Note: None of these characters belong to me accept for Kaori and Alanna. The language is PG.

 

A Test of Heart

Part 3

 

By: A.J. Matthews

 

I’m lying awake on my bed when it appears in front of me.

 

I didn’t notice it at first. I was too busy thinking about how much I missed my gentle lover, and how much it hurt.

 

Kaori’s form materialized,

 

Tori, she says softly.

 

I look up in surprise.

 

Tears are running down her face. I know how she feels, all too well. I’ve cried enough of them over the past three days.

 

Come with me, quickly, before it’s too late, she pleads.

 

I sit up and look at her. She’s only appeared once before, and that was when Yue and Julian were in trouble.

 

“What’s wrong?” I ask, trying to hide my worry. My mind is screaming. Something must be wrong with Yue!

 

It’s Yue. He’s in trouble. He needs you, now. He’s…. Something’s really wrong with him… Kaori looks at me with a stricken look in her eyes.

 

I clench my hands together.

 

“I can’t help him,” I say, trying to convince myself of that. “And he doesn’t need me.”

 

That was only too obvious, in my opinion. Why else would he have broken up with me like that, without any warning.

 

Kaori looks at me. He’s in the park, Tori. I can’t go there with you. Please help him. I don’t want him to die, and I know you don’t want that, either. And he will, if someone doesn’t help him. He wants to back to the book. Tori… I know he’s hurt you, but without you, he will die tonight.

 

Talk about a guilt trip. I sigh and pull on my shoes. Good thing I still had my clothes on. I look at Kaori after I tie them.

 

“All right,” I say.

 

I get up, and sneak downstairs and out of the door. Dad’s already left for the United States. I just don’t want to wake up Sakura.

 

That kid has been acting strange lately. Li even asked me if I had noticed it. Madison was really worried about her. She used to have a crush on Julian, and now she acted like she could barely tolerate him. He’d refused to talk to either of us. I knew why he wasn’t talking to me, but not why he didn’t talk to Sakura.

 

Of course, I didn’t know what Julian/Yue thought lately. I hadn’t talked to him in over three days. That hurt, it really did.

 

Once I got outside, I jogged to the park.

 

I saw Julian up in a tree. He was talking to himself.

 

I gasp softly when I hear him say, ‘God, Tori, this is tearing me apart…’. He starts to cry.

 

I realize then that Julian is in just as much pain as I am. It’s hurting him too. I can also feel that his magic has destabilized. It worries me because no matter how much he hurt me, I still love him.

 

I quickly duck behind a tree when I feel Kero’s magic approaching.

 

That was another strange thing. My magic senses had been growing stronger, ever since Julian broke up with me.

 

I hear Kero ask Julian if he’s ok.

 

Julian tells him no. He sounds angry and hurt. Sakura is acting strange, he says. What she did was wrong.

 

Kero agrees and comments on it.

 

He then says that wasn’t what he meant. He was referring to the fact that Julian was disappearing again; had been, in fact, since we broke up, because of the strain between us. Kero thought Sakura or I should know about it. Our relationship had been torn apart.

 

I hear Julian’s dejected voice demanding to know what relationship we had now, thanks to Sakura. He then says he doesn’t have the right to ask me for help.

 

I cover my mouth with my hand. This must be what Kaori meant, I think. My magic is no longer supporting him. But he can’t survive without it. That’s crazy. He knows I’d help him anyway. Then I realize that he feels too ashamed to ask for help. Just like the first time. Yue had been hesitant, but in the end, he accepted it. As he needed it, he had reluctantly told me. I had not hesitated then and I wouldn’t hesitate now.

 

Before I can say anything, I hear Alanna’s voice.

 

She asks if it’s Julian who’s up there. My magic sense is registering in her. She has lots of magic.

 

Julian jumps out of the tree. I see that he looks very pale and tired, like he did before I started giving him my magic on a regular basis. The majority had gone into him the first time, but sometimes he needed a little extra.

 

Alanna asks what happened between us to make us stop being ‘friends’. I’m amazed to see hear that she knows about our relationship.

 

I can hear the agony in Julian’s voice when he says that he had to break up with me. That comes as a shocker.

 

I’m further surprised when she reveals that she thinks love is precious and Julian should fight for his love. Me. Love can hurt, but without bad times, we wouldn’t appreciate the good times.

 

He asks her how she got to be so wise; he’s right, she seems to understand how I feel. I look at him, wishing I could touch him.

 

Alanna explains that she had to leave her boyfriend without telling him goodbye. When she found him years later, he was dating someone else. She adds that she was truly happy for her ex, but she doesn’t want to see the same thing happen to Julian.

 

In that instant, I know she really is. She has to be… It’s incredible, I think. No wonder she set off my magic sense. She sure hid it well. Not even Yue had been able to tell.

 

Julian smiles and thanks her. He says she’s a true friend.

 

I watch as Alanna tells Julian she needs to get home.  She touches him on the shoulder, and I can see her magic flow into him. She suddenly sways and looks tired. Julian catches her and says he’ll walk her home.

 

I stand there in surprise and a trace of envy, until Kero flies down.

 

“You were there the whole time, weren’t you, Tori?” he asks.

 

I nod and look at Kero.

 

“What does he mean, that he had to break up with me?” I ask. I have a sinking suspicion that I know what it means, but I want to hear it confirmed.

 

Kero closes his eyes in pain. “If I hadn’t been there, I never would have believed it myself. I heard it with my own two ears.”

 

I grit my teeth as he continues.

 

“Sakura ordered it,” he says.

 

My worst fears were crystallized. “Why?” I ask, in a hurt and pained voice.

 

“She said being with you distracted him too much from our Guardian mission; to protect her and the Clow Cards. She’s our Master. Yue is compelled to obey her, even when she’s wrong. There he is,” Kero says, as he looks up. “But who are they?” He frowns. He can’t seem them from down here.

 

I nod slowly. I feel a wrench in magic. I look up and see Yue surrounded by two dark figures. A third figure does… something to him. I can’t see it, but I feel the magic. Yue falls.

 

Instinctively, I run and catch him. I touch his pale face and find that it’s as soft as ever. He’s out cold. I look up and hear strange laughter as the three figures disappear.

 

Kero flies over. He studies Yue and stiffens. “A memory wipe spell,” he says. “Whoever he saw, they didn’t want him to remember it.”

 

I cradle Yue to me. He’s still light to hold, I realize. Even more so since he’s lost weight. I’d noticed that Julian had lost his appetite at school.

 

The magic gives out, and Yue changes back into Julian.

 

“Julian?” I ask gently.

 

I get no response. I’m really worried this time. He looks so bad. There’s a painful expression on his face, but he doesn’t look as bad as he did before Alanna touched him. Of course, I realize. She gave him her own magic until I could help him again.

 

I stood up and carried Julian all the way back to my house. I place him in my bed. Sakura’s door is cracked open, and I see a light on in it as I pass by. She peeks out of the door sleepily.

 

“What’s going on, Tori? Where have you been?” she asks, and stiffens when she sees Julian in my arms.

 

“Nowhere. A little angel told me to go for a walk,” I say, feeling a surge of anger. That stiffness tells me that she isn’t happy to see me with him.

 

I look at her after laying Julian on my bed. I hold his pale hand, looking at Sakura as she enters. Kero hovers beside the bed.

 

“What happened to Julian?” she asks. Normally, that would have been her first question.

 

“He was in Yue’s form when he was attacked by three strangers. They knocked him out and he fell.” I paused and looked at her.

 

She had stiffened again. Kero was looking at her with a wary expression on his face.

 

“I caught him, and after I did, he changed back into Julian.”

 

Kero still looks at her suspiciously. Then his eyes light up.

 

“Sakura, why not use one of the Clow Cards to wake Julian up?” he suggests. “It’ll give you a chance to change it into a Star Card.”

 

“Because… because I’m too tired,” she says, almost too quickly. “Wouldn’t it be better to just let him sleep it out?”

 

I narrow my eyes at her slightly, but back off for now. I’m more worried about Julian. I look at Kero and nudge him towards Sakura.

 

“Let’s go back to bed, Sakura. You look absolutely exhausted,” Kero said, catching on. “I’ll tuck you back in, ok?”

 

Sakura nods and smiles. “Good night, Tori.” She walks out of the room with Kero, who shoots me a ‘You owe me for this’ look.

  

I nod.

 

I lean over and test Julian’s breathing. I can feel the magic that Alanna placed in him. Enough to keep him from getting suspicious, I think.

 

The best thing for me to do is a direct magic transfer. I did what I’d done the last time Julian had needed magic energy; when he was sick.

 

I kissed him. The kiss was laced with my magic and my love. I could feel it awakening responses in Julian, as he opened his eyes weakly. He responded back with passion, confirming his love for me.

 

I smiled as the kiss broke.

 

“Julian, why didn’t you tell me?” I ask softly.

 

I know he knows what I mean when he looks at me sadly.

 

“She ordered me not too.” He still looked desperately weak and tired. And his eyes were full of longing.

 

I claim his lips again, willing all of my own magic to flow into Julian. His eyes focused on me more, and he looked more awake. His own magic responded as he kissed me in response. His form was changing subconsciously. Yue’s soft lips claimed mine as he focused and changed back into Julian. It cost him a lot; I could see that much.

 

He kissed me, and the kiss deepened this time. Our hands were in each other’s hair, and I leaned Julian back. I vaguely heard the door close as I started to remove my shirt. Julian did the same.

 

***************************

 

Hours later, I held Julian tightly within my arms. He was a magnificent lover… and he was mine again. I kissed him softly, and his lips claimed mine. Our clothes were scattered all over the floor.

 

I could feel that Julian’s magic was stabilized again.

 

I smiled softly as I saw him looking at me.

 

The love in his eyes spoke volumes to me.

 

His voice was hesitant. “Tori, I love you. I always want to be with you.” He licked his lips. “But Sakura is my Master… she deserves obedience.”

 

“Julian,” I said, looking directly into his beautiful eyes. “You were right. What Sakura did was wrong. Alanna was right, as well. Love is precious and worth fighting for. And ‘without the bad times, we wouldn’t appreciate the good times,’ ” I quoted.

 

I’d already admitted that I’d overheard his conversations with both Kero and Alanna.

 

I had decided not to tell him the truth about Alanna. She surely had a right to tell him in her own way. Or maybe it was forbidden. Either way, she seemed to be looking out for him as much as she could. She’d given him magic to survive. And she’d said she was truly happy for us. She’d meant it. I’d seen it in her eyes.

 

Julian leaned into me, caressing my face. “I know…”

 

I traced his face. “We will confront her tomorrow. Something’s wrong with her.” I looked at him seriously. “I could feel it when I regained my magic after…”

 

He nodded. I could feel hesitation in him.

 

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

 

“I wish I could remember who those people were that you saw me in the sky with,” he confessed.

 

I told him that he didn’t matter right now. It was more important to focus on why Sakura had tried to tear us apart. I hoped that she had a damned good explanation.

 

To be concluded….