Sasaki, Rika
Seiyuu / Dub
Summary
Rika Sasaki serves as a classmate and friend to the protagonist Sakura Kinomoto, often perceived as elegant and mature beyond her years, although she can also display shyness. She demonstrates talent in cooking and crafting throughout the series. Rika encounters the Clow Cards multiple times; early on, she purchases a brooch that turns out to be The Sword card. The card possesses her, prompting her to attack Sakura until Sakura uses The Illusion card to project an image of Rika’s beloved, allowing Sakura to capture the card. Later, Rika nearly drowns during a magical trial orchestrated by Eriol Hiiragizawa, designed to force Sakura to convert a Clow Card into a Sakura Card. Rika is in a romantic relationship with her teacher, Yoshiyuki Terada. In the manga, they are engaged to marry once she is of age and frequently go on dates alone. The anime adaptation removes the engagement and many dates, though their mutual affection remains evident. Rika gifts Terada a handmade teddy bear, which he names after her. When Sakura uses The Illusion card to halt Rika’s possession, Rika addresses the image as Sensei, the Japanese term for teacher. During Yue’s final judgment, where Sakura witnesses a world where everyone loses feelings for their loved one, Rika is shown handing Terada a note without her customary blush or shy demeanor. In the Cardcaptors English adaptation, her name is changed to Rita, and all romantic hints with Terada are deleted. Her academic performance is portrayed as poor rather than excellent, and her blushing is attributed to embarrassment from staying after school frequently.
