“I messed up bad, huh?” Sergio said to no one in particular while inspecting the damage on his Sprinter Trueno. The former agent was in his garage, and it goes without saying that the last drift competition he took part in didn’t go well.
Sergio looked at the intercooler and sighed - installing it on the bumper hadn’t been a great idea, as both parts were going straight into the trash bin. He was about to start taking out the damaged part when he heard Nikki calling him. “What is it?”
“Corolla just called me. She says she needs to speak to both of us - something big is going on, I’m afraid.” Nikki said, poking her head in.
Sergio instinctively brought his right hand over his holster at “big”, prompting a laugh from Nikki. “Don’t worry, it’s isn’t an emergency. Besides, that’s an electric screwdriver.”
Sergio stared at the device he was holding like it was a gun. “Oh.”
***
“So, what is it all about?” Sergio asked as soon as he and Nikki walked out of the portal. In front of them, Corolla waved from her extremely messy worktable.
“Well, the Flowers asked me if I could get you on standby, we might need some help in the future. Look at this.” Corolla said before tossing them the July 2016 issue of Nakayoshi. Nikki catched it and started skimming through.
“Corolla, we’re retired. Just look at our clothes.” Sergio said, pointing at his racing suit and Nikki’s apron, both emblazoned with her café’s logo.
“Bwah...?” Nikki said, before poking her boyfriend’s shoulder and showing him the first page of one of the mangas featured.
“Hm...? Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card Chapter? Is this for real?”
Corolla nodded. “Yup. CLAMP came up with a full-fledged sequel for CCS’ twentieth anniversary. The Flowers are kinda worried about it, though - they fear a badfic explosion, but apparently there are very few Agents left who are knowledgeable in it.”
“And that’s where we come in, I guess?” Sergio wondered. “Still, I’m not sure. I mean, CCS hits me and Nikki close to home, but...”
“I knew you would say something like that, so I spoke with the Marquis and he said he’s fine with the two of you working as contractors. You decide whether to accept or not each mission, and you can stop taking them on whenever you want.”
Sergio hmphed. “The stupid daisy must be really desperate if he’s giving us such good conditions. What do you think, Nikki?”
Nikki shook her head. “You said it, Cardcaptor Sakura is like home for us. Let’s do it.”
[Yes, CCS:CC's first chapter came out today. Scanlations were out less than 24 hours from release - the hype is real. At this point the fanfic explosion is all but confirmed.]