The following morning, Mom and I were once again sitting together in the living room. We both stared at the star shaped pin resting in my hands. She had her hands resting softly on my shoulders. 

"You sure you know what you are doing?" She asked cautiously.

"Yeah. I think so." I nodded. I looked at it with a determined face, before activating it. We both anxiously anticipated whatever would come next.

It started to glow brightly, like an actual star. I jumped as it floated out of my hands and hovered in front of us. We watched in amazement, as it started to spin around really fast like a kaleidoscope. Then without warning, some light shot out of it like a movie projector. 

After a few seconds, we heard a voice speaking from within it. "Hello?" 

That voice certainly sounded familiar. Then Raiden's face appeared in the projection, we both gasped. "Sakura? Are you there?"

"Yes I'm here!" I called out excitedly. "Hello Raiden!"  I greeted him with a small wave.

"I see you have managed to contact us." He answered calmly. "Does that mean you have made a decision?" He asked kindly. I liked how Raiden was serious at times, but also gentle and friendly aswell.

"Yes....I have. I would like to become a Celestial Guardian like you. But my Mom would have to talk to you first, would that be okay with you?" I I inquired politely. I hope it wouldn't be any trouble for him.

Raiden thought for a moment. "I see, well I think it would be better if we had this conversation in person. Would I be able to come round to you so that I may speak with your Mother?" He offered.

I looked to my Mom. "It's okay mum we can trust them, they're good people." I said to reassure her. She might have felt uncomfortable about letting strangers into the house.

She thought for a second. "I suppose so." She responded. I turned back to face hologram Raiden.

"Yes, that would be great." I confirmed.

"Excellent. I'll be right over. See you very soon." He responded.

"Okay!" I replied. With that, he hang up the call. The light disappeared back into the pin and it stopped floating. I caught it safely in my hands.

I noticed Mom looked a little nervous. "Are you sure you're okay with this Mom?" I asked gently.

"Yes honey. It's just a talk." She gave me a half smile.

Literally a minute later, the doorbell rang. Luckily the place had already been cleaned up. 

"I'll get it." I announced. 

My Mom blinked a couple of times. "That was fast." She intoned. 

"Yeah, they have a really fast method of transport." I giggled slightly as I strolled up to my front door.

'Here we go.' I mentally told myself. I slowly opened the door to see.......

"HEY SAKURA!!!!" A loud energetic voice bellowed. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw a familiar, blonde haired boy standing in front of me. He beamed at me with a wide toothy grin. I looked to see Raiden next to him, looking more calm and formal.

"Hikki! You're here too?!" I exclaimed with surprise.

"Yeah! Raiden let me tag along!" He laughed.

Momentarily, Raiden put a hand on his head and moved him to one side. He was the one now standing in front of me. "He wanted to come and see you. Sorry, but he wouldn't stop begging me." He sighed.

I chuckled at them. "It's no problem. I don't mind at all. I'm happy to see you both." I assured.

"Sakura."

I turned to see my Mom approaching me from behind. She looked up at Raiden and Hikki. "I see your friends are here."

"Oh yeah! Mom, I'd like you to meet Raiden and Hikki." I introduced.

"It's an honour to meet you Ma'am." Raiden spoke kindly, as he held his hand out. She respectively shook it. But as Soon as Raiden let go, Hikki eagerly grabbed her hand and shook it rapidly.

"Yeah! Nice to meet ya Mrs Sakura's Mom!" Hikki's handshake was more energetic than Raidens. He was being a little too friendly. Raiden pushed Hikki's arm down, luckily Mom just brushed it off.

"No, no. The pleasure is all mine" she answered, while bowing her head respectively . "And please call me Sumiko." Sumiko was Mom's actual name.

"Certainly." Raiden said.

"Please come on in." Mom encouraged. "I'll go make us some tea." She walked off to the kitchen to start preparing it. I motioned for them to come in and they did so. They both remembered to wipe their feet, but I didn't think it would be a good idea for Hikki to be walking around our house barefoot. Not that I minded, but Mom might.

"Sorry Hikki, but would you mind covering your feet up a little? I know you don't like shoes, but Mom might be uncomfortable with it." I whispered. 

"Here you can borrow my bunny slippers." I pushed over a pair of white plush bunny slippers with my feet, over to him. He gawked at them.

Raiden couldn't help but stifle a laugh. Although it was kind of embarrassing for him, he didn't want to make a bad impression.

"Okay I'll do it." Hikki sighed. "Besides they 'are' kinda cute." He slipped his feet into the slippers and they both followed me into the living room. Soon all four of us were settled around the little table, with cups of freshly brewed tea in front of us.

"So you are really the Celestial Guardians?" My Mom asked Raiden.

"Yes indeed we are. I bear the mark of Leo the lion." he addressed, while showing her the Leo constellation mark on his arm. "I'm also the Leader of the Celestial Guardians." Mom stared at in in amazement.

"Look here's mine too!" Hikki added, as he did the same. "I am Lepus the hare!" He stated proudly

"Wow." Mom breathed. "So does that mean you share similar abilities to Sakura?"

"Yes." Raiden answered. "We can all transform into our specific animals, just like her."

"Like this!" Hikki smiled as he proofed into a hare. He joyfully ran around the table multiple times, laughing.

"Oh my!" Mom proclaimed. I couldn't help but smile at Hikki's enthusiasm.

"Hikki control yourself!" Raiden scolded. "Sorry. Hikki can get a little too excited sometimes."

"It's alright." Mom smiled. "I can see he's a very spirited young man... or I should say hare?" 

Hikki turned back into a Human. "Sorry Raiden. Sorry Sumiko Ma'am." he apologised.

"Of course, that's not the only thing we can do. There are also a number of different abilities gifted to each guardian." Raiden explained. "They grow and improve the more we train. For every generation, new guardians are chosen and trained to become strong warriors to battle evils of the darkness."

My Mom frowned when he mentioned the last part. "I heard that Sakura saw you defeat a monster from our town." She told him.

Raiden briefly looked down. "Yes and I'm very sorry your home got invaded. Lately the darkness has been growing and more monsters have been appearing. I do not wish to worry you Sumiko, but I think Sakura is the key to help restoring the peace once again. This is the first time a new Guardian has been summoned. I am certain she is the miracle we have been hoping for."

"I think so too." said Hikki.

"I am certain that your daughter is capable of incredible things." Raiden continued. "If you let us guide her, we can can help her improve her abilities and gain new skills. I can see that she is a very special girl." I blushed at Raidens speech.

"I appreciate your words Raiden..." Mom began. "But the idea of fighting these awful monsters sounds terrifying." She fretted. "Just the thought of it frightens me." Her body began to tremble in fear, but Raiden put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.

"I understand your concern Sumiko. I won't lie to you, what we do is dangerous. But I can assure you, that your daughter will be in safe hands. We will do everything we can to protect her and we will help her to become strong like the rest of us. So she can fight for herself too." He assured her.

"Yeah! We will take good care of her! And don't worry! I promise I won't let anything happen to her!" Hikki said with heartfelt determination.

My mother stared at them both. She had never heard anyone speak that way about me before. She had only just met these people, yet they were willing to protect her own daughter and accept her as one of their own. The last thing she wanted was for me to get hurt, but they seemed trustworthy and appeared to be good friends towards me.

"If I let her go along with you...can you promise me that she will be alright?" She looked into Raiden's eyes, as if she was begging him.

Raiden took her hand. "I give you my word." He spoke with sincerity. "As the leader of the Celestial Guardians, it is my sworn duty to protect everyone, including my comrades. What kind of leader would I be if I didn't fulfill that duty?"

Mom had no right to question him. She could tell he was a good and honest person. She let out a little sigh. "Okay. But what exactly would you be doing with her? Would she have to train with you everyday?"

"Well first off, she would come train with us a little bit each day. And longer on her days off." He responded. "By the end of her middle school term, she will have to transfer to living with us where she'll learn to become a Celestial Guardian. It is something we dedicate our lives too. If she truly wants to be a guardian like us, that's something she'll have to do. Would you both be alright with it?"

"So you want her to live with you too?!" She questioned him.

"She would still be able to come back anytime she wants. It's easier for the guardians to live at the shrine, besides it would help protect the both of you." He reassured.

"Yeah! I'm totally up for it!" I said confidently. 

"I suppose that would be okay and long as she gets back safely." She reminded.

"Of course." Raiden replied. "Everyone's saftey is our main priority."

"Well, I don't think I've ever seen Sakura this excited for something. Plus you all seem to have a lot in common with her. Sakura has always had trouble making friends, but she seems to get along with you well." She informed. "I believe if Sakura is around people who understand her, then she should be allowed to explore her abilities. Especially among those who are similar to her. So for now, I will let her go with you. I do believe this is what's best for her." She concluded.

I I immediately tacked her into a hug. "Thank you so much Mom!"

She lovingly hugged me back. "Just remember to be careful alright? Promise me."

"I will Mom. I swear I won't let you down. You'll see I will become a Celestial Guardian and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to be great!" I promised.

Raiden smiled at my newfound determination ,while Hikki just grinned broadly "I'm proud of the decision you've made Sakura. The training will be tough, but we will help you all the way. The more you grow, the more abilities you gain. Even we're still discovering more about our powers." He expressed.

"With all of us by your side you will be a guardian in no time!" Hikki added positively.

"I really hope so." I responded.

Raiden looked to my Mom "Sumiko, since you will allow us to train Sakura, is it okay for her to spend the rest of the day with us?" He requested civilly. "We will return her by sunset."

"Very well." Mom replied.

"Then we'll take our leave." Raiden said as he got up.

"Uh Sorry...." Hikki interrupted. "But is it okay if I use your bathroom before we go?" He pleaded. By the look on his face, I could tell he was a little desperate. I found it funny how Hikki would still act like a little kid.

"Can't you hold it till we get back?" Raiden droned.

"Of course. It's right down the hallway." Mom pointed out kindly.

"Thanks!" Hikki said before he zipped off.

"Allow me to clean up for you while we wait for Hikki. It's the least I can do" Raiden kindly offered, before taking the cups into the kitchen. 

"Oh thank you very much" Mom replied. "What a fine young gentleman." She muttered to herself. She turned to face me.

"I must admit, you're new friends really are interesting Sakura."

"Yeah aren't they cool? I told you they understood me!" I answered happily.

"Yes I can see. Though I never expected them to be like this." She admitted.

"That's not a bad thing, is it?" I asked with concern.

"No, no of course not! They're truly amazing. I just hope everything will be alright. This whole 'Celestial Guardians' thing sounds huge." She uttered. At that time we didn't hear Hikki coming out of the bathroom. She stayed behind to listen to us.

"Don't worry Mom. It'll be okay, I'm sure. Like you said, this is probably what's best for me." I spoke honestly.

"I know." She answered. "I think your Dad would've thought the same thing. He always did want you to follow your dreams and desires and so do I."

"Thanks Mom." I smiled.

Hikki then glanced at a picture of my Dad on a memorial we had for him. He smiled at it before he and Raiden came back in to join us.

"Right let's go." Raiden announced. 

"Okay!" Hikki responded "Come on Sakura!" He encouraged.

"Alright!" I responded.

We all started to head out of the door. Mom waved us off as we left.

"See you later Mom!" I bid farewell as I waved back to her.

"Remember to be back by sundown!" She called out.

"I will!" I reassured.