1.1 --- /dev/null	Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 +0000
     1.2 +++ b/stories/sttail.txt	Fri Feb 19 06:24:59 2010 -0500
     1.3 @@ -0,0 +1,836 @@
     1.4 +Author’s note: Hello everyone! ^-^ This is Heather of the Amazoness Duo 
     1.5 +again. ^-^ This is my first Kaitou Saint Tail fanfic, though I hope to write more 
     1.6 +soon. I just love Seira & Meimi. ^,^ Anyway, if you could spare a moment, 
     1.7 +please tell me what you think. ^-^ Thanks! *hugs*
     1.8 +
     1.9 +Kiss Me Sunlights
    1.10 +By Amazoness Duo
    1.11 +amazonessduo@hotmail.com
    1.12 +
    1.13 +
    1.14 +	The night air felt cool against Meimi’s bare skin, the moonlight lighting 
    1.15 +the path she’d traveled time and time again. Pulling her jacket closer to her as 
    1.16 +the wind picked up, she wondered what Seira needed her to do this time. A car 
    1.17 +drove by a short distance away, startling her. It seemed to be the only sound she 
    1.18 +had heard that night aside from her own footsteps. Along with a nervous feeling 
    1.19 +growing in her stomach, she was starting to get anxious. Seira had been her best 
    1.20 +friend for years now. They had gone through a lot together. She thought she 
    1.21 +knew the other girl rather well. Something had been off in Seira’s voice when 
    1.22 +she had called a short time ago, urging her to come meet her. Meimi only hoped 
    1.23 +it wasn’t anything bad.
    1.24 +	“There you are. I was starting to think that you wouldn’t come,” a 
    1.25 +gentle voice said from a bench near the church. Seira mustered up a smile for 
    1.26 +her friend, but it didn’t much help quell the tumultuous feelings inside of her. 
    1.27 +She almost wished that something had happened and Meimi hadn’t been able to 
    1.28 +make it. Then things would be so much easier. But that was the point, wasn’t it? 
    1.29 +She was tired of leaving things the way they were. Wasn’t it better to get things 
    1.30 +out in the open and hope for some sort of happy resolution to it all? The sister-
    1.31 +in-training had spent over two hours trying to decide if she should call at all and 
    1.32 +the past half hour worrying about what a mistake she may have made. The cold 
    1.33 +bench under her had offered little sympathy to her worries. The cold night air 
    1.34 +seeped right through the thin white fabric.
    1.35 +	“I’m always here if you ask me, Seira. You know that.” Meimi tilted 
    1.36 +her head to the side and laughed a bit. “But sometimes it seems like you know 
    1.37 +everything anyway.” Brushing back her long her, she joined the short haired girl 
    1.38 +on the bench. A leaf fell slowly between the two before landing on the cold dew 
    1.39 +of the grass. The wind served to accentuate the silence as the two girls sat there 
    1.40 +quietly. Meimi was starting to feel more nervous at each passing second, 
    1.41 +wondering what was going on. Seira was acting strangely. If this was just like 
    1.42 +every other time she had called her to do something as Saint Tail, then why was 
    1.43 +she so quiet?
    1.44 +	Seira didn’t answer for a long moment, looking out into the darkness. 
    1.45 +Her night vision wasn’t as good as Meimi’s, but she wasn’t looking for anything 
    1.46 +in particular. She had prayed about what to do about this for a while now and it 
    1.47 +seemed that this was the best course of action. Not telling Meimi was almost as 
    1.48 +bad as lying to her. “Meimi-chan, I thought there was something you should 
    1.49 +know. I don’t like hiding anything from you. You’re my best friend and you’ve 
    1.50 +always been very special to me so I feel horrible when I keep something from 
    1.51 +you.” The wind seemed to die down for a moment. Seira reached out and placed 
    1.52 +her hand over Meimi’s. Her hand felt warm to the touch, Seira’s hand holding it 
    1.53 +tighter. She didn’t know if she could find the strength to say what she wanted to.
    1.54 +	Her heart pounding in her chest, Meimi didn’t say anything. Seira 
    1.55 +sounded so serious. What could be so important that she wouldn’t have told her 
    1.56 +already? There was a touch of sadness laced in the sister-in-training’s voice as 
    1.57 +well. Was she going away? To another school or church? Somewhere where 
    1.58 +they wouldn’t see each other again? She moved her hand around so that she was 
    1.59 +holding Seira’s as well and squeezed back, urging her to go on. “What is it, 
    1.60 +Seira?”
    1.61 +	It took all of Seira’s willpower to look Meimi in the eyes. What lovely 
    1.62 +blue gray eyes they were... It was all she could do to keep from losing herself in 
    1.63 +their depths. Her free hand held the small cross on her necklace, trying to find 
    1.64 +the strength to go on from up above. “Meimi-chan, I know that someone’s in 
    1.65 +love with you. They have been for a very long time. You’re like an angel to 
    1.66 +them, a sweet and shining flower in their life that makes them happier than you 
    1.67 +could ever know. They love you so much but they’re afraid to say anything. 
    1.68 +Their life is already planned out. They know how things are supposed to be. 
    1.69 +They don’t want to frighten you or risk losing you.” She was shaking now, 
    1.70 +almost too afraid to go on but unsure if she could stop herself now that she’d 
    1.71 +said as much as she had. Meimi’s warm hand squeezed her own shaking one 
    1.72 +softly. Pulling it into both of her own, she held it on her lap as she tried to calm 
    1.73 +down.
    1.74 +	Meimi was still in shock over what Seira had said. So many people 
    1.75 +went to the short haired girl with their problems day in and day out. Had 
    1.76 +someone come to her saying all of this? Was someone really this worried about 
    1.77 +her finding out he was in love with her? Was it... Was it Asuka Jr.? Had he come 
    1.78 +to Seira about all of this? Her heart was pounding even harder in her chest now. 
    1.79 +“It’s Asuka Jr., isn’t it? He was the one who said all that, wasn’t he? I knew he 
    1.80 +could be romantic. He’s afraid of telling me? Is that why he’s always so mean?” 
    1.81 +she got out in a blur. Everything was so strange, like her heart was being pulled 
    1.82 +in different directions. That was so sweet that he thought of her that way, like an 
    1.83 +angel. And here she thought he was just being a jerk about everything. Wait, 
    1.84 +something was wrong. Seriously wrong. “Seira, are you crying?”
    1.85 +	The slightly smaller girl shuddered in the cold night air, choking back a 
    1.86 +sob as she pulled her hand away from Meimi’s. No, it wasn’t supposed to be this 
    1.87 +way. She had been wrong to have thought she should ever have said anything. 
    1.88 +Her life was already planned out for her. It was a mistake to think that she 
    1.89 +should say anything at all. She could barely hear Meimi asking again and again 
    1.90 +what was wrong, but she was having a hard enough time trying to pull herself 
    1.91 +back together. Right now all she wanted was to cry herself to sleep. To get 
    1.92 +away. But she couldn’t. Even if she could try, Meimi was much faster than her. 
    1.93 +The wind started to pick up again, leaves swirling around the two girls. Seira 
    1.94 +wiped at her eyes with her palms, shaking her head in answer to Meimi’s 
    1.95 +repeated question. Whenever she tried to speak, all she could do was choke out 
    1.96 +another sob. It took her several minutes before she could get anything out, her 
    1.97 +throat now painful. “No, it’s nothing, Meimi-chan. It really doesn’t matter. It 
    1.98 +doesn’t matter at all. Just forget about it. Please forget about it for me.” 
    1.99 +	Meimi didn’t know what to say to her best friend. Watching Seira 
   1.100 +sitting right next to her, hunched over and sobbing, her face buried in her hands. 
   1.101 +It sent an icy blade through her heart. What had she done? How had she hurt 
   1.102 +her? “Seira?” she asked quietly, but it was too late. The damage was done and 
   1.103 +she knew that no amount of questioning would get whatever she’d done out of 
   1.104 +Seira. Her shoulders slumped sadly as she looked at her feet. She felt... empty. 
   1.105 +She wished she had kept her mouth shut. 
   1.106 +	“A girl came to me with a problem. She had accidentally given a video 
   1.107 +tape to her best friend with some things on it that she doesn’t want her to see 
   1.108 +instead of another tape she was going to give her. She’s afraid that her friend 
   1.109 +will see the tape before she’s ready to understand how she feels. Saint Tail needs 
   1.110 +to get it back for her,” Seira explained, her voice barely masking the pain she 
   1.111 +was in. 
   1.112 +	Meimi nodded weakly, sighing. “Hai, I’ll get it back for her, Seira. I’ll 
   1.113 +go get it tomorrow.” An uneasy silence blanketed the two for a long moment. 
   1.114 +Meimi tried to take Seira’s hand again, but the nun girl stood up quickly. “Seira, 
   1.115 +I don’t have to go. Can you tell me what’s wrong? I’m really sorry if it’s 
   1.116 +something I said.” Getting to her feet, she took a step towards the short haired 
   1.117 +girl, but Seira took a step away, her back to her.
   1.118 +	“No, it’s not important. I was mistaken to think it was. I’m extremely 
   1.119 +sorry for getting you out here so late. I’ll try to be more considerate next time.” 
   1.120 +Seira held as still as she could, unsure of how long she could keep from crying 
   1.121 +in front of her friend. 
   1.122 +“But... Why are you so sad, Seira? Maybe I should stay with you. You 
   1.123 +don’t have to tell me anything,” Meimi offered hopefully. Anything to make up 
   1.124 +for putting her best friend through any pain. If she couldn’t know what was 
   1.125 +going on, at least she could be there for her.
   1.126 +“Thank you, but I have some things I need to do in the church. I 
   1.127 +promised one of the Sisters. Goodnight, Meimi-chan.” Her hands clasped in 
   1.128 +front of her, Seira didn’t look back. ‘Please don’t go. Please stay with me. I 
   1.129 +don’t want to be alone right now,’ she thought frantically, but no words would 
   1.130 +come out. 
   1.131 +“Oh... okay. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, then. Sleep well, Seira.” 
   1.132 +Meimi offered a weak smile before disappearing the way she had come.
   1.133 +Seira collapsed to her knees seconds later, shaking her head as icy tears 
   1.134 +fell to the ground. “But... Meimi, I love you.” The wind scattered her tears as the 
   1.135 +night moved inexorably onward towards the coming dawn.
   1.136 +
   1.137 +	Meimi yawned tiredly as she trudged her way to school the next 
   1.138 +morning. She had spent half the night tossing and turning, her mind constantly 
   1.139 +returning to Seira. The lonely look in her eyes that she’d barely managed to 
   1.140 +catch a glimpse of before the nun-in-training had turned away haunted her every 
   1.141 +time she closed her eyes. How could she have hurt her that badly? It could have 
   1.142 +been something else that hurt her. Maybe whatever it was that Seira wasn’t 
   1.143 +telling her. But Meimi had a hard time believing that. Seira had seemed nervous, 
   1.144 +but it wasn’t until she’d started ranting about what she thought it could be that 
   1.145 +the glow in the young Sister’s eyes had shattered. But no matter how many 
   1.146 +times she went over it in her mind, she couldn’t figure out what had happened.
   1.147 +	A sigh escaped the mysterious thief’s lips as she hoisted her bookbag 
   1.148 +higher. All she had to do was ask Seira about it before class. Unless Seira tried 
   1.149 +to change the subject like she did often enough when she would ask about just 
   1.150 +what Seira’s sources of information were. No, she wouldn’t let her off that easy. 
   1.151 +If Seira was hurting, then she had to know why. She couldn’t leave her best 
   1.152 +friend like that. It tore her up inside to think that it was her fault. That she was 
   1.153 +the reason for those crystal tears in Seira’s indigo eyes. This was something 
   1.154 +Kaitou Saint Tail would have to put right if she was ever going to get a good 
   1.155 +night’s sleep again.
   1.156 +	A rustling sound in the bushes off to the right startled Meimi. To her 
   1.157 +surprise, Ryoko and Kyoko stepped out. The two girls’ uniforms were both 
   1.158 +rather disheveled and they were both blushing a deep scarlet. Brushing back 
   1.159 +some hair from her eyes, Meimi took a deep breath. “Oh, it’s you. You two 
   1.160 +frightened me.” She tilted her head to the side, watching Kyoko fidget as she 
   1.161 +tried to snag something that seemed to be made from white cloth in Ryoko’s 
   1.162 +hand. Ryoko only grinned as she kept it away from the smaller girl. 
   1.163 +	“Meimi-chan!! What a surprise to see you here. I mean, on your way to 
   1.164 +school and all. You’re usually to school just a little earlier than us,” Kyoko got 
   1.165 +out quickly. She offered a nervous laugh after a brief second. “Well, you better 
   1.166 +get going if you don’t want to be late for class.”
   1.167 +	“Un, you’re right.” Meimi nodded as she took a step forward. She 
   1.168 +paused when she noticed that neither Kyoko nor Ryoko had made a move to 
   1.169 +follow her. “What about you two? Shouldn’t you get going, too?”
   1.170 +	Kyoko cast a sidelong glance at Ryoko before replying. “I would, but I 
   1.171 +need to get something that was stolen from me before I can go.” As the wind 
   1.172 +picked up, her blush grew darker, her hands going down immediately to hold 
   1.173 +down her skirt. 
   1.174 +	Ryoko just giggled as she began to follow Meimi. “You’ll have to ask 
   1.175 +Saint Tail if you want it back that badly, Kyoko-chan. Or you can come over 
   1.176 +tonight. I’m sure you could get whatever it is back then.” She smiled innocently 
   1.177 +as the other girl gave her a deadly glare. One she might actually worry about if 
   1.178 +she didn’t know what a kitten Kyoko was. 
   1.179 +	“Hmph...” Kyoko crossed her arms as she followed the two girls ahead 
   1.180 +of her. “I guess I’ll just have to do that then.” She made extra sure to give Ryoko 
   1.181 +another disapproving glare before melting into a bright smile when she finally 
   1.182 +caught her eyes. “Maybe we could study... or something.”
   1.183 +	“Or something,” Ryoko repeated in agreement, returning the smile.
   1.184 +	Meimi sweatdropped fiercely as they walked along. She had no idea 
   1.185 +what they were talking about. Unless... No, she was just having a hard time 
   1.186 +thinking correctly after the night before with Seira. Her mind wasn’t working 
   1.187 +now and she needed to speak with her best friend soon so things could go back 
   1.188 +to normal. Lonely, tear filled eyes greeted her when her eyes closed, sending a 
   1.189 +shiver through her soul. She needed to see Seira. Soon. But where was she? 
   1.190 +Seira usually met her on the way to school, but the brunette was nowhere to be 
   1.191 +seen. Was she waiting for her? She picked up her pace as she the school came 
   1.192 +into site. 
   1.193 +
   1.194 +	Setting her bookbag next to her desk, Haneoka Meimi glanced around 
   1.195 +the room for her best friend, hoping to see her amongst the small groups of 
   1.196 +students. After a few tense moments, she still couldn’t spot the sister-in-training. 
   1.197 +A long sigh escaped her lips as she sat down. This was starting to worry her. 
   1.198 +First the weird way Seira had been acting the night before and now her not 
   1.199 +showing up for class. It didn’t seem like her at all. Something was most certainly 
   1.200 +wrong.
   1.201 +	“So you really almost caught her this time, Asuka Jr.?” one of the boys 
   1.202 +asked eagerly as the detectives son walked into class.
   1.203 +	“Yeah, not like the last thirty seven times. This time she was looking 
   1.204 +right at me. If I hadn’t been blinded by Mimori holding a flashlight, I would 
   1.205 +have seen who she was,” Asuka Jr. responded, a mix of anguish and hope in his 
   1.206 +voice. “One of these days... I will be the one to catch Saint Tail!”
   1.207 +	The other boys crowded around him with their usual casual amusement. 
   1.208 +Whether it was for the recent news on Asuka Jr.’s quest to catch Saint Tail or if 
   1.209 +it was just to watch him make an ass out of himself, none of the girls really 
   1.210 +knew. Nor cared. 
   1.211 +	Meimi rested her chin on her hands, waiting to see how Asuka Jr.’s 
   1.212 +account of events would conflict with reality. All he cared about was catching 
   1.213 +Saint Tail. How could he be so single minded? And thinking that she couldn’t be 
   1.214 +Saint Tail, at that! Oh, when he found out, she needed to give him a piece of her 
   1.215 +mind. Seira’s warning came to mind again, snapping her out of it. She had to be 
   1.216 +very careful about who could know that. So far only Seira knew that she was the 
   1.217 +Mysterious Thief Saint Tail. But that was because she could always trust Seira 
   1.218 +with anything. Seira was the entire reason she was Saint Tail. Asuka Jr. chasing 
   1.219 +her was just a side of it that managed to keep her entertained as she kept going 
   1.220 +on whatever missions Seira had for her. She enjoyed the chase. It was fun to 
   1.221 +play cat and mouse, like a game. 
   1.222 +	“She’s practically begging for me to catch her now. I can tell. I bet that 
   1.223 +I can catch her by the next time I see her,” Asuka Jr. bragged, leaning against his 
   1.224 +desk.
   1.225 +	Meimi stood up immediately, a certain nun-in-training not there to stop 
   1.226 +her anger from boiling over. “I am not...” She clenched her fists, barely keeping 
   1.227 +herself from saying something she would regret later on. It was so much easier 
   1.228 +when Seira was there to drag her off. “Saint Tail is not begging for you to catch 
   1.229 +her! I don’t see why she’d pick such an inept person to be the one to figure out 
   1.230 +who she is.”
   1.231 +	The green haired boy frowned as he turned to face the (unbeknownst to 
   1.232 +him) mysterious thief. “How would you know, Haneoka? You’re not there when 
   1.233 +I match wits with Saint Tail again and again. You wouldn’t understand this sort 
   1.234 +of thing. It’s part of criminal mentality, Saint Tail’s in particular. She wants me 
   1.235 +to catch her.”
   1.236 +	Fuming, Meimi reduced the distance between her and her rival in an 
   1.237 +instant. “You match wits with her? So that’s why you always lose. I knew there 
   1.238 +had to be some reason.”
   1.239 +	“Shut up! This has nothing to do with you!” the boy said angrily as he 
   1.240 +matched her glare. Why was she always shooting him down? Especially about 
   1.241 +Saint Tail? He was the expert on the thief, not her. She should know her place!
   1.242 +	Before Meimi could shoot something back that would have stunned her 
   1.243 +classmates and, in particular, Asuka Jr., their teacher was upon them. And 
   1.244 +apparently, Meimi had said it because after the room fell deathly silent as 
   1.245 +everyone’s attention had focussed on her, she spent the rest of that morning 
   1.246 +outside holding two buckets of water. 
   1.247 +
   1.248 +	By lunchtime, Meimi was still embarrassed about her little outburst 
   1.249 +earlier. She was still getting freaked out looks from Asuka Jr. and Lina was 
   1.250 +giving her the evil eye. Seira had yet to make an appearance and that was really 
   1.251 +starting to worry her. She couldn’t remember Seira ever missing a full day of 
   1.252 +school. The clouds were starting to darken and the wind was picking up, 
   1.253 +blowing back her long hair. It even smelled like rain. She really didn’t feel like 
   1.254 +going through the effort of giving Asuka Jr. a challenge, but she knew she had 
   1.255 +to. A promise was a promise, after all. Patting him on the back as she passed, he 
   1.256 +stared at her oddly. She murmured something as she headed for the church to 
   1.257 +see if her friend had taken refuge there. 
   1.258 +
   1.259 +	Haneoka sure was acting strangely. Even more so than normal. And he 
   1.260 +still couldn’t believe what she’d said earlier this morning. The things that had 
   1.261 +come out of that girl’s mouth... He shook his head and continued eating his 
   1.262 +lunch. 
   1.263 +	“Good luck tonight!” a boy said as he passed by. 
   1.264 +	Asuka Jr. raised an eyebrow and stared at the boy until he was out of 
   1.265 +sight. Freak. He went back to eating his lunch.
   1.266 +	“Oh, I’ll bet Kaitou Saint Tail’s going to perform her greatest heist,” a 
   1.267 +girl said as she and her friends came from behind. 
   1.268 +	“I wonder what she wants this time,” another girl said thoughtfully as 
   1.269 +she came from his other side. 
   1.270 +	“What’s going on?!” The young detective wannabe stood up in 
   1.271 +frustration. A slip of paper came floating down off of his back. “Huh?” Plucking 
   1.272 +it from the ground, he quickly skimmed over it. 
   1.273 +	“Tonight I will come to steal an important videotape from Kinomoto 
   1.274 +Sakura. Not even the coming storm can stop me. ~ St. Tail”
   1.275 +	“Saint Tail?!” The green haired boy’s eyes went wide at the letter. 
   1.276 +Another challenge! This time, he would prove Haneoka-san wrong. Leaving the 
   1.277 +rest of his lunch, he ran off to call the Inept Police Force for backup.
   1.278 +
   1.279 +	The door flew open as Haneoka Meimi entered her house. She barely 
   1.280 +had the willpower to take off her shoes. Releasing a frustrated sigh, she 
   1.281 +collapsed onto the couch, her bookbag dropping next to her. Try as she might, 
   1.282 +she had been unable to locate her missing best friend and none of the nuns 
   1.283 +would tell her where she was. It was like some huge conspiracy was keeping her 
   1.284 +from seeing Seira. Okay, maybe not. But it was still frustrating after seeing her 
   1.285 +best friend crying the night before. She wanted to be there, to help her. Just like 
   1.286 +how Seira had always helped her when things were bad. She couldn’t get the 
   1.287 +nun girl off her mind all day. Her worrying was just getting worse. She still 
   1.288 +didn’t quite know why Seira had wanted to see her the night before. I certainly 
   1.289 +wasn’t just to tell her what she needed to do. And she was really starting to fear 
   1.290 +that it had something to do with her. Why else would Seira be avoiding her this 
   1.291 +way? 
   1.292 +	“Meimi, are you alright?” her father asked, pushing up his glasses with 
   1.293 +his index finger.
   1.294 +	“No.” 
   1.295 +	“Would you like to see a magic trick? It’ll cheer you up.” He smiled as 
   1.296 +he entered the living room. 
   1.297 +	“No.”
   1.298 +	He frowned as he went back to the kitchen. “I’m worried about Meimi-
   1.299 +chan, Mama. She seems so troubled, but she won’t let me cheer her up.”
   1.300 +	Eimi smiled as she hugged her magician husband. “That’s okay. I’m 
   1.301 +supposed to be your special assistant, so she doesn’t need to see the magic trick 
   1.302 +anyway. Besides, Meimi’s in love,” she stated quite positively. Meimi 
   1.303 +sweatdropped, still within earshot of her parents. 
   1.304 +	Genichirou turned around, looking at the back of his daughter’s head. 
   1.305 +“In love? Are you sure? I think she’s just troubled about school.”
   1.306 +	“No, she’s in love. Sitting there that way reminds me just how I was at 
   1.307 +her age.” 
   1.308 +	“Like you? That’s what I’m worried about.”
   1.309 +	“Then stop worrying about it and we’ll go rehearse that magic trick of 
   1.310 +yours. I’m sure I’ll make a good special assistant,” Eimi said suggestively.
   1.311 +	“Oh, practice _that_ part. Yeah, I always love _that_ part.”
   1.312 +	Meimi blushed profusely at her parents’ plans. At least they weren’t 
   1.313 +worrying about her anymore. She didn’t feel like explaining as it was. In love. 
   1.314 +Ha! If only. That would be easier than this. Sweatdropping at a strange noise 
   1.315 +coming from the kitchen, she quickly excused herself and hurried upstairs. 
   1.316 +
   1.317 +	“Ruby? Why is Seira avoiding me? Why is she acting so strangely?” 
   1.318 +Meimi asked as she tossed her school blouse vaguely in the hedgehog’s 
   1.319 +direction. Of course, she got no answer. “I mean, we’ve been best friends for 
   1.320 +years. We’re always together. So why would she just leave me out of things 
   1.321 +now? We’re partners. She’s the only reason I’m Saint Tail anyway. Maybe I 
   1.322 +shouldn’t go until she explains things to me. I need to know what hurt her so I 
   1.323 +can try to fix it. I really hope it wasn’t me. If I hurt her...” Sighing, her skirt 
   1.324 +joined the blouse as she dug through her closet. Not that it mattered what she 
   1.325 +picked out as it was because she would soon be running across rooftops as Saint 
   1.326 +Tail. “She’s acting strangely. Something about all this just makes me nervous. I 
   1.327 +need to see her smile again before I can rest easily. I can’t get her out of my 
   1.328 +mind. But that doesn’t help any if she’s not there. I missed her all day.” Pausing 
   1.329 +for a moment, she shook her head. “No, since last night. I never should have left 
   1.330 +her. I should have stayed with her. I was stupid to leave after seeing those tears 
   1.331 +in her eyes.” She clutched a sweater to her chest, her eyes falling closed as guilt 
   1.332 +grabbed at her soul. Regret at failing Seira when she knew Seira would have 
   1.333 +stayed with her no matter what preyed on her mind, visions of what might have 
   1.334 +been running over and over. 
   1.335 +	Ruby made a small sound as she stood up and tilted her head to the 
   1.336 +side, poking out of Meimi’s school clothes. 
   1.337 +	Smiling, Meimi picked up her small pet. “Thanks, Ruby. You’re right. I 
   1.338 +need to go work all of this out with Seira. Neither of us can be happy until we’ve 
   1.339 +put things right.” She kissed the hedgehog’s forehead and set it back down. Her 
   1.340 +thoughts grew more determined to fix things as she slipped out the window. 
   1.341 +“Seira.”
   1.342 +
   1.343 +	Seira heard her coming long before she could see her. Her eyes were 
   1.344 +still closed as she stay kneeling in prayer. Her heart was racing as she tried to 
   1.345 +stay calm, praying for the strength to keep going. If only things could work out... 
   1.346 +But no, she had decided a long time ago that they wouldn’t. That’s why she had 
   1.347 +chosen this life. She had things planned. A hand on her shoulder startled her out 
   1.348 +of her thoughts and what little concentration she had gathered. Attempting a 
   1.349 +smile, she turned to face her friend, the look of concern on Meimi’s face wiping 
   1.350 +the smile away. The silence lasted for a few moments before she stood up. 
   1.351 +Meimi’s blue eyes tried to catch her own gray blue eyes, but she couldn’t meet 
   1.352 +her gaze. “Hello, Meimi-chan.”
   1.353 +	“Seira, where were you? I couldn’t find you at all at school. None of 
   1.354 +the Sisters would tell me where you were, either.” Meimi took a step closer to 
   1.355 +the brunette. “I was worried about you. I missed you. And after last night... It 
   1.356 +scared me. All of those things you said last night and then you up and disappear 
   1.357 +today. I didn’t know what to think.”
   1.358 +	Clasping her hands together, the nun-in-training looked away. “I’m 
   1.359 +sorry, Meim-chan. I didn’t mean to worry you. I just didn’t feel well today. I 
   1.360 +couldn’t go to school.” Her heart twisted at the half truth. A sigh escaped her 
   1.361 +lips. She had already tried to tell Meimi the night before. It was pointless to try 
   1.362 +again. She would just have to hold those feelings inside. Forever. Because she 
   1.363 +knew they would never go away. She had been so scared of them at first. She 
   1.364 +had been raised by nuns. It was completely improper to feel that way. But as 
   1.365 +time went by, she realized that she couldn’t help it. It was part of who she was. 
   1.366 +She couldn’t keep herself from loving Meimi. She could merely keep herself 
   1.367 +from expressing it. And if she couldn’t, then it was best for her to go into the 
   1.368 +convent. It would be a way to repay the church for raising a lonely orphan girl 
   1.369 +like herself. If she couldn’t be with the one she loved, at least she could do that.
   1.370 +	“Why? Were you sick? Or was it because of last night?” Meimi 
   1.371 +demanded. Taking Seira’s arm, she turned the slightly smaller girl to face her. 
   1.372 +Her face was still marked with concern. “Seira, whatever it was last night, I 
   1.373 +shouldn’t have left. And I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean to make you cry. I 
   1.374 +don’t ever want to hurt you. Please tell me what’s going on.” Her fingers lightly 
   1.375 +brushed Seira’s puffy red cheeks. Sadness welled up in her at that. It was 
   1.376 +obvious that she’d been crying earlier. 
   1.377 +	Seira blushed a bit at the feeling of Meimi’s fingers against her cheek. 
   1.378 +Her eyes fell closed, the frightened girl torn between pulling away and melting 
   1.379 +into the warm touch. Why did she have to do this to her? She was helping her by 
   1.380 +keeping it all inside, by not burdening her with these feelings that she could 
   1.381 +never return. Her eyes started to sting again but she fought to hold the tears 
   1.382 +back. “Meimi-chan... Please just go and get the tape.. Please...” she pleaded with 
   1.383 +the mysterious thief, unsure of how much more she could take before breaking 
   1.384 +down. The young Sister-in-training shuddered as Meimi’s fingers brushed some 
   1.385 +tears away from her cheeks. It hadn’t occurred to her until then that she’d begun 
   1.386 +to cry.
   1.387 +	“Seira, please tell me what’s going on. I don’t know if it’s my fault or 
   1.388 +not, but I want to help you,” Meimi whispered softly, feeling horrible at seeing 
   1.389 +the other girl in such pain. If only there was some way for her to alleviate it. To 
   1.390 +take it on herself. “Please, Seira-chan.” Seira tried to respond a few times, but 
   1.391 +only sobs escaped her. Meimi pulled her shuddering body close, hugging her as 
   1.392 +warmly as she could. The brunette slumped against her, choked sobs coming 
   1.393 +from her as she held on. The poor girl seemed so tiny and frail in her grasp. “No. 
   1.394 +I’m going to do what I should have done last time. I’m going to stay with you. 
   1.395 +I’ll always be there for you, Seira-chan. I’ll always protect you.” Hugging the 
   1.396 +other girl tighter, Meimi closed her blue eyes. ‘Not Saint Tail, but me. I’ll 
   1.397 +always be there to help her. I don’t need a flashy alter-ego to be there for Seira.’
   1.398 +	This wasn’t fair! How could she be so close and yet so far? It was like a 
   1.399 +taste of heaven. All she ever wanted, but she knew it would be snatched from 
   1.400 +her at any moment. This wasn’t really hers. She was only getting Meimi’s 
   1.401 +warmth, her loving embrace because of their friendship. It would never be what 
   1.402 +she really wanted. This was only a mirage. She had to keep her mind from 
   1.403 +giving in. But it felt so nice, Meimi’s arms around her. She couldn’t help but rest 
   1.404 +her head on the magical girl’s shoulder. If she had to endure much more of this, 
   1.405 +it would be far too much for her to handle. “You have to help that girl. I’ll be 
   1.406 +here when you’re finished. I promise,” she whispered softly into Meimi’s ear.
   1.407 +	Meimi hesitated, biting her lip. Could she really just abandon her again 
   1.408 +the way she had the night before? What if it made things worse? Seira was much 
   1.409 +more important to her than Saint Tail. Her choice between the two was clear.
   1.410 +	“Please. She needs your help. She’ll be hurt badly if you don’t get that 
   1.411 +videotape back. It’s important.” Seira wiped at her eyes as she took a step away 
   1.412 +from Meimi’s warm embrace. “She’s in love with the girl she gave that tape to. 
   1.413 +If you don’t get it back, it could ruin everything.”
   1.414 +	That startled her. The girl she gave it to? So she... was in love with 
   1.415 +her...? Alright, this was starting to get confusing. “You’ll still be here?” Meimi 
   1.416 +repeated, sounding unsure. 
   1.417 +	Nodding, Seira hugged herself. “I’ll still be here, Meimi. I promise you. 
   1.418 +But please, help her first. I... I understand what she’s going through. She needs 
   1.419 +your help.” When she’d first stumbled upon the pale, dark haired girl, she had 
   1.420 +been outside the church, some bodyguards following nearby. Something about 
   1.421 +her, maybe the sad look in her stormy blue eyes, had drawn Seira closer. She 
   1.422 +had learned of the girl’s True Love, her best friend who hadn’t caught on about 
   1.423 +how she felt despite numerous hints. She had videotaped a confession of her 
   1.424 +love and had accidentally given it to the other girl by mistake rather than the 
   1.425 +video she had meant to give her, something showing off a costume. Now she 
   1.426 +was afraid that the other girl would find out before she was ready. She still 
   1.427 +remembered the dark haired girl’s words. 
   1.428 +	“When I close my eyes, I can see her smiling at me. So warmly, so 
   1.429 +tenderly. Yet she doesn't see the yearning, doesn't notice the depths of my love 
   1.430 +for her. It flows deeply through me, cradling my soul when things get too 
   1.431 +painful to move on. Her very essence, all that she is forces me to carry on when 
   1.432 +I don't think I can anymore. I would do anything for her. I would give her the 
   1.433 +world if I could. I would give her my heart, but she already has it. Does she 
   1.434 +know that? Is it just an accepted fact or does she still think that maybe I'm just a 
   1.435 +little strange? That my reasoning for acting the way I do can't possibly be 
   1.436 +because I'm in love with her. So in love with her. I would die for her. This life is 
   1.437 +only a cruel joke without her so my own life can't be worth very much at all. But 
   1.438 +her... She’s an angel. I don't regret a single day, a single second that was spent 
   1.439 +with her, no matter the pain it would cause later. Even if I had known, I wouldn't 
   1.440 +give it away for the world. Because on cold, lonely nights like tonight, I can 
   1.441 +close my eyes and see her through the tears, waiting for me. Sometimes that's 
   1.442 +the only way I can get to sleep. In her arms, I know that I would be able to 
   1.443 +finally sleep peacefully. But that will never happen, will it? I'll have to keep 
   1.444 +pretending, keep yearning for her, even if it hurts. I can't show her the tears, the 
   1.445 +rips in my soul. I can't let her know that I'm bleeding inside. That every smile 
   1.446 +hides the sobs I keep from her. But that's the way it has to be. How would she 
   1.447 +handle the knowledge that being with her is both the most wonderful, warm 
   1.448 +feeling in my heart, and the most painful, cold torment? I can't take that 
   1.449 +innocence away from her. She would lose something. And then our friendship 
   1.450 +would suffer for it. She wouldn't act the same way around me anymore and I 
   1.451 +would hate myself for that.” Tomoyo closed her eyes and sighed. “I want her to 
   1.452 +know, but it shouldn’t be this way. She wouldn’t understand if she finds out on 
   1.453 +her own.”
   1.454 +	‘I want to tell you, too, Meimi. But I can’t... I tried, but I can’t. I’m 
   1.455 +sorry,’ Seira thought to herself sadly. 
   1.456 +	Finally nodding assent, Meimi crossed her arms. “Alright, but I’ll be 
   1.457 +right back. I can’t stand to see you like this Seira. I need to know what’s hurting 
   1.458 +you.”
   1.459 +	Seira smiled softly, taking Meimi’s hand. “Thank you, Meimi-chan. 
   1.460 +I’m sure the girl will be very happy to receive God’s protection with the help of 
   1.461 +Saint Tail.” 
   1.462 +
   1.463 +	Sakura Kinomoto sweatdropped as her older brother, Touya once again 
   1.464 +argued with the younger, green haired boy about just why he needed to be there. 
   1.465 +Just half an hour ago, a boy named Asuka Jr. had arrived with several police 
   1.466 +officers and had demanded that they let him in, showing off some sort of trinket 
   1.467 +as if it were a badge and an excellent reason for them to comply with his 
   1.468 +demands. Touya had not been about to, but his friend, the bespectacled white 
   1.469 +haired boy had managed to calm him down long enough for the green haired boy 
   1.470 +to slip past and explain his case. Apparently, the mysterious thief Saint Tail had 
   1.471 +pegged their house for her next heist and would be there that night. And even 
   1.472 +more of a shock to the young Cardmistress was that she was after a videotape 
   1.473 +that Tomoyo had given her. That just didn’t make sense. Why would a thief 
   1.474 +want to steal something that her friend had given her? Especially something of 
   1.475 +no actual value like a videotape. The green haired boy had shrugged off her 
   1.476 +question, merely stating that ‘Saint Tail’s like that. I’m sure she has a reason.”
   1.477 +	But that wasn’t a good enough explanation to the brunette. 
   1.478 +Unfortunately, he seemed to be in no mood to explain, busying himself with 
   1.479 +planning some sort of trap for the mysterious thief. So Sakura sat alone in her 
   1.480 +room, her brother’s irritated voice coming upstairs through the door as he 
   1.481 +hounded the younger boy at every step. Sakura was thankful that her father was 
   1.482 +gone for the night. Of course, that meant Touya had to cook. And he had 
   1.483 +expressed no interest whatsoever at feeding the hungry looking officers 
   1.484 +downstairs. 
   1.485 +	Why did she want the videotape? What could be so important that 
   1.486 +she’d sneak in to steal it? It was just a videotape of her in various costumes with 
   1.487 +some action sequences at the end to appease Kero-chan. Maybe she should call 
   1.488 +Tomoyo. Tomoyo always made things seem better, especially when she was 
   1.489 +confused like this. Her hand reached out instinctively for the pink cell phone 
   1.490 +Tomoyo had given her so long ago. Her fingers paused just over the speed dial 
   1.491 +button. The dark haired girl loved taking videos of her. Wouldn’t it worry her if 
   1.492 +Sakura told her someone was trying to steal it? No, she couldn’t worry Tomoyo 
   1.493 +like that. The other girl was rather... eccentric. Especially when it came to her. 
   1.494 +But she’d never really seen her worried about anything that didn’t have to do 
   1.495 +with her. Still, she didn’t want to press her luck and worry Tomoyo 
   1.496 +unnecessarily. This matter would likely be solved soon enough.
   1.497 +	But what was on that videotape?
   1.498 +
   1.499 +	Touya spent a long time preparing dinner, making sure that everything 
   1.500 +was just perfect. The intoxicating smells wafted through the house, seeming to 
   1.501 +draw everyone towards the kitchen. Yukito watched intently as he went about 
   1.502 +pouring in some water. The taller boy made absolutely sure that he had just 
   1.503 +enough food for himself, Yukito, and his little sister. Of course, it was a rather 
   1.504 +difficult job discerning just how much the white haired boy would eat. 	
   1.505 +“So what are you making?” one of the officers asked curiously. He and 
   1.506 +two others had gathered to watch Touya cook. They all looked starving. But the 
   1.507 +teenage boy still wasn’t pleased about this intrusion into his home. 
   1.508 +Pointedly ignoring them, Touya went back to preparing the food. It was 
   1.509 +with some satisfaction that he noticed someone’s stomach growling. 
   1.510 +
   1.511 +Asuka Jr. paced the living room nervously. It was starting to grow late 
   1.512 +out and there had still been no sign of Saint Tail. She was coming. He knew she 
   1.513 +was. He knew it at his very core. Because she always did. There was something 
   1.514 +in that line of thought that comforted the boy. It was reassuring; a constant in an 
   1.515 +otherwise always shifting world. And for that, he thanked Saint Tail. But he was 
   1.516 +still going to catch her and find out just who she was! This game of theirs had 
   1.517 +gone on long enough. He wouldn’t allow himself to be fooled by anymore of her 
   1.518 +tricks. This time all of the cards were on the table and he was determined to win. 
   1.519 +“Take your shoes off,” the older boy of the house demanded, his eyes 
   1.520 +following Asuka Jr.’s every move. The officers that had come with Asuka Jr. 
   1.521 +had already complied. 
   1.522 +“What?” The green haired boy asked, turning around for the hundredth 
   1.523 +time on the plush carpet as he continued his pacing.
   1.524 +“I said, take your shoes off,” Touya repeated firmly. 
   1.525 +“I need to be able to catch Saint Tail! This is official business. You can 
   1.526 +take it up with the mayor,” Asuka Jr. argued, his frustration building. He would 
   1.527 +be the one to catch Saint Tail! Why did everyone insist upon getting in his way? 
   1.528 +Didn’t they understand? It was his quest! He just had to catch her! It was the 
   1.529 +natural order of things. Yet people still insisted upon interfering. Right now it 
   1.530 +was his time. As soon as his business with Saint Tail was concluded, it could go 
   1.531 +back to being Torga’s time. Or whatever his name was. But the look on the older 
   1.532 +boys face told an entirely different story. Grumbling to himself, Asuka Jr. finally 
   1.533 +left his shoes by the door. 
   1.534 +Crossing his arms angrily, the junior detective returned to his pacing, 
   1.535 +oblivious to anything but his sole purpose in life. Where had he been, again? Oh 
   1.536 +yes. She would be here. And when she did...
   1.537 +“Hello! I’m here to see Kinomoto-san. Is she here?” A cute girl in a 
   1.538 +black and white school uniform asked. It was the same uniform he’d seen that 
   1.539 +Sakura girl wearing earlier. Must be a classmate. He couldn’t quite see her face 
   1.540 +under shadows cast by the slightly larger than usual hat she was wearing. “Yeah, 
   1.541 +she’s upstairs. But make it quick. This is official police business.” A giggle 
   1.542 +escaped the girl as she headed for the stairs. Stupid girl. She didn’t understand 
   1.543 +what she was in the middle of. He continued his pacing, waiting for just the right 
   1.544 +moment to pounce on Saint Tail. It couldn’t be much longer now.
   1.545 +
   1.546 +Confusion. That was the first response that came to Sakura’s mind as 
   1.547 +she sat in stunned silence, her television currently showing static. Two hours. 
   1.548 +The tape had been two hours long. How do you take two hours to confess your 
   1.549 +love to someone? Tomoyo had found an excellent way. And she’d made perfect 
   1.550 +use of the new editing system her mother had given her, splicing in scenes from 
   1.551 +earlier tapes and cute background music as she all the while narrated the video, 
   1.552 +giving an explanation of her feelings and what Sakura meant to her. It was 
   1.553 +certainly the oddest declaration of love that Sakura had ever been witness to, but 
   1.554 +it had definitely been done well. 
   1.555 +But for some reason, the brunette just couldn’t work herself up to be 
   1.556 +surprised. It made sense. Even if she hadn’t really understood a lot of what the 
   1.557 +dark haired girl had said before or some of the hints she had given, this just 
   1.558 +seemed to clear up everything, giving her an insight into her best friend that 
   1.559 +she’d never thought to look for. Of course Tomoyo loved her. In hindsight, it 
   1.560 +was blindingly obvious. Looking back, everything took on a whole new light. 
   1.561 +Things made more sense now. Tomoyo made more sense now. 
   1.562 +And in some ways, Sakura made more sense now. The video had really 
   1.563 +gotten her to think. Every little confession Tomoyo had made, every explanation 
   1.564 +that had drawn Sakura closer to the screen, wanting to know what the pale girl 
   1.565 +was about to say next, had started to confuse her more and more as the video 
   1.566 +went on. But now...  What Tomoyo had explained had sounded so familiar. The 
   1.567 +feelings she had described and the emotions that coursed through her had all felt 
   1.568 +so close to her. As if she understood what Tomoyo had meant. But she couldn’t 
   1.569 +possibly understand, could she? Those feelings weren’t anything like what she 
   1.570 +had felt for Yukito. Yet Tomoyo was most positively in love. So where had 
   1.571 +those feelings, or the memories of those feelings, been to have come unbidden to 
   1.572 +her mind? 
   1.573 +And then, she understood. Just as those stormy blue eyes had conveyed 
   1.574 +the feelings deep within Tomoyo, she knew that she’d felt them everyday 
   1.575 +herself. How far did it go back? How long had she felt this way? She couldn’t 
   1.576 +tell for sure. But those safe, warm feelings had bathed her for quite a while now. 
   1.577 +That soft thrill, the yearning, and the jumbled thoughts. The hot blushes and the 
   1.578 +embarrassing moments. She had felt this way about Tomoyo for a mystifying 
   1.579 +amount of time. She just hadn’t realized it. “Hoe...” 
   1.580 +	Tomoyo had been too close to her. Sakura had never been able to 
   1.581 +understand because those feelings were always there. She had come to take them 
   1.582 +for granted, just as she had taken Tomoyo for granted. As if they’d always be 
   1.583 +there the same way that Tomoyo would always be there. So she had never taken 
   1.584 +the time to actually look at those feelings, to see that Tomoyo was their source. 
   1.585 +That Tomoyo made her happy. Just like what Tomoyo had said. ‘I’ll be happy as 
   1.586 +long as the person I like is happy.’ Those words had comforted her slightly 
   1.587 +when she was trying to get over Yukito. But now she understood the warmth 
   1.588 +behind Tomoyo’s voice when she’d said it. This time she knew what Tomoyo 
   1.589 +had truly meant. “But Tomoyo-chan... You make me happy,” Sakura whispered. 
   1.590 +Her head cocked to the side in thought, she realized that it was true. Tomoyo did 
   1.591 +make her happy. She was the one thing in this world that she always knew could 
   1.592 +make things seem better. 
   1.593 +	She had had these feelings for a long time now. But it took two hours 
   1.594 +tape to make her realize what they were.
   1.595 +
   1.596 +	Closing the door quietly behind her, Sakura’s ‘friend’ was pleased to 
   1.597 +note that Sakura looked to be completely out of it. She was looking off into 
   1.598 +space, deep in thought. With a skillful hop, the girl was on the other side of the 
   1.599 +bed, quickly making her way to the television and the video. Had her mind been 
   1.600 +on the situation at hand rather than on Seira and what could be troubling the 
   1.601 +poor nun girl, she would have scene the cord running from the gaming system to 
   1.602 +the controller. And with her above average reflexes, she probably wouldn’t have 
   1.603 +stumbled and come crashing to the ground with a loud thump. 
   1.604 +	Sakura’s attention shifted to the unexpected girl in her room, cutting 
   1.605 +through her introspection like a knife. “Who are you?” She asked curiously as 
   1.606 +she stood up. Why would anyone from school be over here now? Except... Her 
   1.607 +voice grew shaky as her knees threatened to give out. This was too sudden! She 
   1.608 +had to have a moment to compose herself. “Tomoyo-chan?” she asked 
   1.609 +hesitantly. Sure the girl didn’t seem to have Tomoyo’s usual grace, but everyone 
   1.610 +had their off days. 
   1.611 +	Meimi sweatdropped as she scrambled to her feet. She could already 
   1.612 +hear Asuka Jr.’s footsteps as her ran up the stairs, followed closely by the Inept 
   1.613 +Police Force and Sakura’s big brother. She silently cursed as she glanced around 
   1.614 +hurriedly for the videotape. This wouldn’t be happening if her mind didn’t keep 
   1.615 +wandering elsewhere. She told Seira that they needed to talk. She doubted she’d 
   1.616 +be able to get anything done at this rate. The cold worrying about Seira was 
   1.617 +weighing heavily upon her soul. 
   1.618 +	“Tomoyo-chan,” Sakura started nervously, taking a step forward. In the 
   1.619 +dim room, it was hard to make out any features of the girl ahead of her, the 
   1.620 +oversized hat still shadowing her face. “I... I want you to know that...” To 
   1.621 +Sakura’s embarrassment, Asuka Jr. and the rest of the boys chose that moment 
   1.622 +to bust into her room. Her face turned a bright shade of crimson as her hands 
   1.623 +went to her chest. What had she been about to say anyway? Could she work up 
   1.624 +the strength to say it after they all left again?
   1.625 +	“I know it’s you, Saint Tail! I’m not letting you get away this time,” 
   1.626 +Asuka Jr. stated as he and the others rushed into the room. His eyes never left 
   1.627 +her. He knew what a mistake that could be. He was the leading expert on Saint 
   1.628 +Tail, after all. 
   1.629 +	The girl in the school uniform just grinned at the intruders. Pulling the 
   1.630 +oversized hat to the side, her long pony tail fell out and down her back. With 
   1.631 +another swift movement, the school fuku was gone, replaced by the magician’s 
   1.632 +tuxedo based costume she wore. “One.”
   1.633 +	“Not this time!” The green haired boy thrust himself over the bed, 
   1.634 +slumping on the floor in time to hear the word ‘two’. “I won’t let you escape 
   1.635 +until I know who you are, Saint Tail!” He yelled as he leapt forward. 
   1.636 +	“Three!!” Sakura blossoms flew out of the large hat, starting to whip 
   1.637 +around the room, blinding the group with the onslaught of petals. She had 
   1.638 +thought it appropriate. 
   1.639 +	“Block off all the exits! Don’t let her out of the house!” Asuka Jr. 
   1.640 +yelled as he made his way towards the mysterious thief. He held his blazer over 
   1.641 +his head, trying to block the storm of flower petals. Almost there...
   1.642 +	Sakura vaguely remembered her fight with the Flower Card as all of 
   1.643 +this went on, the whole thing not making much sense, especially after her recent 
   1.644 +revelation. Just what was going on? That girl... She was the one trying to steal 
   1.645 +Tomoyo’s video! Her video! That was only for her!! 
   1.646 +	Meimi hurriedly searched for the video. To her dismay, there were two 
   1.647 +tapes on top of the television. Blinking through the swirl of petals, she saw 
   1.648 +labels on the two. ‘Sakura’s Exhausting Day at the Park’ was half way through 
   1.649 +and the other label was blank. She snagged that one, praying that she had chosen 
   1.650 +the right one. But by then it was too late. As she turned to head for the door, a 
   1.651 +hand gripped her bare arm just above her long gloves. Tightly. 
   1.652 +	“I won’t let you go!” Determination flared in the junior detectives eyes 
   1.653 +as he held tightly to his prize. This was it. He would finally know once and for 
   1.654 +all. He squinted, trying to see through the haze of flowers. She looked so 
   1.655 +familiar. He knew her, he was certain of that. He couldn’t quite make out who. 
   1.656 +His heart skipped a beat as he realized how close he was to finally attaining his 
   1.657 +goal. “I’ve caught you, Saint Tail.” 
   1.658 +	Meimi’s eyes went wide as she froze where she stood. Was this the 
   1.659 +end? Was he finally going to find out who she was? What would he think? What 
   1.660 +would Seira think? What could she do? She looked away, unsure of herself. 
   1.661 +Suddenly this wasn’t a game. It wasn’t just cat and mouse anymore. It was over. 
   1.662 +She couldn’t help but feel like she’d failed Seira. She knew the other girl would 
   1.663 +be fine with whatever happened, but could she even go out as Saint Tail after 
   1.664 +this? No, not if he found out. And she was Saint Tail for Seira. So she could help 
   1.665 +her. No, this wasn’t fair. It couldn’t end now. 
   1.666 +Suddenly, something jostled into Asuka Jr. and, to his sheer horror, he 
   1.667 +lost his grip on the mysterious thief. Mortified, he looked up to see Touya 
   1.668 +blindly stumbling through the raining petals. That moron! How could he ruin 
   1.669 +this!
   1.670 +The grip was gone. It... It wasn’t over, was it? The game was still afoot. 
   1.671 +Her heart began beating again, a smile returning to her lips as she felt warmth 
   1.672 +rush through her previously cold body. Looking up, she saw the tall boy from 
   1.673 +downstairs, fumbling through the flower petals. No, that wasn’t it. He knew full 
   1.674 +well where he was going. He had saved her. She smiled broader before dashing 
   1.675 +towards the door. 
   1.676 +Touya grabbed Asuka Jr.’s arm as he tried to get past him and after the 
   1.677 +mysterious thief. “What the hell’s going on here?” he asked, his eyebrows 
   1.678 +arching. The junior detective still looked like he was suffering from shock. 
   1.679 +Touya hid a smirk. He really didn’t like this kids methods. Too much like the 
   1.680 +brat for his liking. And he didn’t like the idea of the brat with his sister at all. 
   1.681 +Speaking of which, where was Sakura?
   1.682 +
   1.683 +Meimi bolted down the stairs, taking them two at a time as she gauged 
   1.684 +the distance to the door. She was sure that Asuka Jr. was right behind her as he 
   1.685 +often was and every little second counted. In the kitchen, she could dimly hear 
   1.686 +someone with an Osaka dialect and the white haired boy arguing over the last of 
   1.687 +the food. Ignoring it, mysterious thief Saint Tail broke out into the inky black 
   1.688 +night, broken only by tiny pinpricks of light through the velvet. The cool air felt 
   1.689 +refreshing against her skin, the tense moment back in the house getting to her 
   1.690 +much worse than she’d thought. After a brief second, she leapt up onto the 
   1.691 +rooftop, bounding to another one a short distance away. All that was left was to 
   1.692 +return the videotape and return to Seira. All in a night’s work for Kaitou Saint 
   1.693 +Tail. Grinning to herself, she had no idea that she was being watched. 
   1.694 +
   1.695 +Sakura stared in stunned amazement as the magician girl cleared 
   1.696 +another building.  She idly wondered if Tomoyo had felt that same amazement 
   1.697 +at seeing her bounding along rooftops similarly. But that had been a magical 
   1.698 +event. This was more like professional curiosity. After all, she had met her share 
   1.699 +of magical people. Pulling out a Sakura Card, Sakura quickly shouted ‘Release’ 
   1.700 +and used the Jump to catch up, leaping effortlessly along behind the other girl. 
   1.701 +That was her video. And she was going to get it back. 
   1.702 +
   1.703 +Her mind still focussing on the sad looking nun girl, it took Meimi a 
   1.704 +moment to notice that someone was following her. Frowning, she turned to see 
   1.705 +who it was, expecting the young junior detective to be on her trail. To her 
   1.706 +surprise, the younger brunette girl had given chase and was doing a wonderful 
   1.707 +job of keeping pace with her. There weren’t that many people who could. In 
   1.708 +fact, it seemed like the wings on her feet were practically carrying her along. 
   1.709 +“Stop!” Sakura yelled, a Card in her hands in case her call was ignored. 
   1.710 +“I want that videotape back. It’s mine.”
   1.711 +Meimi shook her head, turning around towards the younger girl. “I’m 
   1.712 +afraid it’s not. I was sent here to return it to a girl who had misplaced it. It’s 
   1.713 +really hers.”
   1.714 +Sakura was silent for a moment, biting the inside of her lip. “Misplaced 
   1.715 +it?” Had Tomoyo not meant to give it to her yet? Was she still worried about 
   1.716 +what Sakura would think if she found out? Had she gotten it by accident?
   1.717 +Nodding, the pony tailed girl took a step backwards. Pausing for just a 
   1.718 +second, she took another. “Of course. So it seems that it’s not your tape after all. 
   1.719 +But don’t worry. It will be back in it’s rightful owner’s hands soon enough.”
   1.720 +Sakura sighed. This was still too much for her to take all at once. So if 
   1.721 +Tomoyo hadn’t meant for her to see the tape, if it had been a way for the dark 
   1.722 +haired girl to get out all of that pent up emotion inside, should she just pretend 
   1.723 +she hadn’t seen it? But then she would have to ignore Tomoyo’s feelings as well 
   1.724 +as her own. She couldn’t do that to her friend. Sakura knew that she had to go 
   1.725 +talk to Tomoyo. “So you’re just returning it to Tomoyo-chan?” she asked 
   1.726 +reluctantly.
   1.727 +Meimi nodded again. “And whatever’s on the tape, if it’s that 
   1.728 +important, hopefully she’ll show you someday.” She smiled as she took another 
   1.729 +step. “And if you’re that important to her, I’m sure she will.” The pony tailed 
   1.730 +girl couldn’t help but wonder why Seira was so involved in this mission, but she 
   1.731 +sure hoped things worked out for the two girls.
   1.732 +Sakura blushed a little and smiled. “Hai... I think she will.”
   1.733 +With a quick count, Kaitou Saint Tail disappeared in a swirl of doves. 
   1.734 +
   1.735 +.	Not long after that, Saint Tail managed to sneak into the Daidouji 
   1.736 +mansion. Which was no small feat when compared to the Kinomoto residence. 
   1.737 +There were plenty of well trained guards (all female, curiously enough), and a 
   1.738 +very well placed security system. It took her over an hour to get inside the huge 
   1.739 +place. Moving quietly, she looked around for a good place to leave the tape, 
   1.740 +complete with a cute pink ribbon. 
   1.741 +	“You managed to get it back? Her faith in you is obviously very well 
   1.742 +founded.” Smiling sweetly, the dark haired girl got out of bed, her long 
   1.743 +nightgown trailing just above her feet. In the dim light, she could have easily 
   1.744 +been a ghost, her pale skin sharply contrasted by her dark hair. 
   1.745 +	Kaitou Saint Tail froze. This had never happened before. She wasn’t 
   1.746 +quite sure how to react. “Who? Oh, Seira-chan. But how did you...” She trailed 
   1.747 +off, shaking her head. How did she link her to Seira? It must have been the 
   1.748 +video. Seira had said that God might set things right and now here she was with 
   1.749 +the tape, playing messenger for Him because of Seira. 
   1.750 +	Tomoyo continued to smile that odd smile of hers, her head tilted to the 
   1.751 +side. She held the tape to her chest tightly, glad to know that her confession was 
   1.752 +once again in her hands. She would tell Sakura soon enough. “Arigato 
   1.753 +gozimasu, Meimi-san.”
   1.754 +	“All in a days work for...” Meimi trailed off again, sweatdropping. 
   1.755 +“Wait, what do you mean?”
   1.756 +	Tomoyo just smiled again. “Seira was talking a lot about you. You 
   1.757 +have to be the same girl she was talking about. I think that she needed someone 
   1.758 +to listen just as much as I did. Everyone goes to her with their problems, but no 
   1.759 +one seems to stop and wonder if she has any.” Of course, no one really asked 
   1.760 +her, either aside from her mother, but her mother was often times busy. But 
   1.761 +that’s because she did a good job of pretending to be happy for Sakura’s sake. 
   1.762 +Still, it was nice to have someone to talk to. Which was why she had made the 
   1.763 +videotape in the first place. It was a way of voicing all of the turmoil that the 
   1.764 +feelings inside of her gave rise to.
   1.765 +	“She was? I.. Well, I’m really glad I could help. Seira-chan seemed 
   1.766 +really worried about all of this so if I’ve managed to put it right then maybe that 
   1.767 +will get me a step closer to fixing things with her.”
   1.768 +	“I can see why someone’s in love with you. You’re very sweet and 
   1.769 +caring. A little like someone else I know.” Tomoyo had to force herself not to 
   1.770 +bring up Sakura. She knew that if she did, she wouldn’t be able to quit talking 
   1.771 +about the magnificent Cardmistress for at least half an hour. 
   1.772 +	“Someone?” How much did this strange girl know about her and what 
   1.773 +was going on? How much had Seira told her? Whatever it was, she was very 
   1.774 +perceptive. 
   1.775 +	“I think you know who,” was the simple reply.
   1.776 +	Meimi arched her eyebrows, unsure of what she meant. But before she 
   1.777 +could say anything, the pieces began to coalesce. Why Seira was so involved 
   1.778 +with this, why she related to this dark haired girl, why she’d called Meimi out to 
   1.779 +the church the night before, why she was always willing to do anything for her, 
   1.780 +why seemed to get jealous of Asuka Jr. from time to time, why she threw herself 
   1.781 +into their time together with the whole Saint Tail thing. “Seira...”
   1.782 +	“You should probably get to the church before you keep her waiting for 
   1.783 +too long,” Tomoyo said thoughtfully, ushering the mysterious thief back towards 
   1.784 +the window. “I’m sure she’ll want to know how things turned out. Thank you 
   1.785 +again, Meimi-san. And please tell Seira-san that I’m glad I came to her with my 
   1.786 +problem.”
   1.787 +	Meimi nodded weakly before sliding out the window. 
   1.788 +
   1.789 +	Seira was deep in prayer again, as she had been since Meimi had left 
   1.790 +much earlier that afternoon. It was the only way that she could calm herself 
   1.791 +about the whole situation. She hadn’t felt good at all and this was at least letting 
   1.792 +her get it all out to someone she knew would listen. She didn’t hear Meimi’s 
   1.793 +approach this time, but the arms that slowly went around her from behind, shook 
   1.794 +her out of the near trance-like state that she had been in. 
   1.795 +	“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Meimi asked simply, resting her 
   1.796 +head against Meimi’s back. She could feel the soft rise and fall of Seira’s 
   1.797 +breathing in her arms. 
   1.798 +	“I... I didn’t know how. I didn’t think I could,” Seira explained, a little 
   1.799 +thrown off by what was happening. It couldn’t be what she thought it was. 
   1.800 +	“I’m sorry. I should have noticed sooner, Seira.” Sighing, she let her 
   1.801 +eyes fall closed, still resting against the Sister-in-training. 
   1.802 +	Seira didn’t know what to make out of what was going on. The only 
   1.803 +thing she was fairly certain of was that Meimi knew her dark little secret. She 
   1.804 +blinked back painful tears, shaking her head ever so slightly. “No, I’m the one 
   1.805 +who should be sorry, Meimi-chan. I just couldn’t help it. You don’t understand. 
   1.806 +I couldn’t help but fall in love with you. I.. I know I shouldn’t, but...”
   1.807 +	“Why not?” Meimi asked softly, slowly opening her blue eyes. 
   1.808 +	Pausing for a moment, Seira shook her head in confusion. There were 
   1.809 +plenty of reasons. Because some of the Sisters said it was wrong, even if she 
   1.810 +didn’t believe that. Because she was afraid of losing Meimi. Because she didn’t 
   1.811 +want to hurt the other girl. “Because...”
   1.812 +	“I love you,” Meimi whispered shyly, embarrassed. It was the first time 
   1.813 +she’d uttered those words, and to her best friend at that. But she didn’t care if the 
   1.814 +situation seemed awkward. She was just glad that she understood. 
   1.815 +	Seira’s slightly darker eyes went wide as it ran through her mind. 
   1.816 +“You... Meimi-chan?” She stopped blinking back the tears, several falling down 
   1.817 +her delicate features as she turned around in Meimi’s grasp. “You what?”
   1.818 +	Meimi blushed as she met the other girl’s gaze. “I love you, Seira,” she 
   1.819 +repeated softly. Why was she still crying? What had she done wrong? She had 
   1.820 +searched her heart before coming back here. She knew this was what she 
   1.821 +wanted. But had she made things worse?
   1.822 +	Smiling through the tears, the nun girl wrapped her arms around the 
   1.823 +mysterious thief, holding onto her tightly. “Oh, Meimi-chan... I love you, too!” 
   1.824 +She held on for what seemed like an eternity in the middle of the church, both 
   1.825 +girls huddled together. “I love you,” she whispered again, not wanting to let go. 
   1.826 +It felt so nice to finally hold her, especially after hearing that. 
   1.827 +	Meimi was blushing lightly as she rocked back and forth with the 
   1.828 +slightly smaller girl in her arms. She felt overwhelmed inside. The feelings were 
   1.829 +almost too much for her. But even exhausted as she was, she felt wonderful. 
   1.830 +There was no place she'd rather be. Her blush darkened as Meimi’s eyes closed, 
   1.831 +her lips puckering as she leaned ever so slowly forward. Her own eyes falling 
   1.832 +closed in the face of sheer exhaustion and in such a warm embrace, she gave in 
   1.833 +completely to her friend, meeting those lips in a startlingly enrapturing kiss. The 
   1.834 +waves inside of her heart were no longer crashing, pulling her under in the 
   1.835 +confusion. The sea was finally calm. “I love you,” she heard whispered softly. 
   1.836 +Whether she said it or Seira had, it didn’t really matter as she surrendered 
   1.837 +herself back to the kiss.
   1.838 +	
   1.839 +