RECAP: Syaoran and Sakura flew to London. Syaoran told Sakura about his dad’s death... They stopped in Paris and had strange dreams where Eriol was telling Sakura to leave Syaoran out of this... at the end of the chap they were on their flight from Paris to London.

Chapter 49

Syaoran cringed as another shooting pain radiated down his arm. Sakura had managed to fall asleep for the full flight, right on a vital area of circulation, and his arm had been asleep since a little after take off. At least she’s comfortable.

The business woman on his left was putting her little computer away as the plane prepared to land. She continuously bumped his elbow with hers as she put her stuff away. She said something in French to him and he just nodded in return. My arm’s going to fall off. Syaoran attempted to look at Sakura, but her face was buried into his shoulder and all he saw was a mass of chesnut hair.

So she had a repetitive dream about me and she never told me about it for some reason. "But it doesn’t seem like a big deal. I just know you’re going to get hurt or something, and I don’t know what to do..." She’s definitely holding something back. She didn’t want to tell me it for some reason. Maybe she didn’t want to scare me. Maybe she thought I’d get freaked out and not come with her here and help her? That’s too selfish of her, she wouldn’t do that. There must be another reason.

Syaoran thought back to the vision he had had. Eriol sure knew how to make things appealing. Everything had been so happy. His family was living happily together. His mother had been alive. There had been no trouble with the cards. The elders had been treating him like a son. Everything had been perfect. Except for one thing. Eriol must be afraid of us together. He knows he can keep control of Sakura by herself, but he’s scared of what we will do together against him. That’s all this is! He’s actually frightened.

Sakura blinked her eyes open. The sun was streaming in through the windows of the seats in front of her. She sat up groggily and rubbed her eyes. Syaoran took his arm back. She gave him a tired smile and pulled the shade open with one hand while brushing through her hair with the other. She squinted at the bright light and looked at the huge city that they were descending upon. The city looked so neat and organized from the air.

I wonder where Eriol lives? Does he live in the town, or does he live in the country? "I should have brought his address," Sakura realized aloud.

Syaoran glanced at her while trying to nonchalantly push blood back into his dead limb. "I don’t know if that would help us much. Do you remember the city on his address?"

"No. I never paid attention. I just copied it down and put a stamp on it. How are we going to find it?"

Syaoran sighed, then felt a familiar tingling tickling through his mind. "Do you feel that?"

Sakura frowned at him. "What?"

"Concentrate. That’s how we’ll find him."

Sakura thought Syaoran was starting to lose his sanity, then realized she could sense power as well. "Oh." She sat and pondered this strategy as the plane plunged down to the runway. "But how will we get there?"

"A taxi or something."
Sakura bit her lip and looked out the window at the fast moving pavement. "So we’ll just tell him- ‘hang on a second...it’s... it’s this way! Now turn right. No, straight!’ I don’t think we can find a driver that will go without an address."

Syaoran felt his confidence deflate. He hadn’t considered that. He decided to not make a response. The wheels touched the ground and then the engines kicked in to slow them down. The plane came to a gradual halt, then the stewardesses began their speech for dismissing the passengers. People began standing up and gathering their things from the overhead compartments. The business woman grabbed her bag from overhead and gripped her small computer, then merged into the river of exiting passengers.

Syaoran got up, his knees cracking painfully, and reached up to unlatch the overhead. His half-asleep arm was hard to maneuver, and he narrowly missed hitting an unsuspecting old man in the eye as he tried to pull out their two bookbags. Sakura took her bag from him sleepily, then followed him down the aisle and out the plane. They walked silently up the ramp to the airport, both looking at their watches and thinking about what time it was at home, and how little they had slept the past three days. Or was it two days? I don’t remember.

Sakura stepped onto the solid shining tile of the airport floor, following the signs towards the exit of the gate. "It’s wonderful. I can read all of the signs here."

Syaoran nodded in agreement, shifting his bag to his other arm and looking around. He slowed as he found a bathroom and handed Sakura his bookbag. "Hold this, I’ll be right back."

Sakura nodded incompliance and watched him disappear through the door. She looked down at his bookbag and studied everything she could about it. It was a simple, plain, black book bag. She shifted her weight onto her other leg as she waited and watched all the people passing by. All different races and nationalities passed by, all hurrying towards their destinations purposefully. Sakura watched a family of four pass by. The mother and father walked holding hands as their little boy and younger girl pranced about happily. Sakura could only guess this was how her family was before her mother’s death.

Sakura gasped with surprise as she turned and found Syaoran right next to her. He had seemed to find the object of her gaze, and was watching them as well. Syaoran’s eyes had a kind of sadness in them Sakura couldn’t imagine. There was so much pain behind that mask he clung to desperately. He met her eyes for a second before darting them to the floor and then up to more signs. "Let’s get going," he mumbled gruffly, retreiving his bookbag from Sakura.

Sakura followed him glumly, thinking of the story he had told her on the plane. He had finally told her how his dad had died. And it was horrible. No wonder he never wanted to think about it. I wonder what it’s like to lose both your parents? And in such a dramatic way? I can’t imagine losing my father right now. Even though I feel like we’re worlds apart, he’s still here for me. How does Syaoran do it?

Maybe we could rent a car... Syaoran thought to himself. There must be some way to get a hold of a vehichle. Stealing’s last on the list. We’re in enough trouble already. Maybe we could just take buses around. But I doubt Eriol lives in a convenient location. He probably lives halfway across the countryside. Maybe he moved over to Wales? Maybe he decided to float over to Ireland or something. Anything to make it harder for us. What a great guy. "Maybe we can go rent a car."
Sakura frowned at Syaoran’s suggestion and rushed up to walk beside him. "But neither of us know how to drive!"

Syaoran rolled his eyes. "I know how to drive, in case you forget me stealing that car when we were in the United States. And I was only.. what... thirteen?"

Sakura sighed. "Neither of us can drive legally. How are we supposed to rent a car without a license?"

"Well, I mean... they can’t require you to have your license on hand, can they? I guess... that would make sense..." Syaoran glared at his own stupidity and tried to come up with another plan.

"Too bad my cards are so spastic. We could just create our own car." Sakura mourned inwardly for the loss of her abilities. "There’s not some Chinese spell to create a car, is there?"

Syaoran smirked. "You think hundreds of years ago, some old Chinese guy made a spell to create something that hadn’t been invented yet?"

Sakura ignored the implied accusation of unintelligence and continued on her tangent. "Maybe I can create one. Like.. with my staff." Syaoran looked confused. "Do you remember when I fought those giant spiders and stuff, and then you showed up at the end?" Syaoran nodded. "Well I was able to like... invent my own spell. I was able to just swat my staff at the bugs and all this energy came out, my staff was glowing and everything. It was pretty cool..."

"Concentrating your energy to destroy something is completly different than concentrating your energy to create." Syaoran held back how impressed he was Sakura was able to do something so powerful. Only in his past year of intense training had he been able to summon his energy into a powerful blast.

Sakura glared at him for tearing down her dream. "Well fine. What do you propose, since all of my ideas are so stupid?"

Syaoran sighed at her. "We could ... we could hop in one and drive away..."

Sakura shook her head immediately. "No. No stealing. We are not going to get ourselves in trouble with the law enforcers here. I have enough to deal with with my father."

"What? So you say we walk?"

Sakura scowled, then stomped towards the door to the outside sidewalk. "Well let’s just get out of this airport for starters."

Syaoran reluctantly followed her and pulled his bookbag up onto his shoulders. After about a mile of walking, she’ll want to steal a car too. It’s not like we’ll be here very long. I’m sure the world would understand if they knew what danger we were saving them from.

Sakura pushed her way through the double doors and took in a deep breath of the cold London air. There was a very light snow sprinkling through the air though the sky appeared sunny. Sakura yawned and walked to the curb. Dozens of cars zoomed to and fro, picking up and dropping off people like lifeless cargo. Syaoran slowed to a stop next to Sakura, looking down at all the possible cars that sat turned on and driverless.

"So what do you propose next?" He asked.

Sakura bit her lip and tried to come up with some kind of plan. Something went off. Sakura looked at her watch for a second before realizing it wasn’t any audible sound. She turned to Syaoran to see if he noticed. Syaoran was rubbing his eyes sleepily. "Are you alright?"

Syaoran didn’t want to admit it, but all of the sudden he felt tired and almost nauseous. He shrugged carelessly. "Just tired."

Sakura studied him carefully. "So... you don’t sense anything?"

Syaoran frowned at her for a second before figuring out that the onset of his drowsiness wasn’t at all normal. "Yeah, I do."

Sakura looked up and down the street. There were so many people, everywhere. She knew this feeling. This was the feeling of Clow Reed, a.k.a. Hiiragizawa Eriol. He was no where to be found. Sakura looked at Syaoran. He was looking around but he looked like he was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. Sakura closed her eyes, ignoring how dumb she looked to bystanders, and concentrated. She could sense a distinct path. Sakura opened her eyes and looked straight to where the magic path led.

"Excuse me, miss."

Sakura about jumped out of her skin as she felt a light hand tap her shoulder. She spun around to find a man in what seemed to be a butler suit, staring intently at her. "Y-yes?"

"Hiiragizawa-sama requests you join me in escorting you to his estate."

Sakura’s eyebrows raised and she looked questioningly at Syaoran. He only wore a scowl. What help. "So... you’re going to drive us there?"

"Yes, miss. Right this way." The man sort of glided along the sidewalk, looking far out of place. Sakura had a feeling he was out of place no matter where he went. Sakura hurried after him, glancing back at Syaoran, who was, of course, hesitant. Sakura motioned for him to hurry and then returned her attention to their new friend.

The scrawny and absurdly tall man halted in front of a large, spacious, creepy black car. He elegantly opened the passenger door and held it open, his eyes staring straight ahead. Sakura wasn’t sure what was going on for a moment, then realized he was holding the door for her. She rushed into the car, pulling her bookbag onto her lap sloppily. The man shut the door, then continued around the car to the driver’s side.

Syaoran glared at the man, then let himself into the backseat. He watched the man with challenging eyes as he settled into the driver’s seat. Sakura was just way too trusting sometimes. She sat looking around the car, amazed by all the high class technology installed. Syaoran sighed glumly and looked out the window.

"So how far do we have to drive?" Sakura asked.

"Approximately one hundred and twelve kilometers," he answered, merging into the traffic.

Sakura glanced at Syaoran through the rearview mirror. He looked so lonely in the way-too-spacious back of the black car. She tried to refocus. The man drove with such prestige. His knobby hands guided the wheel with authority. "So Eriol-kun knew we were coming, and he sent you to the airport to get us?"

The man didn’t even look at her. "Hiiragizawa-sama is aware of many things."

Sakura gave him a weak smile, then looked miserably out the window. This guy wasn’t going to tell her anything.

A hundred and twelve kilometers at this speed will take all day. Syaoran looked longingly at the speedometer, willing it to increase. The man remained at his steady, snail-like pace. He looked up at Sakura. She was sitting content as a little girl, jittering in her seat and gawking out the window at all the tall building they passed. Must be nice to be so carefree. Syaoran looked over at the driver. His nose came down in a creepy hook and his eyes squinted so that they were barely visible in his head. Syaoran looked back to Sakura. She was looking at him through the mirror. Syaoran pretended not to notice and looked back to the window.

Sakura looked ahead quickly after making eye contact with Syaoran and returned her attention to the butler driving. I wonder what his name is? Something like Ichabod or Oswald. She decided to pursure this thought. "My name is Kinomoto Sakura," she announced, smiling innocently at the man.

Syaoran looked up to see if the man even recognized that Sakura was speaking. He hadn’t made the slightest signal that he was paying attention. Syaoran refused to let himself laugh, though the situation was quite humorous. Sakura would make friends with anyone. Syaoran found the humor leaving, as he remembered Sakura making bad choices about friendship with people such as Mark and his minions.

Sakura watched the man closely. He wasn’t going to help her struggling smalltalk. "What is your name?"

The man stared straight ahead, watching the road closely. Sakura frowned and glanced out the window, not sure how to persist. Syaoran made a coughing noise, apparently trying to choke down a laugh. Sakura glared at him in her side mirror and then looked back out in front of the car. They were now out of the thickest parts of the city. Probably another hour to go. Oh what fun.

- - - - - - - -

The landscape of tall buildings and wide highways slowly turned into a hilly landscape of bright emerald grass and intricate patterns of hedge. There was an abrupt change in weather as they drove through a small village in which the sky darkened and in turn everything became duller. A light fog sprung up out of no where and coated the once lively landscape. Syaoran found the weather appropriate for a setting of their reunion with Eriol. He looked at Sakura who was about half alive in the front seat, her mouth hanging open and her eyes glazed with deep thinking. He looked to their driver. He was in the same position he had been in since he had gotten into the car. Creepy.

Eriol’s probably living in another big mansion. All kinds of trick doors and hidden stairways.. He’ll steal Sakura away and convince her he’s on her side or something. Syaoran silenced his thoughts as the car slowed. They were approaching a gated gravel road which Syaoran later realized was a driveway. Syaoran peered out the window and found a wooded area in which the driveway winded through. Pine trees dominated the scene, followed by empty deciduous trees. Further in Syaoran could see an old style bridge bent over a small river. Eriol probably bought his own river. More to add to his huge ego.

"This is amazing! Eriol-kun really lives here?" Sakura couldn’t believe the property Eriol was staying on.

"This is the Hiiragizawa estate," the driver replied monotonously, habitually turning down the curves and turns of the driveway.

Sakura looked down at the river as they drove over the bridge. There were fall leaves blanketing the banks. The river looked perfect, like something off of a postcard. She looked into the side mirror and mouthed ‘wow’ at Syaoran before looking back ahead of the car. They drove into a clearing where the driveway circled around an old, gothic looking fountain. In front of it was a huge, old, gorgeous house.

The architecture was phenomenal. This must have been built in the 18th century for sure! Sakura gawked up at the three floor housefor a long time before realizing that the car had stopped and they were parked in front of the huge front door. Sakura rushed out of her seat, anxious to get outside and look around.

Sakura met Syaoran at the back of the car and continued to stare up in amazement. "This is incredible. He could have his own hotel business or something."

"Doesn’t it remind you of anything?" Syaoran studied the old exterior of the house, shocked at the similarities.

"Not really, no...." Sakura frowned and glanced at Syaoran. "What were you thinking?"

"It looks exactly like your Uncle Guan’s old house. Only... well kept, and more English."

Sakura took a second glance at the house to analyze what he was saying. He was right. It was just like her old house. Well that’s creepy. Thank you Syaoran for turning something pretty into something frightening.

"Well there’s no need for you to stand out there and freeze to death," Eriol’s voice carried over the crisp, cold air. Sakura looked up to find the front door opened and Eriol standing in it’s way. Eriol had a broad, charming smile, his eyes twinkling even at such a distance. There was not the smallest sign of hostility about him.

Sakura smiled warmly. "Your house is beautiful!" She quickly made her way up the steps to the door, suprising herself at how welcomed she felt. Eriol knew how to make people feel welcome, that was for sure. She stopped in front of him, keeping her smile up. "Well.... hello!"
Eriol smiled back, his blue eyes sparkling. He held out his hand, waiting a second before Sakura caught on and put her hand in his. Eriol bent down, brought her hand up to his lips, and kissed the back of her hand so softly Sakura barely felt it. Sakura tried to stay composed and keep her blush down to a bare minimum as her cheeks burned red hot. "Welcome, Kinomoto Sakura. You travelled a long way just to see me." He gently dropped her hand down and shifted his gaze to Syaoran, who still stood at the bottom of the steps. "And you brought Li-san along. There’s no need to make yourself an outsider, come on in."

Syaoran wasn’t sure if he could move towards Eriol without attacking him. But as Eriol led Sakura indoors, Syaoran hurried after her, trying to ease his fingers out of a tight fist. He stepped into the dark and dismal hall of the house and turned to find their driver shutting the large door behind him. Syaoran turned back to find Eriol and Sakura already halfway to the next room. She just falls right into his trap. Great job Sakura. Way to work as a team. Treat our biggest enemy as the love of your life.

Eriol opened the next set of tall doors and revealed a large, echoing chamber that was currently being used as a dining room. A table was set in the middle, heavily decorated with thick candles and baskets full of steaming rolls. Sakura had to admit, the rolls looked like the best edible substance she’d seen since Japan. Eriol turned to Sakura and to Syaoran, who was trailing along behind. "We’ve got lots to talk about, I know. But it is lunch time, so why not talk over lunch?" Eriol’s voice boomed off the walls, fitting his confident, cunning, all knowing style.

Sakura nodded enthusiastically. "I haven’t ate in what feels like ages. Those rolls look heavenly."

Eriol smiled in return and even flashed his devilish smile at Syaoran, who held his steady scowl. That bastard. He’s got her exactly where he wants her and he’s going to just play around the outside first. If he’s so smart, he must know we’re onto him. Why is he even bothering with this fake introduction?As Syaoran sat himself across from Sakura, he watched her jitter excitedly in her chair with her large, bright green eyes on a roll. That’s why.

"So eat up, everyone. We’ll have plenty of time to talk after we’re done." Eriol picked himself out a roll and set it delicately onto his plate.

Sakura gladly reached out and chose the roll she had been eyeing. She set down her doughy piece of heaven and pulled it apart, her mouth watering as she saw how it squished down with a touch. She grabbed some butter from in front of her and looked around for a knife. She looked up as she spread the butter on her roll and found Syaoran glaring off into space, not participating in the roll consumption. He just can’t accept the smallest bit of hospitality. Maybe Eriol’s doing some funny things with magic, but at least he’s making us feel at home. I guess Syaoran just can’t fathom making a civil negotiation with an enemy. It’s got to be physical, primitive, barbaric fighting. That’s the only way to solve anything in his world.

Syaoran held his arms steadily crossed, looking around the room and mapping out possible battle strategies. He snuck a furtive glance at Sakura. She was munching happily on her roll, looking ready to pick out another one. He sighed with defeat and looked back to the left side of the room. He could feel Eriol’s eyes on him, watching him constantly. Syaoran tried to figure out how to obtain the upperhand, but was interupted by Eriol.

"So, how is everything in Japan?" Eriol broke the silence, taking a sip of the water from a goblet in front of him.

"Well... nonmagically, everything’s pretty much the same. School goes on, all of our old friends are getting older. But magically, there’s a whole different story. Thus us being here."

Eriol nodded knowingly. "I see." He turned and adressed Syaoran. "Do you have a wheat allergy?"

Syaoran met Eriol’s eyes with his persistent glare. "I’m not hungry," he replied coolly.

Eriol smiled and shook his head. "Paranoid as always. I promise you I didn’t poison the food. Now if my chef decided he was tired of the oppressive labor in the kitchen and had it out for me, then I do apologize, but that scenario aside, I’m quite sure the bread’s safe."

Syaoran just glared calmly.

"So how are you, Li-san?"

Syaoran let out a loud sigh of annoyance. "Quite well, thanks."

Eriol shook his head and picked up the last bit of his roll. "You know, Syaoran," he swallowed an invisible glob of bread and waved his roll to accentuate his point. "You know, it must get really miserable being so scared of human contact. I thought if there was one thing Sakura could teach you, it would be that, but I see you’re still clinging to those last shreds of security."

Syaoran contemplated standing up, walking over calmly and punching Eriol where he sat so smugly on his little throne, but he glanced at Sakura and refrained. She watched Syaoran with worried emerald eyes, drowning in the tension Eriol had doused over the room. Syaoran let out a slow breath. "I appreciate your concern, Hiiragizawa, but I really am quite fine. These rolls look wonderful, but I’m afraid my stomach is a bit queasy from all this flying." Syaoran wanted to pat himself on the back for answering with such a civilized, fabricated answer. He couldn’t recall ever referring to himself as ‘queasy’.

Sakura bit hard on her bottom lip and quickly brought a second roll to her plate. Something miraculous had just happened to Syaoran, because he had calmly withstood an insult *and* been able to describe himself as ‘queasy’. She bit into her roll with wonder, amazed at Syaoran, Syaoran of all people, restoring a peaceful atmosphere to their dinner. "So, Eriol-kun, I think I must have your phone number written down wrong or something. I just can’t seem to get through. The line was disconnected or something or another."

Eriol nodded. "Yes, we’ve been having alot of phone trouble here lately. There was a terrible car wreck just down the road and it took out a telephone pole. Apparently it did something to the line that goes down the driveway here."

Sakura nodded in acceptance of his answer. "Well that stinks. Anyways, there’s just been alot of weird stuff happening with the cards in the past year or so. It seems hopeless. I really don’t have a clue as to fixing them."

Eriol frowned as if surprised to hear this information. "Have you brought this to Keroberus?"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Kero-chan isn’t much help these days. It seems alot of people around me have been acting strangely. He doesn’t have any idea what’s going on. Syaoran’s been looking up stuff in all kinds of books, but we just can’t seem to figure it out."

Eriol nodded. "So you’ve been staying in Japan all this time, Li-san?"

Syaoran shook his head. "I was in Hong Kong for quite alot of it."

Eriol smiled pitifully at Sakura. "Well that’s terrible, trying to deal with those cards all by yourself. You’re a strong magician Sakura, I’m sure you were dealing with some tough opponents before you came out here."

Sakura nodded. "Really tough. They really seem unstoppable. I don’t know what to do."

Eriol nodded elusively. "Did you bring any of this to the Elders?"

Syaoran brought his eyes up from where they had been resting. "Yes. They don’t put much thought to anything but the immediate Hong Kong issues."

"I’m sorry to hear that. What does Yelan-san have to say about it?"

Syaoran immediately froze his emotions, ignoring the initial pain of hearing her name. "She had some ideas," he said, scowling all the more at Eriol.

Eriol held his calm, laid back smirk. "How is Yelan and the family, anyways?"

Sakura coughed loudly, choking on the roll she had started to swallow. The cough seemed to echo and hang in the air for ages. She turned bright red as Syaoran glared at her, and even brighter when Eriol smiled with amusement at her childlike behavior. She shifted in her seat, dying to run out of the room. She looked up at Syaoran with sympathizing eyes. He just looked at the edge of the table.

"She’s, uh... she died, actually," Syaoran said quietly, his spiteful attitude turning to a more vulnerable one.

Sakura longed to put the disrespectful, uncivil, arrogant, overconfident edge back into his voice. She couldn’t stand to hear him talk so placidly. And to Eriol, someone he despised. She glanced up at Eriol, then snuck a look at Syaoran. He was just sitting there, holding onto a much weaker glare.

"I’m so sorry... That’s horrible....If there’s anything I can do for you or your sisters, just let me know. I’m really sorry, for asking."
Syaoran was able to retake hold of his scowl, his eyes recapturing their old fire. "Maybe you could cut through all this bullshit smalltalk and get to the point of things. You know exactly why we’re here. Now tell us what’s going on. Sakura didn’t destroy her relationship with her family just to chat over dinner."
Eriol set his knife down, looking calmly in front of him as he collected his thoughts. "Alright..." Eriol paused before pushing his chair out from the table and standing up. "Alright. I can try and explain this, but I can’t do it in words. I’ll have to show you."

Syaoran watched him unsurely, then stood up as well. Sakura was standing so quiet, not sure what to think of things.

"Sakura, if I can have a word with you," Eriol motioned to the door behind him, watching her carefully.

Sakura looked at Eriol, then looked at Syaoran. He had a grave look on his face, sending all kinds of negative signals at her. But if she wanted to get anything done, she might as well talk with Eriol. She gave Syaoran a reassuring smile, then followed Eriol to the doorway. He stopped when they were a safe distance from Syaoran (who watched them like a hawk) and turned to Sakura.

"You remember when you had visions of Clow Reed? Of cherry trees and things like that?"

Sakura nodded. "The cards sent me back in time to watch some of that. That was a long time ago."

Eriol nodded. "To help you understand what’s going on, I need to show you a vision like that. But I can only show you. You, the Cardmistress. We both know how Syaoran will react to this. I need you to reassure him that we will be fine. I’m just trying to help you."

Sakura nodded. Syaoran wouldn’t like that at all. She looked over at him, standing with the light hitting him just right so he looked like he was on fire from his passionate hate as he scowled away, then looked back to Eriol. "I’ll do what I can."

Eriol smiled and nodded, then left Sakura to walk over and negotiate on her own.

Sakura walked over to Syaoran, trying to formulate some kind of speech that would set his mind at ease. But she knew the only way he was going to be satisfied was if he had his eyes on her, watching everything that was happening. She slowed as she approached him and gave him a sympathetic smile. He just glared back, as if knowing what was coming.

"I’m really sorry he had to ask about her..." Sakura started, longing to just pull him into a tight hug until he felt better. But that wouldn’t fix anything.

He wants her to tell me they have to go off on their own. That she’ll be fine and safe as our archenemy ‘helps’ her out. "Don’t even think about going with him."

Sakura looked to the floor, having no idea how to handle the situation. "Syaoran-"

"Don’t. Just don’t. Please don’t be that naive, Sakura. Please."

Sakura felt her insides start to twist around themselves. "Syaoran, listen. We’re not going to get anything done starting fist fights with him. He’s not going to hurt me, he-"

"You don’t know that. Don’t do it, Sakura. Don’t do it for me."

Sakura frowned hard at the floor, not letting herself look up into his passionate eyes. She turned to Eriol who stood patiently in the doorway. She turned back to Syaoran and gave a weak smile. "I have to. Please try to respect my decision. My decision as a Card Mistress. Okay? I’ll be fine." Sakura smiled once more for reinforcement, then turned to head over to Eriol. Syaoran grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.

"Sakura you can’t! Just tell him we work as a team. Don’t let him divide us up, that’s exactly what he wants!" Syaoran frowned with frustration as Sakura looked blankly back at him. He dropped her wrist and looked at Eriol, standing smugly in the doorway. Patient Eriol. Kind Eriol. Perfect Eriol. He wouldn’t hurt a fly. Syaoran looked at Sakura once more, then stomped over to Eriol’s station. "You’re not going to split us up like this. We go together."

Eriol shook his head with a look on his face like he was talking to a kindergartner. "Oh Syaoran, always having to have control. There comes a time when you have to trust those you care for to make wise decisions for themselves. You’re only hurting her, trying to rule her life like this."

Syaoran scowled, shaking his head furiously. That wasn’t what he meant by it at all. Sakura approached, frowning herself. Syaoran couldn’t tell whose side she was on. "I don’t want control over her! I just want her safe, and I damn well know having her in your hands isn’t going to-"

"You’re suggesting she can’t take care of herself? Let’s not forget who won the cards in the end."

Sakura glared at both of the boys. "Stop it! I’m right here you know!" With both their attention, she took a breath and continued. "Syaoran, I really do appreciate your concern, but I’ll be alright. I promise you I’ll be alright. And Eriol, please don’t hassle Syaoran. Alright?"

Eriol smiled and nodded. "My mistake, Sakura."

Syaoran held a determined glare, crushing his teeth together. How can she be so blind! I just want control... what a bastard. He’d say anything to put her against me. Can’t she see I can’t stand losing her too?

Sakura smiled sincerely at Syaoran. "Look, we’ll shake on it. I’ll be okay. Eriol’s just trying to help out."

Syaoran hoped if words wouldn’t work, the look he was giving her would. But she just stood there, smiling as if nothing big was going on, holding her hand out in the air. Syaoran let out an irritated breath and looked the other way as he clasped hands with hers. Sakura shook his firmly and let go, keeping her happy smile all the while. Syaoran looked from her to Eriol, who stood with the perfect expression.

"We’ll be back scratch free in about five minutes, you have my word," Eriol gave an amused smile at Syaoran and turned to Sakura, holding out his arm. Sakura gave Syaoran one last smile before taking Eriol’s arm and walking with him to the next doorway.
Syaoran watched them disappear behind the next set of double doors. It seemed sureal. She actually left. Couldn’t she see I needed her to stay? And she left. Syaoran walked back over to the table with the cooling food and stared at it in disbelief. She didn’t actually buy into what he was saying, did she? Can she possibly be so trusting and just so... Syaoran impulsively brought his fist down on the plate on the table, smashing a clean crack right through the middle. If they’re back within the hour, I’ll be thoroughly impressed.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Sakura stopped with Eriol at a closet just before some impressive looking doors. The doors looked like they hadn’t been opened in ages. Eriol opened the closet and fished through several coats before retreiving one. "It’s a bit cold outside," he remarked, handing Sakura a long, dark, wooly coat. She took it and looked it over.

"We’re going outside," she responded offhand, trying the coat on and modeling it in front of a dusty mirror on the wall.

"Just out in the courtyard. I didn’t want to go outside cold." Eriol pulled out a long coat with tails and pulled it on, then shut the closet. "There. And we’re making more of a style statement. I’m sure Tomoyo would be proud."

Sakura smiled at the thought of her old friend, fussing over battle costumes. She followed Eriol to the large doors and waited for him to pull them open. A blast of cold air surged through the opening, then subsided to a persistent chill. Sakura walked alongside Eriol, waiting breifly for the doors to be shut again, and continued into the courtyard.

The courtyard was gorgeous. It was just another attribute to remind Sakura of her Uncle Guan’s house, but pretty nonetheless. There were old stone benchs placed everywhere, around dormant flowerbeds and cold fountains that weren’t running. Sakura followed Eriol around the weaving path and stopped as he stopped.

"That was always my favorite piece. There’s something happy about her expression, like she almost enjoys the familiarity of her misery."

Sakura turned to see a large statue of a beautiful girl, eyes downcast and her stone hair falling around her face. There was something familiar about her face, though Sakura couldn’t point it out. Something about her spiraling curls and her large, intelligent eyes. It’s almost like Chindra. Only... it’s not.

"Well, let’s get to it," Eriol stopped himself in front of a large tree. Sakura realized that the entire garden was centered around the tree. There was nothing special about it that she could see. Eriol called out his sun staff and gripped his coat, shivering for a second. "Are you ready to see?"

Sakura smiled and nodded. "Should I call out my staff?"

Eriol shook his head. "I don’t see any need for it." Eriol stood silent for a second, then set his staff into a casting position. He said some nonsensical words, and within the second of the last one Sakura found herself falling through time and space. Luckily, she was quite accustomed to the feeling, and quickly found her bearings as she felt herself land in a solid place.

She stood up, a little dizzy, and squinted around at her surroundings. Eriol appeared next to her, a reminiscing smile on his face. Sakura rememered to pay attention. There was a large ball setting in front of them, in which many well dressed men and women danced across the large floor. Sakura knew this scene. She had seen it before. "I’ve seen this, Eriol." Sakura was worried at these implications. This is the ball Chindra told me about. Where my family fell in love with Clow Reed and Chindra’s family fell in love with Clow Reed. And the cards were given to my family for the first time. And magic to Chindra’s family.

"I’m sure you have. You’ve been visited by several of these diminishing pasts."

Sakura studied the dancers and found he was right. She could see one of Chindra’s relatives dancing with a handsome man. That was the woman that statue was made of! "This is the ball where my family and Chindra’s family fell in love with you!"

Eriol turned and smiled at Sakura, shaking his head. "Syaoran gives you no credit. You are a very intelligent girl, Sakura. You know of the three lines of magic?"

Sakura frowned, shaking her head slowly. "No, I don’t know about that. Chindra just told me... she told me that there was a fight over yo-Clow Reed, and that that started a huge feud between my family and her’s, and that’s how Aruka killed my mother and eventually my Uncle."

Eriol turned back to the scene, eyeying a distant Clow Reed. "In the beginning, Clow Reed posessed all of the magic. But he became bored being the only power in the world. So he chose two other lines to bestow with power. He held a great ball in the very house your Uncle had stayed in. He presented your family and the family of Chindra’s with this very gift."

"Right, right... but after this, that’s where I don’t understand."

Eriol nodded and switched the scene with the snap of his fingers. Now the scene was of a desert town, having a backdrop of distant pyramids. Sakura looked at it agasp. "This is Egypt, isn’t it?"

Eriol nodded. "There was a line in the west, which I held. There was one in the Middle East, and there was a line in China, near the Hong Kong area. I continued a line in Japan, in my hometown, around the time of your father’s birth. But the families began misusing their powers. I was not convinced I could trust Aruka’s mother with the gift of magic."

Sakura looked over the scene. There was Clow Reed, walking across the desert as if it was a perfectly cool spring day. He stopped as he approached a dark haired woman and smiled. The woman scowled back, having an attitude quite closely related to that of Syaoran.

"I know what you want of me. But I’m not giving it to you. This magic belongs to me."

Clow Reed smiled gently, not moving one muscle of his body as the woman went into an attack stanse. She called out something in a language Sakura didn’t know, and soon the crystal around her neck turned into a staff that looked similar to Sakura’s. Sakura frowned as she watched. This must have been the ‘test’ Chindra was talking about. Where Clow Reed took back the magic for good from their family.

"I see you understand what’s happening," Eriol muttered, snapping his fingers and ending the scene abruptly.

Sakura frowned, biting her lip, then looked back to Eriol. His blue eyes were watching her closely, no longer holding the sincere kindness of earlier. Is that what is happening now? He wants to take away my magic for good? He wants all of the cards back? Sakura looked into Eriol’s blue eyes. What would it hurt? She hated the cards. She hated everything about being so responsible. She didn’t want to have to babysit the world. Why not just give them back, let him have them? Sakura swallowed hard and looked to the ground. "I don’t know," she mumbled quietly.

Eriol made no physical change. "I don’t need you to know. I would just rather take these cards with your approval than vica versa. There’s no need to be hostile about this."

Sakura frowned and held her eyes steadily on the ground. "I don’t know, I mean... I hardly understand any of this. This whole time.. it... it was you, making all of these cards...?"

Eriol let out an annoyed sigh, curving way off his personality track. "It was simply a test, trying to get them back."

Sakura frowned at him now, not liking the sounds of any of it. "So that’s it? You ‘tested’ Aruka’s family and stole their magic away? And that’s what you want to do with me?"

Eriol shifted with irritation. "Sakura, I just want to do this in the most simple way possible. So if you just hand them over, everything will be done. No more cards for you. No more lying to your family about where you’re going. No more hiding. No more standing out. No more wasting your life on something you didn’t ask for."

Sakura looked into his deep blue eyes. They were so compelling. What was the harm in giving them up? He was right. She had never asked for them in the first place. The only reason she was into this magic mess was because she had accidentally opened an old book in her basement. Eriol was only trying to help. She smiled weakly, then shrugged. Instantly, she felt magic surge out of every inch of her body. She saw her cards circle around her. They were all there. All her old friends. They’d be going to their old master now. But wait! Why were there two gaps in the circle of cards?

Eriol seemed to be asking the same question. Where were the Sound and Voice card?

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Syaoran yawned and blinked his heavy eyes. It was so hot. The sun just wouldn’t go away. And what’s with this sand! Syaoran bolted up from his lying position. He looked around with wild eyes. The setting was completely different from the dinner room he had just been standing in. He could still feel the plate cracking under his fist. What had happened?

He’s trying to drain my energy. That bastard. I must be dreaming. Syaoran stood up and evaluated his surroundings. I must be in the middle of the Sahari desert. But in the distance he could see pyramids. Or maybe Egypt. Syaoran yawned again, then slapped his face to wake himself up. His cheek stung. He frowned.

Either this is a realistic dream or Eriol is doing something stupid. Going with the latter, Syaoran began forcing his legs into a run towards the distant city. Maybe it’s a vision. Maybe I’m still in that room? Maybe he changed the room into a desert? Syaoran couldn’t help but acknowledge his keen sense that Sakura was in danger. She shouldn’t have gone with him! What was I thinking, just standing back and letting her go!?

Syaoran stopped himself from running, wipping the sweat that was accumulating on his brow. Okay. I just need to calm down and find a way out. Now every vision has got to have a way out... Syaoran looked around. The land seemed endless. Though he could see the city, he knew it would take him a good hour or two to get there. The sky was a wide open blue, empty except for the large hot sun that burned down. Syaoran looked down at the sand. Nothing special about it. Just sand. Syaoran tried harder to focus.

Suddenly he felt something move. Or something being pulled out of him. He couldn’t quite place the feeling. Then he realized it. Somehow he had ended up with the Song and Voice card. How had they gotten in his pocket? He had kept those in a bag to give to Sakura when they got to Eriol’s. It must be part of the vision. But he could feel them pulling on him, like they wanted to go somewhere. Eriol’s trying to get them back. Eriol’s trying to get the cards from Sakura! Syaoran reached in his pocket and pulled out the two cards. They were glowing and vibrating psychotically. He frowned and squinted up at the sky. Nothing. He looked down at the two cards. They longed to shake their way out of his hands. What would happen if he let them go?

Eriol’s trying to steal all his old cards back. If I give him these, they may be all he needs to get rid of us. How did he get all the rest from Sakura? God, he probably did something horrible to her...Syaoran kicked at the sand, enraged and helpless. How could he help Sakura from Egypt or wherever he was? I could just let one go. Let one go, see where it disapears to, and hold onto the last one. He can’t do anything until he gets them all.

This seemed like a logical, last minute kind of plan, so Syaoran decided to go with it. He held out the Song card, tensed his leg muscles ready to run, then released his grip. The card jumped into the air, then disapeared. Just disapeared, right in place. No path. Just fizzled into thin air. Syaoran stared at the place where the card had hung in the air in disbelief. He looked around him to make sure he hadn’t missed anything, then stared back at the spot. There was nothing but air there.

"You bastard, Eriol! Let Sakura go!" Syaoran shouted at the top of his lungs. He half expected the sky to talk back, but nothing happened. It seemed Eriol was indisposed at the moment. Syaoran grit his teeth. How was he supposed to overcome a magician who was stronger than he was? Syaoran let out a deep breath, then called out his sword.

If all else fails, send out a shot of energy, right? Syaoran gathered up his strength, then shouted out his spell. He felt the magic gather through his arms and down into his sword, pause, then blast out. It was the most powerful spell Syaoran had ever pulled off. He watched the energy explode in a circle around him like a nuclear bomb, sending sand raining into the air. The desert itself shook, and suddenly Syaoran found walls shaking around him. As he caught his breath he watched the desert fade into an echoing dining room. He could still hear his voice casting the spell. The walls gave a last shudder before returning to complete normality. Syaoran steadied the grip on his sword and looked around a moment before remembering what was at hand. He made sure he had tight hold of the Voice card, then headed towards the door he had watched Sakura and Eriol disappear behind.

The door flung open. Eriol marched out with a very perturbed expression on his face. Sakura trailed behind him, seemingly entranced by the cards floating around her. Syaoran watched her for a second before looking warily to Eriol. "You cannot seal Sakura Cards."

Syaoran glared at Eriol, then looked down at the card in his hand. "Good point. But when you started calling these cards back, they were just like old Clow Cards again. It was fair game."

Eriol clenched his teeth, holding the Song card in his hand. "Syaoran, Sakura has made a decision to give up the cards. I can’t have you holding her back."

Syaoran looked around Eriol at Sakura. She stood in the middle of her circling cards, lifeless as a doll. "What the hell did you do to her?"

Eriol stepped closer to Syaoran, his eyes in an intimidating flare of challenge. "I offered her a life free of all the stress she wishes to be rid of. Sakura made a sensible decision, and it’s time you recognize it."

Syaoran glanced at Sakura one more time. "If Sakura made a sensible decision, why isn’t she speaking on her own behalf?" Syaoran watched her carefully, but she made no sign of recognition to the situation. Unfortunately the time he spent watching her Eriol took as an okay to attack. And as Syaoran brought his eyes back to Eriol, he found himself being thrown to the ground by a foreign spell Eriol had completely mastered. Syaoran could see the Voice card spinning through the air, gliding towards Eriol. Syaoran lurched out and grabbed hold of it, his fingers just barely closing on it as it slowed to it’s hanging position in the air. Syaoran pulled the card back to him and got to his feet, ignoring his aching body’s protests.

"You bastard. I always knew I couldn’t trust you." Syaoran’s eyes narrowed on Eriol as he concentrated all his energy to expend on him.

Eriol gave a twisted smile in return. "It’s a pity it took you so long." Eriol brought two cards forth and sent both of them out. Syaoran watched the Shot and the Windy jump out towards him.

Syaoran shoved the Voice card deep into his pants pocket and readied his sword for all the Shot would try and do. He hit a few oncoming shots with his sword and jumped out of the way of a particularly big blast, then struggled to hold his sword as the Windy blasted him down the ground. Syaoran struggled to hold his ground and searched the room for any possible solution. He looked at Sakura. She was still standing, cards floating around her head. I just have to wake her up. I need to wake her up!

Syaoran frowned and looked her over, having to stop his evaluation and roll out of the way of a few shots. He could see her staff, gripped loosely in her right hand. He had a wild plan, but if it worked, it would surely give him enough time to snap Sakura out of it. Syaoran jumped to his feet, hitting off several shots and trying vainly to aim them at a now shielded Eriol, then looked at Sakura’s staff. He hoped his summoning spell could survive strong winds.

As soon as he had spoken the spell, the staff flew out of her hands and towards Syaoran’s face. He ducked, turned around, and barely caught hold of the sailing staff. Unfortunately, his turned back caught a sharp pain compliments of the Shot card. Syaoran turned quickly and fended a few shots off, then gripped Sakura’s staff in one hand with his sword in the other. This was a farfetched plan.

Shouting the two spells at almost the same time, Syaoran attempted to bind Eriol and hit him with another large blast all at once. His blast sent out successfully, flowing towards Eriol in all it’s electric rage. The bind spell might have worked, but Syaoran didn’t wait to find out. "Mamoru!" He called the shield over himself and Sakura and sprinted over, knowing Eriol would be getting up and retaliating in a matter of seconds.

"Sakura! Sakura wake up!" Syaoran shook her hard, but she remained staring straight ahead. Syaoran frowned and shook her again, panicking. He needed her to snap out of it. "Sakura!" Still nothing. Syaoran hastily drew her into a kiss. He stepped back to find her blink, then remain comotose. Syaoran looked quickly towards where Eriol had fallen to. He was brushing off his clothing. Not a good sign.

Syaoran gently slapped her face. She made no movement. He shook with frustration and hit her again, more firmly. Nothing. Eriol had his staff out and looked like he was about to cast some catastrophic spell. Syaoran looked down at his sword and then at Sakura. Sakura, forgive me. Syaoran glazed his sword as gently as he could against her calf, cringing as he saw the tiniest bit of blood appear through the tear in her pants.

"Ouch!" Sakura yelped, looking around wildly. Syaoran dropped his sword with relief and smiled at Sakura, then realized Eriol was sending a shot of energy much larger than Syaoran could conjure towards them. Syaoran grabbed Sakura’s arm and yanked her out of the way, jumping towards safe ground.

Sakura looked back in horror at their previous and now shattered location. "What’s going on!?"

Syaoran looked over where his sword lay on the floor and contemplated retreiving it. "Eriol tried to steal your cards!"

Sakura frowned. "What?"

Syaoran let out a breath of frustration. "Eriol was stealing your cards! But I still have this one, so he can’t win yet!"
Sakura looked at the card Syaoran pulled out of his pocket. The Voice card. The card he had sealed at that concert and never told her about until she went and visited him at Hong Kong. The card she had gotten upset with him for. "I remember him asking me for them... at the time it just seemed so normal..." Sakura frowned as she fished through her memory. She had been so ready to give up her cards. Syaoran grabbed her arm and pulled her to another location. He put her staff in her hands.

"Here. I had to borrow it for a second."

Sakura looked at the staff, then smiled at Syaoran. She just realized his weary, worn appearance. He must have been fighting pretty hard. Sakura looked down at her sore leg. There was blood dripping out of a shallow cut across her left calf. She frowned and looked up. "Did you do this?"

Syaoran winced as he looked at her cut. "I couldn’t get you to wake up!"

Sakura looked up and saw another blast directed towards them and jumped up, jumping to the right. Syaoran leaped to the left, narrowly missing being disessembled by a nicely aimed shot. Sakura decided to try and participate, so she shouted her Chinese fire spell in the directed the blasts were coming from. The spell blazed out, the fire consuming anything in its path. Sakura took the opportunity to run over where Syaoran’s sword lay. She picked it up, breifly noticing the blood at the bottom of it, presumably from her leg. That’s disconcerting. She looked up to where Syaoran was catching his breath.

"Syaoran!"

Syaoran looked over at Sakura questioningly. She got hold of his sword, then tossed it towards him. Syaoran expertly caught it by the handle and moved into battle position once more. He looked for Eriol but couldn’t see him through all of the settling dust that had been sent up by their numerous spells. He looked back over to Sakura. She had just summed a shield around her, protecting herself from the oncoming bolts of electricity from the Thunder. Syaoran decided a shield was a good idea, so he restored his own and jumped out of the way of a large strike.

Sakura frowned with frustration. She had just been with Eriol not minutes ago, and everything had been calm and peaceful. Why was he doing this now? Is this a test? A test so he can get back his cards? I don’t really want to give up all of my magic, do I? "Hiiragizawa Eriol! Stop right now!" Sakura shouted at the top of her lungs, feeling her magic help carry her voice across the loud, echoing room.

Syaoran looked up at Sakura’s faint voice, then looked around the room. The fog of dust was slowly settling. There was no spells coming towards them. Syaoran frowned. Eriol was trying to trick them, surely. He looked over to Sakura. She took down her shield and took two daring steps forward. Syaoran felt his muscles groan. She was one tough person to keep safe.

Eriol was walking calmly forward, a kind smile on his face. "No one is going to try and assassinate me?" Eriol asked this question with his eyes on Syaoran, who stood glowering.

Sakura glanced at Syaoran then looked to Eriol. "No. Not for the moment, anyways." Eriol stopped a safe distance away and stood in a laidback manner, erasing the dinner table that had once sat in the middle of the room. He settled his staff with one hand behind his back, his other arm lying harmless on his side. "Eriol, I’m not giving my cards to you. If that’s what this is all about, then we might as well go home. But we’re not leaving until you give us your word you’ll stop stirring the cards up."

Eriol smiled and let out an undefinable sigh. "I would love to make such a balanced offer Sakura, I really would. But I’m afraid there are more complications to the issue then you’re aware of..."Syaoran didn’t hear the rest of Eriol’s little sympathy speech. He was watching his arm, the arm holding his powerful Sunstaff. Syaoran’s eyes narrowed as he watched Eriol adjust his grip. Eriol was going to pull something any second. "...and there are things I’m afraid you’ve grown too accustomed to, such as..." Syaoran strained his eyes to see what Eriol was doing. He had a card in the hand behind the staff. What it was, Syaoran couldn’t tell. He squinted to try and read the label at the bottom, or make out a shape, anything. But it was too far. Eriol moved his other hand. Syaoran slammed his sword down, sending out his energy right at Eriol.

Syaoran blinked, not sure what happened. He heard Sakura scream something, and he saw his energy miss the target. But it hit something solid, further down in the room. It had hit a shield around someone. Before he had a chance to see anything else, he found himself a direct target of Eriol’s. Syaoran felt the wind knocked out of him as the Fight card send him careening back into the stone wall. Syaoran landed face first, coughing and gagging trying to catch his breath. Blood trickled off his lip. Syaoran wiped it off and looked up quickly, finding the Fight coming down to land a kick in his head. Syaoran rolled over quickly, grabbed his sword from its fallen position, and sliced through the body of the Fight. It screeched and dodged away.

Sakura’s eyes widened as she watched Eriol dodge Syaoran’s spell. The energy continued through the room, exploded and crackling as it hit a familiar figure in the distance. "TOMOYO!" Sakura felt her breath stop as she watched the energy fizzle down and settle. Sakura pushed her legs into a run towards her old friend. It’s not an illusion! I can feel it! That’s really her! "Tomoyo!" Sakura shouted again, sprinting ever harder.

Tomoyo brushed some dust off of her expensive jacket and smiled. "I’m fine." She turned and smiled at Eriol. "Thanks Eriol."

Sakura frowned, looking from Eriol to Tomoyo. She strolled over to him casually, stopping at his side and kissing him on the cheek. Sakura tried to get a hold of her shock. "Tomoyo, what... you’ve been friends with him this whole time?"

Eriol smiled as he linked arms with the dark haired girl as if he understood what Sakura was going through. "As I was trying to tell you before being so rudely interrupted by Syaoran-san," Eriol nodded over to Syaoran, who was lying on the ground, about to be hammered by the Fight card. He rolled out of the way just in time and lobbed his sword at the Fight. She screeched and disappeared for a moment, then as he got to his feet appeared at his other side. Syaoran dodge a well aimed punch and spun his sword around towards her. "I think he’s preoccupied for the moment. As I was saying, there are some things you don’t understand about this whole card business. You had some good acquaintances and some bad ones. I couldn’t sit back and watch you be overwhelmed. You needed some extra help to make wise decisions. I tried not to get rid of them completely, but they were just so persistent, it seemed the only solution.

"I tried to fade them out, slowly, so you wouldn’t recognize the change. And I think it worked fairly well. You weren’t too suspicious. They were the same as your old friends, minus some minor upgrades." Eriol stopped talking for a second as a loud yell came from the other side of the room. Syaoran had defeated the Fight card. She reluctantly disappeared into Eriol’s card in hand. Syaoran let out an exhausted breath, then noticed the party of three in the back of the room. He frowned, then began making his way over.

Sakura looked at Tomoyo in disbelief. "You... you replaced her?"

Tomoyo smiled kindly. "Replace is such a harsh word. I was still the good friend you wanted. Just with better advice, that’s all."

Sakura glared furiously. "You can’t just replace people! I don’t care who it is, that’s simply not right!"

Eriol shrugged and looked over at Syaoran, then back to Sakura. "I was just doing what was necessary."

Sakura felt her eyes sting. Here she had thought her best friend was always worried about her, when really, she was just trying to push her to giving up her cards to Eriol. She hated Syaoran. He really didn’t want us to come together, did he? "You-"

"I’m of course, not the only one. That would be too obvious."
Eriol nodded, a pitying look in his eye. "I know it’s a bit of a shock, Sakura, but that’s what comes with being a Card Mistress. These were just responsibilities I grew tired of bestowing upon you. They-"

"I’m not giving up my cards," Sakura said through her teeth, looking at the ground and willing her eyes not to tear up any further. She was forced to look up as new bodies entered the room. Keroberus flew in, a sad smile on his face. Sakura felt her mouth fall open. "YOU! Kero, you! You were the one causing all of those cards to go crazy in Japan! You (she pointed at Eriol) sent him like a little minion to do your dirty work! And every time a bad card would go loose, Kero would disappear! Kero, how could you!"

Kero shook his head, his sad smile still holding. "Sakura, it was for your own good. Didn’t you see how miserable you were with the cards? Eriol didn’t want to put you through it anymore. He felt horrible. He knew he had caused enough harm in your life. He was only trying to help."

Sakura shook her head, feeling the first tear make its way down her cheek. "No..."

Touya entered the room, as well as her father, both smiling empathetically. Sakura stared at them with shock.

"Touya was a tough one to change, but we managed. Your father was one of the last to go, and just finally phased out on your exit of Japan. You won’t have to worry about him when you get back. He won’t remember a thing." Eriol stood smiling with satisfaction.

Sakura felt her breath become heavy and difficult. "Otto-san...." Tears started falling down her face freely. "You...you ruined my entire life, Eriol," she managed weakly, her voice shakey and quiet. "You replaced everyone I ever cared about. You..." Sakura found herself out of oxygen. Everyone... She didn’t think she could handle another horrible thought. But it had already been instilled. She hesitantly turned her head. Syaoran had finally made his way over and was standing watching the whole scene, trying vainly to catch his breath. He realized Sakura was watching him and he looked into her teary eyes.

Syaoran frowned, trying to figure out what she wanted. It wasn’t consolation. He tried to not let his confusion get the best of him. "What...?"

Sakura wiped at her eyes furiously, not trying to hold back the sobs that shook her whole body. "You!" She shouted, gasping for air after it.

Syaoran frowned for a second, then realized what she was meaning. "No! No Sakura, it’s still me. It’s still me!"

Sakura turned away from him, looking for any solid thing in her life to hold onto. There was nothing. Eriol had taken it all and replaced it. She felt Syaoran grab her arm, his warm hand run down to her hand.

"Sakura, believe me! Why would Eriol hate me so much if it was me? He didn’t do anything with me, I promise!"

Sakura shook her head with frustration at him. "Prove it!" She choked out, looking back up to the group of ‘friends’ before her. They were talking amongst themselves, oblivious to the situation. Eriol was standing with his eye on Syaoran, a pitying smile for Sakura. She felt her whole body shudder.

Syaoran turned her to him, trying to get her to look at him. She wouldn’t. Her eyes glued to the floor, tear running out of them. Syaoran searched his brain for anything. "Sakura, he couldn’t have replaced me, or I wouldn’t... I wouldn’t hate him like this. And he wouldn’t hate me. He made all of those replacement try and split us up, can’t you see that? They all hated me! I’m over here with you instead of up there with them!"

Sakura couldn’t make sense out of anything. Maybe Syaoran was right, or maybe he was just a master at lying. Maybe Eriol was just really good at what he was doing. It seemed he had control of the whole situation. Sakura shook her head and pulled her arm out of Syaoran’s hold. "That’s not proof."

Syaoran frowned with ultimate frustration and felt his whole body shiver at the coldness Sakura was surrounding herself by. She was going to deal with this totally alone. She wasn’t going to trust anyone. She had tried to give Eriol her trust and he had ruined her entire life. Syaoran pushed his teeth together as he watched her walk towards the door. He could see her shoulders shake from the sobs taking hold of her. Syaoran swallowed hard. "How could I still be in love with you if I was just a replacement?"

Sakura could hear his words echo wall to wall. She froze in her tracks. She tried to make sense of his words. What if he’s still lying... Sakura hesitantly turned around and faced Syaoran. He was staring at her with the most desperate amber eyes, tears in them reflecting the candle lighting in the room, his shoulders slumped in defeat despite the stanse of hope he held. Sakura stared at him unsurely, her tears stopping, her breath ghostly quiet. And in an instant, Eriol had casted a spell that sent Syaoran tumbling away. Sakura looked up with wide eyes at Eriol and found him in attack mode. Keroberus flew up into the air, targeting Syaoran only. Sakura looked to where he had stopped and rested on the floor, then found life in her legs again. Sakura used magic she didn’t know she had and ran to Syaoran, calling up a shield and kneeling over him.

"Are you alright," She asked in a quakey voice.

Syaoran blinked a few times, then nodded slowly. He managed to get his weakest smile up, and Sakura understood it. "I’m... I’m sorry," she whispered.

Syaoran looked up and saw Kero flying towards them, fire accumulating in his mouth. He threw out a water card and pushed his sword into it, narrowly missing being burnt as stray ashes breezed by their shield. Sakura looked behind her with wide eyes, then grabbed Syaoran’s hands and yanked him to his feet.

"Let’s leave. Let’s just go!"

Syaoran saw another one of Eriol’s attacks coming towards them. They weren’t going to leave till this was over, but they could get away and regroup. Syaoran nodded in agreement and took off, running towards the hall they had entered what seemed a day earlier. Eriol was sending a spell to lock the doors. Sakura pushed her magic into her feet and found herself running faster than the Dash had ever enabled her. She slid through the door’s closing opening and held it open for Syaoran to jump through. The lock hit it just in time, and they both sat against the other side, gasping for air.

After a second Sakura caught her breath and was looking around the hall. Her eyes felt cold and dry from the sudden change in emotion. She looked over at Syaoran. He looked completely exhausted. He had a few scrapes across his face from his fall, and it looked like he was going to have a nice bruise under his right eye. She could see where blood had been spit out of his mouth. Sakura looked down at the floor, hardly able to recollect everything that had just happened.

"This whole time... he’s been playing with me. The only reason he ever gave my family magic was so he could play around with us and eventually get it back. It’s just so... so wrong."

Syaoran looked at her sympathetically, then looked ahead of him. They might be better off if they moved the fighting to the outdoors. Syaoran pushed himself up off the ground and cringed as his muscles begged for rest. He looked down to Sakura. "We should get outside. We might have an advantage with two of us out there. We can split up and attack from both sides."

Sakura nodded grimly. She got to her feet and tried to shove the new wave of tears back where they came from. She only succeeded in rubbing her eyes really hard. "There’s just too much, Syaoran. He has all of those cards, except for one. One you aren’t supposed to have. And he has Keroberus, and who knows if Tomoyo and Touya and Otto-san can do anything."

Syaoran walked towards the outside door. "We’ll be alright. I won’t quit unless you do."

Sakura smiled weakly at him, then hurried towards the door. "Well... what’s our plan?"

Syaoran pulled the heavy door open, squinting at the cold air that blasted across his face. "I think you should concentrate on getting your cards back. Your magic has gotten pretty strong, and I think with me distracting Eriol, you’ll be able to break his hold."

Sakura looked at him unsurely, stepping outside. She clung to the coat Eriol had given to her earlier. "What if it’s like sealing all of the cards at the same time? You really think I can do that?"

Syaoran gave her a hopeful smile, stopping on the top step. "I know you can. You may not make the wisest choices sometimes, but you’ve got a whole lot of determination. Just don’t stop until you have every last one of them."
Sakura smiled with emaressment, then looked over the outside landscape. The light snow turned into a light flurry, making webs and designs across their hair. Sakura smiled at Syaoran’s snow covered head and continued walking out into the open. Syaoran followed suit, looking cautiously behind them.

Sakura looked to her left and then her right. There was no sign of Eriol. She took in a breath of chilly air. "Hiiragizawa!"

The earth beneath their feet rumbled. And then it began cracking. Sakura looked at Syaoran nervously. His eyes didn’t hold any solutions. Soon they had to jump apart. Sakura dodged a large vine that came out of no where and then jumped the other direction as a lightening bolt struck near her feet. Ice came seeping up from the cracks in the ground, freezing everything it touched. Sakura grabbed onto the vine she had dodged earlier and climbed up frantically. She looked around for Syaoran. She couldn’t see him.

Syaoran jumped over a lower wave of water that splashed down at his feet and then ran the other direction as a large wall of water attempted to swallow him. He could see Eriol, at the top of the steps, coolly directing it all. Tomoyo held his arm, leaning against him smugly. Syaoran glared at them both and returned his attention to the dangerous playground Eriol had set up. If I can just get to him, I should be able to distract him long enough for her to get her cards back. Syaoran jumped up on a tree branch that was growing rapidly beside him and agilely leapt to a neighboring tree. He dodged down the branches and swung onto the roof of Eriol’s house. A sword came towards him, one with no handler. Syaoran swung his sword at it for a second before leaping down to the ground. Syaoran landed hard, collapsing to the cold stone. He cringed, took a deep breath, and forced himself to his feet, praying nothing was broken. Though his legs ached horribly, he felt no bones cracking, and thus walked the short distance to Eriol

Syaoran brought his sword up threateningly. "Why don’t you fight man to man?" Syaoran looked over his shoulder at the floating sword that was sinking down to their level. "There’s a sword ready for you to use. Quite convenient, really."

Eriol smiled at Syaoran and looked past him at the sword. He made eye contact with Tomoyo, who smiled in return. "Tomoyo love, why don’t you go get that for me?"

Tomoyo smiled and slipped her arm off him. She strutted around Syaoran, giving him a twisted, seducing smile, and continued over to the sword. Eriol stepped over to Syaoran, giving no heed to his raised sword. Syaoran heard a high pitched scream coming from Sakura’s direction. He looked over, holding his sword steady. A vine had caught her by the foot and was dangling her upsidedown. Eriol watched Syaoran’s reaction. Syaoran looked back to Eriol, his glare intense. "Eriol, you piece of shit, if you hurt her, I’ll kill you. If it’s the last thing I do I’ll do it."

Eriol smiled and shook his head. "Yes, Syaoran. So protective of the girl you love. The girl you love so deeply. It’s quite a tradegy things will end up working out for you the way they will."

Syaoran stepped forward menacingly. "Shut up, Eriol."

Tomoyo returned with the sword. Eriol took it and held it loosely at his side, watching Sakura dangle from the branch. Sakura screamed as the vine shook under her weight. She reached up and tried to grab hold of something. He looked back to Syaoran. "I know you won’t believe me. You have this hope that will survive through anything. When most people would have given up with their families falling apart and lives tumbling down like that, you’ve always persisted on. That’s why I hate to see you be crushed. But I can at least try to help you, can’t I?"

"Eriol shut up and fight!"

Eroil looked back to Sakura. "She told you about that dream of hers, didn’t she? Where she knows you’re going to get hurt. Didn’t it alarm you at least a little bit? Why would she hide that from you unless she had a good cause? Maybe you should think that Sakura isn’t so naive. Maybe you, Li Syaoran, have let your guard down just a little too far."

Syaoran swung his sword around to slice across Eriol’s shoulder. Eriol brought his sword up for a block, then stepped around Syaoran and looked back out to Sakura. "I suppose, that’s not something you want to think about. It’s been so hard for you living so bottled up, you don’t want to stop the good feelings you get when she opens you up. But there’s a few things I want you to know."

Syaoran let out a breath of frustration and jabbed his sword towards Eriol’s chest. Eriol moved out of the way easily and swung his sword around, cutting only the outer layer of Syaoran’s jacket. Syaoran looked at the cut across his sleeve, then glanced back at Sakura. She was struggling to right herself. He looked back to Eriol. "If I listen, will you put her down?"

Eriol raised his eyebrows as if contemplating the bargain, then nodded. "I suppose that would be alright."

Syaoran let out a sigh. "Fine."
Eriol turned to Syaoran, his sword still lying on the side of his leg. "Sakura had the power to stop your mother’s death. I’m sure you weren’t aware of that. But of course, why would she tell you a thing like that? Your help was very beneficial. And with your mother gone, you had no reason to go back to Hong Kong."

Syaoran grit his teeth together. "Don’t bring my mother into-"

"I’m not. I’m just filling in some gaps for you. The crystal around Sakura’s neck had the power to save her. Quite a coincidence she forgot to tell you, hmm?"

Syaoran felt his nails dig into the metal of his sword. "You can let her go now."

Eriol shook his head. "I’m sure you would rather live ignorant of this but I fear I can’t let you leave uninformed. Sakura doesn’t feel for you Syaoran. I know it must hurt to hear that, but it’s the cold truth. Believe me or not, but you’ll see in time that I’m right. She has been using you for help. That’s all. You’re a good friend, sure, but that’s all. You had it right when you pondered these very thoughts."

Syaoran stared out at Sakura, willing himself not to hear any of Eriol’s polluting lies. He looked back to him. "Will you let her go?"

Eriol watched Syaoran carefully. "I will. Just remember what I’ve said. Ask her to let you use her crystal necklace and see what happens."

Syaoran looked back out at Sakura. Eriol released the vine, dropping Sakura to the ground. She plopped down like a sack of potatoes. But in the blink of an eye, the cards surged towards her, all of them in a line. Syaoran smiled in spite of himself. She had gotten them back. He looked at Eriol to see if he was going to plan any retaliation. He stood there calmly. "Go to her. Ask her about it."

Syaoran glared at Eriol and Tomoyo, then turned swiftly and jogged to where Sakura stood up dizzily. Syaoran stopped by her, trying to erase everything Eriol had said from his memory. "Are you alright?"

Sakura brushed some damp leaves off of her and wiped the snow off her cheek. "Yeah... a little tired." She held out her hand, holding all of the cards. "Thanks for that distraction! Whatever you did had him really tied up, cause after concentrating just a little bit they came right back. I did it upsidedown, too."

Syaoran nodded in response, then looked back at Eriol. He and Tomoyo stood together, with the rest of the gang behind them. Sakura frowned as she watched Syaoran. Something was bothering him. "What’s wrong?"

Syaoran looked at her. The necklace sparkled around her neck. Syaoran couldn’t help but wonder. What if... "Chindra gave you that necklace, right?"

Sakura looked down, then nodded. "Right. It was the one from that book you had in Hong Kong. It belonged to her family. It used to contain their magic or something." She looked back up to him. He looked so disturbed. "Why?"

Syaoran watched it sparkle as it caught the light. "Did you ever think about using it?"

Sakura bit her lip. "Um... not really. I don’t know how to, or if it even does anything."

Syaoran looked back at Eriol. He and Tomoyo stood watching the whole scene like a movie. He flipped them off. They smiled back. Sakura frowned at Syaoran’s odd behavior, then reached back to unhook her necklace. She held it out in front of her. It seemed like a simple necklace. "You think this could help us with Eriol?"

Syaoran looked at the necklace in her hands. "I don’t know," he mumbled.

Sakura sighed with irritation. "Well... why isn’t he attacking us? I just got back the cards, and he’s just standing there. You think he wants to negotiate?"

Syaoran picked up the necklace out of her hands, breifly noticing her uneasy reaction. He held it up to his eyes and looked through it. Sakura shook her head with confusion, then looked back to Eriol. "Eriol, why don’t we just call it a tie?" Sakura shouted.

Eriol made no response, only stood in his smug little position.

Sakura frowned. "We go home, you leave us alone, we leave you alone, and everything’s like it used to be!"

Eriol shook his head. "I’m afraid that can’t be arranged," he called back.

Syaoran was convinced the necklace had to do something. He tossed it up in the air, then jabbed out his sword towards it. The crystal froze in the air, light starting to radiate out of it. Syaoran felt his energy mixing into something foreign. He looked over at Sakura who was watching with surprise. "Put your staff on it."

Sakura nodded and brought her staff down onto the crystal. It exploded with light, half blinding Sakura for a moment. Sakura blinked and stood back as the light faded. The crystal necklace was now a staff, and an old face was standing behind it. She blinked for a moment, then looked at her surroundings.

"Where.... am I?" Chindra asked, her large brown eyes searching for something familiar. "Sakura, that is you?"

Sakura nodded in shock. Chindra pulled her into a hug, squeaking with joy. "I thought I had died! I was in horrible black void. There was nothing there. I was nothing. I floating around nothing."

Sakura looked at Syaoran over her shoulder with wonder. He was just frowning. She refused to let him bring her down and smiled as she stepped back. "Your magic, it still works. The necklace you gave me brought you back."

Chindra looked down at the staff in her hands and frowned. "This old Clow Reed magic! I am in England?"

Sakura nodded, then looked up to where Eriol had been. There was no one there. Sakura frowned and looked at Syaoran. "Where’d he go!?"
Syaoran glared over to Eriol’s attacking position. There was no one there. Syaoran took off at a sprint, looking all around for any possible ambushes. He reached the steps and looked around. There was not a trace of anyone. He ran into the hall. There was no one. Syaoran ran into the dining room. No one. Just an old room, worn with the wear and tear of battle. Sakura came jogging up beside him, looking around breathlessly.

"Where’d... he go?"

Syaoran shook his head. "I don’t know."

Chindra looked around as well. "We look for Clow Reed?"

Sakura nodded. "A young him, but him all the same."

Chindra shook her head. "There is no one here."

Syaoran looked around in confusion. The necklace had brought Chindra back. So it really did have powers. But Sakura wasn’t lying to me. That’s just Eriol trying to split us up. That’s all it is. Syaoran looked over at Chindra. She was standing completly clueless. Eriol must have disappeared when Chindra came around. He must be afraid of all three of us fighting together. But.. why did he tell me to look at the necklace? Is he trying to make me doubt Sakura?

"Syaoran?"

Syaoran snapped out of his deep thoughts and looked at Sakura.

"What are we going to do?" She repeated herself.

Syaoran took one more look around the room, then turned around to head outside. "Eriol isn’t going to fight anymore. He won’t fight the three of us."

Sakura looked back at Syaoran, then looked around the room unsurely. She didn’t want to just leave. There had been no settlement. Or maybe there had been. Maybe Eriol realized he had been defeated when Sakura had stolen her cards back. Maybe he knew they had won once Chindra appeared. But why had Syaoran thought to check out the necklace?

Sakura rushed to catch up with Syaoran, Chindra at her side. "Why did you think to look at my necklace?"

Syaoran returned his sword and shrugged. "Eriol said something about it."
Sakura frowned, struggling to keep up with Syaoran’s fast walk. "Why would he say something about it? He ran away once we did something with it. Did he want us to win?"

Syaoran shook his head. "He was just trying to mess with my head, that’s all."

Sakura sighed. Eriol must have said some strange things, because Syaoran was definitely acting different since their little sword fight chat. "What did he say?"

Syaoran stopped and turned to Sakura. He gave one glance at Chindra, then tried to block her out. "Did.... did you have any idea that the necklace could do things? Like heal things?"

Sakura tried to see where this was going. Heal things.. like his mother! "Like your mother?" Sakura guessed.

Syaoran felt his heart drop. "You knew?"

Sakura shook her head hastily. "No! No, I didn’t know. I didn’t know it could do anything." She pleaded with her eyes for him to believe her. He didn’t look convinced. "Really, I had no idea. You were the one to think of trying something with it. Eriol was just making another lie."

Syaoran let out a long breath and nodded. "Yeah... you’re right." Syaoran looked out over the land Eriol had destroyed with earthquakes and trees. They were going to have to walk a long ways.

"We go back home, then?" Chindra asked, looking out at the falling snow.

Sakura nodded. "Sounds good. Only... how?"

Syaoran was already heading down the stairs with a plan. "We’ll just take the car that guy drove us here in." Syaoran walked down the side of the house, not allowing himself to look at anything. He just wanted to leave, go back home, and sleep. Forget about all the stress and pain Eriol was trying to cause. Syaoran spotted the garage behind the house and walked faster.

Syaoran headed around the side of the garage to a small door, then felt around for a light switch. The dusty garage revealed several cars. Syaoran looked through the windows. There was the black car, keys in the ignition. Syaoran smiled with satisfaction, then looked up at the walls to find the switch to open the garage door. Sakura and Chindra caught up finally, squeezing through the doorway.

"Can you hit that button?" Syaoran asked, opening the driver’s door and sliding into the seat. Sakura pushed the button on the wall and watched the garage door safely open, then walked over to the car.

"Are you sure you can drive this?"

Syaoran just glared at her threateningly.

Sakura shrugged and walked around to the passenger’s side. "Whatever. If we crash, I blame you." Chindra let herself into the backseat. Syaoran turned the key and let the engine warm up for a second, then pulled out.

The driving was a little shakey. Syaoran narrowly missed hitting one of Eriol’s vine creations, excusing himself with, "I’m not used to driving on this side."

Once they were on the road, everything settled down. Syaoran drove at a slightly quick pace, but was steady at the wheel, and Sakura allowed herself to relax into her seat. "That was so weird," she muttered, looking out the window. She smiled at Chindra through the side mirror, then looked over to Syaoran. "Don’t you think?"

Syaoran yawned and kept his eyes on the road. "What?"

"That was so strange. Here we come thinking it’s going to be this big epic battle. There were some close calls, but we’ve had worse. Eriol just played some mind games with us, then ran off and let us leave. With the cards."

Syaoran settled into his seat more. "Yeah. It was strange."

Sakura frowned at him. "Are you alright?"

Syaoran glanced at her before looking back to the road. "Of course I am."

Sakura sighed and looked back out the window. "I guess we’re just tired."

He sighed at her unhappiness and tried to appease her. "I’m sorry, he just... he just said alot of bullshit I’m trying to sift through. He was half right about the necklace thing. I don’t know what else he might be right about."

Sakura frowned at his elusive reply, then told herself not to worry. "Well, I say we take a vacation off school to figure out what all of it meant."

Syaoran stretched out his arms, holding the wheel with his knee. He glanced over and noticed the look of terror Sakura was giving him and surrendered to a small smile. He slowly returned his hands to the wheel, drawing out her uneasiness. Sakura just glared at him.

"So, Chindra, you’re free to hang out at our house again. There’s still room for you!"

Chindra smiled gratefully. "That is wonderful, thank you."

Sakura smiled and looked back out the window. She remembered her cards. She pulled them out of her pocket and held them up. They looked the same as when she had left. Some were messed up, others were Clow Cards, and some were hanging on to normality. She sighed. "I don’t get it. This was a pointless trip."

Syaoran let his own breath of frustation and held his eyes on the road. Did you hear me Sakura? Are you going to pretend you don’t know how I feel? How am I supposed to bring that up again? So Sakura... it’s a beautiful day, do you love me too? He watched her out of the corner of his eye. She just sat, staring dreamily out of the window. She’s probably thinking of being home, away from all this horrible magic stuff, away from me, and back with her family. Eating cookies or ice cream and drooling over a Shiro Ame tape.

Sakura felt her eyes threaten to close. She held them open for Syaoran’s sake. Chindra in the back looked like she was dozing off. Sakura smiled at the girl, then looked out at the snow that landed and melted on the windshield. The car was so quiet. Syaoran made no effort to turn on the radio. Sakura continued to look out the window, trying to block out the uncomfortable silence creeping in. She knew he wanted to know a few things, but she couldn’t just blurt it out all of the sudden. Sakura felt her palms start to sweat and her heart beat quicken every time she thought of being so serious with him. It was terrifying, really. He was just going to have to be patient.

Sakura pulled her leg up to observe where Syaoran had slashed across her calf. "You could have tried shaking me or something," she remarked, tracing her finger across the dry clotted blood. "This is gross."

Syaoran glanced at her leg and sighed with sympathy. "I did shake you. And I slapped you and you still wouldn’t wake up."

"Oh, slapping, how pleasant." Sakura smiled and shook her head at him. Syaoran looked annoyed. "I do appreciate it, okay? It’s just... a little... disturbing."

Syaoran leaned himself against the far side of the car seat, trying to find a more comfortable position. He had discovered why their previous driver had held such a poised position for the whole drive. It was practically impossible to sit any other way. "Well, I didn’t enjoy doing it." Syaoran responded finally.

Sakura watched him for a second, looking down when he finally glanced at her. She sighed and went back to inspecting her leg.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Sakura opened her eyes groggily. Something loud was in her left ear. It was the headphones she had had on from the last movie. She must have fallen asleep. Sakura pushed her bangs off her head and pulled the headphones off in irritation. She blinked and looked around. The plane was dark, asides for a few dim airplane lights on. She looked to her right where Chindra sat. She had her face buried in a pillow, asleep. Sakura looked up two rows where Syaoran sat, alone amongst several young boys. Their last flight would have either had a day wait or an hour wait with them split apart. Naturally, Syaoran had jumped on the hour wait, volunteering himself for the alone seat. He looked quiet peaceful, though Sakura could only see his right arm and the right side of his head as he was leaning the other direction, presumably asleep. She smiled and leaned back as far as she could in her seat.

It had been a flurry of buying tickets and finding gates. Sakura was thrilled to think of being back home. She didn’t care what would happen with her family. She just wanted to sleep in her own bed for the night. Maybe the next day. I wonder if the real Tomoyo, Onni-chan, and Otto-san are there waiting for me? I wonder if I’ll see Kero again? Sakura decided not to tire herself with the questions and returned her attention to sleeping. She shut them and immediately fell into a deep slumber.

--

Syaoran blinked his eyes open, then straightened up in his chair. They must be close to landing, because the attendants were talking over the intercom again. Syaoran clicked his seatbelt back in and rubbed the back of his neck. He felt terrible. A hot shower sounded like the best thing in years. Syaoran turned over his right shoulder to check on Sakura and Chindra. Sakura was fast asleep, her mouth wide open. Syaoran tried not to laugh. Chindra looked like she was asleep, though Syaoran couldn’t see her face around all of her dark curling hair. He let out a long breath and looked back ahead. He had seen the lights of Tomoeda out the window. They were very close. Syaoran rubbed his eyes and tried to inspire himself awake, but couldn’t. All he wanted was real sleep in a real bed after a real shower.

What are things going to be like now? What if the cards don’t do anything? When she had finally made them all Sakura cards, I went to Hong Kong. And when I came back, we hardly talked. We didn’t talk. We weren’t even distant friends. It wasn’t until her cards acted up again did we restore what pathetic relationship we had. Can that happen now?Now that we’re older, surely what I said meant something to her... Syaoran gathered his bookbag as the plane touched down, putting it on his lap against protocol. He drifted in his thoughts while the plane roared to a stop. They taxied into their gate and slowed to a complete stop, then the lights all came on. The attendants instructed everyone on where to go. Syaoran stood up, putting his bookbag on his back, and hurried out off the plane. He was one of the first off, and so he found himself waiting for quite some time inside the airport for Sakura and Chindra. They drowsily joined him, and they all three headed to the exit of the airport.

Sakura yawned as she stumbled alongside Syaoran. She couldn’t wait for a real bed. "I was wondering," she broke to yawn, "do you think onni-chan and otto-san will be the old ones?"

Syaoran glanced over at Sakura. Her hair was bunched to one side in a horrible tangle. Syaoran looked away to keep from smiling. "Yeah. I don’t think Eriol will bother with those advisors anymore. Their whole purpose was to keep us from fighting together, I think."

Sakura nodded uncomfortably, then pushed the doors open to the outside world. The air was freezing. She shivered uncontrollably, then looked around at the street in front of them. "I guess.... I guess I’ll see you later or something," Sakura said awkwardly, knowing they had to split to their own houses.

Syaoran felt his hopes fall, though he knew very well they had to split up. He had spent so much time with her, it was hard to imagine splitting apart again. "I guess so," Syaoran responded quietly, looking in the direction of his apartment. Meilin would be there, asleep. She would wake up to the opening of the door and begin drilling him on what happened. Syaoran didn’t know if he could handle that right now.

"I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Syaoran," Sakura said, smiling. Syaoran tried to smile, but wasn’t sure if anything happened or not. Sakura forced herself to turn away, trying to focus on a warm, soft, blanketed bed waiting just for her. She let out a long breath into the night and watched the vapor sail into the sky.

Syaoran stood and watched her walk away, then forced himself around. He looked ahead to the bus stop he would have to wait at. He didn’t really feel like waiting. He decided he would rather walk. Maybe by the time he got to his apartment, he would feel awake enough to talk with Meilin.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Sakura yawned as she turned the knob to the front door. It was locked. Not a big surprise. She fumbled around the mat at the door for the hidden key. Not finding it, she sighed and headed to the side door, Chindra following silently. Sakura jiggled the knob on the side door and smiled with relief as it opened. She led Chindra inside and leaned down shakily to undo her shoes. It was such a long way to her feet. She slowly untied her shoes and kicked them off, then pulled the coat Eriol had given her off and hung it on a hook.

A light came on in the hall downstairs. Sakura bit her lip, hoping she wasn’t going to get a lecture. She would listen to a ten hour lecture after she had sleep, but right now she just didn’t think she could handle it. A figure appeared in the hallway, looking halfasleep. He smiled.

"Sakura-chan, it’s you. I was having the strangest dream and... Oh, Chindra. Hello. So you went and picked her up at the airport?"

Sakura smiled at her father, though she was thoroughly confused. "Yes."

He smiled back. "Well welcome back. I’m going back to bed I suppose. You two get some rest."

Sakura smiled at her father and nodded. "Oyasumi, otto-san."

"Oyasumi, Sakura-chan." He disappeared back into the doorway, shutting the door behind him. Sakura shook her head and shrugged, then drug her feet towards the stairs. Chindra followed with a weak smile on her face from the previous conversation. They both stumbled up the stairs, holding onto the banister for help. Sakura led Chindra to her old room.

"They put some office stuff in there, but the bed’s still there. We’ll fix it up tomorrow."

Chindra smiled gratefully and nodded. "Goodnight, then."

Sakura nodded. "Goodnight." She trudged back down the hallway to her room, didn’t bother with the door or the light, and collapsed onto her bed. Sakura barely managed to pull the covers over her before she had fallen into a deep, peaceful, dreamless sleep.

- - - - - - - -

Syaoran yawned as he stumbled across the dark parkinglot of his apartment building. The sky was just starting to turn light. It had been a bad idea to walk. His whole body was shaking with cold. I am awake. Syaoran found repeating the phrase in his mind helped a little bit in keeping his eyes open. He walked to the door, headed into the lobby, and bypassed the stairs. This was an exception to his ‘take the stairs all the time’ rule. He gladly accepted the quick passage of the elevator. Syaoran stepped out on his floor and headed to his apartment door. He pulled out his keys and feebly stuck the right one in.

After alot of hassle, Syaoran finally got the door to open. He walked into the room, shut the door, and found Meilin running out into the hallway, her pajamas on.

"Syaoran! You’re back!"

Syaoran nodded warily and headed straight towards the couch. He plopped down, throwing his bookbag off, and laid across it. It felt wonderful to stretch out his back like that. Syaoran lingered in the bliss for a few moments before looking up to Meilin, who watched him carefully.

"If you want to sleep and tell me about it later, go ahead."

Syaoran yawned, then forced himself to sit up. "I finally told her."

Meilin frowned questioningly for a moment, then her eyes lit up with realization. "You told her! And I wasn’t around for the moment! So what happened Syaoran? What’d she say!"

Syaoran shook his head grimly. "I don’t know what happened. It was in the middle of all these spells and stuff, and I got hit with something or something, and the next thing we were fighting Eriol again."

Meilin frowned, disatisfied. "So... she hasn’t said anything?"

Syaoran shook his head, laying his head against the pillow at his side and closing his eyes for a second.

"That damn Kinomoto! She did the same thing last time. What a coward!"

Syaoran sat back up and shook his head. "I’ll just have to bring it up again. Or something. Tomorrow, maybe."

Meilin shook her head. "Cousin you need to go to bed for a good eight hours before you do anything. Then you can tell me what happened in battle and stuff. You can tell me what happened, what the cards are up to, then I’ll go out. I’ll go out and you can have the whole apartment to yourself. You know... have some friends over, start talking about deep things... get some confessions going... have Sakura talk about-"

"I get the point Meilin," Syaoran got to his feet, shutting his eyes for a second, the yawning. "I’ll just... tomorrow." Syaoran stumbled around the couch and headed to his room. His bed was going to be so nice. That shower would just have to wait.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

HOLY CRAP! That was super speedy for me! Honestly, when’s the last time I’ve written a chapter that fast? Anyways, oh the drama. Next chapter ENDS this half of the story! And the second half is really short. Which MEANS this story’s coming to a close. Not without some like.. super drama at the end, of course. Not going out without a bang! Omg I’m just so tired. I wrote that last like half of the story in the duration of like two hours and now it’s like midnight.... yawn. That whole longing to get to their bed thing, those were my thoughts, not theirs. And believe you me, I’ll be hanging onto that banister as I pull myself up the stairs. Anyways, HE FINALLY SAID IT! And where’s Sakura in all of this? Just basking in poor Syaoran’s suffering. Couldn’t she just be like, "Ditto" and continue fighting? Not just leave poor Syaoran fighting on empty. Oh well. It’s all that drama I’m talking about. Anyways, really need to hit the hay.

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