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     1.4 +Dreams Part 2
     1.5 +
     1.6 +	Megumi shivered as the cold night wind lightly blew against her and
     1.7 +Kumiko. “I can’t believe we’re doing this, Kumi-chan. It’s late, it’s
     1.8 +cold, and I’m tired. My parents are going to expect to see me in bed
     1.9 +in..”, as she looked at her wrist, Megumi remembered that she
    1.10 +actually didn’t wear a watch. She could hear Kumiko giggle slightly
    1.11 +as if she knew that would happen. “Well, I need to be there in a few
    1.12 +hours.” Not like they’d actually be home, but she wasn’t feeling very
    1.13 +well and that pain in her chest was getting stronger again. It was a
    1.14 +good enough excuse at any rate. At least, she hoped it was.
    1.15 +	Kumiko sighed. “I know. I really don’t want to be here either, but
    1.16 +I just have to learn something about those people in the tape.
    1.17 +Remember, in the tape? That Sakura girl said that she always was
    1.18 +recording her. So, if there was a tape in the camera, maybe there was
    1.19 +another tape? Maybe there are a lot of other tapes. Maybe that could
    1.20 +explain why I felt so..” she shook a bit, not wanting to think about
    1.21 +it. “Maybe that could explain why I felt so attached to those girls
    1.22 +in the video. That wasn’t just some normal deja vu. That was
    1.23 +something.. special. What do you think, Megumi-chan?”
    1.24 +	“Hmm?” Megumi looked up from the lamp she was toying with. “Well, I
    1.25 +think that we shouldn’t be digging through some rich person’s trash
    1.26 +can. That’s what I think.”
    1.27 +	Kumiko stuck her tongue out at her. “Oh sure. I’m having lots of
    1.28 +fun digging through the trash. Luckily, they’ve only seem to have
    1.29 +thrown away most of the yard sale stuff so far. Seriously, what do
    1.30 +you think? About the tape?”
    1.31 +	“I.. I don’t know. I feel so many things about the tape. I feel the
    1.32 +pain from falling, I feel the happiness from being with her, and so
    1.33 +much more. It seems so sad when I think about it, though. Like
    1.34 +something tragic happened to those people. Even though I don’t know
    1.35 +them, and don’t even know what happened, it hurts. Like I lost
    1.36 +something dear to me, but found it again. Like if you moved away and
    1.37 +then came back, I guess.” Megumi ran her arm under across her eyes
    1.38 +and was surprised to find that her eyes were wet.
    1.39 +	Kumiko looked concerned and pulled her into a tight embrace. “It’s
    1.40 +okay, Megumi. I feel pretty much the same way.  It’s really confusing
    1.41 +to feel that way about someone you don’t know. I wish I had the
    1.42 +answers, but I don’t. So, I’m looking for them. Do you think we’ll
    1.43 +find anything? If we do, should we even look at it? With how one tape
    1.44 +was, I couldn’t  imagine how a collection of them would be.” Kumiko
    1.45 +slowly pulled away from Megumi. With a deep dramatic sigh, she threw
    1.46 +her arms down in defeat. “Well, I give up. I’m not going to find
    1.47 +anything digging around in the trash in the dark.” Kumiko started
    1.48 +forward, but tripped and fell into Megumi’s arms, knocking them both
    1.49 +off balance and sending them into the cold hard ground.
    1.50 +	Both girls just looked into each other’s eyes, curious if the other
    1.51 +was thinking the same thing they were. Kumiko opened her mouth in an
    1.52 +attempt to say something, but stopped herself. After a few seemingly
    1.53 +everlasting moments of silence, Megumi spoke up. “Are you okay Kumi?
    1.54 +Aww.. you scraped your knee. Should I kiss it and make it better?”
    1.55 +Kumiko blushed and nodded weakly. Megumi ever-so-slowly leaned
    1.56 +forward and kissed the slightly injured knee. “There. All better? I
    1.57 +really can’t stand to see you hurt, you know, Kumi-chan.” Megumi
    1.58 +smiled proudly at the dark blush on Kumiko’s face. Quickly, she stood
    1.59 +up and offered out her hand. Kumiko grasped her hand and squeezed
    1.60 +reassuringly and let Megumi help her to her feet.
    1.61 +	“I’ll come over to your house early tomorrow, okay, Kumi? Do you
    1.62 +think the library will be open on the weekend?” Megumi asked
    1.63 +curiously. She regretted saying the words shortly after they were out
    1.64 +of her mouth. She -really- wasn’t feeling good. She needed to get
    1.65 +home soon. And she really didn’t know if she’d be up to checking out
    1.66 +a library the next day. The blonde was thankful for the darkness in
    1.67 +masking her increasingly pale features. 
    1.68 +	Kumiko nodded thoughtfully, brushing back a lock of brown hair
    1.69 +behind an ear. “Yeah, it should be. We’ll head there in the morning
    1.70 +and see what we can find. There has to be something on the girls in
    1.71 +that video. Or at least I hope so.” Sighing, the teenager yawned
    1.72 +exaggeratedly. “For now I’m gonna get some sleep. Do you think you
    1.73 +could stay for a bit? I need to sneak back in anyway. Mom and dad
    1.74 +still think I’m sleeping.” She smiled over at the blonde girl
    1.75 +hopefully. “I always sleep better after I talk to you.”
    1.76 +	Megumi returned the smile weakly and shook her head. “I’d love to,
    1.77 +Kumi, but I’m not sure how appreciative your mother would be of me
    1.78 +teaching her daughter all sorts of strange things this late at night.
    1.79 +And I already know she likes me, so I can’t jeopardize that.” A laugh
    1.80 +accompanied the hug she gave Kumiko. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Kumi-
    1.81 +chan. You have beautiful dreams in the meantime. I know you’ll be in
    1.82 +mine.”
    1.83 +	The wind picked up slightly, blowing Kumiko’s hair around as she
    1.84 +returned the hug. “Okay. Maybe some other time then. I’ll be thinking
    1.85 +about you, Megumi-chan. Sleep we...” Before she could finish that
    1.86 +thought, Megumi’s lips pressed tightly against her own. Her cheeks
    1.87 +darkened as her eyes fell closed and she kissed back. 
    1.88 +	“Goodnight, Kumi.” And with that, Megumi was off.
    1.89 +
    1.90 +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    1.91 +
    1.92 +	Wet tears spilt down Megumi’s cheek to the bathroom tile beneath
    1.93 +her. The tile was cold against the bare skin of her legs peeking out
    1.94 +beneath her jumbled nightgown, but she’d long since given up on
    1.95 +caring about such trivial discomforts. Her whole body was screaming
    1.96 +at her, fire burning maliciously at all of her senses. Even taking
    1.97 +her medicine hadn’t helped in the least. She should be in bed, but
    1.98 +she couldn’t make it the short distance back to her bedroom. So she
    1.99 +knelt on the floor in the bathroom, her head leaning against the
   1.100 +cabinets under the sink. Her skin was deathly pale, nearly as white
   1.101 +as the tiles underneath her.
   1.102 +	“Daddy... Mommy... Somebody... please...” Her voice barely reached
   1.103 +her own ears, seeming no more than a whisper. More cold tears fell
   1.104 +down her face. Her parents weren’t there. Again. They were always
   1.105 +working these days. To get away from her. No, that wasn’t true. That
   1.106 +couldn’t be. They were both working to afford all of the medicine and
   1.107 +the treatments and the doctors. Megumi shuddered violently at the
   1.108 +memories. It always hurt so much. And the doctors had been pretty
   1.109 +grim whenever they talked to her parents. She didn’t need to be a lip
   1.110 +reader to know that she was dying. A cold hand was gripping her soul,
   1.111 +frightening the poor girl even more. She didn’t want to die. She
   1.112 +didn’t want to leave Kumiko. Kumiko... Of course she hadn’t told the
   1.113 +other girl about any of this. It would only make her worry. And
   1.114 +Megumi had long ago found out that there was nothing that she could
   1.115 +do about it. So why worry Kumiko when it was so much nicer to see her
   1.116 +smiling, happy face? 
   1.117 +	A sudden fit of coughing shook the blonde girl’s small body as she
   1.118 +reached up to her trembling lips. When she pulled them away, they
   1.119 +were wet with fresh blood. The sight sent her into more tears. She
   1.120 +was so scared but there was no one who would come comfort her. If
   1.121 +Kumiko found out, she would be right over, but then she’d worry
   1.122 +herself to death. Her parents were nowhere to be seen, so she was all
   1.123 +on her own. Be a big girl, her mother had told her, several years
   1.124 +before. Be a big girl and you’ll make it through this. Megumi didn’t
   1.125 +want to be a big girl. It hurt too much. 
   1.126 +
   1.127 +	Kumiko yawned tiredly, rubbing the sleep from her violet eyes. Her
   1.128 +long, dark brown hair was done up in braids today. Sleep had not been
   1.129 +easy in coming to her the night before. Her mind kept going back to
   1.130 +the girls on the tape and why it had seemed so familiar. Had
   1.131 +something similar happened with her and Megumi, explaining the shared
   1.132 +sense of deja vu? Or was there something deeper behind all of it? “I
   1.133 +really hope we can find something here. And soon. I’m hungry. I
   1.134 +didn’t get any breakfast before we left.” Megumi winced at the
   1.135 +mention of food. The blonde girl really didn’t look very good this
   1.136 +morning. Her skin was paper white and her lips were drawn tight. The
   1.137 +sunglasses she wore looked cute on her and they hid her bloodshot
   1.138 +aquamarine eyes well, but Kumiko could see them occasionally as the
   1.139 +sunglasses almost slipped off. She sighed as they entered the
   1.140 +library. Megumi looked like she was getting sick, but she looked like
   1.141 +that so often these days. Her lover would always deny that anything
   1.142 +was wrong besides a slight cold when Kumiko would ask her about it. 
   1.143 +	Megumi shivered in the air conditioned building, rubbing her arms
   1.144 +as she tried to keep warm. “It’s freezing in here. Let’s just try to
   1.145 +get the information and get out of here. Mom wants me home early
   1.146 +today so I can’t be out long.” It always pained her to lie to Kumiko,
   1.147 +but she really didn’t feel like being out of bed at all today. She
   1.148 +kind of doubted her mother would be home at any rate.
   1.149 +	“Well, if you’re tired, you can always take a nap at my place when
   1.150 +we’re done with all this, Megumi-chan.” Kumiko smiled brightly as she
   1.151 +took her best friend’s cold hand.  A sigh escaped her lips as she
   1.152 +looked for a good place to begin their search. “Something tells me I
   1.153 +should have just tried to look up all this stuff on my computer
   1.154 +anyway.  At least then I could go make some lunch.” Another uneasy
   1.155 +look on Megumi’s face told her to drop the subject of eating. But she
   1.156 +was sooooo hungry. “Here we go.” Finding a free terminal, she began
   1.157 +searching for relevant information.
   1.158 +	Pulling up a chair, Megumi relished the feeling of being off her
   1.159 +feet. The entire way there, she had felt ready to collapse. Her body
   1.160 +was still aching from the night before, but she couldn’t let it show
   1.161 +through. She didn’t want Kumiko to start worrying about  this,
   1.162 +especially when her heart was so set on finding out who the people on
   1.163 +the videotape were. The sick girl wasn’t really sure she wanted to
   1.164 +know, herself. It was all just too freaky. Who cared who some people
   1.165 +on an old, dated video were? All she needed was Kumiko. As long as
   1.166 +she had the other girl nearby, everything would always be all right.
   1.167 +“Find anything?” she asked after realizing she had nodded off for a
   1.168 +bit. She tried to suppress a yawn, but to no avail.
   1.169 +	Giggling at her friend, the brown haired girl nodded. “Yeah, I
   1.170 +think so. Apparently the mansion had been owned by the Daidouji
   1.171 +family previously.”
   1.172 +	Megumi gasped. “Daidouji? The Daidouji Company kind of Daidouji”
   1.173 +	Nodding again, Kumiko grew more serious. “Yeah, it looks like the
   1.174 +place belonged to the Daidouji family for quite a while, but recently
   1.175 +it had been sold by Daidouji Maya, the current head of the company.
   1.176 +She went there to move out some of the things that were important,
   1.177 +but it looks like some of it got left behind and the new occupants
   1.178 +are getting rid of it.”
   1.179 +	“So does that mean that one of the girls on the videotape was from
   1.180 +that family line? Is there any information on them? Maybe we could
   1.181 +find some pictures.” Megumi’s heart was pounding in her chest. Part
   1.182 +of her wanted to reach over and turn off the power on the computer,
   1.183 +to tell Kumiko it didn’t matter who was on some stupid videotape and
   1.184 +that she was the only one that mattered to her, but she was
   1.185 +paralyzed. She didn’t want to know. She was too afraid to find out.
   1.186 +But she couldn’t get herself to keep from hearing more.
   1.187 +	“Yeah, that’s what I’m checking right now. They’re a pretty
   1.188 +powerful family, so there should be a fair amount about them. I think
   1.189 +one of them is in our class. That Sumire girl? The one with the
   1.190 +glasses and the scary looking dark haired girl that’s always
   1.191 +following her?” Glancing back at Megumi, she saw the blonde nod in
   1.192 +response.  “Come to think of it, she does look a bit like the girls
   1.193 +in the video. Though I can’t tell which she looks more like, so I
   1.194 +don’t know who she’s related to. And I don’t know how she could
   1.195 +possibly be related to both.” Oddly enough, the idea sounded right.
   1.196 +She shook her head and kept looking at the screen. “Here it is.” A
   1.197 +list was on the screen, showing the family line back for quite some
   1.198 +time. “Yep, there’s Sumire. It looks like the first Daidouji on
   1.199 +record is Daidouji Sonomi and she founded the company. She had a
   1.200 +daughter, Daidouji Tomoyo. Apparently she had a daughter named Bara.
   1.201 +And she had a daughter named Maya, the current head of the Daidouji
   1.202 +Company. And she has a daughter named Sumire. Yeah, she’s in our
   1.203 +class. There’s her picture.” Kumiko pointed at the picture of a
   1.204 +frustrated looking girl in big glasses with dark hair done up in
   1.205 +pigtails. 
   1.206 +	Megumi nodded slowly, not sure if she could take much more of this.
   1.207 +The anticipation was maddening. The sunglasses had slipped off her
   1.208 +nose, but she hardly noticed. “Can you find any other pictures? What
   1.209 +about the rest of them?”
   1.210 +	Typing in another command, Kumiko looked back up at the screen.
   1.211 +Pictures began appearing by the names, as well as links for more
   1.212 +information on each member of the family. First a determined looking
   1.213 +businesswoman with a slant style hair cut and then a beautiful pale
   1.214 +woman with long dark hair that ended in curls with the same stormy
   1.215 +blue eyes as her mother. The braided girl stopped there. “That’s
   1.216 +her!! That’s the one from the videotape!” Her violet eyes went wide
   1.217 +in shock as she stared at the screen. She was much older in the
   1.218 +picture, a full grown woman as opposed to the teenager in the video,
   1.219 +but it was obviously the same person. 
   1.220 +	Feeling sick to her stomach, Megumi heard her ask a question she
   1.221 +was dreading. “Does it have any information on her? Or who that
   1.222 +brunette might have been?”
   1.223 +	“Let me see...” Biting her lower lip, Kumiko continued looking
   1.224 +through the information. A summary of the woman’s entire life up on
   1.225 +the next page was briefly skimmed through as her whole body
   1.226 +threatened to shake. Being so close to all of this was exciting. She
   1.227 +knew that what she was looking for was near, an answer to the
   1.228 +question posed by the videotape. “Kinomoto Sakura! Right here. It
   1.229 +says that she got married to Daidouji Tomoyo. Wait, that can’t be
   1.230 +right. Yeah, it says that they got married and had a daughter. That’s
   1.231 +bizarre. But here she is.” The slightly shorter girl moved to the
   1.232 +side to give her lover a better look. On screen was a woman with
   1.233 +fairly short brunette hair and a happy smile, looking out with
   1.234 +emerald green eyes. It had to be the other girl from the videotape. 
   1.235 +	“How’d they die?” Megumi blurted out. “Maybe it was really tragic
   1.236 +and they possessed the videotape or something. I thought they
   1.237 +wouldn’t have lasted much longer past the videotape if it seemed so
   1.238 +important.”
   1.239 +	Skimming the information, Kumiko shook her head. “It looks like
   1.240 +they lived long, happy lives by all accounts. Daidouji Sakura... Oh,
   1.241 +she must’ve changed her name when they got married. Anyway, she fell
   1.242 +down the stairs when she was a grandmother. Daidouji Tomoyo died a
   1.243 +few days later of no explained cause. Her daughter seems to have
   1.244 +thought it was heartache over the loss of Sakura.”
   1.245 +	Megumi shook her head, running hands through her curly blonde hair.
   1.246 +“None of this makes any sense. We know who these people are now, but
   1.247 +that still doesn’t explain anything. Why do we know them at all?
   1.248 +Maybe it was the camera angle. Maybe we just got so caught up in
   1.249 +watching the old thing that we started thinking there was more to
   1.250 +it.” She was shaking now, afraid. This was all too strange for her.
   1.251 +	Kumiko took Megumi’s soft hand, trying to comfort her. “Megumi...
   1.252 +There has to be something to all of this. I know there is. It’s just
   1.253 +too much to be a coincidence.”
   1.254 +	“How do you know, Kumi? Maybe that’s all it is...” Megumi’s voice
   1.255 +was unsteady and she couldn’t meet the braided girl’s gaze. She
   1.256 +squeezed Kumiko’s hand. 
   1.257 +	“Then why do I know things about them that I shouldn’t? Things that
   1.258 +video couldn’t have told me. That they came up with the baby’s name
   1.259 +while strolling through a rose garden. That Tomoyo loved to sing to
   1.260 +Sakura. That Sakura liked to cook for Tomoyo even though they had
   1.261 +people who could do that for them. That the world looked all tumbly
   1.262 +when she fell down the stairs.” Kumiko shuddered at the unbidden
   1.263 +images in her mind. It all looked so real. Like she was reliving old
   1.264 +memories. Even slipping down the stairs...
   1.265 +	“Stop it!!” Megumi stood up suddenly, tears starting to form in her
   1.266 +eyes. “Just stop it, Kumi! You’re scaring me...” Her voice went from
   1.267 +a scream to a barely audible whisper in seconds. Shaking hands wiped
   1.268 +at her eyes as she took a few weak steps back. Kumiko reached for her
   1.269 +seconds before she collapsed. 
   1.270 +
   1.271 +	
   1.272 +	“Why didn’t you tell me you were sick?” Kumiko demanded of the
   1.273 +prone girl in her room.
   1.274 +	“I didn’t remember..?” Megumi ventured after a moment’s hesitation,
   1.275 +trying to smile in an attempt to lighten the mood.
   1.276 +	“Hmph...” Turning away from her, the slightly shorter girl crossed
   1.277 +her arms. Megumi could tell that she was fuming.
   1.278 +	“How did you find out?” the blonde asked quietly, almost ashamed.
   1.279 +	“Your mother told me when I called and told her that you had
   1.280 +collapsed at the library. I thought you’d just fainted from too much
   1.281 +shock. But she said you’ve been sick off and on for the past three
   1.282 +years. And that you’re getting worse.”
   1.283 +	“That’s technically inaccurate. I’ve been sick since I was a little
   1.284 +girl. It’s just been getting progressively worse for the past three
   1.285 +years.” Megumi tried another smile, but it seemed to have no affect
   1.286 +on Kumiko’s back. Sighing, she shook her head. She felt defeated. “I
   1.287 +didn’t want to tell you because I didn’t want you to worry about all
   1.288 +this. I know how hard it is to know that you’re dying and that no one
   1.289 +can help. I know how bad that feeling of helplessness is. And I would
   1.290 +never want you to have to experience it. It makes you feel all sick
   1.291 +and twisted up inside. Besides, your smiles have always been the best
   1.292 +therapy for me. I don’t want them to be tainted with worry whenever
   1.293 +you look at me.” Closing her eyes, the wind from the fan rustled the
   1.294 +blankets over her. “It’s not like I could have hid it from you much
   1.295 +longer anyway. It’s starting to get to the point where I can barely
   1.296 +hide the pain sometimes. You would have found out sooner or later.”
   1.297 +	“But you’re supposed to tell me everything! I’m your girlfriend! I
   1.298 +love you! I can’t...” The anger in Kumiko’s voice drained away as she
   1.299 +released a choked sob. “I don’t want to lose you... I... I need
   1.300 +you... Megumi...” She collapsed to her knees, burying her face
   1.301 +against Megumi’s side as she clung to her raggedly. “I love you... I
   1.302 +love you too much to let you go..”
   1.303 +	Megumi couldn’t hold back her own tears as she gently stroked
   1.304 +Kumiko’s back. “Kumi...” she whispered softly. This was exactly what
   1.305 +she’d feared would happen if Kumiko found out, but she found herself
   1.306 +oddly relieved to know that her love finally knew of her personal
   1.307 +pain. It felt so much freer. Like it was finally all right to cry. To
   1.308 +stop being a big girl.  
   1.309 +
   1.310 +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   1.311 +
   1.312 +	Sitting in the tree adjacent to the window, a woman watched the two
   1.313 +girls in silence. She had been there for some time, but no one seemed
   1.314 +to notice her presence. Her eyes sparkled from behind her glasses as
   1.315 +she continued her silent vigil. She had a keen interest in the
   1.316 +futures of the two girls inside the small room. But revealing herself
   1.317 +would be troublesome. They weren’t supposed to know about her.
   1.318 +Especially not yet. 
   1.319 +	Lavender eyes fell upon the sleeping form of Megumi. “Tomoyo-
   1.320 +chan...” the mysterious girl whispered softly. She had this all
   1.321 +planned out, but now it was almost impossible to continue on. Her
   1.322 +heart ached too much to continue on this way. But it was because of
   1.323 +her that this was happening. Well, most of it. She had never planned
   1.324 +on Megumi getting sick. Or the girls finding out about their pasts.
   1.325 +They were supposed to be oblivious to what was really going on. That
   1.326 +was their single goal in life that she had set out for them. To eke
   1.327 +out lives for themselves, together. They weren’t supposed to get
   1.328 +involved. But seeing her lying there, being held by the brunette was
   1.329 +almost too much for her. How she longed to go inside there and take
   1.330 +Kumiko’s place. She had been so sure of her plans when she’d set
   1.331 +everything in motion years before. But now after all that she had
   1.332 +endured, she was having second thoughts. It wasn’t fair that she was
   1.333 +supposed to be alone. That she was only here for a very specific
   1.334 +purpose. And the most painful part of it all was that she had brought
   1.335 +it all upon herself. 
   1.336 +	“Tomoyo-chan... I miss you.” Long fingers wiped at the tears
   1.337 +building in her eyes behind the glasses. It was a bad idea to come
   1.338 +back. She should have known she wouldn’t be able to handle it. Why
   1.339 +had she come after all? Because she had to see her again. But
   1.340 +watching her in the arms of the other girl, dying, was just too much
   1.341 +to bear. A mournful sigh escaped her lips. This was stupid. She never
   1.342 +should have come. Standing on the branch she had been sitting on,
   1.343 +long wings unfurled from her back. “Sleep well, Tomoyo. I’m sorry for
   1.344 +hurting you.” Blowing a kiss through the window, she got ready to
   1.345 +push off when Kumiko turned around. Her heart skipped a beat. No, she
   1.346 +hadn’t noticed her. Her magic was still shrouding her. There was
   1.347 +nothing to worry about. Then their eyes locked.
   1.348 +	
   1.349 +	Kumiko stared wide eyed at the red haired angel floating outside
   1.350 +the window. An uneasy feeling had been building in her chest for the
   1.351 +past few minutes and it had just reached a deafening crescendo. Her
   1.352 +instincts had finally taken over at the feeling of being watched. But
   1.353 +she certainly hadn’t been expecting that. Kumiko had led a rather
   1.354 +normal life for the short time she had been alive. Nothing stranger
   1.355 +than a slightly eccentric girlfriend. But now there were videotapes
   1.356 +of long dead girls and deja vu from some past life and strange
   1.357 +feelings she couldn’t pinpoint. And now this. Her heart seized up at
   1.358 +the sight, as if her mind wanted to deny the very existence of this
   1.359 +girl. ‘No, she’s not there! Ignore her! Pretend that you’ve never
   1.360 +seen her and everything will go back to normal,’ her mind screamed to
   1.361 +her. And part of her knew that it was true. Everything could be the
   1.362 +way it used to be. All of this craziness could be forgotten. But as
   1.363 +she watched the girl outside her window, she found herself being
   1.364 +drawn closer. The angel knew. She knew all about what was going on.
   1.365 +And Kumiko needed answers. She bolted to the window. 
   1.366 +	The angel could easily have flown away by now, but she stayed where
   1.367 +she was, perched atop the branch and peering in. Her eyes followed
   1.368 +Kumiko’s every movement. The large, white wings moved ever so
   1.369 +slightly behind her as she shifted her balance. “You weren’t supposed
   1.370 +to see me, Kumiko. You weren’t supposed to see any of this. I should
   1.371 +make you forget about all of it.” Her voice was calm, even. Her eyes
   1.372 +narrowed through the glasses, giving her a slightly menacing look. 
   1.373 +	The whole thing sent a shiver through Kumiko. She knew that the
   1.374 +angel in the tree could very well back up her claim. “Who are you?
   1.375 +What’s going on? Why is all of this happening?” she asked, heedless
   1.376 +of whatever danger she was putting herself in. It didn’t matter. She
   1.377 +couldn’t sit back while all of this washed over her. The only girl
   1.378 +she had ever loved lay dying in her bed and she was still so confused
   1.379 +about everything. And the firey haired angel was the key to it all. 
   1.380 +	The angel looked back at Kumiko through her glasses, lavender eyes
   1.381 +meeting violet in an intense stare that neither was willing to back
   1.382 +down from. The angel finally sighed, shifting to the side as her
   1.383 +wings stretched out behind her. “Kumiko-chan, you really aren’t ready
   1.384 +for any of this. Just go back inside and hold onto Megumi tightly.
   1.385 +Love her. Hold her. Comfort her. That is why you exist.” 
   1.386 +	“So I can watch her die?!” Kumiko shouted, rage burning in her
   1.387 +heart. Her hands shook as tears threatened to spill down her cheeks.
   1.388 +Her violet eyes were ablaze with the pain and anger that clung to her
   1.389 +heart like needles. “I exist so that I can watch my only love slip
   1.390 +away from me?! So that I can be there for her while she dies so
   1.391 +young?” Hot tears fell past her chin as she shook her head intensely.
   1.392 +“No!! That’s not it!! That’s not how things are supposed to work!”
   1.393 +	The angel’s beautiful face turned cross as she flew up next to the
   1.394 +window in one long, graceful movement. The wings beat slowly,
   1.395 +luxioriously as she remained aloft in front of the startled brunette.
   1.396 +“Will you please be quiet? You’re going to worry Tomoyo-chan. She
   1.397 +needs her sleep right now.“ Closing her eyes, she chanted something
   1.398 +under her breath before motioning with her hand. 
   1.399 +	Kumiko watched in shock as a gentle blue wave surrounded Megumi
   1.400 +before fading away. “What the hell did you do to Megumi-chan!?!” she
   1.401 +demanded furiously. She reached out and grabbed hold of the angel’s
   1.402 +blouse, holding on tightly.  “You leave her alone!!”
   1.403 +	The angel just watched Kumiko for a silent moment, her lavender
   1.404 +eyes betraying a deep loneliness in her heart. “I was simply putting
   1.405 +her to sleep. She’s in enough pain as it is. Now she’s dreaming, far
   1.406 +away from the pain. She doesn’t need you waking her up and
   1.407 +frightening her about all of this. All she wants is to be with you.
   1.408 +Don’t you understand? That’s all she ever wanted. And that‘s what I
   1.409 +gave her.”
   1.410 +	Kumiko’s hands fell uselessly to her sides as she took a half step
   1.411 +backwards. “You... You planned all of this... You know what’s going
   1.412 +on, don’t you..? So, you know all about the videotape and the
   1.413 +memories and everything... Right?” The angel nodded slowly,
   1.414 +thoughtfully. “Then... Then you have to tell me! I need to know
   1.415 +what’s happening!! I have to!” She asked anxiously, her eyes welling
   1.416 +up as she collapsed against the window sill, barely supporting her
   1.417 +weight on her hands. “Please...?” she asked pathetically, her eyes
   1.418 +begging the silent angel. “You have to...”
   1.419 +	Closing her lavender eyes, the angel sighed, shaking her head. “It
   1.420 +wasn’t supposed to be this way. You weren’t meant to find out. You
   1.421 +were simply supposed to live your lives, to be happy.” Her eyes
   1.422 +fluttered open, looking directly into Kumiko’s soul. She could see
   1.423 +every nuance of the girl before her, everything that made her what
   1.424 +she was. In a way, it was like looking into a mirror. Of course, her
   1.425 +life had changed certain things, forcing her to grow up very
   1.426 +differently than the girl before her.
   1.427 +	Kumiko waited nervously through the scrutiny she was receiving from
   1.428 +the angel. It was with some surprise that she realized the angel was
   1.429 +younger than her. She looked no more than fourteen years old. But
   1.430 +even then, it still frightened her to see those piercing lavender
   1.431 +eyes focused so intently on herself. “You said... You said that it’s
   1.432 +why I exist... What do you mean?” she ventured, hoping that  her
   1.433 +pleas wouldn’t go unheard this time.
   1.434 +	Sighing, the angel pushed up her glasses, her red hair moving
   1.435 +slowly as the wind caressed it. In the blink of an eye, she
   1.436 +disappeared, Sakura blossoms floating gently to the grass below.
   1.437 +	“No! No! Come back!! Please come back!!! There’s so much I need to
   1.438 +know!” Verging on panic, Kumiko leaned out the window and called
   1.439 +again and again for the firey haired angel. A tap on her back
   1.440 +startled her, almost to the point of falling out the window. Her
   1.441 +heart pounded in her chest in shock as she finally turned around. The
   1.442 +angel stood before her without a trace of her beautiful wings. Kumiko
   1.443 +blushed in embarrassment, staring at the floor. “I thought that you’d
   1.444 +left...” she admitted sheepishly. 
   1.445 +	To the brunette’s amazement, the angel smiled softly. “Don’t worry.
   1.446 +I probably would have done the same. Which is why I know that I can’t
   1.447 +leave. You can’t hide from the truth, even if it is safer that way.
   1.448 +You would continue relentlessly pursuing it until it finally consumed
   1.449 +you.”
   1.450 +	“You make that sound like a bad thing to be a little determined now
   1.451 +and then,” Kumiko said, frowning as she crossed her arms. This girl
   1.452 +knew all the right buttons to push.
   1.453 +	“It can be. Especially when others are trying to protect you from
   1.454 +the truth. You don’t understand how brutal it can be.” The angel
   1.455 +looked over at the blonde asleep in the bed. “But you’re beginning to
   1.456 +get a taste.” Her glasses glinted in the sunlight as she turned
   1.457 +around. “My name is Meishi. I am the reincarnation of the sorceress
   1.458 +Sakura Daidouji.” She smiled again, gesturing to the mirror. 
   1.459 +	Kumiko’s eyes traveled quickly to it. Rather than the firey haired
   1.460 +angel, the girl Kumiko had seen on the computer earlier that day took
   1.461 +her place. She looked to be about the same fourteen years as the
   1.462 +angel. Confusion gripped her heart as she tried to make sense out of
   1.463 +what was going on. “But I thought... I thought that I was Sakura,”
   1.464 +she said quietly, her voice no more than a ghost. Wasn’t that what
   1.465 +her memories were telling her? What she had seen in the video? Wasn’t
   1.466 +she that girl?
   1.467 +	“You are a dream. Born from my love for the girl that you know as
   1.468 +Megumi. You are here to love her always, to be with her throughout
   1.469 +all her life. That is your lot in life. And I would give anything to
   1.470 +trade places with you.” Her small body shuddered almost imperceptibly
   1.471 +as she closed her eyes. When they opened, her lavender eyes shimmered
   1.472 +with unshed tears. Kumiko couldn‘t utter a word in response. A dream?
   1.473 +She was only a dream? Some sort of puppet? “I knew that one day I
   1.474 +would have to set things in motion, that I would need to return to
   1.475 +finish what started with the Cards. But I also knew how difficult
   1.476 +that would be. I knew that I couldn’t leave Tomoyo behind. She means
   1.477 +everything to me. But I didn’t want to get her caught up in what I
   1.478 +needed to do. Too often she was nearly hurt because of my
   1.479 +carelessness. Her heart suffered the worst because of me. I wasn’t
   1.480 +going to let that happen again.” She took the brunette’s hands and
   1.481 +pulled her gently closer until they were both in front of the mirror.
   1.482 +To Kumiko’s surprise, neither were present in the mirror. There were
   1.483 +instead two Sakura’s standing there, in the same positions that she
   1.484 +was in with Meishi. “So I created you to take care of her, to love
   1.485 +her, to be with her while I handled the magical side of things. It’s
   1.486 +something that I’ve come to regret now.” Her eyes once again settled
   1.487 +on the peacefully sleeping form of the blonde girl. “I never expected
   1.488 +her to get sick. I didn’t think she would die like this.”
   1.489 +	As if snapping out of a trance, Kumiko took a step forward. She
   1.490 +couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “So even though she’s your
   1.491 +Tomoyo, you’re still going to let her die? With all the magic at your
   1.492 +command, your not even going to try and save her life?” All the fear
   1.493 +and worry that had entered her heart at the mention that she was
   1.494 +created of a dream for Sakura’s purposes dissipated in an instant as
   1.495 +fury returned. “How could you say you love her if you aren’t willing
   1.496 +to do anything for her? How could you stick her with a dream and then
   1.497 +leave her to die?” Her voice was frantic, pained, but she forced out
   1.498 +the words.
   1.499 +	Meishi slumped to her knees at Megumi’s bedside, holding her pale
   1.500 +hand tightly. Kumiko’s brazen words had cut her deeper than any knife
   1.501 +could. “You don’t understand. I’m the one who brought her back. My
   1.502 +magic is too strong. I can’t die. Not completely. But Tomoyo-chan...
   1.503 +She can die. She did die. So I brought her back. I reincarnated her.
   1.504 +Because I got scared. I couldn’t bear to be without her. She’s always
   1.505 +been there for me. Without her love and support, I’m nothing. I
   1.506 +couldn’t go on if she wasn’t there. So when I died and was
   1.507 +reincarnated, I brought her with me. I didn’t let her move on. I took
   1.508 +her with me. It was selfish. I came back in two bodies. This one,”
   1.509 +her free hand indicated herself before motioning towards Kumiko. “And
   1.510 +that one. You were supposed to find Tomoyo-chan’s soul in whichever
   1.511 +body it wound up in so that we could be together once more. I was
   1.512 +supposed to put everything in order with the Cards. But Tomoyo... She
   1.513 +came back in this body, but now it’s dying. I have to wonder if it’s
   1.514 +my fault. If she wasn’t meant to come back like this. I used my magic
   1.515 +to bind her here, to bring her back to life. She wasn’t allowed to
   1.516 +move on. Because I couldn’t go on without Tomoyo-chan...” Tears fell
   1.517 +down from under her glasses as she watched the sleeping girl
   1.518 +intently. “So now she’s hurting because of me. Now she’s dying all
   1.519 +over again because of my selfishness. So I can’t try and make her
   1.520 +better. Part of me wonders if I should let her live in such pain.”
   1.521 +	“No!!” Kumiko shouted, reaching Megumi’s side in seconds. “I won’t
   1.522 +let you take her away form me! I know she’s in pain, but I...” Her
   1.523 +voice trailed off as it hit her. She was saying the exact same thing.
   1.524 +“I... need her...” she whispered, her eyes still wide. “I’m... I’m
   1.525 +doing the same thing... I’m hurting her, too...”
   1.526 +	“Because we’re the same,” the red haired girl finished.  “You can’t
   1.527 +live without her anymore than I could. The thought of going on
   1.528 +without Tomoyo-chan by your side doesn’t make any sense. It’s like a
   1.529 +world without love or without air. It would be completely desolate.
   1.530 +Her heart warms you up that way, brightening everything in your life
   1.531 +to the point that you take her wonderful light for granted, not
   1.532 +seeing just how wonderful she makes it. Her love and support keep you
   1.533 +going when you would rather give up in defeat. It’s just the way she
   1.534 +is. Just as it’s the way we are to need her.” She sighed, looking
   1.535 +infinitely older than the young girl that rested against the side of
   1.536 +the bed. “If I end her pain, I would send you along with her.” She
   1.537 +shook her head quickly at the look Kumiko gave her. “You wouldn’t
   1.538 +want to live without her. Trust me. The last fourteen years have been
   1.539 +like a nightmare. My only happiness was knowing that the two of you
   1.540 +were out here. Besides, I wouldn’t want Tomoyo-chan to be lonely on
   1.541 +the other side.”
   1.542 +	A cold chill traveled up Kumiko’s spine at Meishi’s words. Despite
   1.543 +her confusion and her own fear of seeing Megumi in any more pain, she
   1.544 +steeled her resolve. “I don’t care. I don’t care if you did make me
   1.545 +for this reason or if you screwed up when you brought Megumi back. I
   1.546 +won’t let you take her from me. She’s here now. That’s what matters.
   1.547 +I won’t let you or anyone else take her away from me. I love her too
   1.548 +much.” Determination glittered in her violet eyes, her gaze never
   1.549 +wavering as the sorceress looked back at her.
   1.550 +	Giggling softly, Meishi stood up. “I’d almost forgotten what that
   1.551 +looked like. You really do have all of her love and support, don’t
   1.552 +you? I remember that determination from long ago. It took me a long
   1.553 +time to understand that she was the cause.” Her fingers trailed
   1.554 +gently along Megumi’s pale cheek before brushing back some of her
   1.555 +curly blonde hair. Her heart seized up as she looked down at the
   1.556 +sleeping girl. “Oh, Tomoyo-chan... I miss you so much...” A half sob,
   1.557 +half sigh escaped her lips. Her head nodded weakly. “All right. I’ll
   1.558 +leave her with you. But you better make sure that she’s happy. She’s
   1.559 +already in enough pain. I want her to die happily.”
   1.560 +	“But... I don’t want her to die...” Kumiko whispered. She silently
   1.561 +berated herself. Her vision blurred as burning tears stung her eyes.
   1.562 +She clenched her fingernails into her palms in an effort to focus
   1.563 +past the tears. Meishi was right, the thought of living a life
   1.564 +without Megumi was a bleak as walking through an endless desert.
   1.565 +Megumi was her best friend, the girl that she loved. They were
   1.566 +partners. Neither was complete without the other. 
   1.567 +	“I don’t want her to, either. Please take good care of her for me.”
   1.568 +Hesitating for only a second, Meishi leaned down and kissed the
   1.569 +sleeping beauty, her firey red hair kissing Megumi’s beautiful blonde
   1.570 +hair. Her heart surged as she felt Tomoyo in the all too brief kiss.
   1.571 +She smiled sadly down at her love, her fingers trailing gently over 
   1.572 +the blonde’s cheek as aquamarine eyes slowly blinked open. 
   1.573 +	Megumi strained to make out the blur in front of her as she finally
   1.574 +woke up. “Kumi?” her groggy voice asked. As her vision slowly
   1.575 +cleared, the figure that had been above her faded away. If she didn’t
   1.576 +feel so sick, she may have thought there had been someone over her a
   1.577 +moment before. “Kumi-chan?” she asked tiredly, trying to keep the
   1.578 +panic out of her voice as she searched desperately for the brunette.
   1.579 +	“I’m right here!” Kumiko said quickly, taking Megumi’s cold hand as
   1.580 +she sat next to her on the bed. The jealousy she had felt when the
   1.581 +sorceress had kissed her best friend quickly faded away, replaced
   1.582 +with concern for her slowly awakening friend. “I’m right here, Megumi-
   1.583 +chan. I’ll always be right here for you.” She still didn’t know quite
   1.584 +what was going on with Meishi or what she had in mind, but that
   1.585 +hardly mattered at the moment. It didn’t even matter if she was
   1.586 +Sakura or just a dream. All that mattered was her best friend and
   1.587 +what lay before her.
   1.588 +	Megumi offered a weak smile before coughing  for a few moments. “I
   1.589 +know, Kumi. It’s part of why I love you so much.” She didn’t know
   1.590 +what had happened, but at least Kumiko wasn’t mad at her anymore. She
   1.591 +didn’t know how much more of that she could have taken before just
   1.592 +dying of a broken heart. Wet, cold tears splattered against her
   1.593 +cheeks from up above. Her arms wrapped around the brunette’s waist,
   1.594 +even though they felt like overcooked noodles. 
   1.595 +	Leaning down on top of her best friend, Kumiko kissed Megumi softly
   1.596 +again and again, sobbing quietly as she did. “I love you so much...
   1.597 +I’ll always love you... I promise... I promise we’ll always be
   1.598 +together... No matter where we are...” she whispered, giving Megumi’s
   1.599 +lips more feathery kisses.
   1.600 +	“I know... I know, Kumi. Always.”
   1.601 +
   1.602 +