He said he'd be back soon. That was at least seventeen years ago. Surely judging hopeful CCardCaptorsisn't that hard, though I know that being their loyal protecting third gguardianis. You have to be certain that you can tell what ttheirtrue purpose of the cards is because you're handing over not only the cards, but yourself as well.

That's always what he told me anyways, and I love him so I do as much as I can to abide by this, though I personally don't care. I am the defiant third gguardian the 'Protector', the void between day and night, the line that brings the yyinand yang together. I am Rayna. I was supposed to be a secret, I was supposed to be only Clow Reed's gguardian never known to the outside world. I was supposed to be perfect in all forms of magic and loyalty, the strongest of the three gguardians Neither is true anymore.

I was, at that time, perfect in all forms of magic, dark and light both, I was sent to both the sorcery acadamies to even further perfect this, and I was stronger then the other two, I could sense it though I had never actually met them. The loyalty part was where Clow Reed went wrong. He went wrong by giving me a will, my own free will, but not only a will, he created me just as any other human is created, and so I have stupid girlish hormones.

I do not know who my mother and father are and I do not care. When I was two my parents died and Clow Reed cast a spell on me that turned me into the perfect gguardian and so I've grown these past four thousand or so years just like the other guardians. Though I live knowing that it should be my mother living. The spell was meant for her.

In becoming a gguardianI was immediately turned immortal, losing my right to be a human, though I look it and I still grow like one, hormones and all. Clow Reed should have known that I'd have these qualities and he should have taken them away from me from the very beginning. As far as I'm concerned it's his own fault.

Anyways, I was around five hundred years old when Reed started to loose his powers and so the three gguardianswere called into a meeting( I was still loyal to Clow Reed at this point as well). I was the youngest gguardian the other two were around one thousand, and I looked like a human would at the age of twelve or thirteen. I had mid-back length wavy golden hair (nearly the color of sunlight) and silver-blue eyes (nearly the color of moonlight) and I was just starting to...develop, if you get my picture, and awaiting my first big crush. I can still remember the whole conversation that took place that day.

/We assembled in the big mansion type palace of Clow Reed's. I was not-so-fashionably late and skidded to a halt in the large foyer. That was when I made eye contact with him.

"So glad you could make it, Rayna. I was just about to start. Since you already know what I'm going to say, would you go get the tea and let our guests enjoy their stay?" Reed had asked me

I can still feel how badly my cheeks burned with embaressment and shame as I bowed and apologized and as I started out. Just before I got to the door one of the gguardians the one that I had made eye contact with, cleared his throat and spoke. "I thank you for the gesture of tea and ppastriesbut nneitherI nor Keroberos eats. We do not need food." he said

I turned, awaiting further orders. "I should have guessed, Yue. Rayna's the same way. I'm sorry. Forget the tea, Rayna." Clow said, "Come and sit. It will be good for you to learn about your fellow gguardiansfor future reference. My magic days are almost up and you all will have to find the next master together."

"Master Reed! Surely you cannot mean that!"Yue exclaimed

"It's true. I've spent most of my magic creating you three and the cards. I have assembled you three to appoint you your positions. I shall spend almost all of my remaining magic to send you to where you need to be to find the next candidate to be the next master of the cards. Keroberos, gguardianbeast of the sun, step forward." Clow Reed ordered.

"Master." Keroberos addressed doing as he was told to do and giving the formal bow.

"You shall be the gguardianbeast of the seal of the book of Clow which contains my cards. If that seal is broken, the cards will scatter. You shall have the power to appoint a cCardCaptor The cCardCaptorwill have to have magic powers to capture the cards. Choose wisely." Reed explained. "Yue, gguardianof the moon, step forward."

Yue did so, bowing deeply and addressing Reed just as Keroberos had. "You shall be the judge. After all the cards are captured the cCardCaptorwill sign the final card and that will be when you come into play. You shall be tthe tester so to speak. You will hold the Final JJudgment a test of the cCardCaptorwhere they may use any of the cards. To win and become the next master of the cards they must beat you. If they do so, you will name them master of the cards."Reed explained. "And finally Rayna, the balance."

It was my turn to step up and bow and acknowledge my master. As I stood back up I took a sideways glance at Yue who was watching me with a blank expression. I smiled and then turned all my attention to Clow Reed. " Your assignment will be to stay here, with me."

"Master I am ready to help the others! I'm stronger then them, I can sense it! Please! Make one of them stay and let me go in their place!" I blurted out, quite angrily and desperately.

"I'm sorry, Rayna. You are my protector. I know you're ready to get out there on your own but I need you here.You will know your place soon enough." he replied. "Pl-" I started. "End of discussion." he said firmly and walked out of the room.

"He never lets me do anything. I'll be in this house till the end of time. I hate it!" I exclaimed more to myself then anyone else.

"I thought you went to the Eastern and Western acadamies." Keroberos commented

"I did. I took the correspondence courses. I've been in this house since I was two and became a gguardian All I can do is look at the city from the balcony!" I replied

"I should think that you'd be honored that he's so close to you and that he wants you to be around. Being in the real world is tough." Yue stated

"He only wants me here because he can't afford servants and so he knows that I'll do that service for him because I've pledged loyalty to him!" I snapped. This earned me a slap from Yue. "If you wanna fight, moon-boy, bring it on! I'm stronger then you anyways!"/

He brought it on alright! I still have a scar on my left cheek bone in the shape of a six pointed star from where an ice crystal hit and broke. I think after I beat him I fell in love with him. I know I did the day after that.

/I awoke the next day in the guest bedroom of my Master's house, well, it was more like a mansion or a place. It took me a moment to remember exactly why I was here and why there were bandages in various places of my body, and then I remembered the fight I was in with the adolescent third guardian. I would not let her speak badly of my Master, and yet, at the same time, her words made sense. In a way I felt sorry for the girl. Not only did I feel sorry but I also felt something else, something deep, something I had never felt before. Well, whatever it was I wasn't going to let it get in the way of anything.

I got up and dressed in my normal attire of white linens and made my way out of the room. I found Keroberos and Clow Reed in the room we had been in the night before.

"That was quite a beating you gave each other last night." Reed commented.

"I am sorry.", I gave him the formal bow and then asked, "How is Rayna?"

"She'll be fine. She's in her room right now trying to find a way to hide that scar you gave her." Clow Reed informed me in reply to my question. But another question arose,"Scar? What scar?" I asked ignorantly, I didn't remember much from then.

"THIS scar!" growled a voice from behind me. I whirled around and there she was, a scar in the shape of a six-pointed star marked her left cheek bone. "How did I give you that?" I asked trying to touch it. Instead of accepting the touch she angrily jerked away.

"Hmm...? I wonder.....maybe with one of your stupid ice chunks?" she replied, sarcasm and anger marked not only her voice but her actions as well. "Okay, okay. I get that you're mad at me and so I'm sorry." I admitted.

By the look on her face she was as shocked as I. I had never apologized before, not to anyone. "I think you owe him an apology as well, Rayna." Clow Reed suggested. Rayna rolled her eyes. " I am sorry Sir Yue, please forgive me." she said just like a little machine.

This made my stomach churn with something close to anger. She had to do whatever Master Reed told her to do, just like a machine, and she wanted to be free. In a way I wanted her to be free as well. And then I remembered what she had said the evening before about never being outside the house. "If I may ask, Master, I'd like to show Rayna around the town today." I blurted out randomly.

"Well I didn't expect that but it's fine with me as long as you promise not to fight or run off together. Rayna, is that okay with you?" Reed replied, looking from her to me. "S-sure." she replied. "Good, go get ready then." Reed said and Rayna nodded and hurried out of the room.

"Can I come, too?" Keroberos asked me. "I guess." I replied. "Yue, remember that though she may not look like it she's just a girl." Reed reminded me. "Yes, Master." I nodded and she came back in denim short shorts and a light pink button-up shirt with white tennis shoes and light pink socks.

"Rayna! Where did you get such garments?" Reed exclaimed. "Don't blow a gasket or anything! I bought them from a catalog! They look good on me, too. Come on, Yue, let's go." she replied hotly, walking towards the front hall and door. "Wait, we're going this way." I called to her and headed to the balcony.

She joined me and Keroberos on the balcony, "Why this way?" "Flying is alot quicker then walking." Keroberos replied as his wings made themselves visible. "But I-" she started, "You have wings don't you?" I cut her off. "Well yeah, but I've never flown before." she admitted as she called forth her own whiter-then-white wings. "It's easy, it's falling without hitting the ground." Keroberos explained. She looked even more nervous now. "Just take my hand and I'll show you." I reassured. I knew she didn't need anyone's help, when she jumped the wind would take care of the rest, flying was just like an involuntary muscle, you could do it as long as you had wings.

She did so and we climbed on top of the railing. We jumped with perfect timing and her hand squeezed tightly to mine. I intertwined our fingers and she smiled up at me. "We're really flying!" she laughed. I nodded and the three of us flew towards the city.

"Did you have fun?" I asked as the three of us landed on the balcony and I let go of her hand. She nodded, "Mmm-hmm. Thank you both." "You're quite welcome. I'm going to go see if the Master needs us." Keroberos replied and left.

Rayna turned and leaned on the railing of the balcony and gazed up at the full moon that was now rising. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" I asked, joining her. "I know why you draw your power from it. You're just as beautiful and serene." she replied, still looking at the moon. "Well it's not often I get told that I'm beautiful, seeing as how I am a guy. But you draw energy from it as well and you are very beautiful. In fact I bet you make the moon envious." I pointed out. She then looked at me and smiled, "That's the first compliment I've gotten in a long time. Thank you, that was very sweet, though I doubt you meant it."

"I did mean it." I informed. Her curious moonlight colored eyes looked for something in my own moonlight eyes. And then it hit me and I leaned in and kissed her and she actually kissed me back. I, Yue, was in love with this disobedient guardian and I didn't care. It felt so perfect just to touch her and I could actually open up to her. I was happy, really happy.

We were interrupted by Keroberos who politely cleared his throat to let us know he was there. We broke off, though I didn't take my arms from around her waist, and looked at Keroberos. "Before you two get all lovely on me, the Master says it's time for us to go search for the new guardian." he informed.

Rayna looked at me with a sad, almost desperate and helpless look. "Can't he wait for about a week?" she groaned, her arms tightening around my neck. I returned her look with my own of helplessness and a tiny bit of sorrow. "I'm sorry once again. But we'll see each other not very long from now." I told her. "I want to come with you. You could use me! I'm perfect in forms of magic!" she blurted out. "I wont be gone long." I reassured. "Yeah, right! Whatever. Bye moon-boy, beast, I'll see you when you get back." she said coldly and started to walk off but my arms were still around her waist.

She glared up at me and when I made no attempt to let her go she started to mumble something that was hardly audible. "Cards for fight, of dark and light. Magic Sword, protect my ward! Teleport!" she mumbled and she was teleported out of my arms and to the double glass doors of the balcony. "Like I was saying, I'll see you all later." she said hotly and left the balcony.

"She has cards?" I asked, somewhat surprised. "Yes, she can make them." Keroberos informed. "Wow. I learn more about her every day." I commented and we went inside to face Master Clow Reed.

/Than he left, he just left! And we were getting to be maybe a little more then friends and fellow guardians, I mean, he KISSED me!! Seriously kissed me! I went to my room in an angery rage and when I came out the next morning they were gone.

I didn't see him for another thirty years, not until I received my position and Clow Reed was very near death. I left that house and never went back, I liked it better as a free person. Though my mission was one that I couldn't turn down because that would mean I would get to see him again. I was to protect the Cardcaptors, or at least the one that would become the cards' next ruler.

It sounded easy enough, right? Well it was hard! Harder then anyone could have expected. The next mistress had to have spirit and a good intent and pure heart. They had to be trusted not to hurt the cards and in return the cards had to like them and not hurt them. In other words, if I chose the wrong master then it could mean the end of the world./

So that's how we saw each other, off and on, back and forth. And now it was time for me to go once again. It was time to see if the Cardcaptor could fit to my qualifications and see if they were destined to rule over not only the cards, but the guardians as well.

I now lived in a city quite a ways away from the mansion but I could always feel the right time to go. I have to go far enough away so that I could get on their good side but close enough so that I didn't call on Yue too quickly. And to prepare I'd simply pack up my cards, the Heal, the Protect, the Lightning, the Wood (which I fashioned after Clow Reed's), the Escape, the Teleport, the Invisible, and the Invincible. They were all cards I had made, all very useful in my line of work.

And now I was ready. Ready to go face the next Cardcaptor. I was ready to face destiny, the destiny known as Sakura Avalon (or Kinomoto, which ever you prefer).