Playtime
By Leareth
Author's Notes: Someone posted a challenge to the CLAMP Fanfiction Mailing List, where you had to write a CLAMP-fic in under 60 minutes. This is my response. It took me 57 minutes in total. I admit I ripped off my own fic, ‘Shadows of the Moon’ for the idea; chapter thirteen, the flashback where Clow is brushing Yue’s hair after Kerberos was playing. Here’s the tale of how it got messed up in the first place.
Playtime
By Leareth
Kerberos was bored.
The Sun Guardian sat with his head on his paws and started moodily into space. It was raining outside, which meant he couldn’t play in the garden, Master Clow was in his study not to be disturbed, he had already eaten lunch and quite frankly, there was nothing left to do in this huge English house of theirs except sit in the library in front of the fire. And, being feline, Kerberos rapidly got restless.
When Kerberos got restless, he got mischievous.
Slowly, Kerberos looked towards the window, or rather, above the window. Hovering in midair, long slender legs crossed and head bowed, Yue levitated with a large book on his lap. His face was hidden by a curtain of silver hair that trailed down past his shoulders, past his legs, all the way down to end just a few inches above the floor. On his invisible cushion, the Moon Guardian bobbed up and down. Which meant the tail of his hair went up and down, lifting up to the level of the low window-sill, then down until it barely brushed the carpet.
Kerberos followed the tail of the hair with his eyes. It was strangely hypnotising.
Yue turned another page. Up and down, up and down, up and down …
Kerberos found his paws twitching. He flicked a golden eye at Yue, who was too absorbed in his book to notice, if he even was even aware that he had company in the library. The Moon Angel’s mouth quirked up the tiniest of fractions at something in the book. Then the smile was gone as if it never existed.
Really, Yue took life too seriously, Kerberos thought. He needed to loosen up a bit.
Up and down, up and down … the tail of Yue’s long white hair dangled temptingly as if of its own volition, an entity completely separate from that of its wearer. And Kerberos’s eyes went up and down with it.
Kerberos found himself creeping forward, belly to the floor, a stalking lion with wings.
Yue turned a page, heedless of the predator approaching him.
Silently, Kerberos drew close enough to Yue that if he wanted to, he could tickle the Moon Guardian’s bare feet. But he had something better in mind.
He eyed the hair.
Yue turned another page. Completely oblivious.
Perfect, thought Kerberos with a toothy smile.
He crouched down in the shadows.
Then –
"ROWR!!!"
Too late, Yue realised his danger and spread his wings, sending the book flying. He tried to escape towards the ceiling but found himself jerked short by a large paw pinning the end of his hair firmly to the floor.
Yue glared.
"Let go, Kerberos," he said coolly.
Kerberos grinned up at him, very pleased with his strange catch. "Nope."
Yue’s lips tightened, and he alighted on the floor. He strode over to the over-grown cat and folded his arms, giving his fellow Guardian a look of amethyst ice.
"Let. Go. Now."
Kerberos was having too much fun. "I. Don’t. Think. So."
Exasperated, Yue took hold of his hair and tried to pull it out from under Kerberos’s paw. Grinning, Kerberos pressed down harder. Yue walked a little around him, trying to twist away, but as he did so, Kerberos placed another paw down further up his length of hair. This curtailed his movements most significantly. Had the Moon Angel’s eyes been capable of shooting daggers, Clow would have been able to decorate his house with a stuffed lion.
"I said let me go," Yue bit out, every word dripping threat.
Kerberos grinned toothily. "Say please."
"Fine then. Please."
"You didn’t mean it."
"I said please. Now give my hair back."
"Tweet like a bird and I’ll think about it."
The look on Yue’s face at the suggestion was almost as good as idea of seeing him act like a bird. What a way to liven up a rainy day.
Suddenly, Yue spun around and slammed a wing into Kerberos. The lion yelped, startled, the blow knocking him off balance just long enough for Yue to flick his hair over his shoulder away from itchy paws. Before Kerberos knew it, Yue was stalking out the door as if that were the end of the matter.
Unfortunately for Yue, the incident had only lasted long enough to whet Kerberos’s appetite for more trouble.
With a challenging roar, Kerberos leapt, claws extended. Yue half-turned, hands raised in defense, a useless gesture as Kerberos used his wings to twist in midair to avoid any retaliation. The lion used his bigger bulk to knock Yue to the ground, and the Moon Guardian was sent sprawling.
"Kerberos, you -!"
Kerberos, still hovering above the carpet, raised his claws, and, grinning like some cat that has been at the catnip, slashed at the tie binding Yue’s hair.
"Gotcha!"
Yue, too angry to take speak, stood up and summoned a blue crystal shard in the palm of his hand. His hair flew everywhere, silvery silken threads that floated around his face and shoulders like a spider’s web. Kerberos grinned. His companion looked even more feminine with his hair loose.
"Hey, pretty girls should smile!" he yelled, grinning.
Yue twitched. Blue light played over his face and gave his hair sapphire highlights. Kerberos belatedly remembered that his fellow Guardian wasn’t exactly the type of person who took teasing well. He also belatedly realised that if he and Yue were to have an all-out fight in the library, Clow was going to be Most Seriously Displeased.
"H-hey, Yue, I was just playing – ack!"
The rest of Kerberos’ apology was lost as Yue hurled an ice-storm at him. The Sun Guardian’s eyes bulged out – the shelf behind him was in danger of getting ripped to shreds. Clow would probably accept that Yue was the one who had done the damage, but then again, Kerberos had started the fight and Clow always seemed to have a special soft spot for his Moon Angel . . .
On the other hand, Kerberos didn’t exactly want to get hit himself. He looked at the crystals flying towards his face. Quickly he breathed out just enough flame to consume them, then used the sudden attack to cover his dash. Yue, blinded by the glare, didn’t realise that Kerberos had come up behind him until the Sun Guardian had tangled his claws in his hair and jerked him backwards onto the floor
"Calm down!!" Kerberos placed a paw on Yue’s chest and glared at the downed Guardian. Silver hair flew everywhere like threads of moonlight. "Geez, Yue, it’s only a game!"
Yue, sprawled in a most undignified manner on the floor, glared up at him. Kerberos looked at him steadily until the anger in the Moon Guardian’s eyes had faded a little. Not completely, but a little. With a sigh, Kerberos lifted his paw. Yue immediately stood up. It took a several moments for him to gather his hair into a state that would allow him to walk without being hampered. Kerberos tried to help once, but Yue swept past him without a word, out of the library. He slammed the door behind him.
Kerberos sighed.
"Man, that guy needs to lighten up."