense. Anyway, I’m starving.”

“I’ll make something to eat.” Syaoran stormed off to the kitchen.

When he was gone, Meirin nudged Sakura and whispered, “So, what were you two really doing?”

Blushing, Sakura replied, “N-nothing! Really, nothing!”

Flipping back her jet black pigtails, Meirin said, “So, tell me the truth, Sakura. You can be honest with me.” Her reddish amber eyes gleamed mischievously. “What is your true feelings for him?”

As if she had a blow in her stomach, Sakura asked, “W-what~ Why would I like him? Ha ha, very funny.” Her heart was pounding.

Stretching, Meirin asked, “Then, why were you jumping when I asked you the question?”

The two girls stared at each other straight in the eye. What Meirin saw in Sakura’s clear emerald eyes, no one ever knew. At that moment, Syaoran ran up to them, drawing out his sword and shouted, “The Joker’s out there again!”

******

 “Hoe-e!!!” Sakura dodged from the Joker, who was aiming dozens of juggling rings at her. Syaoran, Meirin, both in their Chinese battle outfits, and she were at the roof of the Li’s apartment complex, dodging from the Joker’s so called playful tricks.

Quickly drawing out his incantation papers, Syaoran said, “Fuuka shou rai!” The Joker in his colorful clown clothes toppled over backwards.

Striking down her staff onto a card, Sakura shouted, “Watery,” then prepared for another counterattack.

At that moment, Meirin tugged at Sakura’s sweater sleeve and said, “Look over there!”

Silhouetted by the moon, a lean figure stood on the roof of a building next to the apartment. As the three people’s attention was focused on the Kaitou Magician, the almost defeated sly Joker quickly disappeared.

“For the last time, what do you want from us?” Sakura demanded, holding out her staff. Meirin silently wondered what she could do with a staff against a thief. With a graceful leap, the Kaitou Magician landed onto that building, his black cloak fanning out in the wind.

They were almost facing each other. It was too dark to see the thief’s face, however. Yet, Sakura had an unpleasant feeling that Kaitou Magician’s cold, keen eyes were fixed straight on her. With a flick of his hands, he sent out colorful streamers in all directions.

“Eh?!” Syaoran uttered before the streamers advanced toward him and rapidly tied him up. He couldn’t move his arms.

“How dare you do that to Syaoran!” Meirin leaped up with a sidekick, straight towards the Kaitou. “Give back the Li clan’s sapphire ring to Syaoran!” The Kaitou Magician continued to dodge Meirin’s rapid consecutive kicks and punches with ease. “Stop running away! Face me. Haaa yaaaaaaaaa!” Leaping into the air, Meirin spun and kicked out her right leg.

With a smooth sweep of his arms, Kaitou sent out a flock of white doves from inside his cloak, which started chasing the shrieking Meirin around the whole roof. “AHHHHHHHHH!!! What are these disgusting birds! Get rid of them!!!!!!!”

Then, he focused all his attention onto Sakura. He pointed a black gloved finger at her and flicked it up. To her surprise, she felt something unfasten and slip up from her neck. Her hand flew to her neck, where she always wore the necklace that Syaoran had secretly given her for Christmas.

The Kaitou Magician grinned. Floating in front of Sakura was her luminous crystal necklace, the starry light embedded in it glowing and the silvery chain dangling midair. He gathered his fingers up into a fist in front of him, and the necklace sped up to him.

As the Thief of the Night was about to grab the necklace, several silver streaks flashed by his hand. The Kaitou looked up in surprise. Syaoran had escaped from the streamers that tied him up, and had darted several of his Circus Carnival prop knives at him. The necklace dropped softly to the floor of the roof.

“Did you come here to steal that necklace?” Syaoran demanded.

The Thief’s gaze shifted from Sakura to Syaoran.

“Why? It’s only a crystal necklace. It’s mine.” Slowly Sakura walked to pick up her necklace.

“Only a crystal necklace?” The Kaitou Magician laughed. “God, do you know what that is worth? I’ve had the hardest time finding it, but now, I finally found it. It will be mine.” With an iron grip, he grabbed Sakura’s arm. She cringed over, holding onto the necklace and refusing to let go of it.

“Let go! It’s mine!” Syaoran-kun gave it to me! It’s my most valued possession… Nobody will understand what kind of blissful joy I felt when I walked out that Christmas morning, and this necklace was inside a green balloon. It’s very precious to me and gives me warmth when I hold it, because he gave it to me. Sakura held the necklace tighter.

The sound of police sirens prevented the Kaitou Magician from forcing the necklace away, and he looked down the roof warily to see the police cars, muttering some unintelligible curses.
 
Finally having escaped the persistent doves, Meirin jumped from behind shouting, “Give Syaoran back the ring! It’s a Li heirloom!”

Instead of dodging, Kaitou flicked out his hand and caught Meirin’s wrist, doubling it over back. She wriggled and shrieked, “What are you doing? Let go of me!” Paying no heed, he bound her with some thick, strong ribbons and kept a hold on her. The sirens were growing even louder.

“Let go of Meirin!” Syaoran leaped forward. Whipping out a top hat, the Kaitou Magician tipped it onto his hat in a sign of farewell, and with Meirin, disappeared into the air with a swirl of white roses. His cloak was last to disappear and swirled around over the two figures.

“SYAORAN!!!” Meirin called before being covered by the black cloth.

“MEIRIN-CHAN!” Sakura stretched out a hand, but it was too late. The notorious mystery thief, Kaitou Magician had disappeared, taking Meirin with him.

******

“It’s all my fault. If I’d just given up the necklace, he wouldn’t have taken Meirin-chan. Now, we don’t even know where she is, what’s being done to her, when we’ll ever see her again… We don’t even know if she’s…” Sakura gulped.

Lifting his head from his arms, Syaoran said softly after a sleepless night, “It’s not your fault. If anyone’s fault, it’s the Kaitou Magician’s. I’ll get him, you’ll see. Don’t put pressure on yourself.”

Her lower lips trembling as she held back tears, Sakura replied, “I’ll feel like sitting on the floor and crying. But,” she smiled a little. “But you always told me that crying will get me nowhere. That there is no use in crying. Being a baby won’t get Meirin-chan back. So I’m not going to cry. I’m going to be brave and get my friend back. Because, inside, I know Meirin-chan would be fine.” This time, Sakura felt sure she would not cry.

“You’re brave, Sakura. And you’re right. Meirin will be fine.” For the first time, Syaoran actually looked cheered up. Terrible thoughts flitted through his mind that previous night. Worrying about what the Li clan would say if they found out was only minor. He and Meirin had grown up together, she was his cousin and had been his friend for over 10 years. Though she often badgered him and always had to have her own way, she still was a precious person to him.

When Tomoyo found out later on that Meirin had been kidnapped by the Kaitou Magician, she was shocked. “He wanted your necklace, Sakura-chan? And he took Meirin-chan. Hmm…” Then, comically, she stated, “Isn’t it like a romantic movie? The mysteriously handsome young thief with a dark reputation kidnaps a teenage girl, and falls in love…”

Sweat-dropping, Syaoran and Sakura said, “Tomoyo~”

“Oh? Ho ho ho… Sorry, this isn’t a good situation to think of romance. Well, I have a good idea though. I think we better find out some background about the Kaitou Magician, and the best place to do it is the library.

******

Patiently, Sakura sorted through the microfilms in the library, finding hundreds of international headline news stories about the infamous thief, Kaitou Magician with his magic-like escapes and unbelievable perfect smoothness. Meanwhile, Syaoran was reading through the data in the computer, and taking notes. At another table, Tomoyo read the current newspapers about Kaitou Magician, ever since he appeared Japan.

Basically, they found out that the Kaitou Magician first made his debut in Tokyo about a year and a half ago, though he may have prowled in different cities, previously. In a matter of months, he had made the World Top 20 Most Wanted Criminal list, having been spotted all over the world, from Tokyo, Hong Kong, Paris, Rome, London, and most recently in New York. Numerous detectives, police, and government officials were on his track, but to their greatest embarrassment, always failed to catch him. Quickly, he had been named the Kaitou Magician, due to his cat-like grace and nerve wrecking ability to commit the perfect robbery with the ease of a confident magician. Luckily, it seemed that robbery was the worst crime he commented, even though he did steal priceless items from any imaginable place. At least there were no cases of kidnapping or murder.

“From what I found,” Tomoyo said, looking up from the stack of newspapers. “Kaitou Magician follows trends, and most recently, he has been stealing diamond jewelry. Previously, it had been sapphires.”

“Hoe-e? Then I wonder why he’s trying to steal my necklace.” Sakura sighed as she put back the microfilm. The Thief of the Night seemed like a most strange person.

“Let me look at it,” Syaoran said, looking away from the computer screen. Unclasping the necklace from her neck, she handed it to Syaoran. He held it up to the light and peered at it. When he first saw the star-like light embedded in the crystal, he had been captivated by it. It was a very unique and pretty gem, yet why would the Kaitou want it? Unless… “Do you think there’s a chance that this crystal might actually be a diamond?”

“Hoe? What happened to the computer screen?” Sakura pointed to the computer, which blacked out. Then, white letters began to form on the black screen.

~Tomorrow we shall meet again. Watch out then. Till date, I’ve never failed to get what I want. Don’t worry, your little friend is safe.~

At the end, a symbol with a top hat facing upward, with the outline of a full moon behind it appeared, the symbol of the Kaitou Magician. Then, the hard drive of the computer exploded.

******

Blinking, Meirin groggily said half a sleep, “Syaoran, are we late for school?” Then she became fully awake and tried to stand up, almost ending up falling. She was bound and tied to a chair. Warily, she gazed around her surroundings. It was an untidy small room with an unmade single bed at one corner, a tiny kitchen set in the other, a cheap desk by the side, and sunlight peeping though windows without curtains. A figure was sitting by the messy desk, typing into a laptop computer.

Seeing that person, Meirin felt fury and shouted, “LET GO OF ME YOU IDIOT!”

The young man turned her directions in surprise. “What?” He asked, turning off the music and taking off his earphones. Meirin found herself facing someone who seemed almost her age, or one or two years older than her, with light sandy tan streaks highlighting his spiked hair and two strands of bangs that fell on each side of his head. Though it was inside, he was still wearing dark sunglasses, making it impossible for her to decipher what he would look like, despite a straight nose and a mouth which had a cynical curve to it, as if he could lie well. On his left ear dangled a silver fang earring and again, and he wore the star sapphire ring on a thick chain around his neck. As always, he was dressed in black shirt and pants.

Taking a deep breath, Meirin repeated, “I SAID, LET GO OF ME YOU MORON!”

Plugging his ears with his fingers, he shot her a dirty look. “I can’t let go of you.”

“Why?” Meirin struggled from the ropes that bound her to the chair.

In a matter of fact way, he replied, “Because. I kidnapped you.”

Turning head over heels, Meirin replied, “What kind of reason is that? I want to go home! You bastard! Give back the star sapphire ring!”

“Too bad,” he replied, yawning, and turning his attention back to the computer.

After a while, Meirin couldn’t stand her curiosity and demanded, “What are you doing?”

“There, finished sending your little friends a nice message on the library computer. Hmm… Strange. I don’t have you in my people statistics data. Your name’s Meirin, right?” Quickly, he typed, ‘Li Meirin.’ “Let’s see. Age 15, female. Currently attends Seijou Junior High, grade 3-2, came from Hong Kong. Enjoys PE and music. Has a one sided crush on Li Syaoran, fellow clan member. The Li’s are prominent members in Hong Kong. Personality traits…” Pausing to think, the Kaitou added, “Can be bratty, selfish, and self-domineering. Has a tendency to nag and whine and is extremely jealous.”

“WHAT?!” Meirin was ready to burst free from the chair.

“However, she can reveal a softer, nicer side to people she cares for,” he concluded. Raising an eyebrow he asked Meirin, “It’s true, isn’t it? Hmm… Kinomoto Sakura. Tries to be cheerful and brave, yet generally is too innocently dense for her own good. Can be very confused with her true feelings and blocks herself from straight, harsh reality. As for Li Syaoran… Finds it difficult to reveal his own emotions and has a continuous struggle against his inner heart and his somber exterior. Can be bratty and cold on the outside, yet has a truly caring side, which God knows when he will be able to show.” Kaitou nodded, as he ran through the person data in his computer.

“That’s not true! Syaoran’s the best guy there is in the world! And even I’ll admit Sakura is not that dense.” Meirin stuck her tongue out at him, and he sweat dropped. “Anyway, can’t you untie me? It’s so uncomfortable and my arms are numb! And what’s with this crappy room? I thought that the Kaitou Magician steals enough jewelry to live better than this. Just look at this small, messy, cramped place! Plus, what’s with the sunglasses? It’s inside, you know and do you think you look cool? Why’d you kidnap me, anyway? And… ”

He cringed as Meirin shot off barbs at his weakness. Shooting her another dirty look, he replied sourly, “I’m sorry to say this, but I’m going to have to gag you if you don’t stop talking. That won’t be nice, but it’s starting to get on my nerves, and I have to concentrate to try to hack the school system for the Circus Carnival. The sunglasses are for disguise.” Then pouting he replied, “Anyway, do you think I want to live in this crappy room? It’s just temporarily while I’m on my mission. I’m just trying to keep a low profile, since the whole police force is after me. I don’t have a choice. You try being a thief. It’s not as easy as it looks!”

After some silence, Meirin became more dejected. I want to go back home. Will Syaoran be worrying for me? What will Mother ever say? She’ll call me back to Hong Kong for not being responsible. Syaoran was right. I should have just gone back, and I wouldn’t have caused all this trouble for him. Slowly, two tears plopped down onto her lap.

Kaitou Magician looked up in surprise. “Why are you crying?”

“Why do you think? I’m uncomfortable, cramped, kidnapped by a Top 20 Wanted Thief, and I’m hungry. Plus, I miss Syaoran.” Meirin began to wail.

Dismayed, the young man ran a finger through his hair said in a gentler tone, “Don’t cry. Here, I’ll give you something to eat. I’m sorry I kidnapped you, really, just calm down now, take a deep breath, it’s all right. I won’t do anything to you. It’s just for today, all right? You’ll be back home in no time… wait a minute.” The thief sweat dropped. “What am I saying?”

Gradually, Meirin’s tears ceased with an occasional hiccup, then she ended up laughing at Kaitou’s befuddlement. “Hey, don’t you have anything to eat?”

Quickly, he concocted something up in the kitchen and set a tray in front of Meirin’s lap, and reluctantly untied one hand. Giving a sour look for not untying her completely, Meirin dug into the steaming stew with her right hand free. Then she commented, “Eww! You call this food? This is disgusting!”

“Hey, I’m a thief, not a cook. Take it or leave it. That’s the best I can make. Be thankful that you have something to eat.” Though he tried to shrug carelessly, the Kaitou still stared at his own bowl of food with contempt.

“Humph. Syaoran is a thousand times better than you.” Then Meirin exclaimed, “I know what we can do! If you untie me, I’ll make both of us something better to eat. I’ll promise not to escape, hmm? Deal?”

Sighing, the Kaitou Magician nodded. Maybe he was regretting “kidnapping” her in the first place.

******

The Spring Circus Carnival…

The Seijou Junior High students were readying themselves for the customers to arrive for the Spring Circus Carnival. The whole school was transformed into a dazzling temporary Circus ground, with cotton candy, caramel apples, and popcorn stands, booths to play various games and win various prizes, and exhibitions and Circus shows run by the students. Everywhere was decorated colorful steamers, balloons and banners and people were bustling in and out, dressed in various costumes and busily adding last minute touches.

“The Kaitou Magician’s going to make his appearance today,” Sakura said. “And we’ll rescue Meirin.” She began to stretch. Since Meirin was “sick” as they told other students, she had to perform her gymnastics routine without her. Dressed in a tight fitting glittery black leotard and tights, which set off her slender lithe figure perfectly, Sakura looked more determined than ever. Around her waist was looped a shimmery crimson skirt, the same material as the cloth that was wrapped around the bun on top of her head.

“I hope he doesn’t cause trouble for the people. Meirin has to be all right.” Syaoran looked paler than usual, and Sakura knew how worried he had been. He was dressed in an outfit eerily similar to the Kaitou’s.

Tomoyo had insisted in adjusting the outfit to be so, because she pointed out, “Since the Kaitou would be running around the Carnival, people would panic and all the student’s hard work will be ruined. But, if they just think it’s one of the students, it’ll be fine.” At that moment, she was star-eyed and video-taped the two in their Circus outfits. “You two look amazing!!! Syaoran-kun, you look just like a thief!”

“I don’t want to look like a thief!” Syaoran protested.

“Come on you guys! What are you doing! People are going to arrive soon!” Chiharu called, in her clown outfit, matching with Takashi’s.

The day went by relatively smoothly, with people admiring Sakura’s acrobat skills, laughing over the “clown’s” stunts and jokes, awing the “magicians’” tricks. To Syaoran’s relief, he managed to pull off the flower magic with ease, and everyone clapped at his knife throwing. Eron was amazed how much Syaoran had improved, though. He asked Sakura in astonishment, “What happened to him?” Sakura just smiled.

In between a break, Sakura whispered, “When will he show up?” It was late afternoon.

Shaking his head, Syaoran looked down thinking about Meirin. Sympathetically, Sakura patted his shoulder. She had never seen him look so discouraged before.

“Don’t worry. After tonight, everything will be all right.” Ironically, Sakura smiled as she said this. Since when was she cheering Syaoran up?

Then, they heard a little boy crying. Quickly, Sakura ran up to him and asked, “Why are you crying?”

“A mean clown stole my balloon!” He replied in between sobs.

“Here, I’ll give you another balloon, all right?” Sakura quickly gave another balloon to the boy, who ran off happily to his friends. Then she nodded to Syaoran. The Joker was striking once more. What perfect timing.

******

“You’re not locking me in here!” Meirin wailed, wriggling against the ropes. It was a school prop storeroom.

“I’m sorry. But I’ve gotta start my show. Just wait here patiently and you’ll get rescued in no time. Don’t even think about escaping, though. I’ll know where you are.” Laughing and ignoring Meirin’s shrieks, the Kaitou Magician swept out. Vainly, Meirin stared reproachfully at a thin wire like bracelet around her wrist. It was pretty, but the Kaitou Magician had fastened it around her wrist because it contained a microchip, which enabled him to track where she was with his portable foldable computer. Plus, it was impossible to take off.

“WAIT! Don’t leave me!” Her ruby amber eyes turned round as she saw a smiling clown with a jester’s three cornered head emerge from the shadows. “NOOO!”
 
 

A note floated from the sky, and Sakura caught it.

Meet me at the clock tower top in five minutes.                ~K.T.

“Kaitou Magician!” Sakura looked up to the clock tower, the center building of Seijou Junior High.

“Kaitou Magician? Where?” Naoko asked, her eyes round.

“Umm… I said ‘can’t go to the magic show’… he he…” Sakura wormed out of the crowd. Too bad that at that moment, Syaoran was on stage for a magic show.

Standing at the bottom of the tower, she gazed up. It was early evening and the sky was dusky. The Kaitou Magician’s cloak blew in the wind as he stood at the very top.

“What did you do with Meirin-chan!” Sakura demanded. At that moment, she heard a girl’s shriek! The Joker!

******

To everyone’s surprise, a real girl was tied to the knife throwing board at one end of the stage. The audience of the outdoor stage magic show all bolted up with enthusiasm. At the opposite end of the stage stood a clown dressed in gaudy colors. A row of sharp knives were set in front of him, different from the harmless school prop knives that Syaoran had used. With exaggerated clumsiness, the clown darted it at the girl, barely missing her right arm. She shrieked. People in the crowd laughed, thinking it was a part of the show.

“MEIRIN!!!” From behind the outdoor stage, Syaoran burst through the crowd of people.

The girl with both her arms and legs tied to the board wriggled and shouted, “SYAORAN!!!” Tears brimmed in her eyes. She was safe, now that Syaoran was here. Syaoran wouldn’t let the Joker harm her.

Silently, Syaoran cursed. He couldn’t do anything in front of the crowd! He’ll have to let everyone think it’s part of the show. From backstage, he slammed his sword to the card he borrowed from Sakura. “Flowery!”

A gust of flower petals blew onto the stage, temporally blinding the Joker, while everyone else admired. Quickly, grabbing four knives, Syaoran flicked them out with dead accuracy, each of them slicing off the rope tying Meirin’s arms and legs to the board. She crumpled to the floor.

The audience clapped in awe. Deftly jumping on stage, Syaoran ran to Meirin who squeezed him into a tight hug. “Syaoran!!! You’re finally here!”

Embarrassed, Syaoran turned red.

“Syaoran! Watch out behind you!” Sakura, who was running towards the outdoor stage called, as she saw that the Joker had recovered and began to throw more knives to his direction. Quickly, he grabbed the Knife card, the first card that Sakura had made when he returned to Japan. Throwing the magic knives at the Joker, he knocked it out of balance.

Students cheered.

As Sakura sighed in relief, she spotted a shadow above the stage. In the chaos, she had completely forgotten that the Kaitou Magician was on loose. Quickly, she darted onto the stage with a cartwheel and a somersault. Again, there was a roaring in the audience. This was the best, strangest magic show they had ever seen!
 

“Told you I’ll come back for the necklace,” the thief drawled.

“I’ll never give it to you!” Sakura replied defiantly.

“Well then, I’ll have to take it the hard way. That’s okay, the more challenging it is, the more fun I have.” With a snap of the Kaitou’s hands, all the spotlights and lamps flicked off on the school campus. There was a murmur of panic among the audience, but they came to a consensus that it was all part of the enthralling show.

“You won’t get away this time!” Meirin exclaimed letting out several rapid martial arts punches. “I’ll get you back for tying me up in a cramped room and feeding me disgusting food and putting this microchip bracelet on me!” Lunging forward, she completely missed the Kaitou Magician, since it was dark.

He laughed a smooth, menacing laugh and said, “You act too rashly, dear Meirin. Everything has to be planned before hand and calculated. Like this.” With the smoothness of a cat he crept behind her, placing his hand over her mouth, then jumped above the stage. “So, are you planning to give me the necklace or not?”

“Meirin-chan!” Sakura furrowed her eyebrows down. “You play cheap! Let her go. She has nothing to do with this.” Then, her emerald eyes turned round.

“Leave her alone, do you hear me?” Syaoran jumped above the stage and punched Kaitou Magician.

Gaining composure, the thief smiled and replied, “So, you want to fight now?”

“I play things fair. And while I’m at it, I’ll get back my father’s ring!”

Sweeping out a steel staff, the Kaitou twirled it and began some complex staff moves, quite similar to the martial arts staff moves which Syaoran had trained in when he was younger. Syaoran grabbed a wood staff lying around and came up with the countermoves before the staff snapped into two from the impact from the metal. Then he tried to block off with his arm. Syaoran grimaced as bruises formed on his body, since the metal created a hard contact.

“What’s going on?” Someone asked in the audience.

“I don’t know. It’s too dark. I think the two magicians are fighting or something.” All they could see was a flash of metal, a swirl of midnight black cloaks, and occasional clanging and thuds.

With one hand, Syaoran knocked out the metal staff from the Kaitou’s hand, which clattered down the stage, and with his other hand, flicking out his golden pocketknife, Syaoran slashed through the chain holding the star sapphire ring off the Kaitou Magician’s neck. Then, he grabbed the ring and tucked it into a pocket. Finally, he had retrieved the sapphire ring.

Without blinking a moment, the Kaitou Magician jumped into the air and momentarily disappeared. Syaoran crouched down, warily waiting. Then, without a sound, the Thief of the Night lunged from behind him. Barely, Syaoran leaped out of the way, and then returned with a martial arts kick, which the Kaitou blocked off. Then, they began a series of punches and blows, blocking each other deftly, matched muscle to muscle. Yet, while Syaoran’s fighting style was concise, straight, and resulted from years of martial arts training, the Kaitou Magician’s movements were sly, unpredictable and ruthless, fighting most likely picked off the street and measured self defense routines.

Both of them were panting heavily, and finally, the Kaitou Magician lunged for Syaoran’s pocket to retrieve the ring. Quickly, Syaoran kicked out his leg, and leaped over the thief. For a second, the Kaitou Magician’s flickering eyes widened, then quickly, he jumped in front of Meirin, blocking her from Syaoran. The two young men glared at each other, breathless.

Slowly grinning, the Kaitou Magician held up a glimmering blue jewel in his fingers.

“Give back the ring,” Syaoran said in a strained voice. Now, when did the thief take the rings out of his pocket? He hadn’t even noticed! “What right do you have? You live your life to deceive and hurt others, stealing precious possessions; you’re dishonorable and two-faced.”

Giving a cruel laughter, the Kaitou Magician replied, “I’m a thief. What do you expect? Well, I don’t expect you to understand me. I do dishonorable things to get what I want. I never, ever failed to have my own way. Now, all I want is that necklace, or else, say good bye to your cute friend.” Gripping Meirin’s arms, he pushed her to the edge of the top of the roof he had jumped on to. She screamed as her feet slipped from the roof. Instinctively, Syaoran reached out.
 
 

“STOP!” Sakura shouted, clenching her fist. Everyone stared at her. “Just stop it, all of you!” Slowly, she gazed up at the Kaitou Magician, unfastening the thin silver chain from her neck. Her eyes blurred. “If it means that much to you, take it! This necklace is my most precious possession, however, it’s not worth all this trouble, or danger to my friends. You must have a reason to want it so bad, so take it!” She threw the necklace up to the Kaitou Magician, who caught with one hand the shimmering jewel in surprise. His clear eyes were opened wide as he fingered the necklace. Meirin freed herself from his grasp and jumped towards where Sakura stood.

“There! Are you satisfied now?” Sakura looked away.

Syaoran, who leaped down to Sakura said, “But!”

“I’m sorry. I know you gave it to me, but… I’ll just remember that you once gave it to me! I can’t put Meirin in danger.”

“He can’t get away with stealing all those stuff!” Meirin exclaimed angrily.

In slow motion, the Kaitou Magician sprang up to the clock tower, keeping one eye on Sakura’s pained, yet determined face. “I got what I want… yet, why do I feel like I lost?” A painful frown furrowed over his brows. “I have never failed before, never. I never lose. I’m the Kaitou Magician.” Without a second thought, he dropped two shimmering jewels down to Sakura.

For a moment, Sakura held out her palms staring at her necklace and the sapphire ring with awe. Then she blinked up at the Kaitou Magician, who was standing with his arms crossed on the top of the school wall. “Why…”

The lights switched back on and Sakura found that she, Syaoran, and Meirin were standing on stage.

Someone shrieked, “Kaitou Magician!!!”

“You mean the real one?” Another person asked.

Tipping a top hat to cover his head, therefore preventing people from seeing his face, the Kaitou Magician said, “You haven’t seen the last of me! Remember, I always get my way in the end. But next time, I’ll get what I want fair and straight, so that even you won’t be able to complain. Don’t think you’ve won yet. I’m still a dishonorable thief.” He shot this directly at Syaoran, who sweat-dropped. Then his cool eyes flickered to Meirin. “Oh yeah. You’re cooking’s pretty good. It was almost worth the headache you gave me with your blabbering. And didn’t I promise you’ll get back safely?” The Kaitou Magician laughed. “Till we meet again.” With a swirl of his cloak and rose petals, he disappeared.

“UGH! You annoy me! Get this bracelet off me!” shrieked Meirin after him, waving her left hand in the air, the one with the wire like bracelet, which was impossible to take off.

“Huh? What happened? Is it over?” People all murmured. “I couldn’t see anything.”

“Quick, do something!” Sakura nudged Syaoran as she felt numbers of eyes on the spotlighted stage. Loudly, she announced, “Thank you all for watching the final Magic Show of the Seijou Junior High Circus Carnival. Sorry for the power failure in between. Now, the great Magician Blademaster’s last performance!” She pointed to Syaoran.

“Eh?” Quickly, Syaoran fumbled with something. He turned his back towards the audience and slipped out two cards.

“Huh, what’s happening?” asked Naoko.

“Look!” Chiharu exclaimed, pointing to the sky. “Fireworks! How pretty!”

Everyone directed their attentions to the night sky and awed at the bright explosions of light sprinkling down in showers, with fragrant sakura petals blowing in the wind, thanks to the Explosive and the Flowery card (lent from Sakura.)

While everyone’s attentions were directed to the sky, Syaoran whispered, “Quick, go backstage and capture the Joker.”

“You’re a genius Syaoran-kun!” Sakura complimented and slipped away. Syaoran’s ears turned red.

The Joker, which had used up all its powers in the long drawn out battle cowered as she approached it. “You caused so much trouble for all the students and made me sprain my ankle.” Hmm… maybe I should be thankful. Or else, I would still be staying home alone… What am I thinking? “Don’t think of running away this time. Spirit of the dark forces. I, Sakura command you. Return to a new shape under contract. Sakura Card!”
 
Sighing in relief, Sakura stared at the clown drawn in front of the Joker. It was basically a playful, fun loving card that caused tons of trouble for her.

******

“I wonder why the Kaitou Magician returned the necklace and the ring to us,” Syaoran commented, on their way home.

“I don’t think he’s really a bad person,” Sakura said, as she took the returned jewelry out of her pocket.

Meirin added, “He’s more… I don’t know what to say… normal than I thought. Not exactly normal, but I mean—“

“He’s a thief,” Syaoran interrupted.

“But, he’s still a person, though,” Meirin replied. “But a very annoying person. Kick his but next time, Syaoran! I still can’t get this bracelet thingy off.”

“I guess there are more sides to the Kaitou Magician than we thought there were,” Tomoyo commented. “I’m glad that I caught most of the marvelous moments on video!”

“He he… I was so scared that people might notice what was really going on,” Sakura said. “I can’t believe they all thought it was part of the show. Oh yeah, Syaoran.” From her pocket, she drew out the ring. It glimmered in the moonlight, the star formed in the center of the deep blue sapphire reflecting off to all directions. “This was your father’s.”

“Yeah, but he gave it to your mother,” Syaoran replied, bending over to see the beauty of the ring closer.

Sakura smiled. “Still, it’s yours. You can have it.”

“But…”

“It’s okay. Here, I’ll hang it through the chain around your neck. Just like how your father wore it. Remember in Shing-san’s paining?” Moving closer to Syaoran, Sakura unhooked a silver necklace she had around her neck, and slipped the ring through it. Then, she fastened it around Syaoran’s neck. “There!”

Picking the ring up from around his neck, Syaoran blushed and mumbled, “Thanks.” Father… Somehow, I feel closer to you.

“Somehow, I feel as if we haven’t seen the last of the Kaitou Magician,” Meirin said, interrupting the serene mood. “I’m pretty sure he’ll get his way in the end.”
 
 

From the top of a roof, the Kaitou Magician watched the laughing friends walk down the street, on their way home after the overall successful Seijou Junior High Spring Circus Carnival. Home… Well, he could go home to his little rented one room apartment with its untidy bed, his untasty cooking, and noisy, drunk next door neighbor. He could go home after the first unsuccessful night in his entire career as a reputable thief. Finally, he could get some sleep. Yet, why did his heart ache so? Was it possibly loneliness? Quickly, he brushed away the feeling. He only got to his position by being cold, calculating and plotting. This left no room for anything else, not even his own feelings.
 

Wish-chan: Well, so who is Kaitou Magician? Does he derive from watching to much
anime such as Detective Conan, Kindaichi Shonen no Jipengu, or St. Tail. No, you will find out later that he is an original character inside. Um... why does he want Sakura's necklace and the Li ring? You'll find out, not any time too soon.

Comments welcomed, cherished, and worshipped at hopeluvpeace@hotmail.com.
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