Prologue:

They were so different. And yet they were the same. Above so many things. Faster. Stronger. And for so long, painfully oblivious.

"I created you to be halves of a whole." The man said to them both, black hair blowing into his face. "A male and a female."

"We are without, Clow." A second male said softly to that, this one a young looking man. His silver white hair glistened in the moonlight as if wet. "We are not the halves you made."

The third person present came forth, slender form swaying, long maroon hair falling along her arms. "Tell me this is how you want it and I will not fail you." She said through clenched teeth toward the silver-haired man. "Tell me."

"Nakuru." The black haired one said quietly, as if to silence her.

"Iie." She threw back, staring stonily at her pale opponent. "This will be settled here. Now."

"It is foolish. All of this, foolishness. You were meant to be-"

"This is foolishness." She cut him off again, motioning first at herself and then at the silver-haired man. "What we hold between us. It wasn't meant-"

"I agree." Spoke the second man, long white wings folded behind his lanky frame. His gray blue eyes were fixed to the floor, the long lines of those eyes looking positively lazy. "This…weakness."

She looked at him as if he had just struck her.

His eyes snapped to hers, studying her as he spoke firmly. "We don't have anything. We are not above our roles."

The black-haired man bowed his head, threads of silky hair caressing his face. A sigh came from him, one of defeat. "Yue."

"Is that your answer then?" she demanded, glaring at him to the point that his figure swam in her vision. "Tell me that is your answer and I will hold you to it."

For a moment there was nothing but silence as her voice echoed in the stillness. The wind blew gently, as eerie as a ghost whispering in the night.

"Please, think before you answer." The black haired man said softly to the angel.

The angel, in turn, stared at the woman. Yue of the silver hair and gray eyes. Of the long, delicate wings and closed expression.

"I hold to what I said." He said quietly, an eyebrow arched. "We are not the halves of the whole. Nor will I tell myself differently."

Hesitation followed from the black-haired man's form. And after a moment he exhaled painfully.

"So be it."

The woman stared at the angel first, tight expression needing to break, to shift from the smug look she had been made to carry. And then her eyes shifted to the other man as he spoke.

"I hereby confine you-"

Yue, the white angel, nodded, bowing his head and allowing that beautiful hair to fall along the sides of his face.

"Nakuru."

The woman looked at him as he turned on her, long black threads of silky hair whipping about his face. "Nani?" she uttered, blinking at him as if she hadn't understood.

The angel's face also lifted, eyes widening. "Clow!" he whispered, color draining away. And panic settled in as he felt the earth shift under him. "Clow!"

Lightning lit the sky, streaking ominously, their faces lit white by it.

"Doshite?" she asked faintly, looking towards the heavens in fear. "Doshite?"

"Clow!" The angel moved, springing forth, hand outstretched. "Iie!"

The lightning forked, striking the ground several feet away in a brilliant and continuous burst. And it moved, pounding its way forth and ripping up the hard ground as it neared.

"Nakuru!"

A small cry broke from the woman's lips as the lightning engulfed her, one small sound before she clamped down. Her form stiffened in the radiance. It was almost like a shield surrounding her in a cylinder of light and force.

The angel stared, just as stiff, just as fearful.

The black-haired man also gazed upon her, face emotionless.

The woman's form suddenly blinked, light flashing up her figure. And in the aftermath all that remained was a tiny glowing sphere, a random color flashing across its surface.

Small sounds were coming from the angel, noises of disbelief.

"Release." The dark-haired man murmured, one hand lifting, long fingers splaying towards the orb.

The sphere of light dimmed as a black, oily substance covered it like a filmy second skin. And the sphere was shaped by the black substance, the oily skin shooting in both vertical directions to form a slender staff. It stood by itself for a moment, moonlight gleaming across its surface.

Then it toppled over, falling to the ground and rolling a bit.

The angel stumbled forth and fell to his knees, pale hands coming to rest on either side of the staff and he stared at it, wide-eyed.

The black-haired man came forth, body almost floating under his large robes.

"D…doshite?" The angel whispered faintly, shoulders quivering under his silver hair.

The black-haired man paused beside him. "This was what you wanted." He said quietly, looking down upon his beautiful creation, eyes focusing on his long hair. "This is what you chose-"

"I wanted her to be free-"

"You didn't want to have to see her face again and be reminded of what you turned from." The man corrected him.

The angel turned his head slowly, gray blue eyes shifting toward him. "I wanted her to be free." He repeated. "I didn't want this."

The black-haired man paused before slowly coming down one knee.

The angel gazed at him, lips parted, silver bangs falling into his eyes. "And now?" he uttered painfully, lips parting.

The man smiled at him, a gentle gesture to show how he cared for him. "Now we say goodbye." He said softly. "You will belong to another. You will be her Judge. You will be her Protector. And you will be her friend, with Keroberos as Guardian of the Seal."

The angel stared at him as if he spoke a language he didn't recognize. "The Seal… to the Clow Cards?"

The man nodded, eyes closing into moon crescents. "I created you and Nakuru to be one. The Moon. Spinel Sun and Keroberos, the Sun. And I am the Stars. The Heavens in which they reside." He slowly reached out to caress his angel's face, fingers slipping down the smooth skin of his cheek. "It would not have been wrong."

The angel continued to look at him. "I can't go back." He stated sadly.

"No. You can only go forward."

The black-haired man then reached down with the other hand, taking the staff into his grip and pulling it out from under the angel.

The angel watched him, sitting back on his bare feet helplessly.

The man then rose to his full height, long black hair blowing in the light breeze, the few strands that had escaped his hair tie.

The look on his angel's face. He could only describe it as being one of devastation. And realization, as the angel lifted his gray blue eyes to him. "For the first time…in my existence…" he whispered, "I feel something other than love towards you…"

The man's expression didn't waver. "You despise me. I know."

The angel shook his head, looking wounded. "No." he uttered and he looked down, frame shivering. "No. I don't want this feeling."

The black-haired man slowly lowered his free hand and ran it over his creation's hair.

"Sayonara, Yue."

The angel looked up at him, eyes widening and even as his eyes met his Master's, force was breaking from that hand, like a wave of heat, overwhelming him. He stared right through it, not understanding.

And then, very slowly, his eyes slid shut and he exhaled, falling backwards to the floor.

Clow Reed exhaled sadly, gazing upon his angelic creation tenderly.

"It would not have been wrong."