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1 Dear Sakura
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2 by Amazoness Duo and G.P.
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3 amazonessduo@hotmail.com
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4 pearsong1954@yahoo.com
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5
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6
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7 “Where the hell is she?” Syaoran scowled as he found himself at the
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8 starting point of his search, his empty bedroom. He had awoken to
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9 find Sakura missing, her side of the bed barely slept in. His
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10 brunette wife was almost always there when he got ready for work. He
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11 had thought that she had been downstairs making breakfast or waiting
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12 for him, but Sakura hadn’t been there either. His concern escalating,
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13 the Chinese sorcerer had made his way through the entire house,
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14 twice, to no avail. Sakura was nowhere to be found.
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15 Sighing, Syaoran once again poured over the room he and his wife
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16 shared. One of her small bags was gone. It was the one Tomoyo had
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17 given her as a going away present when Sakura had agreed to come back
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18 to Hong Kong with him. The only reason he remembered was because the
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19 sickeningly cute bag held most of Sakura’s things for her gym class,
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20 so it was often next to their bed so it would be readily available
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21 for her in the morning. But her school supplies lay next to the bed
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22 in disarray, as if Sakura had dumped them all out before taking the
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23 bag. That didn’t make any sense. What good would an empty bag do?
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24 Continuing his search, the frustrated man scoured the room for
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25 anything else that might be a clue to his wife’s whereabouts. He
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26 couldn’t tell if anything else was missing, but he found enough of
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27 her things hurriedly tossed to the side that he could guess that
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28 there were. His eyes slowly scanned the room before stopping on the
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29 desk that lay against the far wall. On top of it lay his Lazan Board,
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30 but there was a curious empty spot next to it. "The Sakura Book!” he
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31 nearly yelled out. The familiar pink book was nowhere to be seen.
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32 Sakura sometimes took it with her when she wanted to speak to the
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33 Cards or when she simply wanted it nearby, but it always wound up on
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34 that desk. A terrible sense of foreboding swept through the Chinese
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35 sorcerer.
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36 Running down the stairs, Syaoran forced past his older sister,
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37 Shiefa, brusquely. He hardly paid attention to her as he continued
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38 through the house. Where had Sakura gone off to? Why would she leave
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39 so suddenly? Was there some new danger? He paused for a moment in
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40 front of the door to the garden. He had to relax. He had told Sakura
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41 time and time again that if she cried it would keep her from getting
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42 anything done. It was the same as this situation. If he panicked, he
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43 wouldn’t be able to resolve the situation. Nodding to himself, he
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44 tried to clear his thoughts. Sakura obviously hadn’t had time to grab
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45 more than a few things, so she was obviously in a hurry. She had
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46 taken the Book of Sakura with her, so it could have something to do
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47 with the Cards. Hadn’t she mentioned some dream that had concerned
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48 her lately? He couldn’t recall what it had been about exactly. So
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49 perhaps she had rushed off to whatever this new magical emergency
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50 was. But then why hadn’t she told him? He may not be as powerful as
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51 she, but he had vowed to protect her. Tomoyo had made him promise
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52 that the night before their wedding. It had been an unexpected visit
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53 from the dark haired girl, one he hadn’t quite understood. Why would
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54 the Daidouji girl come to him rather than to Sakura the night before
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55 their wedding? She was obsessed with his bride to be, after all. But
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56 she had come to him that night. Her normal smile hadn’t been on her
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57 face and that had immediately worried him that it might have
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58 something to do with Sakura. But after he had finally allowed her
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59 inside, Tomoyo had watched him carefully for what felt like an
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60 eternity, studying his very soul. When she finally spoke, her soft
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61 voice sounded extremely far away, as if she had traveled the world
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62 over and was too exhausted to take another step. They had spoken for
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63 a short time, mostly about Sakura, though Syaoran had been uneasy the
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64 entire conversation. Finally, Tomoyo had walked up to him and looked
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65 him straight in the eyes. For someone who had faced countless
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66 hardships and numerous battles, Syaoran had thought he was prepared
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67 for anything. But Tomoyo’s infinite gaze, her stormy blue eyes seeing
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68 deep past all that he was... Syaoran had flinched. He had barely
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69 heard her speak and it took him a moment to piece together what he
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70 had heard. She wanted him to promise that he would take care of
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71 Sakura, that he would make her happy. Her words had irritated him,
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72 and he had grown angry with her at the time. “What are you talking
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73 about? Of course I’ll take care of her,” he had said.
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74 Tomoyo had merely stared at him, her deep eyes never losing their
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75 hold on his. His anger seemed to pass through her as if she hadn’t
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76 even noticed it. “I want you to promise that you will always make
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77 Sakura happy. I want you to keep her safe,” she said in her gentle
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78 voice, but there had been no questioning her. Despite her gentle
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79 façade, her words were laced with steel. He would protect her, he
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80 would make her happy, or... He didn’t even want to know the
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81 consequences. He tried to laugh at the thought now, of this pale and
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82 weak girl doing anything to him if he didn’t fulfil his promise, but
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83 he couldn’t bring himself to find any humor in the situation. He knew
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84 in his heart that Tomoyo had been dead serious that day, that there
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85 was no falling short on his side of the deal. There was something
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86 about the dark haired girl that had frightened him. He had agreed
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87 with her demands quickly, hoping she would leave him alone. But she
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88 had waited a moment longer, still staring at him. Brushing back some
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89 hair, she offered him a small smile and a nod before turning around.
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90 He hadn’t seen her leave and he had almost convinced himself that she
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91 had merely been a ghost before he finally got a hold of himself.
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92 Finding himself in the garden, Syaoran walked out into the chilly
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93 morning, holding himself as the bitter wind rushed past him. That
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94 promise felt as if it had been made a lifetime ago. But still, a
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95 promise is a promise. And even more than that, this was his wife. He
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96 was supposed to protect her. So where had she gone to without him? If
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97 it was something to do with her magic, then why wouldn’t she bring
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98 him along? It didn’t make any sense. A small spring of anger welled
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99 up inside him as he fought against the cold. She needed him, didn’t
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100 she? Of course she did. But then why hadn’t she told him of whatever
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101 this was? Why would she run off without him? He was her husband. He
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102 was the one that she was supposed to come with for everything. But
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103 recently, she had spent all of her time talking about that Daidouji
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104 girl. He had gotten so sick of hearing ‘Tomoyo’ all around the house.
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105 Even Fanren had started talking about her! He knew she was Sakura’s
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106 friend, but he hated seeing the one he loved talking about another
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107 all the time, even if it was just another girl. He had gotten angry
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108 at her over it, but he thought that had been resolved. Besides, he
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109 didn’t talk about other people all the time, so why should she?
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110 Shaking his head, Syaoran once again tried to clear his thoughts,
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111 but the jealousy and anger wouldn’t go away. Even if Sakura was the
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112 most powerful magical being on the planet, why would she hurry off
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113 without him? Did she think she didn’t need him for this? What if
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114 something terrible happened that she needed him to save her from?
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115 Tomoyo sure as hell couldn’t save her. For all Sakura had talked
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116 about her recently, the pale girl could never help her with some
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117 magical problem. That was why she needed him for something like this.
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118 It was foolish to rush off on her own. Now he would have to find her,
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119 and, most likely at the last possible instant, save her.
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120 Syaoran’s scowl grew darker as he stepped out among the flowers. He
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121 was liking this less and less. What the hell could Sakura be up to?
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122 He was her husband. He had a right to know, even if this didn’t have
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123 anything to do with the Cards. They were married and he was the one
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124 she should be going to with her problems so he could fix them. But
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125 instead, she always turned to Tomoyo, crying out her problems in
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126 letters and telephone conversations that cost a big chunk of Sakura’s
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127 paycheck because she wouldn’t get off the phone until it was pitch
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128 black outside. But could Tomoyo ever fix her problems? No. She was
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129 merely a shoulder to cry on. But somehow, Sakura always felt better
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130 about everything. And that made Syaoran even more jealous about the
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131 attention that someone else was receiving from his wife. Sakura would
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132 crawl back into bed after writing a long letter or after she had been
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133 on the phone with Tomoyo for entirely too long and she would smile
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134 happily, as if she were completely refreshed and wrap her arms around
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135 him before falling asleep. He was glad to see Sakura happier, even if
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136 it puzzled him, but he was angry that it was through someone else. He
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137 knew that he didn’t think Sakura needed to talk about everything and
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138 that he didn’t always feel like listening after a hard day at work,
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139 but he was still frustrated that he wasn’t the one making her feel
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140 better.
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141 Tomoyo’s visit had proven even worse for the Chinese sorcerer. She
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142 had managed to captivate the hearts of his family, in particular his
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143 older sister, Fanren. Even his mother seemed to take favor with the
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144 pale beauty! How could she get Ieran-sama’s attention when even he
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145 failed under her scrutiny? That had infuriated him. His wife had been
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146 so obliviously happy during the Japanese girl’s stay, spending every
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147 conceivable moment with her. The thing that had gotten to him the
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148 most was that Sakura had looked happier during Tomoyo’s brief stay
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149 than he could ever remember her, even during the honeymoon. He hadn’t
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150 been able to wait for Tomoyo to leave so things could get back to
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151 normal again. But they hadn’t been able to. Sakura had seemed even
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152 more distant lately, her conversations invariably leading back to the
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153 dark haired girl. He had lost his temper several times and though he
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154 regretted it now, he hadn’t been able to stop himself. He just didn’t
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155 want to hear about her anymore in his house. Sakura was his wife,
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156 damn it! No one else’s. No one else had claim to her. He was the one
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157 she should always come to for help. He was the one who should always
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158 make her happy. He should be the one she was always talking about!
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159 So wrapped up in his burning jealousy was Syaoran that he barely
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160 noticed the rustle of leaves in a tree above and the sound of
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161 branches shifting as someone leapt out. He felt the wind whip past
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162 his face as he narrowly dodged the leaping form. His eyes quickly
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163 focused on his attacker, his body shifting to a fighting stance.
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164 “Meiling?!” he blurted out in surprise. His beautiful cousin stood
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165 before him in a short, blue Chinese dress that barely fell past her
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166 thighs. Intricate lavender flowers lay entwined across the deep blue.
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167 Her amber eyes met his with an anger that sent ripples through him.
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168 In a fluid movement that looked more like a dance than an attack, her
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169 fist lunged for him. Syaoran ducked it easily. “What the hell are you
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170 doing?” he shouted at her, blocking a kick. He tried to sense any
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171 magic coming from her to see if she had been enchanted, but he could
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172 feel nothing. Well, not exactly nothing. All he had to do was glance
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173 at those burning amber eyes to see the fury that held her.
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174 Meiling kicked again, driving Syaoran back with her strong legs.
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175 This man had once been her fiance, the man that she had loved with
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176 all of her heart. The man that she still loved. Which is why she was
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177 still so angry with him. How he could have left her for some Japanese
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178 girl was completely beyond her. Had he simply been infatuated with
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179 Sakura’s magic? That was part of why he fell for the white haired
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180 boy, so it was reasonable. And as Sakura had grown in magical power,
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181 so had Syaoran’s feelings for her, as if the two ideas were linked
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182 firmly together. Whatever the reason, he had spurned his cousin’s
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183 affections and instead married the Cardmistress. To say that Meiling
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184 had been distraught was an understatement. Dreams of marrying her
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185 beloved Syaoran had been with her since childhood. The bitter taste
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186 of defeat, of having the once she loved so callously toss her aside
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187 had been maddening. How he could dare do that to her when she had
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188 given him everything had picked at her heart the same way a
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189 thoughtless person pulls away a butterflies wings. Her wings had been
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190 stolen from her and she could no longer soar. All because some hussy
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191 had come along and stolen the attention of the only one she had ever
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192 loved. She would never forgive Sakura for taking away her Syaoran.
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193 But at the same time, she couldn’t forgive Syaoran either. ‘But I
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194 gave you everything,’ she had whispered when she had learned of the
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195 wedding. Syaoran had tried to explain it to her, but she ran off. She
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196 hadn’t let him see her tears. But as soon as she was alone, they came
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197 bitterly and with a vengeance. ‘I loved you and I gave you
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198 everything. I gave you my heart. Why couldn’t you accept it? Is there
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199 something wrong with it? Is it not good enough?’ she had asked
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200 herself in the midst of her tears. But no answers had ever come to
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201 her, from her own heart or from Syaoran.
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202 Though the marriage had only been half a year ago at the most,
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203 Meiling could have sworn it had been an eternity. Forced to watch her
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204 beloved cousin and his blushing bride had driven her near the
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205 breaking point. To see the man she loved with another woman, to know
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206 that her lonely heart would never receive his attention was too
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207 sickeningly cruel. How Tomoyo dealt with it, she couldn’t begin to
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208 fathom. All she knew was the pain. It was her constant companion, a
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209 travel guide to life that she had been unlucky enough to come across.
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210 And all the while, Syaoran had never once shown any sympathy, any
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211 remorse for breaking her heart. How thoughtless! How cruel! How dare
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212 he!?! Meiling renewed her assault with further vigor, her rage
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213 fueling her near dance-like attacks.
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214 Syaoran kept on the defensive, but he was beginning to tire.
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215 Meiling had gone crazy. That was the only explanation. Why else would
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216 she fight him like this? It made no sense. He decided that the only
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217 way to finish this battle would be to take her out. She seemed in no
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218 mood to give up. With a sigh, he lunged forward. He felt bad for what
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219 he had to do, but it had to be done. He and Meiling had sparred often
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220 enough in the past and he nearly always won. So he would have to
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221 defeat her here and find out just what was going on. He waited
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222 patiently for her to collapse, but to his surprise, his fist missed
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223 her entirely. His eyes widened as he saw her leg dart out. A painful
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224 realization hit him seconds before her leg did. She was a whole lot
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225 faster than he had ever imagined. This fight had been hers from the
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226 beginning. Pain blossomed through him like a sudden and unexpected
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227 supernova. The wind rushed out of him in a frenzied path to escape
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228 his burning lungs. His stomach called out in agony as he first
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229 hunched over and then collapsed to the ground altogether. “How..?” he
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230 got out weakly.
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231 Meiling crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes narrowing as she
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232 watched the man lying in pain on the grass below her. “Didn’t think I
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233 could beat you, huh? You thought I’d always settle for second place
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234 with you, is that it? I always got second and you always got first as
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235 children. You always came in ahead of me.” Brushing a dark pigtail
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236 over her shoulder, she knelt next to her prone cousin. “I let you
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237 win. I loved you, so I was happy to let you win as long as I could be
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238 the one to finish next to you. I loved how happy it made you, how
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239 exhilarated you always were when you succeeded. You always had this
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240 thirst for victory, for winning. And I was pleased to let you drink
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241 its nectar from my hands.” She shrugged absently as she stood up,
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242 stretching. “And let’s face it, Syaoran. Martial Arts was never your
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243 thing. You were always better at magic anyway.”
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244 Trying to catch his breath, Syaoran struggled with what she was
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245 telling him. So all those times that he had beaten her as a child,
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246 every sparring match he had won, they were because she had let him?
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247 This girl who had been there for almost all of the life he could
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248 remember, who had always trailed just behind him, had allowed him to
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rlm@2
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249 pull ahead simply because of her feelings for him? Memories came back
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rlm@2
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250 in a flood, of her making careless mistakes when they were sparring
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rlm@2
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251 or slowing just enough when they were sprinting to allow him to pass.
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rlm@2
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252 He sighed painfully. It seemed that not only his stomach would
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rlm@2
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253 bruise, but his ego as well. “What were you thinking?” he asked
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rlm@2
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254 angrily, forcing himself up on his hands. He turned his firey gaze on
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rlm@2
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255 her, but she didn’t look like she was in a mood for it. Her own
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rlm@2
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256 smoldering eyes made his feel like simmering coal in comparison.
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rlm@2
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257 “I won. I refuse to live in your shadow anymore, Syaoran. I refuse
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rlm@2
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258 to let you continue hurting me like this. I won't lie down and let
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rlm@2
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259 you force your damned marriage in my face.” Meiling began to walk
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rlm@2
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260 away from him, the wind playing idly with her hair. “So I’m finished.
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rlm@2
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261 I’m not going to let myself stick around and wait for things to work
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rlm@2
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262 out. I’m leaving, Syaoran. My life is my own. I just took it back
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263 from you. I gave you my heart and if it’s not good enough for you,
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rlm@2
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264 then I might as well leave.” Tears sparkled in her eyes as she turned
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rlm@2
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265 to face him one last time. “I love you, Syaoran. And I always will.
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rlm@2
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266 But I won’t let you hurt me anymore. Goodbye.” And with that, she
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rlm@2
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267 leapt into the trees.
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rlm@2
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268 “Meiling! Meiling!!” Syaoran cried out after her. But it was too
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rlm@2
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269 late. She was already gone. “Damn it!” Struggling to his knees, the
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rlm@2
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270 Chinese sorcerer winced as pain shot through his belly. “What else
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rlm@2
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271 could go wrong today?” he muttered to himself, walking back towards
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rlm@2
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272 the house. Just what was he supposed to tell his mother, the
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rlm@2
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273 matriarch of the Li family? He dreaded the thought. She would not be
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rlm@2
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274 pleased about Meiling’s sudden decision. ‘Probably like she wasn’t
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rlm@2
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275 pleased with my decision to marry Sakura-chan instead of Meiling,” he
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rlm@2
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276 thought disparately.
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rlm@2
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277 “Sakura-chan’s gone!!”
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rlm@2
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278 “Ack!!” Syaoran reeled back, getting ready to attack the demon that
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rlm@2
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279 had leapt out at him. His heart finally slowed as the Seal Beast came
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rlm@2
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280 into view, concern etched all over it’s small yellow head. Syaoran
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rlm@2
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281 pushed past him, not in the mood to deal with Kero’s antics at the
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rlm@2
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282 moment.
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rlm@2
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283 “Hey, brat, I said ‘Sa-ku-ra-chan-is-gone’. What, you don’t speak
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rlm@2
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284 Japanese all of a sudden?” Kero asked irritably. He never did much
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rlm@2
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285 like the Chinese sorcerer and Sakura’s marriage to him hadn’t changed
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rlm@2
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286 the situation. Syaoran wouldn’t even let him sleep in the same room
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rlm@2
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287 as Sakura like he used to!
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rlm@2
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288 “I know that! I’ve been looking for her all morning,” Syaoran
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rlm@2
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289 replied angrily, wishing that the stuffed animal could be busy doing
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rlm@2
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290 anything besides pestering him at the moment. “I’ve looked
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rlm@2
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291 everywhere.” He sighed resignedly.
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rlm@2
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292 “Everywhere, huh?” The Seal Beast smirked proudly, crossing his
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rlm@2
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293 arms. “I guess you need to get glasses, boy, because you missed
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rlm@2
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294 something.” Producing a letter out of nowhere, Kero grinned
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rlm@2
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295 triumphantly. He was always happy to outwit people he didn’t like and
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rlm@2
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296 Syaoran ranked very highly on his list.
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rlm@2
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297 Syaoran snatched the letter away from the flying teddy bear
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rlm@2
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298 instantly, skimming through it. He knew that style too well. He had
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rlm@2
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299 seen Sakura reading these when he had been drifting off to sleep. It
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rlm@2
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300 had to be from Tomoyo. And sure enough, it was. The letter was polite
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rlm@2
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301 and explained to Sakura that she had to say goodbye, that she would
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rlm@2
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302 be going away. “Crap!” Syaoran tossed the letter, hurrying upstairs,
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rlm@2
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303 Kero in hot pursuit.
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rlm@2
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304 “So what is it? Do you know where she is?” Kero asked impatiently.
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rlm@2
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305 He didn’t know what the letter meant, only that it was important. The
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rlm@2
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306 fact that it said that Tomoyo was leaving and that it had been found
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rlm@2
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307 near where Sakura kept her keys worried him.
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rlm@2
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308 “Sakura-chan’s gone back to Japan. She’s trying to stop Daidouji-
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rlm@2
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309 san,” Syaoran said over his shoulder, cramming clothes into a
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rlm@2
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310 suitcase. It all made sense now. Why Sakura had been so hellbent on
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rlm@2
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311 Tomoyo for the past few weeks, why she had been so happy to see
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rlm@2
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312 Tomoyo during her visit, why she had needed the dark haired girl so
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rlm@2
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313 much. And he wasn’t about to let some rich girl steal his wife away
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rlm@2
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314 from him. Sakura was his and he was going to make sure it stayed that
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rlm@2
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315 way, no matter what happened. Slamming the clasps on his suitcase, he
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rlm@2
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316 stood up and scanned the room one last time for anything he might
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rlm@2
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317 need.
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rlm@2
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318 “So we’re going back to Japan to find Sakura-chan? Oh yeah!!” Kero
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rlm@2
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319 exclaimed, bringing his small arm down in an excited gesture. “Let’s
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rlm@2
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320 get goin’, kid!!”
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