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author	rlm
date	Fri, 19 Feb 2010 06:24:59 -0500
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+Hello, everyone! ^-^ I’d like to dedicate this story to Reisz
+Fenrir, without whom I would never have written this story. ^-^
+Remember to never stop dreaming. ^-^ This story has two girls in love
+and some adult situations, so please read responsibly. CCS and its
+beautiful characters were created by CLAMP.
+I Love You, I love You Not
+by Amazoness Duo
+amazonessduo@hotmail.com
+	“Everything will always be all right,” Tomoyo whispered, imagining
+Sakura’s voice giving life to the dead words. But even that couldn’t
+bring back the magic to them. Like a magician’s chant, it only worked
+for those with the power. What power? That fiery determination that
+burned in beautiful emerald green eyes within the girl known as
+Sakura. Tomoyo had tried to make Sakura believe in them, to put forth
+her determination into making those words a reality. But for Tomoyo,
+the words were meaningless, hollow. They carried with them no magic,
+no sparkle. They were simply what they were. A messy collection of
+words. They alone had no magic power, no abilities. It was Sakura
+that unlocked their magic. Because the magic was within her, not
+within any saying. And so they hung in the air painfully, sounding
+brittle in the cold air.
+	Hugging her dark blue jacket closer, Tomoyo continued walking along
+the nearly frosty sidewalk. Her long dark hair trailed behind her
+like a shadow. Her pale skin glistened like the falling snow, making
+her look like a snow angel that had been brought magically to life to
+all who crossed her path. She wore long, thick black stockings and
+large boots. Her dark skirt shifting as she continued walking, lost
+in her own thoughts. Despite her warm apparel, she felt frigid
+inside, as if an arctic wind had blown bitingly across her soul.
+	Shuddering, the dark haired girl hugged herself tightly. It offered
+little warmth. She had the sudden thought that Sakura’s arms would
+warm her instantly, much stronger than her own self-embrace. She
+tried not to let the thought linger, knowing it would only be
+painful. Thinking like that was selfish. Sakura’s happiness was the
+important thing. Much more important than her own happiness. Sakura
+was her best friend. She should be happy with that. Thinking of
+Sakura in such ways was painful, taunting. Sakura didn’t belong with
+her, but with another. Someone else, probably Syaoran, would be the
+one to make Sakura happy. That thought was so much easier to deal
+with as a child. Back then it had seemed so much easier. Sakura would
+fall in love with someone and she would be happy to watch after her
+beautiful Sakura. But as she grew older, her feelings grew as well.
+Her love for Sakura only became stronger as the years went by. And
+the thought of watching Sakura with another cut into her like a
+jagged icicle.
+	Telling Sakura of her feelings would only be selfish. Tomoyo knew
+Sakura better than anyone. Sakura could never bear to hurt her. She
+would never be able to simply reject her. It would only confuse
+Sakura, hurting the one Tomoyo loved more than life itself. And
+hurting Sakura was the last thing the young heiress wanted. Better
+she suffer than Sakura. Yes, that was right. She could handle it. For
+Sakura. But sometimes the love in her heart wanted so badly to get
+out, to touch Sakura’s heart. She wanted to feel loved, to feel the
+love in her heart returned. But it was an empty dream. One she had
+given up on as a child, as a sacrifice so that her beloved Sakura
+would find her own happiness.
+	Sometimes it just felt too lonely. Knowing she would have to give
+up Sakura was the most painful thought imaginable for the dark haired
+girl. She had seen what losing one’s love had done to her mother.
+Sometimes she wondered if she could survive it. Her mother was so
+much stronger than she was and it had crushed her. Sonomi still
+hadn’t recovered, and she probably never would. Tomoyo knew that she
+had to. For Sakura’s sake. But sometimes that was all that kept her
+going. As her heart inside wept, she smiled serenely at the brunette,
+never letting her know the pain that was growing inside of her. She
+knew what was awaiting her. Forever alone. She would have her love
+for Sakura, but no Sakura. And sometimes that just didn’t feel like
+it was enough. She knew she would never give up that love, but it was
+so deliciously painful that it nearly consumed her. She was starting
+to worry that cracks might begin to show through her masks. She could
+only smile so much. It was beginning to hurt now, smiling for Sakura
+when she just wanted so badly to cry. But she couldn’t let Sakura see
+her pain. Sakura had to be happy. Sakura needed to smile. Sakura
+needed to fall in love. She couldn’t be held back by her best friend.
+	Tomoyo had been crying herself to sleep more often lately. She
+tried to be quiet, so as not to let her mother hear. She didn’t want
+her mother to worry about her. She was always so busy with work as it
+was. So she would cry quietly at night, watching her videos of Sakura
+through a haze of tears. And during the day, she was all smiles. It
+was what everyone expected of her, so no one questioned that the
+smile was anything but real. She was eccentric. Everyone thought so,
+even Sakura. So no one noticed that her smile never disappeared.
+Until she was alone. Then it would leave her, replaced by the
+emptiness that spread throughout her. It was cold and desolate, a
+taste of the life that awaited her. The few times that she had tried
+to envision her future, she had quit soon after. There was nothing in
+her future. She could take over her mother’s business. She could grow
+old, alone, always loving Sakura from a distance. That was all that
+awaited her. Much better to imagine Sakura’s future, to hope for the
+very best for her dearest Cardmistress. That was what had kept her
+going over the past few years, the thoughts of Sakura’s beautiful
+wedding, her many children, and her bright smile. That was the future
+she was working for, not her own. She always had to keep that
+beautiful vision in her mind. She loved Sakura with all her heart.
+She would do anything for the athletic brunette, even if she would
+never know of the feelings Tomoyo had for her.
+	Stormy blue eyes blinked rapidly as tears threatened to spill from
+them. Tomoyo wiped at her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket. She
+would have plenty of time for tears later. She just had to hold on a
+little longer for Sakura. Once Syaoran got back from Hong Kong,
+Sakura wouldn’t need her anymore. Syaoran would be able to help
+Sakura through all of life’s intricacies. But for now, Sakura still
+needed her. That was a bitter relief. It would be over all too soon,
+but at least there was still a place for her in the brunette’s life.
+With what precious little time she had left, she would do all she
+could for Sakura, to ensure her gloriously beautiful future. It was
+the least she could do for the girl who had so easily stolen her
+heart.
+	A faint smile crossed Tomoyo’s lips as she watched two young girls
+run past. Her mind busied itself with other things, trying not to
+dwell on the pain. Cupping her hands, she caught a gently falling
+snowflake in her palms. The beautiful crystal lingered for a brief
+moment before it began to melt and fade away. It reminded her of
+something her mother had told her long ago. ‘The most beautiful
+things in this life are gone before we know it, Tomoyo-chan. We have
+to cherish them while we can.’ Her mother had been talking about
+Nadeshiko then. As she often did. Tomoyo’s smile brightened slightly.
+‘Mother still loves Nadeshiko-san even after all this time. I’ll
+always love Sakura-chan. I’ll always cherish her,’ she thought to
+herself.
+	And the snowflake was gone. Tomoyo silently thanked it for it’s
+swift moment of beauty before gingerly closing her hands. Her mind
+was already planning out a snowflake costume for Sakura, one just as
+pretty as any snowflake out in the skies. Her heart still hung heavy
+in her chest, but her thoughts helped her to focus elsewhere, to
+things she had always enjoyed. And these invariably led back to
+Sakura. Who led back to her lonely thoughts. It was a vicious cycle,
+but one she found herself caught in.
+	A thought struck the pale girl as more snowflakes fell around her.
+Pulling her camcorder out of its carrying case, she began to
+videotape the slow descent of the glittering snowflakes. The footage
+would help when she finally started on Sakura’s new costume. Sakura
+would look gorgeous in it, like a Snow Princess who had fallen from
+her home in the sky above. Tomoyo sighed dreamily at the thought, a
+hand going to her cheek, playing the lovely image of Sakura over and
+over in her head even as she videotaped the falling snow. Her hand
+felt cold against her warm cheek, sending a chill through her.
+Shuddering visibly, she went back to her camera work. Each lonely,
+frozen teardrop from heaven slowly made its way to the earth around
+the pale girl, all alone despite the people passing by.
+	“Tomoyo-chan!” a voice called from across the street.
+	Pulling her camcorder down for a moment, Tomoyo quickly spotted the
+source of the voice. A bright smile lit up her face, her earlier
+thoughts quickly forgotten as Sakura waved to her. Her heart
+brightened at the sight. Sakura made her happy. The brunette lit up
+her heart. She waved back warmly. “I love you, Sakura-chan,” she said
+quietly. Yes, this was exactly why she would never be able to shake
+Sakura’s spell. Even if it was painful at times, she could never give
+it up. Her heartbeat quickened as she saw Sakura smile at her. She
+was so absolutely perfect. A dreamy sigh escaped Tomoyo. There was
+nothing more painful than love. But there was also nothing more
+beautiful. Taking a quick glimpse in either direction, Tomoyo hurried
+to be with her beloved.
+	No one saw the car. It closed on the small girl like a terrible
+beast stalking its prey, a dragon snatching away a princess. It was
+all a blur for Sakura. One moment, Tomoyo was hurrying to her side,
+smiling sweetly. The next, Tomoyo was nowhere to be seen, a car
+screeching to a halt where the heiress had been moments before. There
+was a sickening thump and then silence. Tomoyo’s cracked camcorder
+lay at Sakura’s feet, staring up into the sky like a curious eye.
+With shaky fingers, Sakura reached down and picked up the broken
+camcorder. This was wrong. Tomoyo was supposed to be holding it.
+Still in shock, Sakura looked up from the item, glancing around for
+her best friend. The woman who had gotten out of her car was
+frightened about something. Sakura followed her towards something
+crumpled in the snow. It was deathly pale, almost the same color as
+the snow itself. But there was something else in the snow, sparkling
+and red. Blood. Sakura collapsed in the snow next to the crumpled
+figure, her heart beating furiously in her chest. Her cold fingers
+clutched the camcorder like a lifeline, her emerald eyes watching the
+tiny shape unmoving in the snow. “Tomoyo-chan..? Tomoyo-chan? Tomoyo-
+chan!?!” Sakura burst out into tears, huddling over her broken
+friend. Tomoyo didn’t reply, only lying there like a shattered China
+doll in the street. “Tomoyo-chan!!” Sakura cried, trying to hold onto
+her battered friend. Her bitter tears fell onto Tomoyo’s pale skin,
+Sakura’s body shaking painfully as she was wracked with sobs.
+	“I... I didn’t see her there,” the driver said quickly, as if it
+would somehow magically fix the shattered girl.
+	Sakura didn’t hear anything. She held Tomoyo’s hand, crying
+anguished tears. She didn’t even notice the blood beginning to stain
+her own dress as she held onto her broken friend. “Tomoyo-chan,
+please wake up. It’s okay. It’ll be okay. Just please wake up.
+Please? Please, Tomoyo-chan?” Her only answer was the wail of sirens
+in the distance. “Please..?”
+	Standing in front of the large, imposing gate, Sakura felt her
+heart falter in her chest. She took a heavy breath, blinking away the
+tears that threatened. The image of the accident was still vivid in
+her mind, even though it had been more than a week before. Whenever
+she was in the shower, she could still see the blood on her hands,
+even though there wasn’t anything there. She shuddered at the
+thought. She still felt exhausted from that day, her soul feeling
+drained from it all. She had never cried so much, not even when her
+mother had died back when she was a small child. The thought of being
+without Tomoyo, of losing her very best friend, was just too much for
+her. She couldn’t think of life without the dark haired girl.
+Sakura managed a weak smile when she saw Sonomi herself coming out
+to fetch her. Tomoyo’s mother was eccentric, much like her daughter.
+The older woman always made Sakura feel special. She was always so
+warm and affectionate to Sakura, treating her like a visiting
+princess. She knew that part of the reason was because their mothers
+had been close when they were younger, but didn’t know exactly what
+had happened. Whatever the case, she always felt nice around Sonomi.
+And with Tomoyo’s normal loving care, Sakura felt very happy at the
+Daidouji home.
+	Her smile faded as Sonomi drew closer. Did Tomoyo’s mother blame
+her? Did she think it was her fault that Tomoyo had been hurt? That
+thought frightened her. What if Sonomi hated her now? Could she blame
+her? If Tomoyo hadn’t been coming to see her, then... More tears
+glistened in Sakura’s eyes. She rubbed the away insistently. She felt
+like a little girl again, hoping that Tomoyo’s mother wasn’t mad at
+her. She never knew her own mother. Sonomi was like the one she never
+had. She felt like she had disappointed the older woman, failing to
+protect her daughter.
+	Sonomi sighed with relief as she opened the gate, ushering Sakura
+in. “I’m so glad you’re here, Sakura-chan.” Hugging the younger girl
+tightly, Sonomi smiled before leading Sakura further inside.
+A sigh escaped Sakura. At least Sonomi wasn’t mad at her. That was
+something. She felt a little better at that. But the pit in her
+stomach still remained. She still felt awful, the blur of the
+accident burnt into her soul. She shuddered as a maid took her coat.
+	“How’s Tomoyo-chan?” Sakura asked quickly, turning her earnest eyes
+to Sonomi. She could feel her anxious heart fluttering in her chest
+like a caged bird.
+	Shaking her head, Sonomi gazed towards the stairs. “She hasn’t been
+doing well, Sakura-chan. She doesn’t want to come out of her room
+anymore. She barely eats anything unless I’m there. And even then I
+know she’s only doing it so I won’t worry. Her eyes don’t sparkle
+like they used to. She’s broken, Sakura-chan. Not just her body, but
+her soul. And I don’t know how to help her. Maybe you can cheer her
+up. Tomoyo-chan always loves to see you. You mean the world to her.
+I’m so glad you could come on such short notice.” The weary mother
+looked back to her daughter’s friend and smiled. “I’m sure she’ll get
+better now that you’re here.”
+	Sakura sweatdropped, placing a hand behind her head. “I’m not sure
+what I can do.” She looked back into Sonomi’s stormy blue eyes and
+nodded determinedly. “But I’ll do whatever I can to help Tomoyo-chan.
+She’s my best friend. I want her to feel better.”
+Sonomi grinned, watching Sakura for a long moment. “You’re so sweet.
+Just like your mother. I know you’ll be able to help Tomoyo-chan.”
+Sakura was her last hope. She didn’t know how else to bring the life
+back to her beloved daughter. Tomoyo had survived, but the life had
+disappeared from her. Sakura was the only one that could re-ignite
+the sparkle within her. Sonomi would do anything for her daughter,
+but there was only so much she could do. The rest was up to Sakura.
+Sakura bowed to the older woman before hurrying up the stairs. She
+had to make it up to Tomoyo. It was her fault Tomoyo had gotten hurt
+in the first place. All because Tomoyo had been coming to see her.
+There had to be something she could do to help the heiress, to make
+things better. It wasn’t right for Tomoyo to be so hurt. She had to
+do something.
+	Sonomi watched as Sakura slowly disappeared up the stairs. Making
+her way into the living room, the older woman collapsed into a chair,
+closing her eyes. This whole incident had left her feeling weak and
+helpless. She had always been overprotective of her lovely daughter,
+but it had all been for nothing. In an eye blink, she had almost lost
+her dearest treasure. In some ways, Tomoyo was too much like
+Nadeshiko. It was part of why Sonomi was so worried about her.
+Nadeshiko had always wound up getting hurt. And she had died a young
+death. Sonomi didn’t want the same thing to happen to her daughter.
+She had already lost Nadeshiko. She couldn’t stand to lose Tomoyo.
+Waiting there at the hospital while Tomoyo was in surgery, the
+auburn haired businesswoman would have given away her entire company
+if she could know that her daughter would be all right. She had
+stayed by Tomoyo’s side through the next few days, even though Tomoyo
+hadn’t been conscious for much of it. Somehow she had pulled through.
+Sonomi could only believe that it was because Nadeshiko had been
+looking out for her daughter. As soon as Tomoyo had recovered enough
+to be moved, she had taken her daughter back home and hired a nurse
+to keep an eye on her. The doctors had suggested keeping Tomoyo in
+the hospital, but Sonomi didn’t trust hospitals. Nadeshiko had been
+there for her final days and they hadn’t been able to save her. She
+didn’t want to leave Tomoyo there either. She had hoped Tomoyo would
+feel more comfortable at home.
+	But now Tomoyo was still empty, her body mending while her heart
+remained splintered. Now Sonomi had to hope that Nadeshiko daughter
+would fix her own daughter’s soul. “Get better soon, Tomoyo-chan,”
+Sonomi whispered.
+	It was snowing outside again. Tomoyo watched out her window as white
+snowflakes drifted past. Her room was silent, the only noise coming
+from the restless wind outside. She was still bedridden from her
+injuries. She couldn’t even get up to put on one of her Sakura
+videos. Not that she was in the mood to. It would only remind her of
+her darling Sakura, of the lonely love in her heart. So she simply
+watched out her window. There would be no snowflake costume, after
+all. It had seemed like such a pretty idea, too. But like most
+beautiful things, it lasted for but an instant.
+	Except Sakura. Sakura was timeless. No matter what happened, she
+would always be beautiful. Tomoyo had little captured moments of
+Sakura’s life frozen forever on videotape, always a testament to the
+beauty that was Sakura, as if it all existed simply to state that
+Sakura had been there, that she wasn’t just a dream.
+Part of her wondered why she hadn’t died. Wouldn’t it have been
+easier that way? Then she could watch over Sakura as her guardian
+angel. She wouldn’t have to slip away when Sakura fell in love. She
+wouldn’t have to watch from afar. She could be right there, right
+along with Sakura, could stay close to her forever. She found herself
+disappointed that that wasn’t the case. Instead she was still here.
+And sooner or later, Sakura would be gone, off with the one she
+loved. And Tomoyo wouldn’t be a part of her life anymore. Instead of
+watching all of Sakura’s life as her angel, she would simply have to
+hope for the best, trusting that it would all work out. It didn’t
+seem fair. She had lost even her last hope. She wouldn’t even be able
+to watch Sakura’s beautiful future as her guardian angel.
+Dying in Sakura’s arms, it had almost been blissful. It was terrible
+to see Sakura so sad, but Tomoyo had wanted her to know that she
+would always watch over her, that everything truly would always be
+all right. Everyone has to die. So if she couldn’t be with the one
+she loved, why couldn’t she at least die in the arms of the one she
+loved? Then they could be together forever, even if Sakura forgot
+about her. Because Tomoyo would never leave her side again. But
+someone had kept her from dying. Someone with long, liquid silver
+hair and the same emerald green eyes as her Sakura. She could only
+vaguely remember the woman now, as if it were all little more than a
+dream. ‘You can’t go yet,’ she had said. ‘Sonomi-chan needs you. And
+so does my little Sakura-chan. She’d be lost without you.’ She seemed
+so kind, so loving. But Tomoyo still didn’t understand. Sakura was a
+big girl. She didn’t need her anymore. Especially when she fell in
+love, which was only a matter of time now. Syaoran would be returning
+soon. He would take Tomoyo’s place at Sakura’s side. Tomoyo couldn’t
+help but feel that the angel had been wrong, that she should have
+died then, broken in Sakura’s arms. Better to have died then than
+years later when she was all alone. At least she could have died
+happily.
+	A knock on the door pulled Tomoyo from her thoughts. She slowly
+looked to the door, trying to focus on it. “Hello?” she asked
+curiously, her soft musical voice even quieter than usual. The door
+slowly opened, exposing a nervous looking brunette. Tomoyo brightened
+visibly, smiling at the welcome visitor. She really didn’t see anyone
+besides her mother and the maids. It was so nice to see Sakura again.
+“Sakura-chan, please come in. I’m so happy to see you.” The pale girl
+struggled to sit up, her body aching as she did.
+	“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura held back a gasp. She watched Tomoyo for a
+long moment, guilt eating at her with each passing second. Tomoyo was
+lying in bed in a pink nightgown. She had bandages all down both of
+her legs, disappearing up under her nightgown. She had a cast on one
+arm. Bandages wrapped around the back of her head. Another square
+cloth of bandage was taped over her right eye. She had always known
+that Tomoyo was fragile, but seeing Tomoyo like this struck the point
+home. But even then, a beautiful smile lay across Tomoyo’s lips as
+she entered. Sakura managed to return the smile herself after a
+pause, closing the door behind her. “Are you okay? How do you feel?”
+The brunette hurried to her friend’s side, looking down at her from
+the side of the bed.
+	“I’m all right, Sakura-chan. It still hurts a little bit. But I’m
+feeling a lot better.” Which was remotely true. She still hurt a lot
+and she was only feeling a little better. And she was only feeling
+better because Sakura was there. But it was best not to worry Sakura.
+It wouldn’t do to have Sakura crying for her. That would just make
+her want to cry as well. If Sakura was happy, she felt much better
+about life in general. “I’m just glad to see you,” she said softly,
+looking at Sakura with the one uncovered stormy blue orb. She felt
+her heart skip a beat as Sakura took her free hand in both of her
+own. She squeezed softly to reassure her friend, smiling gently up at
+her. Sakura seemed deep in thought about something. Tomoyo tilted her
+head to the side quizzically, but stopped that when an icy pain shot
+down her back.  She simply watched, deciding it was best not to
+disturb Sakura while she was busy with her thoughts.
+	A slow smile crossed Sakura’s lips, a determined look glowing in her
+eyes. It all managed to set Tomoyo’s heart a flutter, though Sakura
+didn’t know it. All she knew was that Tomoyo held onto her hands more
+warmly, watched her even more intently. But none of that seemed
+important. She knew what she was going to do. “I’ve got it! Tomoyo-
+chan, I’m going to make up for this, I promise!” Sakura smiled
+happily, squeezing Tomoyo’s soft hand with both of her own. “I’m
+going to make you feel better. I finally know how.”
+	Tomoyo blinked in surprise. What was Sakura thinking? If she wasn’t
+so lost in Sakura’s greatness, she might be able to piece it
+together. Okay, Sakura was excited and determined. She wanted to make
+Tomoyo feel better. Hmm... So she had some idea on what she wanted to
+do. Something that she thought would make things better. Probably
+something to do with the Cards. The pieces slowly fell into place as
+Tomoyo kept watching Sakura. She found it ironic that Sakura was
+trying so hard to fix things for her when all she wanted was to be
+there with Sakura. That alone was enough for her. Sakura didn’t have
+to do anything. She just had to be there. That was more than enough.
+But it was so sweet of Sakura to want to help her. “But Sakura-chan,
+you really don’t need to do anything. I’ll be fine,” Tomoyo promised.
+	Sakura shook her head, dismissing the silly idea that she didn’t
+have to. She still felt like it had been her fault that Tomoyo had
+been hurt in the first place. And even if that wasn’t the case,
+Tomoyo was her best friend. She couldn’t simply sit by while Tomoyo
+was hurting. And Sonomi had seemed so worried. So she had to fix
+things. Giving Tomoyo’s hand a last squeeze, she rested it back on
+Tomoyo’s stomach. Invoking her staff, Sakura took a step back. “I’m
+the world’s most powerful mage now, right?”
+	Tomoyo nodded, smiling. “Hai, no one’s stronger than Sakura-chan!
+You can do anything if you put your heart to it!”
+	Normally one to be embarrassed by Tomoyo’s statements, Sakura was
+too excited to be embarrassed at the moment. “And right now, there’s
+nothing more my heart wants to do than to make you feel better. So
+I’m going to use all my magic for that. To make you happy.”
+	“To make.. me happy?” Tomoyo repeated. Her heart spun at the
+thought. Those words were so beautiful. Even if Sakura was attempting
+to make her happy through magic, it was simply that she wanted to
+make her happy. Tomoyo felt her heart soar. “Arigato, Sakura-chan.
+But you do make me happy. You always make me happy.”
+	This time, Sakura did blush faintly, but she was glad to hear
+Tomoyo’s words nonetheless. “But I want to do something special for
+you. To make you feel better about all this. I want to help. So I’ll
+use all my magic to grant your one strongest wish for one week. I
+don’t know if I could keep it up any longer than that anyway. But I
+know that I can make your wish come true for a little while at
+least.” Magic was a tricky thing, and though Sakura had grown rather
+proficient with the Sakura Cards, she was still having trouble
+getting used to being the strongest magician alive. But that wouldn’t
+stop her from making Tomoyo’s dream come true. She had to try.
+	Tomoyo blinked, slowly shaking her head. “Ano... I don’t think
+that’s such a good idea, Sakura-chan,” she warned, sweatdropping. She
+could see where this was going and she was already worried. Sakura
+was the strongest mage on the planet. She could only imagine what
+this would do. Sakura didn’t know that she was what Tomoyo wanted
+most of all. It didn’t seem like a good idea to rush into this
+without knowing how it would work. Sakura still didn’t even know
+about Tomoyo’s love for her. She had a bad feeling about this.
+	“Please don’t worry, Tomoyo-chan. You always help me so much. I want
+to help you this time.” Sakura smiled brightly at her bedridden
+friend, pulling up her staff as she summoned her magic. “What’s the
+one thing you wish for more than anything else, Tomoyo-chan?”
+	“For Sakura-chan to be happy,” Tomoyo responded simply.
+	“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura shook her head. That couldn’t be it. But she
+should have known Tomoyo would say something like that. Oh well.
+She’d just have to grant Tomoyo’s one wish even if Tomoyo wouldn’t
+tell her exactly what it was. So she would use all the Cards and all
+of her power. Surely that could handle her wish for one week. “Sakura
+Cards! Please hear me! Make Tomoyo-chan’s most heartfelt wish come
+true for this next week!” The pink Cards swirled around Sakura like a
+cyclone, magic lighting the dark room with burning intensity. All of
+the Cards lent their magic to Sakura’s command, each adding to the
+final spell.
+	And with a last flash of light, it was over. The Sakura Book
+clattered to the floor, the Cards tumbling down to Sakura’s feet.
+Sakura herself nearly stumbled at first, her magic drained from the
+spell and the use of all the Cards at once. She shook her head,
+trying to clear her thoughts. She felt... strange. What had just
+happened? She felt so dizzy. The brunette quickly took a seat on the
+edge of Tomoyo’s bed, trying to get her bearings. She’d been working
+some kind of magic spell... But what had happened? She glanced around
+the room, but she couldn’t tell any noticeable difference. Something
+soft rested on her hand, drawing her attention back to the bed.
+Tomoyo held her hand, looking up at her concernedly. Nope, Tomoyo
+wasn’t any different. She was still just as pretty as always. Even if
+she was injured. Sakura smiled brightly at her friend. For some
+reason, she just felt... happy. Everything seemed perfect. Her
+emerald eyes sparkled as she looked deeply into Tomoyo’s stormy blue
+orb. Tomoyo always did have such lovely eyes. Even if she could only
+see one of them. And Tomoyo was always so sweet and gentle and
+loving. And she always made Sakura feel so wonderful. And she was
+always there to help her when she needed her. And she always said
+such sweet thing to her, even if it was embarrassing sometimes.
+And... “Hanyaan...” Sakura said at last, sighing happily.
+	Tomoyo could only watch for a moment, trying to work out just what
+had happened herself. There didn’t seem to be any noticeable
+difference except for Sakura herself. She was just staring into her
+eyes with a dreamy look and a faint blush on her cheeks. Tomoyo’s
+eyes went wide in sudden realization. “Sakura-chan...” It suddenly
+made sense. The wish... Tomoyo had been so lonely lately. She loved
+Sakura so much. Did this mean...
+	Things were slowly beginning to make sense for Sakura as well. Bits
+and pieces of a puzzle that she hadn’t even known was there began to
+fit together. It all made a whole picture that she had missed for so
+long. Sakura leaned closer, holding tightly onto Tomoyo’s hand as it
+became crystal clear. “Tomoyo-chan... I understand now! You said
+you’d explain when I was older, but I never understood. All this
+time, you’ve been trying to tell me, but I never knew.” A faint blush
+colored Sakura’s cheeks as her heart lifted up. Swooping forward,
+Sakura hugged her best friend tightly, almost forgetting that she was
+still hurt. “I love you, too!” Sakura giggled happily, relishing the
+newfound freedom her realization gave her. It was true. She knew
+that. And it made sense as she played it over in her mind. Tomoyo had
+loved her all this time, and she had never known. But she had loved
+Tomoyo as well, only she hadn’t understood her feelings. But now they
+were open to her. She felt excited and tranquil and loved all at the
+same time. She felt Tomoyo’s good arm rubbing up and down her back
+peacefully. Making a small happy sound, Sakura hugged Tomoyo closer.
+How could she have missed it for so long? But it didn’t matter. She
+knew now. That was the important thing.
+	Tomoyo quickly tried to figure out the situation as she found
+herself in Sakura’s arms. Was Sakura in love with her for the next
+week? She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. What an exquisite form
+of torture. To have Sakura’s love, albeit magically induced, for one
+week. And then she would have to give it up again. But she had to
+admit, it felt so wonderful in Sakura’s arms, to hear those words,
+even if they were only caused by magic. She sighed softly, resting
+her head against Sakura’s shoulder. It felt magical, so soft and
+relaxing. Sakura smelled wonderful. But everything about Sakura was
+wonderful. She nestled into the crook of Sakura’s neck, her soul lost
+in Sakura. “I love you, Sakura-chan.” This would be one tough week.
+	“Is it done yet?” Kero asked impatiently, his face hovering near
+the oven. “I’m so hungry,” he pouted, trying to emphasize his point.
+	“It’s not for you anyway,” Sakura said absently, checking over the
+directions once more. She wasn’t the best cook in the world and she
+knew it, which is why she was trying so hard to follow the directions
+precisely. Because although she wasn’t a wonderful cook, Sonomi was,
+and the older woman had given her the recipe. And on top of that, she
+wanted it to be perfect. And Sonomi has said that Tomoyo hadn’t been
+eating much lately, so Sakura had decided to bake something for her.
+With Tomoyo stuck in bed, it seemed like the perfect time to bring
+her a treat. Tomoyo always brought over such tasty things, obviously
+inheriting her mother’s cooking abilities. Sakura paused for a
+moment, wondering whether or not her own mother had been good at
+cooking. Probably not, she decided. Why would she need to be when
+Sonomi made such great things?
+	“But I’m HUNGRY,” Kero reiterated, working up some tears for good
+measure. “And it smells so good. Just like one of Tomoyo’s mom’s
+cakes.” He grinned hungrily, delving back into memories of the
+different treats he had tried over the years. But that just made him
+hungrier.
+	“You aren’t getting any of it. It’s for Tomoyo-chan,” Sakura said,
+holding up a wooden spoon as if to ward Kero away from her precious
+cake. Satisfied that she had followed the recipe exactly, Sakura
+stepped away from the counter, wiping her hands off on her apron. “It
+is one of Sonomi-sama’s cakes. She gave me the recipe yesterday when
+I asked what Tomoyo might like to eat.” Smiling happily, she took a
+quick glance at the timer and nodded to herself. So far so good. As
+soon as she was finished, she could go take it to Tomoyo-chan. She
+sighed, placing both hands on her cheeks. She felt so warm inside,
+and it had nothing to do with spending so much time in the kitchen.
+Finding out how Tomoyo felt about her had brightened every aspect of
+her life. She was no longer so confused about her feelings and her
+own heart. Before, she had listened to others about what her heart
+wanted, unsure of what she wanted herself. But now it all made sense.
+She just wanted to be with Tomoyo. More than anything. “Hanyaan...”
+she whispered joyously.
+	Everything just made so much more sense now. She had always felt so
+good around Tomoyo, but now she knew what it all meant. And the
+thought that she’d been so close to the one she loved all this time
+left her heart spinning. She wanted to be with the dark haired girl
+all the time. She never wanted to leave her side. When she would lie
+in bed at night, her last thoughts would be of Tomoyo before she
+slipped into a peaceful sleep. Tomoyo was the first thing she thought
+about when she got up, usually while hugging her pillow. It was a
+poor substitute for her best friend, though. But she had to hug
+something, to imagine Tomoyo was with her. And she certainly wasn’t
+about to hug her mean older brother.
+	It was amazing how things had changed so quickly. But at the same
+time, it didn’t feel like much had changed at all. Tomoyo was just as
+warm and loving as she had always been, because she had always loved
+her, which Sakura now realized. And Sakura’s feelings were still the
+same. She just understood them now. Tomoyo always brought a blush to
+her cheeks with some of what she would say. She always made her feel
+good inside. She’d always been the most important person in Sakura’s
+life. So in many ways, it just felt natural. As if things had finally
+taken their proper course.
+	“How long do you plan on letting that thing burn?” Touya asked
+curiously, his arms crossed. He watched his little sister blush
+furiously and hurry to the oven, nearly dropping the cake as she
+pulled it out.
+	Embarrassed, Sakura tried to salvage her slightly burnt cake. Just
+how long had she been out of it? Things like this always happened
+when she was distracted. But it was so easy to get lost in the
+different thoughts and feelings that swept through her heart! At
+least Tomoyo understood. And she thought it was cute when Sakura
+would daydream like that. Shaking her head, Sakura fought back her
+blush as she concentrated on the cake. Of course Tomoyo thought it
+was cute. Tomoyo thought everything she did was cute. Her blush
+darkened as she realized that line of thought wasn’t helping. She
+just hoped Touya would leave the kitchen soon. Being embarrassed was
+so much worse when people were around. “Hoe... Now it’s ruined.”
+	Stepping up to the cake dutifully, Kero took a nice long sniff. He
+looked at it thoughtfully for a moment before shaking his head. “No,
+it’s not ruined. It’s just a little burnt. Put some extra topping on
+it and it’ll be fine. It won’t be as good as Tomoyo’s mama’s cakes,
+but I still won’t mind having a nice big slice or two,” the Seal
+Beast said hopefully.
+	Sakura pulled the cake away from Kero, shielding it with her body.
+“You still can’t have any of it. I already told you I’d make you
+something later.”
+	“Then who is it for?” Touya asked, raising an eyebrow.
+	Shaking her head quickly, Sakura sweatdropped. “No one,” she said
+quickly, busying herself with lathering on a thick layer of icing on
+top of the cake. She shot Kero a glare when she saw half of the
+strawberries already eaten. Sighing, she started placing the
+remaining ones on the cake.
+	“It’s for Yuki, isn’t it?” Touya asked, grinning. Though he’d been
+dating Yukito for some time now, he still teased his younger sister
+about him. Besides, he thought, it’s better she have a crush on him
+than on the brat. It was easier for him to keep an eye on her that
+way.
+	“No, it’s not for Yukito-san,” Sakura said, raising her head as she
+continued to place the strawberries in a pattern across the cake. She
+felt a happy trill resonate through her heart. She didn’t just have a
+crush on somebody. This wasn’t some schoolgirl crush. It wasn’t her
+going after someone she couldn’t have. She was making a cake for her
+girlfriend. This was for her special someone. And she really, really
+wanted to tell Touya that, to wipe that smirk off his face, to show
+him that she was dating, too. She bit her lip before she could say
+anything, trying to focus on the cake. “It’s for someone very, very
+special,” she said, smiling. “It’s to show much I like them,” she
+added, her cheeks warming.
+	“It’s not for the brat, is it? Is he back in town?” Touya asked,
+trying to mask his concern.
+	“No, it’s not for Syaoran,” Sakura replied, putting the finishing
+touches on her cake. “There,” she said proudly, taking a step back to
+admire her handiwork. It wasn’t perfect, but it looked pretty. And
+maybe Tomoyo wouldn’t taste the burnt part with all the icing she put
+on it. She wanted to get it to Tomoyo as soon as possible. Then she
+could try to get her to eat. But that was just her ulterior motive.
+She just wanted to be with Tomoyo again. Giving her the cake was just
+a happy plus.
+	“Sugoi!” Kero said excitedly, his beady eyes growing as he looked
+at the cake. “It looks so good!” His paw went forward to touch the
+icing, but before he could get a hold of it Sakura had pulled it away.
+	“Kero-chan, you can’t have any of Tomoyo-chan’s cake,” Sakura
+scolded.  She held the cake, ignoring the Seal Beast and his pleading
+eyes. It took her a moment to realize two other sets of eyes were on
+her as well. She turned slowly, noticing her brother and Yukito
+staring at her. Yukito must have entered while they were talking. He
+did spend a lot of time over with Touya. Her cheeks darkened quickly
+as the sudden realization hit her. She hadn’t meant to say that. She
+stared back down at the cake, blushing a deep scarlet.
+	“That’s great!” Yukito exclaimed. “Isn’t that cute, To-ya? I knew
+you’d find someone special, Sakura-chan. It looks like To-ya had been
+right all along. I’m still a little surprised. I didn’t know you
+liked girls.” He tilted his head to the side, still smiling.
+	“Thank God,” Touya said in relief, his hands on his face. “I was so
+sure you were going to marry the brat. Then I’d always be worrying
+about you. I don’t have to worry about Tomoyo-chan. I know she’ll
+actually take care of you.”
+	Blushing even deeper, Sakura began making her way to the door. It
+would’ve been easier if they hadn’t said anything at all. But then,
+she had accidentally blurted it out. She hadn’t quite expected Touya
+to be so thrilled by the whole thing. But it’s better to have your
+family like the one you love, she decided. Whatever the case, she
+just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. “I’m gonna go
+take Tomoyo-chan her cake,” she said quickly, heading for her roller
+blades near the front door. She ignored the rest of their comments as
+she slipped them on and hurried outside.
+	“I guess I won’t have to worry about her giving me a heart attack
+after all,” Touya said thoughtfully. It wasn’t what he’d been
+expecting, although he had known Tomoyo was in love with his sister.
+And though Yukito thought Syaoran was good for Sakura, he didn’t. He
+had always thought Tomoyo would make a much better significant other
+for his overemotional younger sister. He looked at the other two in
+the kitchen when he got no response. Both Kero and Yukito were
+staring at him.
+	“I’m hungry,” Kero whined.
+	“That cake really did look good,” Yukito added, nodding his
+agreement.
+	Touya sighed as the two continued to stare at him. Preheating the
+oven, he wished Sakura had picked something less edible as a gift for
+her sweetheart.
+	“Hi, Tomo...” Sakura cut herself off, a hand going to her mouth as
+she watched Tomoyo’s sleeping form in bed. She quietly closed the
+door behind her as she stepped into the room. One of the maids had
+let her enter. She had been disappointed to find out that Sonomi was
+still at work. She had hoped that she could thank her for the recipe.
+But there would always be time for that later. She smiled as she
+walked to the side of the bed, watching Tomoyo. The pale girl was
+beautiful, even in her sleep. Long lavender hair lay spilt about her
+pale frame. Bandages still adorned much of her injured body. The
+large blankets were pulled up around her, either by a worried mother
+or an attentive maid.
+	Setting the cake down on an empty spot on Tomoyo’s desk, Sakura sat
+down. The desk was cluttered with all sorts of costume designs and
+several sheets of music. But even then, it was organized chaos.
+Everything was placed somewhere for a reason. Tomoyo always did have
+a good eye for details. It looked like the objects on her desk hadn’t
+been touched since the accident. Which made sense because the heiress
+couldn’t even get to her desk at the moment.
+	Sitting at the desk, Sakura tried to lay out her options. She could
+wake Tomoyo up, but the other girl probably needed her sleep. She
+could always go home, but that thought was instantly rejected.
+Leaving Tomoyo’s side wasn’t an option she wanted to consider. She
+could always just wait for her to wake up. Deciding that was the best
+course of action, the brunette looked back to the sleeping girl,
+smiling. Tomoyo looked so peaceful now, lost in her own beautiful
+dreams. Not at all like the scared, distant look her sleeping face
+had held during her stay at the hospital. Shuddering, Sakura rubbed
+her shoulders. Tomoyo was better now. That was the important thing.
+	Turning back to the desk, Sakura glanced through some of the sheets
+of paper on top of it. Emerald eyes skimmed over some lyrics to a
+song Tomoyo was practicing for choir. She probably wouldn’t have the
+chance to sing it with the rest of the choir now, though. But maybe
+she could still sing it sometime. Sakura always loved to listen to
+Tomoyo singing. It was so entrancing to listen to her best friend’s
+ethereal voice. She would be the pale girl’s audience. That thought
+lifted her mood considerably. Tomoyo had such a gorgeous voice.
+	Setting the music sheet aside, Sakura began to look through
+Tomoyo’s costume designs. It was strange looking at pictures of
+herself in different costumes. Tomoyo really was a good artist. Each
+picture looked just like herself, decked out in some imaginary outfit
+that Tomoyo would bring into existence with her own form of magic.
+Occasionally she would see Kero in the picture as well, with little
+matching outfits to go along with Sakura’s. The brunette was
+surprised that Tomoyo could make so many varied costumes. And even
+though Sakura had caught the last of the Cards years ago, she still
+found herself modeling the costumes for Tomoyo. Which always sent a
+certain thrill through her, being Tomoyo’s very special model. She
+couldn’t model the way her mother did. She was too embarrassed for
+that. But if it was for Tomoyo, then it was okay. Because she felt
+safe with Tomoyo. Because she knew that Tomoyo enjoyed it so much.
+Because she liked being the center of Tomoyo’s attention.
+	‘Kawaii!’ Sakura thought, pulling up one of the costume designs. It
+looked like some sort of living rainbow, something belonging up near
+the clouds. She would gladly wear it for the heiress when she
+finished it, twirling about it in just as she always did. She could
+already imagine Tomoyo’s voice praising her as she hurried to get
+shots from different angles. Sweatdropping at the thought, Sakura
+continued. The next one was of some kind of fairy. She saw herself in
+a small, cute sleeveless dress, with tiny little shoes on and
+beautiful butterfly wings. Two little antenna hung from a hair band.
+Her ears were a little longer and pointed, giving her an elven
+appearance. Now that she looked at it more closely, the antenna
+weren’t part of the hair band after all. So maybe not all of Tomoyo’s
+costume designs were based in reality. Glancing over to the dark
+haired girl’s bed again, Sakura smiled at her. It was sweet to think
+the other girl would draw her as a sprite.
+	Flipping to the next one, Sakura could see that it wasn’t quite
+finished yet. Parts of the costume were missing. There was only one
+thigh high stocking, with plenty of lace at the end. Her other leg
+was bare. The skirt was short and looked like it was made of several
+layers. Ribbons raced up from the skirt over her bare stomach,
+leading up to a large bow at her neck. She had long, frilled gloves
+leading up past her elbows. Beautiful ribbons hung from her hair.
+There didn’t seem to be any blouse except for the ribbons, and they
+didn’t even cover up anything. Sakura blushed at how... detailed it
+was. It took her a moment to realize the costume wasn’t half-finished
+at all. This was exactly how Tomoyo had planned the costume. She
+certainly hadn’t ever worn anything like _that_ before. At first she
+didn’t know what to think. It was a surprise to know that Tomoyo
+thought about that. About her like that. It gave the thought of
+modeling for Tomoyo a new twist. Sakura’s cheeks darkened
+considerably. ‘Don’t think like that!’ she chided herself. ‘Tomoyo-
+chan probably just... just...’ Her thoughts trailed off. Even if she
+could be rather naïve about things, this was rather self-evident. It
+really was flattering, in an embarrassing sort of way. And that
+really wasn’t new at all, coming from Tomoyo. That helped Sakura get
+some sort of grip on the situation.
+	What would it be like to actually wear that for Tomoyo? Somehow she
+didn’t think it would be all that different from when she modeled
+other costumes for Tomoyo. The heiress would want to take pictures
+from every angle, sighing happily and telling Sakura how great she
+was the whole time. It was what happened afterwards that would
+probably be different. Blushing a cherry red, Sakura pushed the
+thought aside. This was no time to be thinking about such things,
+while poor Tomoyo was stuck in bed. Or maybe that was the perfect
+time to be thinking about it. Sakura shook her head quickly. “Hoe...”
+Besides, Tomoyo had been the one to draw it, so it wasn’t like she
+was completely innocent there. Glancing back at the bed, Sakura
+looked right into a silent, stormy blue orb. Bolting upright, Sakura
+stumbled backwards, her ankle catching on the chair leg. Her arms
+pinwheeled as she tried to maintain her balance, her heart beating
+rapidly in shock. The paper fluttered out of her hand, landing slowly
+on the floor between the two of them. Sakura barely managed to keep
+her balance, grasping onto the chair. “Tomoyo-chan!” she said
+quickly, her eyes wide. The other girl had been completely silent,
+leaving Sakura completely unaware to her presence. “You’re awake!”
+she stated obviously. Laughing nervously, she put a hand behind her
+head. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
+	The dark haired girl bent down, wincing slightly as her injured body
+moved. Reaching down, she picked up the piece of paper, being careful
+not to crumple it. She still wanted to finish it one of those days.
+Sitting back in bed with the paper, she simply smiled at the
+Cardmistress. “I like watching Sakura-chan,” she said matter-of-
+factly. “When I woke up, I saw that you were here. I was so happy to
+see you. I just wanted to lie there and watch you for as long as I
+could. You’re much better to watch in person than in any of my
+videos. I can only capture your image and your sound. I can’t capture
+that wonderfully genki spark that is Sakura-chan.”
+	“Arigato, Tomoyo-chan,” Sakura said, blushing from the praise. She
+cast her eyes down for a moment, standing in silence. Her eyes slowly
+returned to the paper that Tomoyo had on her lap. “Ano...” she began
+nervously. “What’s that costume for?”
+	“This one? I have a cat one that I’m working on, too. It’s from
+the ‘Sekushi Sakura-chan Collection’ I’m working on,” Tomoyo replied
+excitedly, as she always did when talking about her Sakura costumes.
+	“But why?” Sakura asked, sweatdropping.
+	Tomoyo smiled happily. “Because Sakura-chan’s getting older. So
+someday she’s going to want to do more adult things. And when you do,
+I want to have costumes ready for you to use. Costumes are for
+special occasions. Catching Cards aren’t the only good occasions for
+them,” the heiress explained, watching Sakura’s growing blush.
+	“That sounds like you’d need to take videotape, too,” Sakura
+replied, her cheeks red.
+	“Lots of videotape,” Tomoyo agreed, nodding.
+	“Oh, I almost forgot!” Sakura turned, grabbing the cake. Whether she
+was just changing the subject or if she’d honestly gotten caught up
+in something else wasn’t certain. “I made this for you. It’s from
+Sonomi-sama’s recipe.” She held out the cake for the dark haired girl
+to see, walking closer to the bed. “I left it in the oven a little
+too long, though. I hope it still tastes all right.” She sighed,
+still a little disappointed that she had made that mistake. She had
+so wanted it to come out perfectly for Tomoyo.
+	“It’s lovely, Sakura-chan!” Tomoyo stated happily, taking a long
+look at the cake before looking up to the even more lovely cake
+bearer. She smiled sweetly. “I’m sure it will be great. Even if it
+isn’t perfect, I wouldn’t trade it for a cake made by the world’s
+best pastry chef. Because it doesn’t matter if things are perfect.
+What matters is that you made it. Even those little imperfections are
+filled with your love and care. That’s what makes it so delicious.”
+She could see that Sakura didn’t completely believe her yet, so she
+continued. “It’s like when you made that yukata for Li-kun. You
+didn’t know how to sew very well, but you tried your hardest anyway.
+Even though it wasn’t perfect, it didn’t matter. Because you had gone
+through all that trouble to make it. Everything we do, we leave a
+piece of our hearts in. Everything we touch has a little bit of us.
+So something that you put your heart into means the world to me.
+Because it has little bits of Sakura-chan’s soul mixed in.”
+	Sakura thought this over for a moment before nodding. “Like your
+costumes,” she said at last. Tomoyo had always put so much loving
+care into her costumes, making each and every one for Sakura to wear.
+But the costumes weren’t important alone. It was that Tomoyo had made
+them specifically for her, that she had spent all that time on them,
+just so she could wear them. That made Sakura feel a lot better about
+the cake, even with the imperfections. It suddenly didn’t matter so
+much that she had made the mistake. She smiled brightly as she set
+the cake back down. “Let me go get some plates.”
+	The two girls sat together on Tomoyo’s bed, eating slices of
+Sakura’s cake. They had decided to leave a slice for Sonomi to try
+later, as a thank you for the recipe. To Sakura’s delight, it had
+turned out pretty well, the frosting masking the slightly burnt
+parts. She was glad to see Tomoyo eating. Sonomi had been very
+worried about her daughter not eating, so Sakura was glad to do her
+part to get something in Tomoyo’s stomach.
+	The pale girl took a small bite of Sakura’s beautiful cake, her eyes
+never wandering far from the girl she loved. She let the sweet flavor
+roll across her tongue. She hadn’t been very hungry lately, but she
+couldn’t resist having a piece of Sakura’s cake, especially if Sakura
+was right there with her. She sighed happily, taking a small bite of
+one of the strawberries. The knowledge that it was made for her by
+Sakura followed every delicious bite. Sakura scooted closer to her on
+the bed, eating her own slice of cake. She could tell that Sakura was
+watching her. It was like a beautiful dream to have Sakura’s eyes on
+her. “It’s very good, Sakura-chan.”
+	Sakura smiled at Tomoyo’s comment. Finally seeing Tomoyo eating the
+cake, hearing that she liked it, it made the whole process of making
+it worthwhile. It had all led up to this point. Just like her life
+had led up to this point, as if everything had built up to this
+moment in time with Tomoyo. Sure, it had taken a few twists to get
+there, but everything had worked out in the end. And she could have
+her fairy tale ending. They both could. She took another bite of her
+cake, feeling excited about the future, the possibilities, and most
+importantly, the here and now.
+	‘Please don’t look at me that way. Please don’t taunt me like this,
+Sakura-chan. Because I don’t know if I could ever resist you. And
+when this is all over, when that look fades from your eyes, the sun
+will stop shining on my world,’ Tomoyo thought desperately. Sakura
+was looking at her with such love and adoration in her eyes, an
+unbridled passion that she had never seen before in those emerald
+gems. It was exactly what she had always wished to see, a love as
+deep and endless as her own. But now it was frightening. It would be
+gone before she could ever fully taste their depths. It would be
+taken from her in the blink of an eye.
+	Which left Tomoyo with a very difficult decision. How should she
+take this? Sakura had given her the most precious gift she could
+imagine, her warm and beautiful heart. But soon she would have to
+give it back, to part from it. And that seemed unbearable. But she
+would have to. She understood that. But in the meantime, Sakura loved
+her. For now, she had the love she had always longed for. Could she
+give in to it? Was it right to? Sakura’s love was only magic, a work
+of Sakura’s Cards. Would she be taking advantage of Sakura if she
+allowed herself to get closer to the Cardmistress while she had this
+chance? Or should she just wait it out, not allowing anything to
+happen in the next week for Sakura’s sake? It was a maddening
+question. Her heart and mind were torn in completely different
+directions. She didn’t want to give in to Sakura’s love only to have
+it taken away. She didn’t want to use Sakura’s well intentioned wish
+to fill her own lonely heart. It didn’t seem right to be in a
+relationship with Sakura when it was all simply done by Sakura’s
+magic. On the other hand, the brunette had given this gift to her,
+wanting her to be happy. It would be a shame to not accept Sakura’s
+gift. She had always known that one day Sakura would fall in love
+with another. At least she could have a week full of memories of
+their time together, memories of being loved by Sakura, right? And so
+her heart continued its tug of war as she finished her slice of cake.
+It had been delicious, but now it was all gone. Just like this would
+be. She set the plate to the side, folding her hands on her lap.
+	Unaware of Tomoyo’s troubled thoughts, Sakura finished her own slice
+of cake. She went back to watching Tomoyo, trying to decide what to
+say. Her heart moved this way and that, swaying about. There were so
+many feelings inside of her, all meshing and struggling to come
+forth. She wanted to tell Tomoyo, to explain them all, to hold them
+out to her, but she couldn’t find the words. After a moment of
+hesitation, she leant forward swiftly, hugging the pale girl tightly.
+Tomoyo seemed surprised by Sakura’s sudden move, but Sakura just
+continued to hold onto her. “Tomoyo-chan!” She could feel Tomoyo’s
+soft lavender hair brushing past her cheek, tickling her. “I love you
+so much!” She closed her eyes tightly, blushing a bit as she held
+onto the heiress. It was the best way she could think of to express
+the feelings surging through her heart.
+	Tomoyo felt a thundering heartbeat against her breast, but she
+couldn’t tell if it was Sakura’s heartbeat or her own. She could feel
+Sakura’s arms holding her tightly, encircling her in their warmth.
+This was where she had wanted to be for so long, in Sakura’s arms.
+She closed her eyes, giving in, at least for the moment. It was too
+much to fight off both her own love and Sakura’s, no matter how
+magically induced the latter may be. Leaning into the brunette,
+Tomoyo curled up against her beloved. Her head slid down against
+Sakura’s chest, her hands resting against Sakura’s stomach. She
+listened intently to the beat of the Cardmistress’s heart, her stormy
+blue eyes closing. Her concerns faded away like a child’s bad dream
+when in her mother’s arms. “Please don’t ever let me go,” Tomoyo
+pleaded quietly.
+	Resting her chin on the top of Tomoyo’s head, Sakura sighed softly.
+All the chaotic feelings in her heart were still there, but Tomoyo
+soothed them, calming them, bringing them all together. She suddenly
+wasn’t so worried about trying to describe them to Tomoyo. Tomoyo was
+always so good about understanding her heart. She felt that she
+didn’t need to say it all out loud. It was there. They could both
+feel it. “I won’t,” Sakura promised, wishing with all her heart that
+she could prove it, prove that she would hold onto her forever and
+ever.
+	“It’s so beautiful,” Tomoyo whispered. It was snowing lightly,
+small white crystals dancing their way through the air around her.
+Some settled in her long, lavender hair, others dropping gingerly
+onto her lap. She felt Sakura’s hands on her shoulders from behind
+and turned to smile at the Cardmistress. Sakura had come over earlier
+that day and Sonomi had suggested that Sakura take Tomoyo outside for
+a bit. Tomoyo still couldn’t get very far on her own, so Sakura was
+pushing her in a wheelchair. The heiress didn’t mind relying on
+Sakura for her mobility. It meant she couldn’t be far from the girl
+she loved. And that was perfectly fine by her.
+	Returning Tomoyo’s smile, Sakura watched the snowflakes falling
+about her dark haired friend. ‘She’s so beautiful,’ Sakura thought to
+herself, her fingers trailing through some lavender curls. She sighed
+happily her arms wrapping around Tomoyo’s shoulders.
+	Tomoyo blushed faintly, her heartbeat quickening in her chest.
+Having Sakura so close, holding her so lovingly, it was a dream come
+true. Despite the snow surrounding them, the heiress felt warm
+inside. Reaching up with her good hand, she rested it on one of
+Sakura’s arms. She held onto it as if to keep Sakura from ever
+releasing her hold on her. She felt so peaceful like this, alone with
+Sakura. If only it could always be this was... She closed her eyes,
+ceasing that thought. There was only now. There was only Sakura. She
+rested back into the brunette’s loving embrace.
+	“Tomoyo-chan, when you get better, let’s go rollerblading together,
+okay?” Sakura asked suddenly, her eyes lighting up. She shifted
+against Tomoyo, leaning over enough to see the other girl’s pale
+face. It seemed like such a good idea. She wanted to do everything
+with Tomoyo, to spend every moment with her, to share everything with
+her. Rollerblading had always been fun for her and it seemed even
+better with Tomoyo. And why not? Yukito and Touya were always off on
+long bike rides together. Or so Touya said.
+	Tomoyo’s stormy blue eyes met Sakura’s shining emeralds. A sad
+smile crossed her lips. That was so sweet of Sakura to want to share
+that with her. But by then, it would be too late. They wouldn’t be
+going together as a couple. They would just be two friends again by
+the time Tomoyo was better. But nonetheless, she found herself
+nodding. She couldn’t bear to disappoint Sakura. And it would still
+be fun to skate with her, even if it wouldn’t be the same. “Hai, I’d
+like that, Sakura-chan,” the dark haired girl replied softly.
+	Sakura smiled brightly at Tomoyo’s response. “Sugoi!” She hugged
+the wheelchair bound girl even tighter. “That will be fun! I’ll teach
+you how to rollerblade. It’s really not that hard. And you’re always
+so good at everything, so you’ll pick it up in no time.”
+	“But now I have incentive not to learn how. If I don’t learn to
+skate on my own, I have to keep holding onto Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo
+reasoned thoughtfully, her bandaged head tilted to the side. Why
+would she want to learn how to skate when it was so much more fun to
+have Sakura skate around with her? It was like learning how to dance
+on your own. Why let go of your partner?
+	Blushing profusely at Tomoyo’s words, Sakura looked down. That
+didn’t help avert her gaze from the dark haired girl, though, as the
+heiress was so close to her, taking up all of her attention. Still
+blushing, she rested her head against Tomoyo’s soft shoulder. “Ano...
+We.. we can still hold hands... Even if you do learn.”
+	Resting her head against Sakura’s, Tomoyo nodded slowly. “Learning
+to skate, with Sakura-chan as my beautiful teacher... Watching you
+move about so gracefully in your rollerblades, trying to help me
+learn how to use them, it sounds so cute!” The heiress sighed
+dreamily, already imagining it. Of course, the idea of rollerblading
+was far from her mind. It was simply doing anything with Sakura hand
+in hand that left her breathless. She could feel Sakura’s heart
+beating against her back. Listening to its lovely rhythm, Tomoyo
+began to breathe slowly along with it, their hearts beating in
+tandem.  Tomoyo’s heart called out to Sakura’s with each staccato
+beat. She could feel Sakura’s warm cheek against her neck as Sakura
+blushed. That only managed to lift her spirits even higher. Sakura’s
+blush felt as cute as it looked. She rested into it, blushing
+herself. The hot skin against her neck sent a shiver through her
+body. She held her breath, almost afraid the moment would end if she
+made any sudden moves. She wanted to hold onto it as long as
+possible.
+	Still a little embarrassed, Sakura finally pulled away. She didn’t
+notice Tomoyo’s soft sigh as she stood back up, brushing away her
+auburn hair. Smiling enthusiastically, she stepped in front of
+Tomoyo’s wheelchair. “Do we have all the things for our snowman?” she
+asked curiously.
+	“Hai!” Tomoyo responded, lifting up the small bundle she had with
+her. “But we could always just dress up Sakura-chan instead. You’re
+much cuter than anything made of snow.” She simply smiled as the
+blush returned to Sakura's cheeks. How could she possibly not love
+the auburn haired girl? She was just so perfect.
+	“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura got out nervously, a hand resting behind
+her head. She didn’t know if it was more embarrassing that Tomoyo
+said such things or that she honestly meant them. But it was way too
+cold out to let Tomoyo dress her up instead of a snowman. Not that
+she would choose that option anyway, right. ‘Hoe...’ Sakura shook her
+head, closing her eyes as she tried to clear her thoughts. When she
+opened her eyes, she saw Tomoyo still smiling at her, watching her
+with that loving gaze she always had. And Sakura wasn’t so worried
+anymore. “We’ll make the cutest snowman we can.”
+	Nodding her agreement, Tomoyo began to shift through the small bag,
+pulling out little articles for their snowman. She sighed sadly,
+placing a hand on her cheek. “Our poor little snowman won’t be able
+to be on video with Sakura-chan. And worse yet, I can’t record Sakura-
+chan making a snowman in the first place.”
+	Sakura laughed nervously. “It’s all right, Tomoyo-chan. I don’t
+think the snowman will mind,” she said reassuringly.
+	“But you look so cute playing in the snow!” Tomoyo insisted,
+watching her friend kneeling in the snow in front of her. That would
+make such a cute image on videotape, something to play over and over
+again. What sweet torture this was! She had Sakura’s love for a whole
+week, but she couldn’t record a single second of it because she had
+yet to replace her camcorder. In the end, it would be like one long,
+beautiful dream. It was probably better that she couldn’t have
+videotape of it. It was brought about by magic. It wasn’t really her
+Sakura to have. So it would only be recording a charade. But if it
+was just a charade, it would be so much easier to ignore Sakura’s
+affections. It didn’t feel like that. Sakura felt so genuine, as if
+it was really her and not some magic spell causing this. ‘So this is
+what it would be like to have her love? It’s better than I could have
+ever imagined,’ Tomoyo thought to herself. ‘Sakura’s love is magical.’
+	Sakura, meanwhile, was getting over her embarrassment by starting
+the snowman, scooping the snow together into some vague shape. She
+looked up to see Tomoyo still watching her from her wheelchair. This
+didn’t seem right. She knew that Tomoyo liked to watch her, but she
+wanted to do this together. Looking from the beginnings of her
+snowman and back to Tomoyo, she thought for a moment. Standing up,
+the auburn haired girl wiped her hands off on her skirt. The snow
+continued to drift around them, beautiful pieces of clouds falling
+from above. Sakura took a step forward before pausing, trying to
+decide exactly what to do. She reached forward and paused again,
+still unsure of herself. Tomoyo’s eye caught her own, looking at her
+with a look of complete faith. That strengthened her resolve.
+Reaching forward, Sakura gently wrapped her arms around Tomoyo’s
+waist. She could feel Tomoyo so close to her, could feel her breath
+against her cheek. Tomoyo felt so soft, so fragile. Sakura was almost
+afraid she would break the heiress if she moved wrong. Getting a
+better grip, the Cardmistress lifeted her best friend, walking back
+to the start of her snowman.
+	Tomoyo’s breath caught in her chest as she felt Sakura holding her
+tightly, carrying her. Her cheeks flushed as she rested in Sakura’s
+arms. For a moment, she worried that Sakura would feel the frenzied
+beating of her heart. But then it dawned on her that Sakura’s heart
+was beating just as rapidly against her. Sakura’s arms protected her
+from everything in life, shielding her from everything but the warmth
+of her heart. She held on as well as she could with her working arm,
+feeling dizzy with the joy bubbling over in her heart. She didn’t
+want it to stop ever, to ever be anywhere else but Sakura’s warm
+embrace. There was no place sweeter in Heaven or on earth than that
+wonderful spot nestled between Sakura’s outstretched arms.
+	Sakura paused for a long moment, Tomoyo held tightly in her arms.
+She pulled her closer, her eyes falling closed. The heiress’s long,
+beautiful hair fluttered around her like a cloak. “Tomoyo-chan,”
+Sakura thought she whispered. She slowly sat down in the snow with
+Tomoyo, not letting go of the pale girl in her grasp. She couldn’t
+bring herself to pull away. It felt so nice to be so close to Tomoyo.
+To know that Tomoyo was right there with her, that their hearts were
+beating together. She didn’t want that to stop. Blushing, she brushed
+back some of Tomoyo’s silky hair so that she could see her face
+better. Tomoyo looked back at her, little strands of lavender framing
+her pretty face as their eyes met. Sakura brushed more hair away,
+Tomoyo still cradled against her. This time, her fingers lingered on
+Tomoyo’s soft cheek. They stayed there for a long time, reveling in
+the feel of her friend’s warm skin. She swallowed, trying to stop the
+spinning of her heart. It did little to help. She was drawn in my
+Tomoyo’s beautiful features, by the feelings in her heart.
+	Tomoyo gazed into Sakura’s eyes, her cheeks scarlet under Sakura’s
+touch. She breathed slowly, simply watching her green eyed goddess.
+Her soul swirled inside of her in a cacophony of emotions, wanting to
+entwine with Sakura’s beautiful soul.  Was she really awake? Was she
+dreaming? Did it matter? For so long, she had dreamt of this moment,
+of being this close to Sakura, of being together. This single moment
+made those dreams feel like nothing. She could feel Sakura’s warm
+breath against her skin, her fingers still pressed against her cheek.
+Her heart cried out in joy. This was it. This was her what she had
+been wishing for through the years of their friendship. Sakura was
+almost upon her, their lips inches apart, their bodies together in
+the snow. Tomoyo could barely move, though whether that was from her
+injured body or the spell Sakura held on her, she couldn’t say. Her
+cheeks darkened as Sakura finally cupped her cheek, leaning in.
+	Sakura leant in, her heart pounding inside of her as she kissed
+Tomoyo. She felt lush hair under her lips, shifting against her. She
+blinked curiously, pulling back slightly. Tomoyo was looking to the
+side, her cheeks crimson and her hair shifting around her. “Tomoyo-
+chan?” Sakura asked sheepishly. She had been about to kiss her best
+friend. But she loved Tomoyo. She did want to kiss her. She felt
+disappointed that she hadn’t been able to. She wanted to feel
+Tomoyo’s lips, to pull her close again. ‘Hanyaa...’ she thought,
+blushing.
+	“So shall we get started?” Tomoyo asked her friend, smiling
+sweetly. But inside, she felt very different. Her thoughts spun
+around in circles, relief mixing with deep regret. She had missed out
+on a dream she had carried with her for years, to kiss her beloved
+Sakura. But she just couldn’t bring herself to take advantage of
+Sakura like that. The auburn haired girl had wanted to make her feel
+better. She hadn’t known that she would fall in love with Tomoyo
+because of it. Tomoyo didn’t feel right taking a kiss from Sakura if
+the brunette was a victim of her own magic. But still, her heart
+longed for that sweet kiss, the feel of Sakura near her again. As it
+is, she could barely move away at all anyway. So she was stuck right
+next to a very loving Sakura. That wasn’t fair. It was so tempting to
+just give in, to immerse herself in Sakura’s love for the week. But
+she just couldn’t do that to Sakura. She sighed inwardly.
+	The Cardmistress slowly nodded in agreement, still confused. Hadn’t
+they been about to kiss? What happened? Sakura felt as if she was
+missing some vital link,. It was like she had seen some pictures out
+of order. It didn’t make sense. Maybe it was just Tomoyo being
+eccentric again. But that didn’t really fit. Tomoyo’s eccentricity
+always had to do with being closer to her in some way, especially in
+loving ways. Like kissing. Sakura came back to the present as she
+felt Tomoyo shifting on her lap. Sweatdropping, she slowly helped the
+other girl to her side. “Un!” she responded, nodding. Trying to
+ignore the past few moments, which was incredibly hard to forget, she
+began to shovel more snow onto the snowman with her gloved hands.
+Tomoyo slowly began to help her with her free hand, adding to their
+snowman.
+	The two worked together quietly on their snowman, both girls
+concentrating on it. Every once in a while, their hands would touch
+and linger before one or the other would slowly pull away. They
+shared warm smiles and long glances, soft giggles and comments on
+their snowman as it progressed. The snow slowly began to take shape
+under their collective hands, forming into a cute little snowman
+before them.
+	Looking through the little bag next to her, Tomoyo began to cloth
+their little snowman. She wrapped a shawl around it, tying red
+ribbons around the arms. Sakura busied herself with the shiny buttons
+Tomoyo had decided on for the eyes. Finally satisfied with their
+work, Tomoyo sat back in the snow, smiling. She gazed over at Sakura,
+brushing some dark hair from her eyes. “It’s so kawaii. Our little
+snowman, formed from our hearts coming together. It’s like having a
+baby with Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo said delightedly.
+	“Tomoyo-chan!” Sakura blushed a deep crimson, both hands going to
+her cheeks. A baby? She wasn’t ready to think about babies yet. She
+looked down, blushing. A weight rested against her side, something
+long draping across her back. Forgetting all about her embarrassment,
+she looked over to find Tomoyo leaning against her side. Smiling
+softly, Sakura’s arm went around the pale girl, pulling her closer.
+She felt Tomoyo sigh happily against her, sending a trill through her
+soul. Together they sat there, watching their snowbaby, holding onto
+each other. Snowflakes fell around the two, showering them with
+beautiful crystal gifts for their baby shower.
+	Sakura sighed softly as she slid into the warm water of the bath.
+She nearly started at the nearly unbearable heat scorching her skin,
+but slowly relaxed into it. “I was out in the snow longer than I
+thought,” she said aloud to no one in particular, her voice echoing
+through the otherwise empty bathroom.
+	Closing her eyes, she slipped deeper into the water, its soft caress
+lapping over her shoulders. She would be lucky if she didn’t catch a
+cold from all the time she spent in the snow. But it had been worth
+every moment. Her cheeks darkened slightly at the thought. She had
+lost track of time with Tomoyo by her side. Just how long had they
+sat out there together, anyway? It could only have been hours, but it
+had felt like it stretched on for days. Even then, it still wasn’t
+enough time for the Cardmistress. She pouted, resting her head back.
+“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura whispered longingly. Whenever they were
+apart, Tomoyo was all that she could think about. But then, Tomoyo
+was all she could think about when she was with the heiress, too. It
+was like Tomoyo’s touch had been imprinted on her soul, leaving its
+mark in everything Sakura did.
+	How she could have missed these feelings for so long, she didn’t
+know. But now that she had uncovered them, they were almost
+overpowering.
+	As she lay there, immersed in the warm water, she could see Tomoyo
+in her mind’s eye. The sweet, angelic girl so close, her stormy blue
+eyes sparkling, her pale skin so soft, her dark hair framing her
+beautifully. Without realizing it, Sakura leant forward, her lips
+puckered as if to kiss her pretty best friend. Blushing and blinking
+rapidly, the auburn haired girl gave up her attempt. A sigh escaped
+her as she sunk lower in the water. They had been so close! Just a
+few more inches and she would know what those cute lips felt like
+against her own, what it felt like to kiss Tomoyo. If only she could
+go back in time and get those extra few inches... The love in her
+heart was glowing with a singular intensity, nearly ready to burst.
+She felt like that love had nowhere else to go but through her lips,
+right into Tomoyo, as if she could use that to show the other girl
+the raging feelings inside of her.
+	Well, there would always be other times. But she didn’t want to
+wait for some other time! Patience wasn’t Sakura’s strong point. Her
+mind delighted in the sweet torture of imagining kissing a slightly
+surprised Tomoyo over and over again. She sighed again. So close, yet
+so far away. Those inches might well have been miles.
+	All she wanted to do was to hold Tomoyo close, to kiss her
+repeatedly, to feel the pale girl against her again, to experience
+every unique little thing about her, to take it all in and immerse
+herself in it all.
+	The only thing troubling her was that she still couldn’t understand
+why Tomoyo had withdrawn from her when she had been about to kiss the
+heiress. Tomoyo was usually so warm and affectionate with her. She’d
+almost expected the pale girl to kiss her instead. So what had gone
+wrong? Maybe Tomoyo had just been too shy. But that didn’t seem like
+the other girl at all. Tomoyo certainly didn’t shy away from showing
+her love in any number of other ways.
+	Sakura couldn’t get her mind off of the thought. Her mind spun with
+possibilities. But none of them adequately explained why Tomoyo would
+have turned away from her. None of them seemed quite right. None of
+them really fit Tomoyo.
+	Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be anything she could do about
+it from where she was. But maybe if she tried again, whatever had
+gone wrong the last time wouldn’t be present. Or maybe it would and
+Sakura could actually figure out what it was. It felt like some
+complicated puzzle, but the answer shone brightly in her mind. She
+would kiss Tomoyo soon, sealing their love with a soul binding kiss.
+“Hanyaan...” she said aloud at the thought.
+	The reason that it was getting to her the most was that she truly
+did want to kiss her dark haired friend, to be next to her, holding
+her, feeling her delicate skin against her own. She wanted to hold
+onto Tomoyo and to never let go again. To experience every little bit
+of her eccentric best friend.
+	Her eyes closed, Sakura slid deeper into the water. A hand slid down
+her leg, hesitant. But her insistent thoughts were getting the better
+of her. She could already see herself kissing Tomoyo in her mind,
+could practically feel the pale girl next to her. She could see
+Tomoyo’s pale skin as clothes seemed to melt away, their lips meeting
+again and again. Tomoyo’s costume design returned to mind, her cheeks
+warming at the thought. She could see Tomoyo watching her excitedly,
+videotaping her, telling her how cute she was. And she could see
+Tomoyo coming closer, setting the camcorder down, kissing her again,
+her hands going across Sakura’s barely clothed body.
+	Sakura made a small sound, shifting in the water. Her legs spread
+apart, water splashing about her. Her hands were moving in time with
+her thoughts, making it almost like Tomoyo was actually with her for
+a split second. She could almost feel Tomoyo's hands caressing her
+skin, Tomoyo’s soft voice echoing in her ears as the heiress became
+more insistent. She held herself open for a moment, almost expecting
+Tomoyo to accept the invitation. And the Tomoyo in her thoughts did
+just that, Sakura’s fingers mimicking her friend’s imaginary
+movements.
+	Hunched over in the bath, Sakura took a quick breath, still lost in
+her fantasy. The water lapped around her body, but she could hardly
+notice it. All she could think about was Tomoyo. Everywhere. Always.
+Tomoyo. Her eyes were clenched tightly, painfully. She shook slightly
+and then slumped in the water, breathing heavily. Her cheek lay
+against the surface of the water, wet and warm. She tried to catch
+her breath, feeling almost feverish in the bath. The Cardmistress
+tried to collect her thoughts, but they were distant, fragmented. All
+she knew was that Tomoyo smiled back at her from every one of them.
+“Tomoyo-chan...” she whispered. She felt like she had been caught in
+a tsunami, torrents of emotion buffeting against her soul again and
+again. But she was slowly releasing their was no release from that
+feeling. It was still wrapped tightly around her heart. And Tomoyo
+was at the center of it.
+	“Kawaii!” Tomoyo watched excitedly as Sakura stood before her in
+one of her costumes. The Cardmistress had visited again a short time
+ago and had agreed to try out several of Tomoyo’s costumes while she
+was there. This was the fourth costume she had worn. Only three more
+to go and Tomoyo would be all out of new costumes for Sakura to wear.
+She wanted to slow down time and speed it up at the same time. If she
+could slow it down, she could have even more time watching Sakura
+model her costumes. But she wanted to see what Sakura looked like in
+the others as well.
+	One of the reasons she had so many costumes was that there simply
+wasn’t as much a reason for Sakura to wear her costumes anymore.
+Before when Sakura had been catching the Cards, she had needed a new
+costume for each of her adventures. Now that it was over, Tomoyo had
+to find a good time for her friend to come and model for her. So the
+costumes weren’t as necessary anymore, but Tomoyo did like being able
+to have Sakura wear them personally for her. And Sakura was sweet
+enough to do just that for her.
+	Sakura still looked a little embarrassed, but she was starting to
+forget her nervousness. Everything affected her easily, but she moved
+on to other thoughts just as quickly. And it was hard not to get
+caught up in Tomoyo’s exuberance. The pale girl was usually so quiet
+and thoughtful, but when she was interested in something, like Sakura
+herself for interest, she made it abundantly clear. The Cardmistress
+wondered how she ever could have missed it before.
+	Twirling in the long, multi-layered skirt she was currently in,
+Sakura could hear Tomoyo clapping. A smile lit up Sakura’s lips as
+she turned to face the heiress again. Taking the long skirt in her
+hands, Sakura curtsied to her audience of one.
+	Back when Tomoyo had first made costumes for her, she had always
+worn them when she was busy with the Cards. She hadn’t had time to
+really appreciate them. Or the attention Tomoyo gave her when she was
+wearing them. After the whole debacle with the Cards was finally
+over, she had thought it would be the end of silly things like
+costumes. But Tomoyo kept making them regardless. Sakura had been a
+little baffled at first, but if her eccentric friend wanted to see
+her in them, she couldn’t refuse. If Tomoyo spent so much time on the
+costumes, it seemed only right to wear them. So she had begun
+modeling them for Tomoyo back then. It had been embarrassing at
+first, and still was to some extent, because she wasn’t busy with
+other things while wearing the costumes. It made her self-conscious
+knowing that she was being videotaped in the many different designs
+like that. But Tomoyo’s obvious excitement when she would wear them
+for her began to make her worry less. Tomoyo loved it so much when
+she would. And there was something about that that Sakura liked. Just
+knowing she had all of her friend’s attention, that Tomoyo’s eyes
+were on her and only her then. Though she had trouble admitting it,
+she did enjoy modeling for Tomoyo. In a way, it made her feel closer
+to her mother. But unlike her mother, she only wanted to model for
+Tomoyo. She was too shy to do that for anyone else. And she knew how
+happy it made the heiress. So slowly she began to do more in the
+costumes, actually modeling them, letting Tomoyo direct her where she
+would, taking snapshots and videotape of her in whatever costume came
+out next. It became a fun little thing they did together, an excuse
+to stay over for the weekend or to stop by after school.
+‘Sakura, I have a new costume finished. Could you wear it for me?’
+	‘Sure, Tomoyo-chan! Just let me drop off my things at home.’
+	And so it went. Days and weeks and months and finally years of lace
+and ribbons and videotape. Sakura looked forward to it more than the
+soccer practice she had been taking lately. Part of that was just
+seeing the smile and starry eyed looks Tomoyo gave her. But it was
+just fun. She loved being with her best friend, and dressing up for
+her was exciting. Slipping into a new outfit, anxious to see what
+Tomoyo thought, to hear her words on it, to see what poses she would
+want to see her in. It was exhilarating. And now it seemed to make
+more sense. Of course she liked Tomoyo watching her. Of course she
+wanted to model for her. Because Tomoyo’s never wavering love and
+attention meant everything to her. And she wasn’t taking it for
+granted anymore. And she could feel it so strongly when she would
+dress up for her.
+Her cheeks a little red, Sakura put a hand behind her head.  “So
+what do you think?”
+	“I think you look gorgeous in it, Sakura-chan. Like a beautiful
+dancer who wants to let go of everything and dance the night away,”
+Tomoyo stated dreamily, a hand on her cheek. Sighing contentedly, the
+heiress was in Heaven. What could possibly be more wonderful than
+Sakura modeling specifically for her? The athletic young girl was
+already so beautiful. Seeing her all dressed up in the costumes she
+made for her was stunning. And watching her pose and move about for
+her eyes only... Tomoyo sighed again, her stormy blue eye never
+leaving Sakura.
+	The Cardmistress blushed at Tomoyo comment. Tomoyo always said
+rather complimentary things to her, but she always accepted them
+shyly. Part of her just couldn’t understand how Tomoyo thought so.
+The other part was just flattered to hear the other girl say it.
+Nonetheless, she always loved hearing her. It was like a puppy doing
+tricks for its mistress to hear loving words of praise. But with
+Tomoyo she never even had to do anything, or at least not knowingly.
+The dark haired girl seemed to find everything about her wonderful.
+“Which one should I wear next?”
+	Tomoyo looked towards her desk where the other costumes were
+waiting. Placing her hand on her chin, she thought carefully. She
+would eventually see Sakura in all of them, but she still treated it
+like an important decision. It was all a matter of what would look
+best after the one Sakura was currently wearing. “I think you would
+look very pretty in the red one with the ribbons,” she said at last,
+indicating one near the bottom of the small pile of clothes. She
+watched Sakura walk over to claim the costume. “You are so cute in
+that,” she breathed happily, gazing at Sakura.
+	The girl in question blushed again at hearing Tomoyo’s soft voice.
+It made her happy to know Tomoyo thought so. It sent warm waves
+lapping all across her soul. Quickly sifting through the costumes,
+she came about the red one in question. Turning to Tomoyo, she held
+it closely to her chest. “I’ll be right back, Tomoyo-chan!” she
+promised. The thought of being gone for too long was something she
+didn’t want to deal with. More than anything, she just wanted to be
+there with her dark haired girlfriend. Tomoyo merely smiled at her
+promise as she hurried out the door to change.
+	Standing in the rather luxurious bathroom, Sakura began to pull off
+the costume she was wearing. She wanted to hurry up and return to
+Tomoyo, but she was afraid of ruining Tomoyo’s costume. ‘Each costume
+is stitched with love,’ she could remember Tomoyo saying. So she was
+always very wary about getting a stitch out of place. She didn’t want
+to ruin anything Tomoyo worked so hard on. Finally slipping out of
+the long skirts of her previous costume, Sakura examined the new one.
+It did look cute, like everything Tomoyo designed. It was very soft
+to the touch, and very pretty. It looked almost like something she
+would wear out on a date. Well, nothing she could afford to have in
+her own wardrobe, but something she could see herself dating in. She
+shifted around on her feet as if she were dancing, holding the dress
+tightly. Yes, it would be beautiful to wear out on a date with
+Tomoyo. It was a beautiful red dress with a large red ribbon in the
+back. It had black stockings and black gloves that went along with it
+as well as a red ribbon for her hair. The small red shoes had small
+ribbons on them as well. She smiled at the details. Tomoyo and her
+ribbon fetish. But it was very cute. She couldn’t wait to wear it for
+her.
+	Tomoyo waited patiently in her room, staring at the spot where
+Sakura had been moments before, swishing about in the twirling skirts
+she had made for her. It wasn’t fair that her camcorder had been
+broken. This little fashion show would have made such a lovely tape!
+The type of thing she would watch again and again late at night and
+with her mother when she had some time away from work. But all she
+could do was try to remember every beautiful detail. Closing her
+eyes, she could imagine Sakura posing for her again, right there in
+front of her.
+	This was her last night with Sakura. The next day was the end of
+their week together and her wish would be over. A bittersweet smile
+crossed her lips. She may not be able to have Sakura for forever, but
+she did have one beautiful week together with her. Even if she
+couldn’t be with Sakura, she got to experience her love, got to have
+a taste of the heavens. And she would never allow herself to forget
+that taste.
+	Tomoyo had to admit that if she had to decide on an ending for
+their short-lived relationship, this was certainly a good one. A
+sparkling all-Sakura fashion show all for her. It was much better
+than watching Sakura on her videotapes. It was Sakura Live! It was
+the brunette in all of her amazing glory, right there for her to
+behold.
+	The pale girl sighed, resting back in her bed. Soon this would all
+be over. Nothing but memories and dreams. But what was life without
+dreams? The heart can’t live without beautiful dreams to sustain it.
+She would miss this terribly. It would be unbearably difficult to
+just let go of Sakura’s love. But she would have to. And it would
+hurt. But she would always have these memories to fall back on. It
+wasn’t just a dream anymore. She now knew what it was like to have
+Sakura’s love. And it was more amazing than she had dared to imagine.
+Now when she saw Sakura married and in love, she would know exactly
+how lucky that other person was. And she would still have that little
+sliver of when Sakura had loved her that way. That would sustain her
+soul. It had to.
+	The door opened, pulling Tomoyo’s attention away from her thoughts.
+In the doorway stood the athletic Cardmistress, resplendent in the
+red dress. It fit her perfectly, the ribbons making her look like a
+beautiful present. The heiress couldn’t say anything, transfixed by
+the image of her love. “You look lovely, Sakura-chan,” she said at
+last.
+	Sakura blushed, stepping further into the room. She looked down,
+getting a different look at the outfit now that she was wearing it.
+“Thank you, Tomoyo-chan.” Looking up again, emerald green eyes met
+intense stormy blue. She was suddenly very glad Tomoyo picked this
+dress. It really was pretty and the heiress seemed to like it quite a
+bit. She turned to her side, posing for her friend. If Tomoyo still
+had her camcorder and wasn’t bedridden, now would be the time that
+the dark haired girl would be directing her, coming up with different
+positions for her and what she should be doing. So for now she just
+posed as best she could, wanting to do the best she could for her
+friend.
+	Tomoyo wished more than ever that she still had her camcorder as
+she watched the Mistress of the Cards before her. She could always
+get Sakura to wear them again after her wish, but that just wouldn’t
+be the same. Sakura wouldn’t be wearing it the same way, with the
+same loving look in her eyes. It would just be disappointing. No, she
+would just have to remember this one. So her eye never wavered for a
+second, wanting to imprint the image forever in her mind.
+	As if drawn by Tomoyo’s deep gaze, Sakura found herself nearing
+Tomoyo’s bed. Her heart was pounding in her chest more fiercely than
+during any of the trials she had faced. It took her a moment to
+realize that she had already come to a decision. It was that decision
+that had her so nervous. But it held her bound like a magic spell,
+pulling her forward. She couldn’t stop now if she wanted to. Sitting
+on the edge of the bed, she looked down at her bedridden friend, the
+injured girl staring back up at her. Slowly, she reached out and took
+Tomoyo’s hand where it stuck out from her cast.
+	Watching Sakura, Tomoyo felt her cheeks flushing. Sakura was so
+close to her, gazing down into her eye. There was something there in
+those emerald orbs, something she was struggling to make out. They
+were warm, passionate. She could see a hint of nervousness in them as
+well. She squeezed Sakura’s hand with her own, trying to assuage the
+brunette’s worries. She always wanted to support Sakura, to be there
+for her. Even right now. Especially right now. Her fingers laced with
+Sakura’s, holding the gloved fingers tightly to her stomach. Her
+heart skipped a beat as she felt Sakura’s grip on her hand tighten.
+“Sakura-chan...” she whispered.
+	The Cardmistress hesitated for a moment, a hurricane of thoughts
+swirling through her, all struggling for dominance. Should she? Could
+she? And then, a moment of calm. The eye of the storm. Everything was
+suddenly clear. Leaning down slowly, she held tightly onto Tomoyo’s
+hand, ready to kiss the dark haired girl. None of her thoughts
+mattered. This was what she wanted. Her shimmering first kiss with
+her one, true love. She could feel Tomoyo’s breath against her lips
+as she drew near, their hair teasing each other. She could only see
+into one of Tomoyo’s eyes, but it was a deep pool of adoration. That
+only spurred her on. Their noses touched ever so briefly, sliding
+across as she sought out Tomoyo’s lips. Her heart pounded in her
+chest as she rested half on top of Tomoyo, trying not to place too
+much weight on the injured girl. Their lips brushed lightly. Sakura
+felt sparks tingle through her, the feeling of petal soft lips
+blanketing her thoughts in a warm bliss.
+	Tomoyo shuddered at the feeling of Sakura’s lips brushing against
+her own. Even that brief contact went straight to her heart. It felt
+so nice, so enticing. She pursed her lips, watching Sakura above her,
+her heart beating against Sakura’s chest. Feeling Sakura so close to
+her, against her, smelling her hair, seeing those large emerald orbs,
+it all coalesced around her into a real life fairy tale. But this
+wasn’t her fairy tale. No matter how much she wanted it to be.
+Closing her eyes, she sighed. Every bit of her wanted so much to give
+in, to let this kiss happen. But that wouldn’t be fair to Sakura. She
+could feel Sakura’s breath against her cheek and her resolve
+faltered. She already had a taste of Sakura’s love. Why couldn’t she
+have this? Why? Just this little bit of Sakura... In her love clouded
+mind, it all made so much sense. Just a kiss. Their first and last
+kiss. No one would ever have to know. Not even Sakura. So it wouldn’t
+be betraying Sakura. It would just be one, soft, lovely kiss...
+	“Sakura-chan, please don’t,” Tomoyo whispered softly, reluctantly.
+She prayed that Sakura would stop in time. She prayed that Sakura
+wouldn’t listen to her and wouldn’t stop at all. She simply prayed
+with all her heart.
+	“Tomoyo-chan?” Sakura asked, blinking slowly as if fighting off a
+haze. Why didn’t Tomoyo want to kiss her? Why didn’t she want to be
+close like that? Why didn’t she want to share their first kiss? Was
+something wrong? Sakura slowly sat up, disentangling herself from
+Tomoyo. “Tomoyo-chan, what’s wrong? Are you... not ready?” It was a
+silly question. Tomoyo didn’t seem to mind anything as long as it
+involved Sakura in some way, shape or form. Sakura couldn’t imagine
+her best friend not being ready to kiss. Tomoyo was already more
+mature than she was as it was. And if Sakura herself was ready...
+	“No, it isn’t that, Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo replied, her eye slowly
+opening. She sighed softly, not wanting to continue. There went her
+chance. And it was her own fault for it. “It’s that I don’t want to
+take advantage of you.” Explaining things was the only way out now.
+If she didn’t, it would only hurt Sakura’s feelings. She wanted
+Sakura to know that she wasn’t rejecting her.
+	“Take advantage of me? No, it’s not like that at all. I want this,
+too, Tomoyo-chan! I do. With all my heart.” Sakura took Tomoyo’s hand
+in both of her own, holding it tightly. “I thought about this for a
+long time. It’s what I want. I want you to be my first kiss.” A blush
+crossed her cheeks when she finished.
+	Tomoyo smiled sadly, looking up at the mistress of her heart. “And
+I would love to be able to do that for you, Sakura-chan. I want you
+to be my first kiss, too. But I can’t do that. I can’t take that away
+from you. I want your first kiss to be special. I want it to be with
+the one you really love.”
+	“But I love you,” Sakura argued, not understanding. What was Tomoyo
+saying? Her heart began to beat in fright. She didn’t like where this
+was going at all. She held onto Tomoyo’s hand tighter, holding it
+like a lifeline.
+	Squeezing Sakura’s hands back, Tomoyo felt her heart shiver within
+her. She didn’t want this to end. But she couldn’t hurt Sakura. She
+could never allow that of herself. “You don’t really love me, Sakura-
+chan. You granted me a wish last week. You didn’t know what it was.
+It made you fall in love with me,” Tomoyo explained quietly.”
+	“No, that wasn’t it. It was...” Sakura blinked, trying to think
+back to that day. She had granted a wish for Tomoyo. She had
+forgotten what the wish was. And then she had realized her love for
+Tomoyo. A sudden pain shot through her heart. “No!! That’s not it! I
+do love you! It wasn’t a wish. It wasn’t...” Sakura sobbed weakly,
+tears falling onto the injured girl below her. The world had been
+pulled out from underneath her. She was falling, unable to grasp onto
+anything to slow her descent. This past week had been the best week
+of her life. This newfound love had meant everything to her. How
+could it only be a wish? Her hands clenched tightly onto Tomoyo’s,
+not letting go.
+	Tomoyo held onto the other girl with her free arm, rubbing her
+back. “Please don’t cry, Sakura-chan. It makes me sad to see you
+cry,” she said softly. “You made my fondest wish come true. For this
+past week, you have given me the greatest happiness I could imagine.
+I would never want to give that up for anything.”
+	“But I do love you!” Sakura insisted, sniffling. “It’s not just a
+spell. I never knew how I felt. But I do now. I love you, Tomoyo-
+chan. I love you so much. It’s not just magic. It can’t be. I love
+you too much for it to be. I don’t want it to go away. Ever.”
+	“I love you, too, Sakura-chan. With all of my heart. That’s why I
+can’t go through with this. It’s only a charade. It was a beautiful
+charade, but I can’t betray you with it. Because it’s not what you’d
+really want. It’s only my selfish spell that made you love me. And
+it’s over tomorrow. Then you’ll be free to fall in love for real with
+someone else,” Tomoyo explained, trying desperately to smile for
+Sakura. Tears threatened to overcome her, but she couldn’t stand to
+cry in front of Sakura, not when the auburn haired girl needed her.
+	“Then I’ll fall in love with you as soon as the spell wears off,”
+Sakura replied, wiping angrily at her eyes to get the tears away.
+Frustration and helplessness surrounded her, leaving her feeling lost
+and lonely. “You aren’t selfish for wanting someone to love you. We
+all want that Tomoyo-chan. And you deserve it more than anyone I
+know. I want you to have it.” Her voice broke, more tears spilling
+down her cheeks. “I want you to have it with me. I love you.” She
+held onto the pale girl tightly, not daring to let go.
+	Closing her eyes tightly, Tomoyo kept rubbing Sakura’s back. Her
+own tears were silent, a quiet backdrop to Sakura’s sobs. ‘I’m so
+sorry, Sakura-chan. I want it to be with you, too. More than
+anything,’ she thought sadly.
+	“But I do love her, Kero-chan! She just doesn’t believe me. She
+thinks it’s all some spell. But it can’t be. I know it can’t. I
+really do love her.” Sakura squeezed her pillow tightly, wishing it
+was Tomoyo. She hated this. She felt sick. Ever since she had heard
+that her love might all be a dream she might wake up from, she had
+felt weak and brittle. If something so strong could be fake, then she
+had no idea what was real. But she couldn’t believe that. She
+couldn’t allow herself to.
+	“...” Came Kero’s reply. He didn’t know what to say. It could very
+well be a spell for all he knew. Clow Reed had been rather
+unscrupulous with some of the spells he had worked in his day. And
+Sakura was even more powerful than he was. It sounded likely. But
+telling Sakura that didn’t sound like a good idea. He wanted to help
+his Mistress, but he didn’t know how.
+	“I just have to prove it to her,” Sakura went on, ignoring her
+plush sidekick. “If I can make it past tomorrow afternoon, she’ll
+have to believe me. Because the deadline was only one week. And I
+know I love her. Because this wouldn’t hurt so much if I didn’t.”
+Resting her head against the pillow, she felt her tears soaking into
+it. She had thought that she had shed all of her tears at Tomoyo’s
+house, but they just kept coming. She sighed shakily.
+	“I do love her. It’s not some stupid spell. Because she means
+everything to me. Because she makes me happy. I want to be with her
+forever. I want to hold her forever, just like I promised. When I
+close my eyes, I see her. I can hear her singing to me when I listen
+closely enough. When I’m with her, I’m the happiest girl in the
+world. When I’m away from her, I just want her to be there again.”
+Sakura held the pillow in a death grip, slumping onto her side in
+bed. “I’ve never felt this way before. Not even about Yukito. And not
+about Syaoran. She makes me feel better than I am. She makes me
+stronger, better, braver... I need her...” Her voice cracked again,
+her eyes shutting tightly.
+	Sitting up, she clenched her fists tightly, blinking away her
+tears. Determination burned in her eyes. “I’m gonna prove it to her,
+Kero-chan. I don’t care if it was a wish or not. I love Tomoyo-chan.
+And I’ll love her even after tomorrow. I’ll love her forever.” Sleep
+would be long in coming that night, but Sakura focussed completely on
+her thoughts, on Tomoyo, on the feelings inside of her. She would
+overcome any spell. She wouldn’t let her love die the next day.
+	“Please, Tomoyo-chan, you need to eat,” Sonomi said worriedly,
+holding out a bit to her daughter. The girl in question simply lay in
+bed, the life once again faded from her eyes. What had happened to
+her precious daughter? She had been so vibrant for the past week, so
+alive. Even if her body was having trouble recovering, Sonomi had
+been thrilled to see the sparkle in her daughter when they would
+talk. And now it was all gone again, as if it had never been there at
+all.
+	“I’m sorry, okaa-sama,” Tomoyo said quietly. “I can’t. It hurts too
+much.” She closed her eyes tightly, trying to hold back the tears
+inside. She wanted to eat to appease her mother, but it was too
+difficult to work up the strength to eat. The last she had seen of
+Sakura was her wiping at her tear streaked cheeks before leaving.
+That image, her sad and lonely Sakura, remained with her. She would
+lose her the next day and it would all be over. And now Sakura was
+hurting because it. All because she wouldn’t kiss her. Tomoyo
+sniffled, closing her eyes tighter until they hurt. It was all her
+fault. Now she would be alone forever and her last memories of her
+time with Sakura would be that she ruined it.
+	“What’s wrong?” Sonomi asked, suddenly concerned. “Where does it
+hurt, my little girl?” She set the plate aside, scooting closer to
+her daughter. Her heart cried out for Tomoyo, wanting some way to
+take away her pain, to wipe away those tears.
+	“Everywhere,” Tomoyo replied, trying with all her heart not to cry,
+not to worry her mother. But it was no use. She felt herself being
+cradled in her mother’s arms, could hear her mother’s soft
+reassurances. Giving up, she burst into tears against Sonomi, crying
+in her arms. Those arms were her only solace. Sakura would soon be
+taken away from her and her memories would be marred with the pain
+she inadvertently caused. She cried against her mother until all her
+tears were gone. Sonomi would not leave her that night. Eventually,
+she fell asleep in her mother’s arms.
+	Tomoyo lay in bed silently, staring up at her ceiling once more.
+She felt drained. Her whole body felt weak, empty. Her mother had
+finally gone to work only after Tomoyo had promised her that she was
+feeling better and that she would try to eat. And it was true. She
+was feeling a little better. The night before she had felt hopeless.
+Now she could at least be thankful that Sakura would probably forget
+all about her pain in just a few short hours and would be back to her
+normal, genki self. And her love would be gone forever. She closed
+her eyes, not wanting to think about that. A knock at her door drew
+her attention. At first she thought it was a maid, but she quickly
+changed her mind. The knock was soft and shy. “Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo
+whispered. “Come on in, Sakura-chan,” she said louder. The door
+opened to reveal her friend.
+	Sakura gazed over at Tomoyo for a long minute, feeling a little
+awkward. After the day before, she wasn’t quite sure what to say. She
+entered the room, closing the door behind her. Walking over to the
+bed, she sat next to Tomoyo. Her thoughts swirled around her, but
+they weren’t the same pleasant thoughts that had assailed her the day
+before when they had almost kissed. But she was here for a reason.
+She didn’t have much time left before the wish ran out. She took a
+deep breath, mustering up her motivation. It wasn’t over yet. “I have
+something for you,” she said at last.
+	“You didn’t have to get me anything,” Tomoyo said quickly. She
+offered a small smile. “You’re all I ever really wanted. I’m glad
+you’re here.” She reached over, taking one of Sakura’s hands in her
+own. Sakura returned the smile briefly, making her feel a little
+better.
+	Digging around in the bag she had brought with her, Sakura pulled
+out a new camcorder. She looked at it for a moment before handing it
+out to Tomoyo. “I got it with the money I have saved up. Well, and
+I’ll be doing onii-chan’s chores from now until I move out because he
+helped with it. But I wanted to get you something.”
+	Tomoyo put a hand on the camcorder, running her fingers over it.
+Her old one was gone now, but Sakura had gone to get her a new one.
+That meant so much to her. She looked up quickly, meeting Sakura’s
+anxious gaze. “Thank you so much, Sakura-chan. It’s wonderful!”
+	Sakura smiled back, obviously pleased. “I know you could buy
+another one, but I wanted to get it for you.” She reached out, taking
+Tomoyo’s hands. “When you get better... Please use it a lot. To make
+up for all the time you’ve been stuck in bed. Whenever you videotape
+me, I feel so special. I feel like I’m your movie star. And that.. it
+really makes me feel happy. Seeing you smile when you’re watching me,
+it makes me want to do everything I can for you in front of the
+camera.”
+	Nodding solemnly, Tomoyo looks up at Sakura. “I will. I’ll
+videotape as much as I can of you. So I can capture all of the
+beautiful moments in your life.”
+	“In our life,” Sakura corrects, squeezing Tomoyo’s hands. “I’m not
+going anywhere. I love you. I’ll always love you. This isn’t going to
+change anything. I want you to videotape all of the wonderful things
+in our life. Our first real date. Our first baby. Our wedding.
+Everything. I want to sit with you when we’re all grown up and watch
+these tapes together. I want to be able to look back and blush at
+seeing us together through all the years. And I want to say, ‘See,
+Tomoyo-chan? I told you I’d hold you forever.’ And I want you to
+smile and..” Sakura closed her eyes, trailing off as tears fell down
+her cheeks.
+	Tomoyo gently brushed Sakura’s tears away with her fingertips. “I
+love you so much,” she whispered. “And I will always love you.
+Exactly because of things like this. Because Sakura-chan has the
+biggest heart I know. And I know I’ll always have an important place
+in your heart, even if it’s just as your best friend.” Her heart sung
+at Sakura’s devotion, at the hopes and dreams Sakura held for them.
+She wished those dreams could come true, that they could spend an
+eternity together.
+	“I will love you!” Sakura shook her head, tears flinging from her
+cheeks. “Even if I have to use another magic spell. I’ll always love
+you. I need you. I don’t want to lose you after all this.”
+	Smiling softly, Tomoyo trailed her fingers through Sakura’s hair.
+“But then you wouldn’t be the Sakura-chan that I’m in love with. You
+wouldn’t be able to shine. Because you would be lying to your heart.
+And I want your heart to be free. I want you to fall in love with the
+person who can make you happiest, whoever that may be. Because I love
+you.”
+	“How can you say that? How can you let that happen? Because I don’t
+ever want you being in love with someone else. I love you so much. I
+couldn’t let you go. You do make me happy. You make me more than I
+am. That’s why I don’t want to ever let you go,” Sakura argued, tears
+still falling past her chin.
+	Tomoyo sighed, her eyes closing for a moment. She felt so tired. If
+only they could live happily ever after... “If Sakura-chan couldn’t
+let me go... That would make me very happy. And I’ll always love you.
+I’ll always be yours, Sakura-chan. Whether or not you know that.” It
+was hard for her to keep seeing this as magic. Sakura genuinely
+seemed to be in love. With her. She really seemed to want to spend
+forever with her. It was hard to write it off as just the spell.
+Because she knew Sakura. And Sakura was fighting desperately to hold
+onto her right now. And she didn’t want to fight against Sakura.
+Maybe Sakura really did love her. Her heart skipped a beat at that
+thought. Maybe she had been wrong all along.
+	“I love you, too, Tomoyo-chan. And I always will. No matter what
+some stupid spell says. I love you,” Sakura insisted. As if to prove
+her point, she leant forward. Her tear-filled eyes closed as she
+leant over her best friend. Her hands held onto Tomoyo’s sides as she
+came closer. ‘I love you!’ she wanted to scream with every fiber of
+her being. She wasn’t going to let that die. Nothing would kill that.
+It may have just been a spell at first, but it was more than that
+now. She did love Tomoyo. And nothing would ever take that away from
+her.
+	Tomoyo could feel Sakura against her, the Cardmistress’s chest
+shaking slightly as her body shook from crying too much. The heiress
+held onto the auburn haired girl as best she could, wanting to take
+that all away. Her dearest Sakura should never have to be marred by
+tears. Her own heart swelled as she saw Sakura leaning towards her.
+She didn’t want to betray Sakura. But she wasn’t betraying Sakura.
+This really was Sakura. These were her feelings, her hopes and
+dreams. Tomoyo met Sakura’s lips as they reached hers. That silky
+soft feeling melted against her lips, drawing away her breath in a
+sensuous kiss. She kissed Sakura back, her working arm going around
+Sakura’s waist as they did. Each kiss was like a declaration of love,
+a prayer that things would work out, that this wasn’t the end.
+	Sakura finally felt Tomoyo lips against her own. This time there
+was no resistance. Tomoyo was kissing her back softly, sending a
+shiver through her body. It felt so nice. ‘I do love you,’ Sakura
+thought again, kissing back with all the strength she could muster.
+Tomoyo seemed a bit surprised at first, but quickly matched her.
+Sakura never wanted their lips to part. It felt intoxicating, like
+being bathed in pure love. She snuggled closer to Tomoyo, embracing
+her as they kissed again. If only she could keep kissing her until
+the deadline, until it was all over. She felt safe with Tomoyo, in
+her arms. She felt a dizzying mix of warmth and wonder at each
+additional kiss. She would prove to Tomoyo that she would hold her
+forever. That they would be together forever. She would make Tomoyo
+happy. They would always.. always... They would always what?
+	Their lips met in kiss after kiss, turning Tomoyo’s world into a
+sea of cherry blossoms. Each lingering kiss felt like a brush of
+angel wings against her soul. For once, Tomoyo could fully express
+her love for the brunette, and she did so as best she could. She
+kissed back with all the love in her heart, trying not to think about
+tomorrow. There was only now. And now would last forever. She could
+slowly feel Sakura lessening the kisses, could feel less coming from
+the other girl. Sakura seemed bewildered, out of place. Tomoyo
+stopped immediately. Looking up at her friend. Her heart cried out, a
+sharp blade slicing through it. She wanted to deny it, to believe
+that it wasn’t true. But Sakura just looked at her in confusion. It
+was over. Her blissful week was gone. Sakura’s love was gone. Her
+most treasured gift was now no more than a memory.
+	“Tomoyo-chan? What happened? I can’t remember anything. It’s all
+blurry. Hoe...” Sakura shook her head, trying to focus. But the
+harder she focussed, the further away it all got. Like a dream upon
+awakening, it all began to fade from her mind as if it had never
+been. She shook her head, sitting up. Had she fallen asleep on Tomoyo
+or something? “Did I make your wish come true?” she asked hopefully.
+That was the last thing she could remember, trying to make Tomoyo’s
+wish come true.
+	Tomoyo forced a smile, blinking quickly. “Yes, you did, Sakura-
+chan. You did it wonderfully. It was the most beautiful wish I could
+ever hope for. Thank you so much for this week,” she said with all
+her heart. All her broken heart. Sakura’s love was gone forever now.
+Only her memory remained of it. She didn’t even have videos of it to
+relive it all. Only the time they shared. Now she would have to give
+it all up. And for Sakura, she could. At least Sakura wasn’t scared
+about losing her love anymore. Because for her, it had never been.
+But for Tomoyo, it would always live on in her heart.
+	“Tomoyo-chan, are you crying?” Sakura asked worriedly.
+	“Everything will always be all right,” Tomoyo whispered.
+Several Years Later:
+	Tomoyo knelt before Sakura, sewing up a few last modifications on
+her best friend’s wedding dress. The wedding was only a day away and
+Tomoyo wanted everything to be perfect for her dearest Sakura. She
+had tried her hardest to help Sakura and Syaoran get together. They
+really did make such a cute couple. And seeing Sakura about to get
+married gave Tomoyo something to latch onto, to pour all of her heart
+and soul into. Sakura had given her practically a free reign over the
+wedding to do with as she pleased. So the heiress was putting her all
+into making sure it was the best wedding ever. She wanted it to be
+something Sakura would never forget. It was supposed to be the
+happiest moment in Sakura’s life, so it had to be absolutely perfect.
+	Suppressing a yawn, Tomoyo went back to work on Sakura’s dress. She
+had barely gotten any sleep at all in the past week and a half. There
+was so much to do and she wanted to finish all of it in time for the
+wedding. Her life had been dedicated completely to the wedding, to
+the realization of her most cherished wish for Sakura to be happy.
+There would be no sleep that night either. She still had to make the
+wedding cake and finish the last few modifications on the wedding
+dress, which she was doing now. Sleep didn’t matter. Sakura’s wedding
+did. There would be plenty of time for sleep when Sakura was off on
+her honeymoon. And plenty of time for crying. But that was all for
+later. For now she had Sakura’s wedding to look forward to. In many
+ways, she had been hoping for it even more than Sakura. Because it
+had always been something she fantasized about, Sakura’s gorgeous
+wedding. So she had to strive to make that dream a reality.
+	“Tomoyo-chan, are you okay?” Sakura asked concernedly. “You don’t
+look so well. You look sick.” She held her hands together in front of
+her as she waited for Tomoyo to finish. She felt so nervous.
+	Smiling weakly, the young businesswoman shook her head. “I’m fine,
+Sakura-chan. I’ve just been very busy lately. It will be better after
+the wedding. Then I can watch my tape of Sakura-chan’s Happy Wedding
+over and over and over again.” Tomoyo sighed dreamily, returning to
+the task at hand.
+	“But.. Tomoyo-chan, aren’t you lonely?” Sakura asked curiously,
+looking down at the beautiful heiress kneeling before her.
+	“The best happiness is knowing that the one you love is happy. If
+they’re happy, that’s all that truly matters,” Tomoyo replied, not
+looking up. Of course she was lonely. But that was all right. Because
+Sakura wouldn’t be.
+	Sweatdropping, Sakura continued to stare down at her friend. “I
+must be selfish, then. Because I want to be happy, too.” She sighed,
+waiting patiently for her friend to finish. She was used to being
+Tomoyo’s model for dresses by now, but the fact that this wasn’t just
+some normal costume sent a fresh wave of butterflies through her
+stomach.
+	Tomoyo stopped her work, looking up at last. “You deserve to be
+happy, Sakura-chan. That’s not selfish at all. You want to be loved,
+to be happy. And that’s what I want for you, too.”
+	“I hope so.” Sakura sighed, her eyes closing for a moment as she
+tried to relax. Kneeling down, she looked over at Tomoyo. Reaching
+into midair, she summoned a small ring with her magic. Looking into
+Tomoyo’s eyes, she took another nervous breath. “Tomoyo-chan, will
+you marry me?” she asked, holding out the ring in her hands.
+	Tomoyo could only stare in shock for a frozen moment. This didn’t
+make sense. It didn’t compute for Tomoyo. Sakura plus Syaoran equals
+happiness. This wasn’t anything that she had planned. “But.. what
+about Syaoran?” she asked desperately, trying to make sense out of
+the situation. Her heart was thundering in her chest as she met
+Sakura’s gaze. Watching Sakura in her wedding dress, hearing her
+propose, she felt weak.
+	Sakura looks down before answering. “I called it off a few nights
+ago. He’s already back in Hong Kong. My heart just wasn’t in it. You
+wanted this wedding more than I did. That’s why I couldn’t tell you.
+I didn’t want to break your heart. I didn’t want this wedding dress
+you worked so hard on to go to waste.” She pulled at the dress in
+emphasis. “I couldn’t let you do all that for the wedding and then
+just call it off. But my heart didn’t belong to him. I didn’t love
+him. I’ve been feeling more and more lately like I was just going to
+marry him because everyone wanted me to. Like I didn’t have a choice
+in the matter, that it was all expected of me. And more and more...”
+she sighs, looking back up into Tomoyo’s eyes. “I’ve been missing
+you. You’ve always been there for me, Tomoyo-chan. But sometimes I
+forget that I need to be there for you, too. And I want to be there
+for you. Through everything. Because I love you. I finally realized
+that. You’re the one who always makes me happy. Not him. Not anyone
+else. You do. Making this dress for me, working on my wedding, you
+were trying to give me something beautiful. You were trying to make
+me happy. I love you, Tomoyo-chan. I want to have this wedding. With
+you. It’s just as much your wedding as it is mine. You spent so much
+time on it. You deserve a little happiness, too.”
+	“Sakura-chan...” Tomoyo was taken aback by the sudden turn of
+events. Sakura’s words had her heart melting. She swallowed back
+tears, holding her hands to her chest. Her eyes were lost in emerald
+pools. It wasn’t even a question. “Of course I’ll marry you, Sakura-
+chan!” Tomoyo watched as Sakura breathed a sigh of relief and giggled
+herself, the tension draining from her weary body. Sakura reached out
+and took her hand, sliding the small ring on her finger. Such a
+delicate act sent ripples through Tomoyo’s heart and soul. Sakura’s
+hand didn’t leave hers when it was done, instead settling on her
+palm. She gazed at Sakura adoringly.  This wedding had been all about
+Sakura’s happiness. It had been the goal she had striven for. And now
+Sakura was sharing that with her. “I’ll need to have someone use my
+camcorder to record it all,” she said thoughtfully.
+	“I’m sure we’ll always remember it, even if it’s not on tape,”
+Sakura reassured her eccentric fiance.
+	Tomoyo smiled at the other woman. “I made a promise a long time ago
+that I would. And years from now, we’ll sit together and watch it,
+those beautiful times we’ve spent together.”
+	Returning the smile, Sakura nodded. “Un! And we’ll always be making
+plenty of new memories together, too.” She leant forward, a little
+shyly. Tomoyo met her halfway, kissing her. Sakura relaxed into the
+kiss, her fingers entwining with Tomoyo. The wedding seemed far off,
+like a distant happening. This was what she really wanted. Her
+fingers gently brushed through Tomoyo’s beautiful hair, feeling the
+strands between her fingers. She could feel Tomoyo’s warm hand on her
+cheek. She sighed happily as she sat back.
+	Tomoyo watched Sakura, entranced. Her head was still swimming from
+their kiss. The wedding she longed for, the girl she loved, the
+happiness she didn’t think she could have had all managed to find
+their way onto her lap. It was almost too much to bear. Sakura hugged
+her tightly, the wedding dress clad woman snuggling against her.
+Tomoyo sighed deliciously, melting against the auburn haired girl.
+	“I’ll never let go, Tomoyo-chan, I promise,” Sakura whispered, her
+eyes closed. Her fingers trailed absentmindedly through Tomoyo’s
+silky hair. For the first time in months, she wasn’t worried about
+her wedding. Now she couldn’t wait. She didn’t know how she would
+explain the change of plans to everyone, but it didn’t seem to
+matter. Tomoyo would be there with her. She could do anything with
+Tomoyo by her side.
+	“That’s all I could ever wish for,” Tomoyo replied, resting her
+head on Sakura’s shoulder. There was still much to be done for the
+wedding. She still needed to finish Sakura’s dress. And she hadn’t
+even started on the cake. But all of that paled in comparison to
+Sakura herself. Tomoyo finally had her wish. Sakura was happy. And in
+a beautiful miracle, she got to be the one to make Sakura happy.
+There would be time for a big, noisy wedding soon. For now, she just
+wanted to be with Sakura. And Sakura felt the same. Sighing happily,
+Tomoyo nuzzled Sakura’s neck, her eyes falling shut. “I love you,”
+she whispered, her voice muffled in Sakura’s dress. She had finally
+found the magic. It was there. Everything really would be all right.
+Because Sakura brought out that magic. And she could believe that
+with Sakura. Because their happiness was intertwined, two beautiful
+red ribbons tied together into a bow. “So what do we name our baby?”
+Tomoyo asked curiously.
+	“Tomoyo-chan..” Sakura sweatdropped. “Don’t you think you’re
+looking a little too far forward?”
+	“I’ve been planning Sakura-chan’s wedding since I was ten years
+old. I like to have everything nice and worked out so that it can go
+smoothly,” Tomoyo explains. “And you’ve already granted one of my
+wishes. And wishes usually come in threes. My next was to see Sakura-
+chan with a beautiful baby.”
+	Sakura giggled softly, nodding. “Hai, I’ll see what I can do about
+that one. But later. And what’s your third wish? It has something to
+do with ribbons, right?”
+	Tomoyo blinked. “How did you guess?”
+	Sakura blushed, holding closer to Tomoyo. “I should have known. I
+think I can make that one come true on the honeymoon.”
+	“See? It’s fun to plan things ahead. And I think Sakura-chan’s
+getting good at it.” The pale girl giggled, resting against Sakura.
+Their hearts beat in tandem. And the two held each other, listening
+to their very own melody.

Mercurial > moonlitnights

comparison stories/nervousdepression.txt @ 0:ed1308d04df2 moonlitnights