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     1.2 +++ b/old/stories/ccs-whatis.txt	Fri Feb 19 20:53:12 2010 -0500
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     1.4 +Author’s notes: Hello! ^-^ I’m sorry this took so long. ^^;; I’d
     1.5 +wanted to write this for a while, so I’m glad to have finally written
     1.6 +it. ^-^ It’s basically a chance for me to show two ideas that have
     1.7 +been on my mind a lot lately. The first is that Tomoyo would love
     1.8 +Sakura no matter what, because her love is so sweet and pure. I think
     1.9 +she’s a lesbian, yes, but I think she would love Sakura even if
    1.10 +Sakura were a boy. Her love isn’t just a trivial thing. And the
    1.11 +second thing is that I think most of Sakura’s denseness about Tomoyo
    1.12 +lies in the fact that she plays into her gender role. Sakura can be
    1.13 +incredibly naïve about things, especially Tomoyo’s feelings for her.
    1.14 +For Sakura, she knows that boys get with girls and girls get with
    1.15 +boys. Because it’s just the way things work. She has no problem with
    1.16 +it when it doesn’t work that way like with Yukito and Touya, but she
    1.17 +doesn’t realize that she could love a girl, hence why she never
    1.18 +realizes Tomoyo’s perfect for her. ^^;; But anyway, I think that
    1.19 +would be different if she were a boy because she would see very early
    1.20 +on that Tomoyo was a potential love interest. Anyway, that’s enough
    1.21 +of my rambling. ^-^;; I’ve been having a lot of trouble lately, so
    1.22 +I’ve been writing this in the meantime. If you have any comments, I
    1.23 +would love to hear them. ^-^ Thank you! Oh, and I modeled the end
    1.24 +after the episodes of the series, right down to the Kero-chan’s
    1.25 +Corner and the Next Episode spot. ^-^;;; I just thought it would be
    1.26 +fun to add. ^-^
    1.27 +
    1.28 +
    1.29 +What is Love
    1.30 +by the Amazoness Duo
    1.31 +amazonessduo@hotmail.com
    1.32 +
    1.33 +
    1.34 +
    1.35 +	Cherry blossoms swirled about above the ground as if dancing to a
    1.36 +tune that only they could hear. A single auburn haired boy moved
    1.37 +along to the silent music as he made his way to school, skating along
    1.38 +gracefully. Skidding in a slow circle, he continued backwards for a
    1.39 +moment. There was something about the morning that made him feel
    1.40 +peaceful inside. School couldn’t dampen his spirits any. How could it
    1.41 +when it meant he’d get to see his friends and play soccer that
    1.42 +afternoon? And, of course, she would be there. A light blush crossed
    1.43 +his cheeks at the thought. He tried to force it away but he couldn’t
    1.44 +help it. “Hanyaan...” he sighed happily to himself. She always made
    1.45 +school worthwhile. She made everything seem worthwhile. Even the
    1.46 +crazy costumes she made him wear. But if it made her happy, he’d
    1.47 +gladly wear whatever she wanted. 
    1.48 +	Smiling to himself, Sakura hurried with renewed determination to
    1.49 +reach school, ignoring his dancing namesake along the way. School was
    1.50 +a much more pleasant experience when a pretty girl was waiting for
    1.51 +you. His hands on the straps of his backpack, Sakura skidded towards
    1.52 +the large gates. “Ohayo, Tomoyo-chan!” Sakura called brightly,
    1.53 +slowing to a stop near his friend. 
    1.54 +	“Ohayo, Sakura-chan!” Tomoyo replied, smiling her trademark smile.
    1.55 +“A perfect arrival, as usual. The girls must all be thrilled with
    1.56 +Sakura-chan’s cute and cool arrival.”
    1.57 +	“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura blushed and rubbed the back of his head,
    1.58 +averting his gaze. Why did she have to say so many embarrassing
    1.59 +things all the time? He should get used to it, but she always managed
    1.60 +to embarrass him anyway. Ignoring that for the moment, he glanced
    1.61 +back at the pale girl to see what hairstyle she had for the day. Her
    1.62 +hair was done up in two highly decorated pigtails, blue ribbons
    1.63 +adorning them. One pigtail fell in front of her while the other lay
    1.64 +draped over her backpack. Absolutely beautiful. Smiling and blushing
    1.65 +faintly, Sakura slowly skated alongside his friend towards the front
    1.66 +doors. 
    1.67 +	“Sakura-chan looks so cute like that,” Tomoyo said with a sigh, a
    1.68 +hand resting on her cheek. “I got some more videotape last night.
    1.69 +Would you mind letting me videotape you some more later?” she asked
    1.70 +eagerly. 
    1.71 +	Sakura sweatdropped at his eccentric friend’s enthusiasm. “Sure, I
    1.72 +guess. But I don’t know why you’d want to videotape me. You should
    1.73 +really videotape something a little more interesting.”
    1.74 +	“But there isn’t anything more interesting or more handsome than
    1.75 +Sakura-chan!” Tomoyo smiled brightly, a slight blush on her cheeks as
    1.76 +she looked off distantly. She could see Sakura looking around in
    1.77 +embarrassment, but that only served to spur her on. He looked so cute
    1.78 +when he was embarrassed. If only she could catch that on video. Oh
    1.79 +well, there was always next time. “I have the cutest costume for you,
    1.80 +too. I can’t wait to see you try it on. My inspiration for this one
    1.81 +was seeing you waving at those penguins at the zoo.” Seeing Sakura
    1.82 +blink in response, Tomoyo continued. “Sakura-chan will make the
    1.83 +cutest penguin.” ‘There,’ the pale girl thought to herself happily as
    1.84 +Sakura shook his arms, his embarrassment growing. Tomoyo simply
    1.85 +sighed delightedly as she continued towards her locker. 
    1.86 +	“Hoe... A penguin?” Sakura sighed in defeat. He had learned long
    1.87 +ago that it was pointless to argue about the costumes. Tomoyo knew
    1.88 +him far too well. The pale girl easily got him to wear whatever she
    1.89 +wanted him to. Besides, he’d worn worse than a penguin costume
    1.90 +before. And at least he wouldn’t be capturing Cards in this one. And
    1.91 +Tomoyo would be the only one to see it, so it wouldn’t be that big a
    1.92 +deal. “When do you want me to come over?” he asked, getting over his
    1.93 +initial shock swiftly.
    1.94 +	“After soccer practice would be nice. You’ll probably be tired
    1.95 +after that, so I’ll call and make sure the limousine’s ready. I
    1.96 +already brought a fresh videotape to catch your soccer game today, so
    1.97 +I’ll record everything on the new tape. From Sakura-chan darting
    1.98 +across the field in his handsome soccer uniform to Sakura playing by
    1.99 +the poolside in his cute penguin costume, I will catch every precious
   1.100 +moment on videotape, and seal it all forever in my heart.” Tomoyo
   1.101 +tilted her head to the side, starry eyed. Today was already turning
   1.102 +out to be a wonderful day. She always loved going to Sakura’s soccer
   1.103 +games. She never really cared what was happening in the game itself.
   1.104 +Her eyes never left the auburn haired boy on the field anyway. It was
   1.105 +just fun to watch him with such determination, running all about. It
   1.106 +was much the same when she got to watch him capture Cards, though
   1.107 +that was even more fun because Sakura got to double as a life-sized
   1.108 +doll to dress up as well. But not only did she get to record his
   1.109 +soccer game, but she would also get to dress him up in her newest
   1.110 +costume. Tomoyo got out her books in a state of bliss. 
   1.111 +	“If you say so, Tomoyo-chan,” Sakura said quickly, a hand behind
   1.112 +his head. Tomoyo had him wrapped around her little finger and he knew
   1.113 +it. But what could he do about it? Not that he wanted to do anything
   1.114 +about it anyway. He was very comfortable this way. Even if Tomoyo did
   1.115 +delight in making him blush. “Oh, good morning, Li-kun!” Sakura waved
   1.116 +brightly to his perpetually scowling rival. He was happy to be
   1.117 +friends with the other boy now, though Syaoran was very difficult to
   1.118 +get close to. The other boy blushed and went the other way in a
   1.119 +hurry. “Hmm... I wonder what’s wrong with Li-kun. I hope he’s not
   1.120 +sick.”
   1.121 +	Giggling next to her naïve friend, Tomoyo smiled sweetly. “Sakura-
   1.122 +chan’s so handsome and cool that even the boys like him,” she
   1.123 +explained, watching her cute friend intently with her lavender eyes.
   1.124 +Sakura simply blinked in confusion at her statement. “Maybe I’ll tell
   1.125 +Sakura-chan when he’s older,” she said reassuringly as she hoisted up
   1.126 +her backpack.
   1.127 +	“Let me get that for you, Tomoyo-chan!” Sakura said quickly after
   1.128 +shaking off his confusion. He took Tomoyo’s backpack, following her
   1.129 +to class. The dark haired girl always looked so fragile, so petite.
   1.130 +So Sakura was happy to carry her bags for her. Tomoyo was like a
   1.131 +beautiful princess, kind and sweet to everyone, especially Sakura.
   1.132 +And princesses shouldn’t have to worry about things like bookbags. 
   1.133 +	“Thank you, Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo said in her pretty, singsong
   1.134 +voice. Walking slowly, she made her way to class. If the athletic boy
   1.135 +noticed her slowed pace, he didn’t say anything. She didn’t want to
   1.136 +miss a moment of his presence. 
   1.137 +
   1.138 +	Pulling on the shirt of his soccer uniform, Sakura looked down at
   1.139 +the gym bag next to him. Inside was a beautifully crafted pink and
   1.140 +violet teddy bear. It was Sakura’s good luck charm. He picked up the
   1.141 +small teddy bear and held it close. It still smelled of lavenders,
   1.142 +just like Tomoyo. Sighing softly, the Master of the Cards closed his
   1.143 +eyes. Tomoyo had given him this lovely gift several weeks ago. He had
   1.144 +taken it with him to every one of his games sense, and kept it with
   1.145 +him in bed every night. He was almost worried that it would start to
   1.146 +get frayed if he kept that up. But he wanted it there with him
   1.147 +wherever he went. It was his most precious gift, something that was
   1.148 +very dear to him. He had treasured it from the instant Tomoyo had
   1.149 +given it to him.
   1.150 +	The myth of the teddy bears kept coming back to Sakura when he
   1.151 +would think about the little teddy bear. He had heard that if you
   1.152 +made a teddy bear and gave it to the person you liked, then if they
   1.153 +named it after you, you would both fall in love. It was a very cute
   1.154 +myth, and something he had heard Tomoyo explain before. So did that
   1.155 +mean this was for that purpose? Just in case, Sakura had immediately
   1.156 +named it after the pale girl. So her little teddy bear, Tomoyo, was
   1.157 +with her whenever her best friend, Tomoyo, couldn’t be. But was their
   1.158 +truth to the myth?
   1.159 +	Sakura had been trying to ask Tomoyo out for the past week. But
   1.160 +every time he wanted to, he lost the nerve. He could talk to Tomoyo
   1.161 +about anything, but seeing her smile so prettily and asking what he
   1.162 +wanted to talk about always made him nervous when he was about to ask
   1.163 +her. What would she say? Did she like him? Well, that one kind of
   1.164 +seemed a given with how she talked about him. Actually, he was pretty
   1.165 +sure of that. And that gave him some courage to ask Tomoyo, but he
   1.166 +still couldn’t quite figure out what to say. She always had such
   1.167 +faith in him. What if it sounded stupid? Or worse, what if he
   1.168 +couldn’t get it out at all? He wanted to tell her how he felt before
   1.169 +someone else did, but he didn’t know how. 
   1.170 +	Sighing, Sakura placed his teddy bear back in his gym bag. Emerald
   1.171 +eyes sparkling determinedly, Sakura hurried towards the field. Tomoyo
   1.172 +would be watching, so he had to try his hardest for her. And then,
   1.173 +tonight, maybe he could tell her that he liked her. Besides, Tomoyo
   1.174 +was always there supporting him. She would help him through it, no
   1.175 +matter how nervous he could get looking into those stormy blue eyes.
   1.176 +Vowing to himself that he would tell Tomoyo that night, he ran the
   1.177 +rest of the way to the soccer field.
   1.178 +
   1.179 +	“Sakura-chan looks so cute!!” Tomoyo squealed delightedly as she
   1.180 +zoomed in on her best friend. Before her stood a forlorn looking
   1.181 +penguin, it’s arms hanging at its sides. Sakura was looking back at
   1.182 +the camcorder, his face a mask of embarrassment. Tomoyo took a few
   1.183 +steps to the side to get another viewpoint. Reaching forward, she put
   1.184 +a finger on Sakura’s lips, drawing them up into a smile. “Much better!”
   1.185 +	“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura mumbled as Tomoyo’s finger pressed near his
   1.186 +lips. How did he let himself get talked into this? Oh yeah, Tomoyo
   1.187 +thought it was a good idea. That was generally all it took for Sakura
   1.188 +to do what Tomoyo wanted. Tomoyo was so nice and sweet that it was
   1.189 +hard not to do what she wanted. And the pale girl’s beautiful smile
   1.190 +more than made up for the discomfort of wearing a penguin costume. As
   1.191 +long as no one at school ever saw this videotape.
   1.192 +	“Mr. Penguin sure has come a long way from the south pole. But I
   1.193 +hope he never has to leave.” Stepping around the embarrassed Sakura,
   1.194 +Tomoyo continued to videotape her friend. “Sakura-chan is such a shy
   1.195 +boy, isn’t he? But I don’t mind. It means he gets to be my model
   1.196 +alone.”
   1.197 +	“Ano.. Tomoyo-chan, was there anything else you wanted me to try on
   1.198 +while I’m here?” Sakura interrupted. Though he wouldn’t admit it
   1.199 +unless Tomoyo prodded him, he did enjoy being Tomoyo’s model. His
   1.200 +mother had been a model for many years. Though he was a lot shyer
   1.201 +than his mother, he did enjoy modeling the pale girl’s outfits for
   1.202 +her. Especially with how thrilled Tomoyo always was to videotape him
   1.203 +in new things. It made him feel special to hear her in such delight.
   1.204 +Tomoyo made him feel special with everything she said and did. 
   1.205 +	Her hand on her chin, Tomoyo stood in thought for a moment. “Well,
   1.206 +there is one more costume that I’ve nearly finished. It wouldn’t take
   1.207 +more than a few minutes to sew on the last bit.” She continued to
   1.208 +scratch her chin thoughtfully as she recorded her cute penguin
   1.209 +attired best friend. 
   1.210 +	“That sounds great. I’ll just change out of this while I wait for
   1.211 +you to finish, Tomoyo-chan,” Sakura said energetically. It would be a
   1.212 +little awkward, he was sure, but it couldn’t be worse than the
   1.213 +penguin costume, adorable as it was. And if it made Tomoyo happy, so
   1.214 +much the better. Besides, he just wanted to do everything he could
   1.215 +for his eccentric friend. His heart swelled as he replayed the words
   1.216 +again and again in his head. ‘Tomoyo-chan, I have something I want to
   1.217 +tell you..’ he began again.
   1.218 +	“All right. Thank you so much, Sakura-chan. I can’t wait to see you
   1.219 +in it! You’ll be so cute, I know it.” Bowing to Sakura, the pale girl
   1.220 +turned and led Sakura back into the house before disappearing into
   1.221 +her room. She was eager to see Sakura in her new costume. It was a
   1.222 +little different from the other ones she had made over the years, but
   1.223 +she had no doubt that Sakura would pull it off perfectly.
   1.224 +Sakura headed to the bathroom where his school uniform was still
   1.225 +waiting. He pulled the shorts on first, glad to be out of the goofy
   1.226 +albeit extremely cute penguin costume. It was nice to be a normal boy
   1.227 +again and not a lost penguin. Smiling, he pulled on his shirt as he
   1.228 +wondered what exotic design Tomoyo’s new design would be. 
   1.229 +
   1.230 +“Kawaii!! Sakura-chan is so pretty! You put all the girls to shame,
   1.231 +Sakura-chan!”
   1.232 +Sakura stared at the videocamera with a mortified look on his face.
   1.233 +He was in a beautiful blue dress with a long white apron, a la Alice
   1.234 +in Wonderland. Long, white stocking ran up his legs, disappearing
   1.235 +under the frilly skirt. He had cute pink ribbons in his hair and
   1.236 +small, pale blue gloves. “To..To..moyo-chan...” he got out weakly,
   1.237 +his face crimson as he finally worked up enough thought to try and
   1.238 +cover himself from the relentless camcorder. Tomoyo simply
   1.239 +sidestepped, getting a good look at his side. 
   1.240 +“I knew you’d make a beautiful girl, Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo said
   1.241 +excitedly, a hand resting on her cheek. “You’re even prettier than
   1.242 +all of the girls at school.” Sighing happily to herself, Tomoyo
   1.243 +reached down and smoothed out the skirt a little more. Her darling
   1.244 +Sakura made a very handsome boy, but he also made a gorgeous girl.
   1.245 +Blushing, Tomoyo stood back up to videotape some more. She wanted to
   1.246 +have plenty of this for later. Sakura was just too cute not to
   1.247 +capture every instant. 
   1.248 +“Do.. Do you really think so?” Sakura asked curiously, turning his
   1.249 +face to watch the pale girl. He blushed deeper when he saw her nod.
   1.250 +It was bizarre, certainly, but he found himself very happy to hear
   1.251 +that she thought he was prettier than the girls at school. It wasn’t
   1.252 +something he had ever thought about before, but it was nice to know
   1.253 +all the same. Especially if Tomoyo thought so. The lavender haired
   1.254 +girl disappeared out of his line of sight after a moment and he
   1.255 +whirled to catch sight of her, the long skirt flowing around him. He
   1.256 +blushed and held it down tightly, not wanting anything to get caught
   1.257 +on videotape. Tomoyo had given him a pair of panties to wear as well,
   1.258 +saying that it was to keep everything authentic. He blushed deeper as
   1.259 +he wondered if they were Tomoyo’s. He shook his head quickly, trying
   1.260 +to concentrate on the moment. But that wasn’t helping either. He was
   1.261 +currently dressed up in girls’ clothes, so thinking about the moment
   1.262 +probably wasn’t the way to go. 
   1.263 +“Of course I do. You’re so beautiful, Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo whispered
   1.264 +gently, brushing Sakura’s bangs away from his eyes. She smiled at
   1.265 +him, no more than a few inches away. He really did look like a girl.
   1.266 +If Tomoyo didn’t know better, she would have been sure he was. Her
   1.267 +mind was already fast at work on other cute designs for her friend.
   1.268 +This little experiment had proven a brilliant success. Sakura was
   1.269 +cute in boys’ clothes and girls’ clothes. It opened up Tomoyo’s
   1.270 +costume designs to as of yet unknown heights. She was already excited
   1.271 +with the possibilities. “You’ll have to let me videotape you wearing
   1.272 +one of my school uniforms sometime,” Tomoyo stated simply, drawing
   1.273 +another dark blush from the boy she loved. He was just so cute.
   1.274 +“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura whined, unable to look away from Tomoyo’s
   1.275 +pretty lavender eyes. There was a small thrill about the whole thing.
   1.276 +Tomoyo obviously seemed to like it. Besides, wasn’t this the whole
   1.277 +reason he dressed up in Tomoyo’s designs anyway, because the dark
   1.278 +haired girl wanted him to? So how was this different from dressing up
   1.279 +as a penguin? Because he wasn’t crossdressing as the penguin! “This
   1.280 +isn’t much like dressing up as a penguin, Tomoyo-chan,” he said weakly.
   1.281 +The heiress looked thoughtful for a moment before smiling. “I never
   1.282 +said if you were a boy penguin or a girl penguin. You could have been
   1.283 +dressed as a girl penguin. In which case, it’s exactly the same
   1.284 +thing, Tomoyo surmised. Sakura simply sweatdropped as her reply.
   1.285 +Tomoyo sighed exquisitely at the beautiful sight before her. “I
   1.286 +always knew you were handsome, Sakura-chan. But you’re also gorgeous.” 
   1.287 +Sakura could only blush deeper in response, finally pulling his eyes
   1.288 +away from Tomoyo as he stared down at stocking clad legs and cute
   1.289 +buckled shoes. He could hear Tomoyo walking around him, videotaping
   1.290 +this whole disturbing event for later viewing. “Could you lay down on
   1.291 +your stomach? If you could lift a leg into the air and place your
   1.292 +chin in your hands when you do, that would be so cute!” she heard
   1.293 +Tomoyo say. Sighing deeply, Sakura went to comply with his best
   1.294 +friend’s request. At least no one would ever see this. His brother
   1.295 +would never let him hear the end of it if he only knew.
   1.296 +
   1.297 +Finally back in his school uniform, Sakura sat on Tomoyo’s bed while
   1.298 +the lavender haired girl busily set about labeling her tape and
   1.299 +finding a spot for it amongst her huge collection of Sakura tapes.
   1.300 +Sakura was a little surprised to see himself all over his friend’s
   1.301 +room. This wasn’t his first time there, but he always found himself
   1.302 +surprised to see more and more of himself up whenever he went. There
   1.303 +were pictures of him all over as well as Tomoyo’s expansive videotape
   1.304 +collection. Her otherwise pristine desk was cluttered in only one
   1.305 +place, on Tomoyo desk with all of her costume designs. And even that
   1.306 +was an organized chaos. Everything seemed in place even as design
   1.307 +after design got stacked up on her desk. Sakura smiled as he saw a
   1.308 +picture of himself and Tomoyo in kimonos next to Tomoyo’s bed.
   1.309 +Tomoyo’s mother, Sonomi, had taken that picture a while back. Sakura
   1.310 +had been worried about how it would turn out, but Tomoyo had told him
   1.311 +that he was always cute so he shouldn’t worry about it. Turning to
   1.312 +look for his eccentric best friend, he could spy her kneeling before
   1.313 +her videotape collection, looking for the spot for her newest tape.
   1.314 +Tomoyo really was beautiful. Everything about her was so graceful,
   1.315 +almost as if it were all planned out. The pale girl looked so
   1.316 +delicate, her long lavender hair flowing behind her in those
   1.317 +beautiful pigtails. Sakura felt happy to be able to spend this time
   1.318 +with his friend. 
   1.319 +“When do you have to be home, Sakura-chan?” Tomoyo asked curiously
   1.320 +as she stood up and walked back towards the auburn haired boy. She
   1.321 +had known he was watching her, but hadn’t wanted to embarrass him
   1.322 +about it. And she was thrilled to have his eyes on her. She was
   1.323 +always happy to have his attention. 
   1.324 +“Probably pretty soon. It’s my night to cook because onii-chan has
   1.325 +to work.” Sakura sighed, his hands behind his head. He didn’t want to
   1.326 +go home. Staying with Tomoyo sounded infinitely better than making
   1.327 +dinner.
   1.328 +“I’ll make sure the limousine can take you back home, then. You ran
   1.329 +so hard at soccer that I’m surprised you can move at all anymore.”
   1.330 +Tomoyo smiled at her weary best friend, rubbing his shoulders gently.
   1.331 +Sakura blushed at Tomoyo’s touch, looking around the large room.
   1.332 +“Un, but I wanted to play my best because you were watching me. I
   1.333 +wanted it to be a good game for you.” Fidgeting a bit, Sakura looked
   1.334 +down at his shoe, trying to concentrate on anything other than the
   1.335 +girl behind him.
   1.336 +“You played really well, Sakura-chan. But I like watching all of
   1.337 +your games, even when you’re distracted,” Tomoyo chirped up brightly.
   1.338 +“You’re always so cute out there on the field, kicking the ball
   1.339 +around everywhere. I love watching you.” A soft sigh drifted to the
   1.340 +auburn haired boy’s ear as Tomoyo continued rubbing his shoulders. 
   1.341 +“Tomoyo-chan, there’s something I’ve been wanting to say for a
   1.342 +while,” Sakura got out nervously, finally getting himself to look up.
   1.343 +He turned to face Tomoyo, looking into her sparkling blue eyes. “I..
   1.344 +You’ve always been my best friend and.. It’s always so nice when
   1.345 +you..” Sakura bit his lip, trying to decide what to say. It had all
   1.346 +sounded so much easier in his thoughts on the drive up. 
   1.347 +Tomoyo tilted her head to the side thoughtfully as she watched
   1.348 +Sakura struggling. Her heart fluttered in her chest like a cloud of
   1.349 +butterflies as she slowly realized what Sakura was trying to say.
   1.350 +“Yes, Sakura-chan?” she asked helpfully. “You know you can tell me
   1.351 +anything.” ‘And if you want to tell me what I think you do, then
   1.352 +there is absolutely nothing for you to fear because I love you with
   1.353 +all of my heart.’
   1.354 +“I really, really like you, Tomoyo-chan,” Sakura got out at last,
   1.355 +his cheeks flushing as he looked at her. It took all of his will to
   1.356 +keep from averting his gaze. “More than anything or anyone. I’m just
   1.357 +so happy when I’m with you. I always feel so.. hanyaan. And I’ve been
   1.358 +thinking a lot since you gave me the teddy bear and all and I was
   1.359 +hoping that you might feel the same way and..” Sakura finally paused
   1.360 +to take a breath. “Will you go out with me, Tomoyo-chan?” His heart
   1.361 +froze as he waited for a reply. His reply came in the form of
   1.362 +Tomoyo’s arms wrapping tightly around him. A slow smile spread across
   1.363 +his face as he relaxed against the lavender haired girl.
   1.364 +“I would love to go out with you, Sakura-chan! More than anything
   1.365 +else in the world. Of course I like you. I always have. I’ve always
   1.366 +loved you, Sakura-chan.” Tomoyo’s heart nearly burst with the love
   1.367 +that wanted to escape to Sakura at the auburn haired boy’s lovely
   1.368 +words. She hugged him tightly, sighing. It was like the most
   1.369 +beautiful dream imaginable come true. She had hoped that she might be
   1.370 +Sakura’s special someone, that she might be the one to make him
   1.371 +happy. And now that he had spoken it, she felt deliriously happy, as
   1.372 +if she had been placed directly in the path of a tornado. It swept
   1.373 +her up with rapid and intense force, throwing her around in its
   1.374 +strength and ferocity. “Oh, Sakura-chan..” Tomoyo whispered
   1.375 +delightedly. 
   1.376 +“Tomoyo-chan.. Arigato gozimasu!” Sakura stood up quickly, smiling
   1.377 +brightly. “I’ll try to come up with some place nice to take you, I
   1.378 +promise,” he said, bowing.
   1.379 +“I’ll be happy to go anywhere with you,” Tomoyo responded with her
   1.380 +trademark smile. 
   1.381 +Sakura blushed and nodded quickly. “Un.. I’ll see you tomorrow,
   1.382 +Tomoyo-chan! Thank you!!” He hugged the pale girl again, fighting the
   1.383 +urge to stay that way when Tomoyo’s hands began stroking his back
   1.384 +warmly. But he knew if he stayed he would never be home in time to
   1.385 +finish dinner. And he was had to find the perfect place to take
   1.386 +Tomoyo on their date. Determination glinting in his eyes, he smiled
   1.387 +to Tomoyo before heading to the door. “Bye, Tomoyo-chan!!”
   1.388 +“Goodnight, Sakura-chan!” Tomoyo waved to the athletic boy as he
   1.389 +hurried out her door. Sighing deliciously, Tomoyo collapsed on her
   1.390 +bed. Sakura had asked her out. He had finally asked her out. Her one,
   1.391 +true love liked her. Life was, indeed, full of very pleasant
   1.392 +surprises, especially when Sakura was involved. “Hanyaan,” she
   1.393 +whispered, taking a cue from Sakura. 
   1.394 +
   1.395 +“He really is cute in a dress,” Sonomi admitted, tilting her head to
   1.396 +the side. “He doesn’t look much like Nadeshiko-chan, but those eyes
   1.397 +are so much like hers. You can tell he’s her daughter. I mean, her
   1.398 +son.” The elder Daidouji woman shook her head as she sat with her
   1.399 +daughter, watching the younger girl’s latest tape. Sonomi often
   1.400 +enjoyed watching them with Tomoyo, thrilled to get a glimpse of
   1.401 +Nadeshiko’s youngest son. Nadeshiko’s curious eccentricities even
   1.402 +showed through in her son’s strange name. And aside from getting
   1.403 +glimpses of Nadeshiko’s child, it was the perfect time to spend
   1.404 +together with her own daughter. 
   1.405 +“Hai, very cute. I want to see if he’ll let me videotape him in my
   1.406 +school uniform,” Tomoyo commented, brushing back some dark hair from
   1.407 +her eyes. She was still in a daze about earlier, but she had been
   1.408 +eager to show her latest video to her mother. She was certain Sonomi
   1.409 +would enjoy it the same way she did. “He makes a very cute girl.” Her
   1.410 +hand went to her chin thoughtfully. “He makes a very cute girl and a
   1.411 +very cute boy. Sakura-chan is cute no matter which gender he is.”
   1.412 +Sonomi laughed softly as she watched the camera angle change. “I’d
   1.413 +have to say he’s a little cuter as a girl. If he wasn’t standing so
   1.414 +awkwardly it would be impossible to tell. Maybe you can make him
   1.415 +dress that way after you start dating. And I think it would be
   1.416 +adorable if you can videotape him in your school uniform. You’ll have
   1.417 +to show me that tape as soon as you get it.”
   1.418 +“Hai, okaa-sama. I hope I can get it soon myself. And it would be
   1.419 +cute if he’d let me dress him like that on our dates. But I’ll
   1.420 +probably have to wait a little while before he will. Sakura-chan can
   1.421 +be so shy, so I want to wait a little while. I’m just so happy to be
   1.422 +dating him in the first place. He’s so perfect. I love him so much.”
   1.423 +Watching her lovesick daughter, Sonomi smiled. She was happy to see
   1.424 +Tomoyo in love. It reminded her so much of when she had been younger
   1.425 +with her cousin, Sakura’s mother, Nadeshiko. And seeing her daughter
   1.426 +so excited did her heart good. Her daughter’s happiness was one of
   1.427 +the most important things to her. It was so nice to see her about to
   1.428 +start dating. And Nadeshiko’s son, no less. It was almost like Fate
   1.429 +had arranged the whole thing. So maybe Sonomi could stop hating Fate
   1.430 +so much. Maybe just a little bit. “I know, dear. I know.” Sonomi
   1.431 +pulled Tomoyo to her side, feeling Tomoyo’s heart beating swiftly.
   1.432 +Bending down, she kissed her daughter’s forehead, resting her head on
   1.433 +Tomoyo’s as she went back to watching the tape. 
   1.434 +
   1.435 +“Hoe...” Pacing the length of his room, Sakura nearly walked
   1.436 +directly into the wall. Reeling back, the startled boy’s shoulders
   1.437 +slumped and a sigh escaped him. His thoughts were moving along the
   1.438 +same lines as his body, moving all around but getting nowhere but
   1.439 +dead ends. Flopping down on his bed, the auburn haired boy stared up
   1.440 +at the rood. He’d been struggling with his thoughts for the past two
   1.441 +hours. Giddiness still burst through him whenever he thought back to
   1.442 +the fact that his angelic best friend had agreed to go out with him.
   1.443 +But that only strengthened his determination to find the perfect
   1.444 +place to take her. But where? What could be perfect for a date with
   1.445 +such a perfect girl? ‘I’ll be happy to go anywhere with you,’ Tomoyo
   1.446 +had said. And Sakura didn’t doubt the eccentric heiress for a moment.
   1.447 +But he couldn’t let that stop him from finding out where to take his
   1.448 +new girlfriend.  Clenching his fists and narrowing his vision, Sakura
   1.449 +got back to work.
   1.450 +“This is too hard! I can’t think of anything. Tomoyo-chan is so much
   1.451 +better at these things than I am,” Sakura lamented just a short time
   1.452 +later. And it was true. Tomoyo was usually the one to invite him
   1.453 +places or the one who could figure out difficult details such as the
   1.454 +one Sakura found himself pondering. He knew that she could think up
   1.455 +someplace for the two of them to go. But that was his job, wasn’t it?
   1.456 +Or was it? The lavender haired girl always did such a better job at
   1.457 +figuring these kinds of things out, even if it did get him in some
   1.458 +awkward situations like the penguin fiasco earlier. But still... He
   1.459 +had asked her out. He should come up with where he was going to take
   1.460 +her. He couldn’t exactly call her up and ask her to decide for him. 
   1.461 +Rolling onto his stomach, Sakura hugged his pillow, his legs moving
   1.462 +absentmindedly in the air. A movie? No, that didn’t sound good. How
   1.463 +often did they really go to movies anyway? Dinner? Where would they
   1.464 +go? Touya might know a few good places with how often he worked at
   1.465 +restaurants, but Sakura doubted he had the money to afford anything
   1.466 +really nice. A picnic in the park? But they already did that all the
   1.467 +time. What would be special about that? Only... It always felt
   1.468 +special when they would go together, just the two of them. They would
   1.469 +sit and talk for hours, watching the beautiful world around them and
   1.470 +just enjoying each other’s company. And Tomoyo was so sweet and
   1.471 +gentle. She would listen carefully to everything Sakura had to say,
   1.472 +always helpful with whatever was on his mind. And she always said the
   1.473 +nicest things, even if they were embarrassing. 
   1.474 +“I said, ‘What’s too hard?’. You know I can figure it out, whatever
   1.475 +it is. I’m good at these things,” Kero stated confidently as he
   1.476 +floated down onto Sakura’s bed, his arms crossed. “C’mon, Sakura-
   1.477 +chan. You can tell me.”
   1.478 +Sweatdropping, Sakura looked back at the Seal Beast curiously. Is
   1.479 +help generally wasn’t as helpful as Tomoyo’s. What he lacked in
   1.480 +genuine helpfulness, he sure made up for with self-confidence. “I’m
   1.481 +trying to decide where to take Tomoyo-chan on our date,” he said
   1.482 +quickly, his cheeks reddening as he buried his face into her pillow. 
   1.483 +“Huh? I have no idea how you can make Tomoyo-chan late. Hmm...” The
   1.484 +Seal Beast contemplated Sakura’s muffled concerns, scratching his
   1.485 +chin with one tiny paw. “You could always steal her shoes. Or lock
   1.486 +her in a broom closet. Or I could distract her. Depends what you need
   1.487 +her late for.”
   1.488 +“Date! Date!! I need to decide where to take Tomoyo-chan on our
   1.489 +date!” Sakura repeated, sitting up and hoisting the pillow above his
   1.490 +head in case the floating teddy bear decided to joke about the
   1.491 +situation. His cheeks darkened considerably as he saw the sly grin
   1.492 +spread across Kero’s face. 
   1.493 +“Date, you say? Well, if there’s one thing the mighty Cereberus
   1.494 +knows, it’s a thing or two about love. Just listen to me and you’ll
   1.495 +be reaching first, second, and third base in no time! Hell, with my
   1.496 +advice, you’ll be hitting field goals and scoring bogeys!” Kero
   1.497 +grinned as he walked up to Sakura, nudging him in the side. The
   1.498 +Cardmaster had no idea what Kero was talking about, but his blush
   1.499 +worsened nonetheless. “Boy, have you come to the right place. Because
   1.500 +I’m not only the Beast of the Seal, I’m the Beast of Love.” His tiny
   1.501 +eyebrows raised up and down suggestively as he looked up at the green
   1.502 +eyed boy.
   1.503 +Before Sakura could respond to Kero’s delusions of grandeur, the
   1.504 +door burst open. Touya looked into the room, spotting Sakura on the
   1.505 +bed. Kero collapsed by Sakura’s side, lying lifeless in the hopes
   1.506 +that Sakura’s older brother hadn’t heard them talking. “Umm... Hi,
   1.507 +onii-chan. What’s wrong? If this is about the dishes, it’s your day.
   1.508 +I checked.” He smiled, pulling Kero onto his lap as he waited for his
   1.509 +older brother to either agree or make some outrageous claim about it
   1.510 +being Sakura’s day for the dishes. But he’d glanced at the schedule
   1.511 +and he was sure. Reasonably sure, at any rate.
   1.512 +Touya closed the door behind him after he entered the room. He paced
   1.513 +back and forth for a moment as if trying to decide what to say. He
   1.514 +finally sat on the bed and stared at his younger brother fixedly for
   1.515 +a long moment. Sakura returned his gaze uneasily for a bit before
   1.516 +looking away. “So you’re going on a date?”
   1.517 +Sakura’s face immediately darkened once more at Touya’s question. It
   1.518 +sounded more like an accusation than a question at the moment. He
   1.519 +looked around, his cheeks flushed as he tried to think of a suitable
   1.520 +answer. Finally giving up that venue, Sakura nodded in agreement. He
   1.521 +needed to remember not to talk so loud with Kero when Touya was home.
   1.522 +“With Tomoyo-chan?”
   1.523 +Again Sakura nodded, feeling more and more embarrassed as time went
   1.524 +by. What did Touya want? Was he there to tease him about it? Why did
   1.525 +he care who his younger brother was dating? 
   1.526 +“I thought so. It’s obvious she likes you. I was waiting for you to
   1.527 +get the hint,” Touya said matter-of-factly. He watched in amusement
   1.528 +as Sakura’s embarrassment quickly changed to a frown, his younger
   1.529 +brother squeezing the stuffed animal in his arms tightly.
   1.530 +“I’m not that dense. I’ve known it for a while. She did give me that
   1.531 +teddy bear and all,” Sakura argued, squeezing poor Kero in his
   1.532 +frustration. His brother always got him riled up like this. Oh, if he
   1.533 +was only taller than him...
   1.534 +“Sure...” Touya said unconvincingly, raising an eyebrow. He knew how
   1.535 +dense his little brother could be at times. It was a surprise that he
   1.536 +ever figured it out. But that wasn’t the point at the moment.
   1.537 +“Doesn’t matter. You finally figured it out. I’m proud of you,
   1.538 +monsters. And you asked her out at that? So you’re ready to go on
   1.539 +your first date?” Despite his usual arguments with Sakura, he really
   1.540 +did care for his little brother’s well being. He just showed it in an
   1.541 +odd way at times. And since his father wasn’t here to offer Sakura
   1.542 +some friendly dating advice, he would have to fill in. At Sakura’s
   1.543 +quick nods, Touya continued. “So you don’t know where to take her?”
   1.544 +Again, a nod. “Here.” The older boy tossed a paper to Sakura, the
   1.545 +auburn haired boy immediately picking it up. “It’s a festival. Tomoyo-
   1.546 +chan probably would’ve invited you there in a few days anyway. She
   1.547 +always does. Why not make it a date? Besides, she’ll look cute all
   1.548 +dressed up in a yukata, so you might as well have an excuse for
   1.549 +whatever you wind up doing with her behind the trees.” Touya smirked
   1.550 +before pain shot through his leg. Sakura’s foot remained planted
   1.551 +against his leg where he had kicked him. 
   1.552 +“Onii-chan...” Sakura growled, his eyes narrowed. Touya’s eyes
   1.553 +narrowed as well as the two brothers stared each other down, one
   1.554 +being considerably taller than the other. But Sakura either didn’t
   1.555 +notice or didn’t care. Just as quickly as his ire had appeared, it
   1.556 +faded away as Sakura took another glance at the flier. “That might be
   1.557 +a good idea. It would be fun. And it would be a nice place to take
   1.558 +Tomoyo-chan. Maybe I can win her a prize or something, too.”
   1.559 +“Yeah, you never know. Yuki and I already planned on going, so I
   1.560 +figured the two of you would probably be there as well. And it works
   1.561 +well enough. Maybe if you’re busy making eyes at Tomoyo, you’ll stop
   1.562 +making them at Yuki,” Touya reasoned, his head tilted to the side for
   1.563 +a moment. He grinned as Sakura crossed his arms, fuming.
   1.564 +“It’s not like that! Yukito-san’s just... Ohhh!! Onii-chan!!” Sakura
   1.565 +humphed and stared at his older brother again. He didn’t know why his
   1.566 +older brother always teased him about Yukito. The older boy was very
   1.567 +nice, much nicer than his older brother, and it was fun to be around
   1.568 +him. Not unlike Tomoyo, in fact. But it wasn’t the exact same thing.
   1.569 +Aside from Yukito being a boy, he didn’t have that same feeling of
   1.570 +love and warmth that encompassed Sakura whenever he was with Tomoyo.
   1.571 +But it was pointless explaining it all to Touya, especially when he
   1.572 +was too embarrassed about the whole thing to come up with a good
   1.573 +argument. 
   1.574 +Putting an arm around his younger brother, Touya drew the younger
   1.575 +boy closer. “All right, you better listen up, Sakura-chan. There are
   1.576 +some things you need to know before your date.”
   1.577 +Sweatdropping, Sakura wondered if he would’ve been better off with
   1.578 +Kero’s talk. 
   1.579 +
   1.580 +Licking his dry lips, Sakura slowly reached out for the doorknob.
   1.581 +His hand shook lightly as he grasped the doorknob, his palms sweaty.
   1.582 +His brows furrowed as he tried to concentrate, to push off the
   1.583 +nervousness that toyed with him. This was his first date. He was
   1.584 +about to go out with his best friend. What would change after this?
   1.585 +What would happen? Well, only one way to find out, right? Steeling
   1.586 +himself, Sakura opened the door. The sight that awaited him took his
   1.587 +breath away. “Tomoyo-chan...” he whispered, catching eye of the pale
   1.588 +beauty before him. “You’re... gorgeous...” Emerald eyes studied the
   1.589 +stunning figure before him. Beautiful pale skin looked to have an
   1.590 +ethereal glow all it’s own wherever it peaked out of the yukata, both
   1.591 +at Tomoyo’s arms and her pretty face. Her long, lavender hair was
   1.592 +done up in elegant braids, spilling down her back. Shimmering stormy
   1.593 +blue eyes shined luminously. Her small body shifted gracefully as the
   1.594 +angelic girl bowed before Sakura. Her long hair pooled to one side
   1.595 +before she stood back up, the precious silken strands falling back
   1.596 +into place. 
   1.597 +“Thank you very much, Sakura-chan. You look very handsome. I wish I
   1.598 +had my camcorder with me.” One of Tomoyo’s pale hands went to her
   1.599 +flushed cheeks as she sighed, watching Sakura intently. She had
   1.600 +struggled with the decision of whether or not to take the camcorder
   1.601 +with her for the past few days but had finally decided against it.
   1.602 +She immediately regretted it upon seeing her prince all dressed up in
   1.603 +a yukata. What a darling picture it would have made!
   1.604 +“You look just like mother,” Touya said after a moment’s pause. He
   1.605 +had come to the door to wish the two a goodnight as he waited for
   1.606 +Yukito to arrive, but had been astonished by the figure at the door.
   1.607 +It was like one of the pictures of his mother from long ago brought
   1.608 +to life. He had originally thought it was his mother’s spirit
   1.609 +visiting them again, but only the stormy blue eyes had given away the
   1.610 +figure’s true identity. 
   1.611 +Sakura was about to protest his brother’s statement, but he had to
   1.612 +admit that Tomoyo certainly looked similar to the photos he had seen.
   1.613 +He couldn’t remember his mother well, as she had died when he had
   1.614 +only been three years old, but Tomoyo had the same captivating
   1.615 +appeal, the same delicate beauty. “Hai...” Sakura shook himself out
   1.616 +of his trance quickly, noticing the odd way Touya was staring at
   1.617 +Tomoyo. Taking Tomoyo’s hand quickly, Sakura stared at her brother
   1.618 +before stepping outside with her. “Bye, onii-chan!” he said quickly.
   1.619 +He didn’t want to share Tomoyo with anyone tonight, not even for
   1.620 +glimpses of their mother. He wanted to be alone with her on this
   1.621 +special night of theirs. He smiled softly at the beautiful girl in
   1.622 +front of him, nearly melting at the pretty smile she granted him in
   1.623 +return. “Tomoyo-chan.” It took him a long moment to realize he was
   1.624 +staring again. Looking down sheepishly, he rubbed the back of his
   1.625 +head. “We should probably get going now, huh?”
   1.626 +“If that’s what Sakura-chan wants to do,” Tomoyo replied, soft
   1.627 +fingers entwining with the auburn haired boy’s. He was so cute. And
   1.628 +the way he had looked at her sent a trill through Tomoyo’s heart. A
   1.629 +date with Sakura. It was finally happening. The heiress had to
   1.630 +struggle to remain in the here and now, already thinking about things
   1.631 +like marriage and children and mountain sized piles of videotape. But
   1.632 +even with the sweet little secrets the future hinted at, the present
   1.633 +was a very pleasant place to be. It was right with Sakura, right
   1.634 +where she always wanted to be. 
   1.635 +Sakura nodded quickly, his cheeks still tinted pink. “Yeah, we’ll
   1.636 +just go.” He laughed a little nervously, but it slowly began to fade
   1.637 +away as Tomoyo nodded her agreement, still holding his hand. He
   1.638 +smiled happily at his best friend, for once feeling the genuine
   1.639 +elation of the night in full without the worrisome nervousness that
   1.640 +had accompanied so much of the past several days. The two slowly
   1.641 +began walking, leaving the limousine that had dropped Tomoyo off at
   1.642 +Sakura’s house as well as Tomoyo’s bodyguards far behind. Sakura was
   1.643 +surprised at how easy this all felt. He had thought that this would
   1.644 +be such a difficult thing, being on a date with Tomoyo. But it was
   1.645 +still Tomoyo. He still felt comfortable with her, happy and warm.
   1.646 +Things had changed only subtly. He saw Tomoyo in a new light, not
   1.647 +just as his kindly best friend, but as his beautiful angel. Yes, they
   1.648 +were on a date. But that really wasn’t all that different from what
   1.649 +they had been doing all of these years. The only difference was that
   1.650 +now Sakura knew where his heart lay. And it was an intoxicating
   1.651 +experience. He could feel Tomoyo’s love for what it was rather than
   1.652 +the curious thing he had wondered about for so long. And his own
   1.653 +heart reveled under the attention, blooming like a lovely flower
   1.654 +under its tender yet deep touch. It all gave so many new layers to
   1.655 +just being with Tomoyo, all of them exciting for the master of the
   1.656 +Cards.
   1.657 +Tomoyo once again bemoaned her lack of a camcorder as she watched
   1.658 +Sakura out of the corner of her eye. Her free hand rested on her
   1.659 +cheek as she sighed joyously. Had she died? Was she dreaming? Or was
   1.660 +this a taste of heaven? If it was, Tomoyo could think of no better
   1.661 +way to spend eternity than with the boy who had so effortlessly
   1.662 +captured her heart. She would have to personally thank whatever God
   1.663 +or Goddess reigned over this world for crafting such a lovely soul as
   1.664 +her darling Sakura. Usually content simply with recording Sakura’s
   1.665 +life, Tomoyo found herself exhilarated at the prospect of actually
   1.666 +sharing in it, tasting it so closely rather than from behind the
   1.667 +camera. It was new and uncharted territory, something that existed
   1.668 +only in her dreams up till now. But with Sakura gently leading her,
   1.669 +she had no fear as she stepped out hand in hand with her love into
   1.670 +the movie of Sakura’s life. Not being born with magic, the lavender
   1.671 +haired girl couldn’t sense it the way her best friend could. But she
   1.672 +felt a different magic as they continued along, one that immersed her
   1.673 +heart and soul deeper than any other form of magic ever could. Like
   1.674 +an entire ocean, it swelled and encompassed her, holding her tightly
   1.675 +in its depths. It was almost too much, an emotional overload of pure,
   1.676 +unadulterated joy. Tomoyo felt as if she were drowning in it, her
   1.677 +heart nearly ready to burst. Smiling a sparkling, genuine smile,
   1.678 +Tomoyo rested her head on Sakura’s shoulder, her long braids draping
   1.679 +down across the two of them. 
   1.680 +Blushing faintly, Sakura continued along towards the festival, his
   1.681 +mind going blank. Tomoyo’s long, dark hair lay across his shoulder
   1.682 +and down the left side of his back, swaying gently as they moved. The
   1.683 +heiress’s cute head was resting pleasantly on his shoulder,
   1.684 +distracting him. The two walked along, hand in hand in a much closer
   1.685 +proximity that they usually did. The poor auburn hair kept blushing
   1.686 +as he tried to get a handle on his thoughts. It certainly felt nice
   1.687 +to have Tomoyo so close, to have his best friend so near. He could
   1.688 +hear his heartbeat ringing in his ears, almost frightening him that
   1.689 +it would give away his nervousness. But even faced with such a new
   1.690 +and potentially terrifying situation, Sakura could still feel
   1.691 +Tomoyo’s effusive love wrapping like silk ribbons around his heart,
   1.692 +binding his soul as thoroughly as he himself bound the Cards. It
   1.693 +was... wonderful. Having Tomoyo so close was a new experience, but it
   1.694 +was a beautiful one. The heiress felt so soft and delicate next to
   1.695 +him. ‘I knew Sakura-chan would come and save me,’ Tomoyo had once
   1.696 +said. ‘Of course I would. I’d always have to save my Tomoyo-chan. I
   1.697 +can’t ever let anything bad happen to her,’ Sakura thought to
   1.698 +himself. ‘Besides, if I didn’t, Sonomi-sama would kill me.’ He
   1.699 +sweatdropped at the latter, remembering Tomoyo’s mother’s phone call
   1.700 +the night before. Sakura had lost track of how many times he had
   1.701 +promised to look after Tomoyo for the elder of the Daidouji women. 
   1.702 +Almost too soon, the young lovers finally came across the festival.
   1.703 +Lights sparkled brightly against the dark backdrop of the darkening
   1.704 +night as elegantly dressed boys and girls hurried about, playing
   1.705 +games and enjoying themselves about the festival grounds. It was
   1.706 +something the two had gone to often enough before, but never under
   1.707 +the context of a date. It left Sakura with a puzzled feeling of where
   1.708 +to begin and what to do. Tomoyo simply smiled at Sakura’s curious
   1.709 +look, squeezing his hand gently with her soft fingers. That lessened
   1.710 +the genki boy’s nerves as he returned her smile. People moved past
   1.711 +the cute couple like a busy stream, flowing past them on all sides.
   1.712 +Sakura pulled Tomoyo closer as people swept past, trying not to get
   1.713 +pulled along in the current. Still trying to decide where to go,
   1.714 +Sakura’s jade eyes fell upon a booth selling food. His stomach seemed
   1.715 +to think it was a great idea. While nowhere near as bad as the
   1.716 +perpetually hungry Kero and Yukito, Sakura had forsaken eating
   1.717 +earlier when his nervous stomach had refused to hold anything. But
   1.718 +now that he was finally with Tomoyo, his stomach reawakened. “Would
   1.719 +you like something to eat?” Sakura asked, turning to the dark haired
   1.720 +girl. 
   1.721 +The petite girl shook her head prettily, her dark hair moving back
   1.722 +and forth as she did. She wasn’t hungry herself, but she could
   1.723 +practically hear Sakura’s stomach even above the cacophony of the
   1.724 +festival. “No, that’s all right, Sakura-chan. I’m not very hungry.
   1.725 +What would you like to eat?” She followed emerald eyes to one of the
   1.726 +stands and slowly began towards it when a small gap in the large
   1.727 +crowd formed. The two waited, pressed tightly together as other
   1.728 +people continued to line up at the delicious smell wafting out from
   1.729 +the stand. Tomoyo brushed back lavender hair from her eyes with her
   1.730 +free hand to get a better look of her companion. Stormy blue eyes
   1.731 +watched the energetic auburn haired boy as he looked around
   1.732 +curiously. The heiress sighed happily, taking Sakura’s hand with both
   1.733 +of her own. Her fingers trailed over their entwined fingers, enjoying
   1.734 +the soft skin under her touch. He was so cute. There was something
   1.735 +almost feminine about him, which the heiress found very adorable.
   1.736 +Tomoyo loved to watch him, as evidenced by her collection of
   1.737 +videotape. She loved everything about the overemotional boy and
   1.738 +wanted to capture it all on film. As Sakura finally got the food he’d
   1.739 +been waiting for, the two began to move along through the beautiful
   1.740 +festival grounds. Sakura looked around at the well decorated
   1.741 +surroundings while Tomoyo’s attention remained solely captive of the
   1.742 +green eyed boy. After all, she thought to herself, he was far more
   1.743 +fascinating than the most amazing festival. 
   1.744 +Nibbling on the meat bun he had bought, Sakura walked hand in hand
   1.745 +with Tomoyo past the different festivities. His mind wandered as they
   1.746 +walked. He could remember some exciting things that had happened at
   1.747 +festivals in his life, but this was completely different. It seemed
   1.748 +that important things often happened at them, several Clow Cards
   1.749 +having shown up nearby over the time he had been capturing them.
   1.750 +Throughout it all, Tomoyo had been his constant companion and
   1.751 +confidante, helping him and videotaping him and outfitting him with
   1.752 +the cutest and most ridiculous looking costumes imaginable. And here
   1.753 +they were once more. But this wasn’t exactly the same thing as it had
   1.754 +once been. He felt a warm glow inside of himself at the thought. No,
   1.755 +this wasn’t the same old thing at all. He felt overwhelmed by the
   1.756 +moment, by his beautiful best friend holding his hand. He felt energy
   1.757 +welling up inside with nowhere to go. He felt so happy to be there
   1.758 +with her. Squeezing Tomoyo’s hand tightly, Sakura grinned at the pale
   1.759 +girl. All of the concern he’d had about this night felt completely
   1.760 +worth it if only for that single moment. “Tomoyo-chan, I...” Sakura
   1.761 +began, unsure of exactly what he wanted to say, but knowing he needed
   1.762 +to do something before his heart burst. 
   1.763 +“Hi, Sakura-chan! Tomoyo-chan!” Chiharu called out to the two,
   1.764 +Yamazaki in tow. She waved to the two as she approached, glad to see
   1.765 +someone that she recognized amongst the sea of people. “How are you
   1.766 +doing?” she asked as they came to a stop in front of them. 
   1.767 +“Hi, Chiharu-chan!” Sakura intoned happily. “We’re fine. We’re just
   1.768 +trying to decide what to do now.” Finishing off his meat bun, he
   1.769 +licked his fingers clean before smiling at the two. 
   1.770 +“Sakura-chan’s never been on a date before and neither have I, so
   1.771 +we’re both trying to figure things out. Do you have any suggestions,
   1.772 +Chiharu-chan?” Tomoyo’s melodious voice sang amidst the banter of the
   1.773 +crowd. Smiling politely, the pale girl tilted her head to the side.
   1.774 +Even with her eyes close, she could tell that Sakura was blushing
   1.775 +deeply. Yes, life was good indeed. 
   1.776 +“Oh, so Sakura-chan finally asked you out? What a shame. I heard
   1.777 +that Li-kun was going to ask you. But that’s not a problem. In
   1.778 +Antarctica, women can have as many as ten husbands at a time. So you
   1.779 +just have to move there, Tomoyo-chan.” Yamazaki nodded, his ever-
   1.780 +present smile plastered on his face despite the look that Chiharu
   1.781 +shot him. He hugged a pink rabbit tightly and grinned more, waiting
   1.782 +for Chiharu to either correct him or hit him in the arm. He was used
   1.783 +to it by now. She’d been doing it since they were little kids anyway.
   1.784 +Besides, it was cute. 
   1.785 +“Really? That’s all right, though. Sakura-chan’s the only husband I
   1.786 +want, so I think I’ll stay here in Japan,” Tomoyo replied, her stormy
   1.787 +blue eyes blinking open as she continued smiling her trademark smile.
   1.788 +She turned to Sakura, delighting at his ever darker blush.
   1.789 +“So you’re finally dating? Darn. Rika-chan wins the pool, then. We
   1.790 +were wondering when you finally would.” Chiharu frowned for a moment,
   1.791 +staring at Yamazaki before turning back to the other couple. “I don’t
   1.792 +think I can give any advice. Things just kinda happen. That’s how
   1.793 +relationships go, I suppose. Even if it would be nice if they made
   1.794 +more sense sometimes.” Sighing, she brushed back some curly hair. 
   1.795 +Watching the pink bunny in Yamazaki’s arms, Sakura felt his
   1.796 +curiosity gnawing at him. “Where did you get that, Yamazaki-kun?”
   1.797 +	“This? His name is ‘Elephant’. Chiharu-chan won it for me at that
   1.798 +booth over there. Chiharu-chan is very good at hitting things.” 
   1.799 +	Chiharu sweatdropped. Yamazaki was very often a pathological liar,
   1.800 +but for once she didn’t need to correct him. Of course, she could
   1.801 +detect a hint of humor in his voice about the last part of it. “Yeah,
   1.802 +it’s not that hard. They have some nice prizes back there. I collect
   1.803 +stuffed animals, so I like to pick up some things whenever I go to
   1.804 +places like this.”
   1.805 +	“Sugoi! Thanks!” Sakura smiled as he waved to the two, hurrying
   1.806 +with Tomoyo close behind. It sounded perfect. What better way to
   1.807 +remember their first date than a cute little stuffed animal? It did
   1.808 +sound romantic. All he had to do was win something cute for the pale
   1.809 +heiress. His emerald eyes burned with an enthusiastic determination
   1.810 +as they hurried towards the booth. Unfortunately, someone was already
   1.811 +there, a large pile of stuffed animals next to him. 
   1.812 +	“I want that one next, Syaoran!” A Chinese girl pointed excitedly
   1.813 +towards a large bear in the back of the booth. Meiling stood guard
   1.814 +over the large pile of stuffed animals at her feet. She didn’t notice
   1.815 +the approaching couple, nor did she care. She was on a date with
   1.816 +Syaoran. That was all that mattered to her at the moment. And woe to
   1.817 +anyone who decided to get in her way. But for the moment, her
   1.818 +attention was focussed specifically on her fiance winning another
   1.819 +prize for her. She could easily win them herself, but what was the
   1.820 +point in that? She wanted them to come from Syaoran. Then they would
   1.821 +be fit to decorate her room because they would come from the boy she
   1.822 +loved. “Great job, Syaoran!” she cried out as the bear quickly joined
   1.823 +the rest of the captive stuffed animals. She hugged the boy from
   1.824 +behind, squeezing him tightly. 
   1.825 +	Syaoran sighed as he pulled up a handful of rings again. “Which one
   1.826 +do you want this time, Meiling?” He didn’t like being out here with
   1.827 +all these people. He wasn’t an overly social person. Staying home
   1.828 +would have been a perfectly fine night for him, but Meiling had
   1.829 +insisted they go to the festival. She did seem to be enjoying
   1.830 +herself. And she did look cute in the small, blue Chinese dress she
   1.831 +wore. So maybe it wasn’t all bad. But Syaoran found himself pouring
   1.832 +himself into the games rather than bothering with the social part of
   1.833 +the whole setting. It was much easier to focus on the competition
   1.834 +than the people. “Hello, Li-kun!” a voice piped up cheerfully near
   1.835 +his ear. Turning to spy the owner of the voice, Syaoran frowned in
   1.836 +irritation. Who was trying to distract him? He didn’t feel like
   1.837 +dealing with whoever it was at the moment. He turned to glare at the
   1.838 +intruder, but his cheeks flushed as he saw Sakura’s smiling face. He
   1.839 +quickly looked away, back towards the booth. Sakura was one of his
   1.840 +only friends at the school. Meiling was his best friend, of course,
   1.841 +but Sakura was one of his only male friends. Sure, there was
   1.842 +Yamazaki, but they were more acquaintances than friends. But Sakura
   1.843 +was nice to him. Even after he had been such an asshole to the naïve
   1.844 +Cardcaptor at first. And his increase in magical power had attracted
   1.845 +him the same way Yukito’s magic had. Tomoyo must have noticed,
   1.846 +because she had mentioned it every now and then. It embarrassed him
   1.847 +greatly, though not quite as much as some of what Meiling did at
   1.848 +school. 
   1.849 +	“Wow!! You’ve done a great job, Li-kun!” Sakura looked at the huge
   1.850 +pile of prizes Syaoran had won and the nearly bare walls of the booth
   1.851 +he was playing at. “Could I try? I want to win something for Tomoyo-
   1.852 +chan.” He smiled happily at the Chinese boy, Tomoyo by her side. He
   1.853 +finally had some idea of where all that energy could go, of what to
   1.854 +do about the building feelings inside of himself. And he could get
   1.855 +something for Tomoyo on top of all that. Apparently Syaoran had
   1.856 +thought the same thing. And Meiling looked very happy about it all.
   1.857 +Sakura could see a superdeformed Tomoyo in his mind, hugging some
   1.858 +cute stuffed animal tightly. Smiling determinedly, Sakura tried to
   1.859 +spot something to aim for. 
   1.860 +	Syaoran nodded dumbly, handing the rings over to Sakura. He thought
   1.861 +about trying to win a prize to give to the other boy, but with
   1.862 +Meiling present, he estimated that he would only live approximately
   1.863 +two seconds after giving it to Sakura. Hardly enough time to see how
   1.864 +the other boy would react. Sighing, he let his fiance drag him back
   1.865 +from the booth and into a tight embrace. Feeling his frown disappear
   1.866 +as Meiling rested against him, Syaoran watched the auburn haired boy
   1.867 +getting ready to try. He would move to the next booth himself, but he
   1.868 +didn’t know if Meiling was done with this one or not. 
   1.869 +	Focusing on the task at hand, Sakura gripped onto one of the rings
   1.870 +in front of him. Being pretty athletic, he was pretty good with most
   1.871 +physical things. Tomoyo had once said that he could have even made
   1.872 +the cheerleading team had he wanted to. Sakura was happy on the track
   1.873 +team, though, so he had blushingly told the eccentric girl that he
   1.874 +wouldn’t be switching anytime soon. But all of that didn’t make him
   1.875 +any less nervous. He wasn’t just playing around with this. It wasn’t
   1.876 +simply a diversion. It was for Tomoyo. That spurred him forward, as
   1.877 +well as seeing the heiress watching from his right. Feeling the
   1.878 +bubbling energy inside of him, Sakura tossed the ring. The small area
   1.879 +around him went silent as it flew into the wall, bouncing off
   1.880 +speedily. “Gomen nasai!” he apologized quickly, bowing. He wanted to
   1.881 +use this as a chance to use all of those energetic feelings inside,
   1.882 +but that had been a little too much. 
   1.883 +	“That was amazing, Sakura-chan. I’m sure that would have made it
   1.884 +all the way back home if the wall hadn’t stopped it,” Tomoyo said
   1.885 +helpfully, as Sakura stood in embarrassment for a moment. She knew
   1.886 +that Sakura was shy and easily embarrassed, despite his outgoing
   1.887 +nature. She tried to give him all the support and love she could
   1.888 +throughout everything he went through. It helped bolster that endless
   1.889 +determination that welled up within the cute bishounen. 
   1.890 +	Concentrating once more on the game in front of him, Sakura pulled
   1.891 +up another ring. This time he would win Tomoyo a cute prize, just
   1.892 +like Syaoran had for his girlfriend and Chiharu had for her
   1.893 +boyfriend. He just had to concentrate. Again he saw the cute image of
   1.894 +Tomoyo holding onto a stuffed animal in his mind, smiling warmly at
   1.895 +him. His cheeks warm at the thought, Sakura let the ring fly off of
   1.896 +his fingertips. He remembered the bear that Tomoyo had painstakingly
   1.897 +crafted for him, that he held onto every night when he went to sleep,
   1.898 +that went with him to all of his games. He wanted to give Tomoyo a
   1.899 +cute stuffed animal to keep nearby as well. Something a little softer
   1.900 +than an eraser. He watched anxiously as the ring appeared to fly in
   1.901 +slow motion, spinning in the air like some magical disk. Though it
   1.902 +had left his fingers, his mind and heart never left it as it skimmed
   1.903 +through the air, begging the disk to make it, to land where it needed
   1.904 +to. With a clang, it ricocheted past the poor booth owner. 
   1.905 +
   1.906 +	“Thank you again, Sakura-chan. It’s so lovely. I think it looks a
   1.907 +bit like you,” Tomoyo stated thoughtfully, holding up the stuffed
   1.908 +kangaroo next to Sakura’s embarrassed face. True enough, it did look
   1.909 +a bit like the auburn haired boy. They stood next to Tomoyo’s
   1.910 +limousine, her bodyguards waiting to take her back home. She didn't
   1.911 +want to leave her darling Sakura yet, or ever for that matter. But at
   1.912 +the same time, she couldn’t wait to recount the night’s wonders to
   1.913 +her mother who was undoubtedly waiting for her only daughter’s return
   1.914 +despite the fact that she had work the next day. It was a comforting
   1.915 +thought to know that she had someone waiting for her to hear of what
   1.916 +had happened and one of the only things that made the night ending
   1.917 +bearable. Especially with no videotape to show for it. Tomoyo vowed
   1.918 +to tape their second date. She would have to keep a record of such
   1.919 +things. After all, what was more important than Sakura’s love life?
   1.920 +	“You’re welcome, Tomoyo-chan. I should have just bought you
   1.921 +something instead. I can’t believe it took me seventeen tries. And
   1.922 +for just a tiny kangaroo.” Sakura stared at the ground sheepishly. He
   1.923 +was normally good at such things, but he just couldn’t focus while he
   1.924 +had been playing the game. His mind kept going back to Tomoyo.
   1.925 +Despite all of the energy swirling within him and his need to win
   1.926 +something for the beautiful pale girl, he had kept missing. But that
   1.927 +had always been a problem for him. He was very good at most athletic
   1.928 +things he tried, but whenever he was distracted he would make a lot
   1.929 +of mistakes. Tomoyo had told him it was cute, that she enjoyed that
   1.930 +as much as she enjoyed when he was doing well. She had said she had a
   1.931 +tape full of just his cute little mishaps. Somehow he didn’t find
   1.932 +that very comforting. Tomoyo had a very strange idea of ‘cute’. 
   1.933 +But other than the trouble he’d had getting a hold of the stuffed
   1.934 +animal, the night had been magical. He and Tomoyo had spent the whole
   1.935 +night at the festival, simply enjoying each others company. In
   1.936 +retrospect, Sakura could hardly remember who else had been there. It
   1.937 +hardly seemed to matter. After a while, the huge crowds had just
   1.938 +faded away, leaving the two of them amidst the beautiful night. There
   1.939 +had been several embarrassing moments, but it had been a wonderful
   1.940 +first date. Tomoyo had helped him through it all, getting rid of the
   1.941 +nervousness that went along with a first date, taking that away and
   1.942 +leaving him with a gloriously warm excitement. Now he again found
   1.943 +himself unsure of what to say or what to do. He didn’t want Tomoyo to
   1.944 +go. He didn’t want the night to end, for their date to have to come
   1.945 +to a close. It was the most spectacular thing that had ever occurred
   1.946 +in his life. It had a magic that his Cards couldn’t begin to contend
   1.947 +with. “Tomoyo-chan,” he whispered at last. “I don’t want you to go.”
   1.948 +“Neither do I, Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo replied, hugging the stuffed
   1.949 +animal in her arms gingerly. “I don’t ever want to be away from
   1.950 +Sakura-chan. I want to stay with you forever. But if I have to leave
   1.951 +tonight, it’s only so the next night can come even quicker. Tonight
   1.952 +was lovelier than anything I could ever have dreamed.  I’m sure that
   1.953 +hundreds of beautiful nights await you, Sakura-chan. I hope they’ll
   1.954 +all come quickly.” Brushing Sakura’s cheek, Tomoyo smiled at the
   1.955 +pretty boy, stormy blue eyes meeting emerald orbs. Her heart fought
   1.956 +the idea of leaving her dearest Sakura for any reason whatsoever. She
   1.957 +had to go home, she knew that. But logic didn’t often understand
   1.958 +love. “The sooner I wake up, the sooner I can see you again. It’s
   1.959 +like dreaming. The sooner you fall asleep, the sooner you can join
   1.960 +your shining dreams.”
   1.961 +“But I don’t want to dream.” Sakura sighed, placing his hand on top
   1.962 +of Tomoyo’s pale one. He felt Tomoyo’s fingers trailing across his
   1.963 +cheek. He smiled slowly. He felt bittersweet about the night ending.
   1.964 +He didn’t want Tomoyo to go, but he couldn’t wait to collapse in bed
   1.965 +and run it all over in his mind. Maybe he would tell Kero about it.
   1.966 +And like Tomoyo had said, the sooner he went to sleep, the sooner
   1.967 +they would be together again. “Arigato, Tomoyo-chan. For everything.”
   1.968 +“You don’t have to thank me for anything, Sakura-chan. I love you. I
   1.969 +only want to see you happy. If I can see you happy with me, then I
   1.970 +can’t think of a sweeter gift. But this kangaroo comes close.” Tomoyo
   1.971 +giggled softly as she held the kangaroo up in her other arm. She
   1.972 +regretted not having such a lovely night on videotape, but it was
   1.973 +something that she would always have burned into her mind’s eye. She
   1.974 +wouldn’t be able to play it back on videotape, but that wasn’t so
   1.975 +bad. It would be in her heart when she needed it. Her fingers slowly
   1.976 +pulled away from Sakura’s cheek. “You’re so cute, Sakura-chan.” 
   1.977 +Blushing at Tomoyo’s compliment, the auburn haired boy stared at his
   1.978 +sandal clad feet for a moment. Looking up again, he smiled at the
   1.979 +pale girl before him. She was always telling him how cute he was, how
   1.980 +handsome he looked. But she was easily the most gorgeous girl in
   1.981 +school, or of anyone Sakura had ever seen. She was exquisitely
   1.982 +beautiful, like a terribly delicate flower. He wanted to say
   1.983 +something, to put a nice spin on the end of the night, but words
   1.984 +stumbled in his mind. Finally, impulsively, he leaned forward and
   1.985 +kissed the pale girl before him. If Tomoyo was startled, she didn’t
   1.986 +show it. Sakura felt Tomoyo’s petal soft lips against his own,
   1.987 +blushing intently at the feel of their kiss. Before he could pull
   1.988 +away, he felt Tomoyo kiss him back. It was incredibly slow and
   1.989 +rapturously sweet, taking the genki boy by surprise. His arms went
   1.990 +around the petite heiress, pulling her closer as he kissed. Long,
   1.991 +dark tresses brushed past him as Tomoyo’s hair came loose from some
   1.992 +of the intricate braids. Warm lips kissed for what felt like a
   1.993 +painfully short eternity before they finally pulled away. Sakura
   1.994 +blinked as he watched the heiress before him, a red blush on her pale
   1.995 +cheeks. “I love you, Tomoyo-chan,” he whispered. 
   1.996 +“I love you, too, Sakura-chan. I always have,” Tomoyo replied,
   1.997 +giving Sakura a soft kiss once more before crawling back into the
   1.998 +limousine. Smiling brightly, the overjoyed girl waved to Sakura.
   1.999 +“Goodnight, Sakura-chan!” And with that, the long black car drove away.
  1.1000 +Sakura watched for a long time, his hand on his lips. “Hanyaan!” He
  1.1001 +smiled happily, his hands held tightly before him. What a perfect
  1.1002 +night! Of course, he doubted he would be able to get to sleep now.
  1.1003 +Especially after that kiss. It had been so... so... Sakura couldn’t
  1.1004 +begin to describe it as anything other than delicious. It had drawn
  1.1005 +him in, wrapping him up in those ribbons from Tomoyo’s heart. He had
  1.1006 +once heard that kissing was how two souls touched and now he was sure
  1.1007 +of it. 
  1.1008 +“It sure looks like you had fun,” a voice said next to Sakura.
  1.1009 +“Onii-chan...!” Sakura turned quickly, his fists balled up, ready to
  1.1010 +explode at his older brother for watching. He immediately stopped
  1.1011 +when he looked. Where Touya should have been stood a large, white
  1.1012 +rabbit. It stared at him for a moment, it’s whiskers shifting as it
  1.1013 +tilted its head to the side. 
  1.1014 +“I still think she looks like mom,” the rabbit was saying as Sakura
  1.1015 +fainted dead away.
  1.1016 +
  1.1017 +
  1.1018 +	“... And then we kissed in the dream,” Sakura finished up, her hair
  1.1019 +a mess and her rollerskating a little off as she and Tomoyo headed
  1.1020 +for school. She shook her head in confusion. It had all felt so real,
  1.1021 +even the slow, soul warming kiss. Blushing, Sakura put a hand to her
  1.1022 +lips as she skated alongside her perceptive best friend. She had
  1.1023 +woken up in a daze, the dream lingering in her mind as she had
  1.1024 +struggled to get dressed. She had almost expected to find the boys’
  1.1025 +school uniform waiting for her. Dressing quickly and ignoring Touya’s
  1.1026 +usual morning taunts, she had hurried to meet with Tomoyo on the way
  1.1027 +to school, eager to tell her friend about the bizarre dream. The
  1.1028 +patient heiress was always the first one she came to with her
  1.1029 +troubles, real or imagined. Like a loving mother or a gentle sister,
  1.1030 +Tomoyo would always help Sakura through whatever it was that had
  1.1031 +gotten to her. She was extremely important to Sakura, probably the
  1.1032 +most important person in her life.
  1.1033 +	Tomoyo considered the dream for a long moment, holding her bookbag
  1.1034 +in front of her. Her long, high ponytail waved behind her as she
  1.1035 +walked. A pale hand rested on her chin as she thought. Sakura had
  1.1036 +come to her with strange dreams before, but none quite so bizarre as
  1.1037 +this one. “Did you like the kiss?” she asked at last, tilting her
  1.1038 +head to the side. 
  1.1039 +	“Tomoyo-chan!!” Sakura’s face went crimson at Tomoyo’s words. She
  1.1040 +stared down at the street below, watching her rollerblades. How was
  1.1041 +she supposed to answer that? She had certainly liked the kiss. It had
  1.1042 +been a perfect end to a perfect night. But it had been with Tomoyo.
  1.1043 +And that was part of why it had been so perfect. But how was she
  1.1044 +supposed to put all of that into words? If only she were a boy things
  1.1045 +would make so much more sense. Especially things with Tomoyo. Just
  1.1046 +like her dream had shown her. It would be wonderful to be able to
  1.1047 +date Tomoyo, to spend all of her time with the pale girl. Too bad the
  1.1048 +dream hadn’t been real. Well, except the rabbit part. Sakura sighed
  1.1049 +as she continued skating. “Un, I liked the kiss. It was very nice,”
  1.1050 +she said quietly, blushing. “You were a really good kisser in the
  1.1051 +dream. It felt all.. hanyaan.”
  1.1052 +Sakura shuddered as she skated, remembering the kiss as best she
  1.1053 +could.
  1.1054 +	Nodding thoughtfully, Tomoyo followed alongside Sakura. Now whereas
  1.1055 +kissing Sakura wasn’t an uncommon dream for Tomoyo, she was surprised
  1.1056 +to hear that Sakura had dreamt about it. Of course, dreams often made
  1.1057 +little sense, so it could be just about anything. But still...
  1.1058 +“Sakura-chan would make a very cute boy. You made a very good prince
  1.1059 +in the play last year. But I like you better as a girl. I think it’s
  1.1060 +much cuter that way. Besides, I’m not as good at designing boys’
  1.1061 +clothes, so it’s easier for me this way. Of course, if Sakura-chan
  1.1062 +were a boy, I would just have to try harder with the costumes.”
  1.1063 +Tomoyo tilted her head to the side curiously, running the whole
  1.1064 +scenario over in her mind. It certainly was an interesting one. She
  1.1065 +sighed at last. “It’s too bad I can’t videotape Sakura-chan’s dreams.
  1.1066 +That sounds so cute!”
  1.1067 +	Sakura sweatdropped as she watched her friend’s reaction. Why
  1.1068 +should she have guessed that Tomoyo would react that way? But then,
  1.1069 +the brunette didn’t think she would ever fully get used to the weird
  1.1070 +things Tomoyo said about her. “Even though we were dating? You would
  1.1071 +still want to watch that?” Sakura asked curiously. 
  1.1072 +	“Especially if we were dating. I haven’t gotten to record any of
  1.1073 +Sakura-chan’s love life other than her crushes. It would be so cute
  1.1074 +to record her actually dating and to see what happened. I would love
  1.1075 +to record every second of our dates if you asked me out,” Tomoyo
  1.1076 +explained, smiling her trademark smile. It sounded like such a lovely
  1.1077 +dream. Now why couldn’t she have more like that? It had everything,
  1.1078 +especially a cute romance with Sakura with the added allure of a kiss
  1.1079 +at the end. She sighed dreamily, gazing at her brunette friend. 
  1.1080 +	Shaking her head, Sakura looked ahead. Cherry blossoms danced and
  1.1081 +swirled ahead of them, oddly reminiscent of the dream she had had. It
  1.1082 +felt strange to hear that Tomoyo would agree to go out with her. But
  1.1083 +she was thrilled to hear it for some reason. Her mind wandered back
  1.1084 +to the dream again, to the date. She felt saddened that it had all
  1.1085 +been a dream, that they hadn’t shared that time together, that she
  1.1086 +couldn’t be with Tomoyo. It felt so empty. “If I were a boy, I would
  1.1087 +definitely ask you out, Tomoyo-chan. You’re so smart and pretty and
  1.1088 +fun. Whoever you date will be very lucky.” Sakura blinked rapidly,
  1.1089 +rubbing at her eyes. She didn’t know why she felt so desolate after
  1.1090 +that dream. But now that it was all over, she felt like she had lost
  1.1091 +something of vital importance and she couldn’t get it back. If only
  1.1092 +she were a boy, then she would ask Tomoyo out and they could relive
  1.1093 +all of that beautiful dream and what would have surely been to come. 
  1.1094 +	Tomoyo watched Sakura, stopping along underneath the trees. Sakura
  1.1095 +slowly came to a halt as well. Her emerald eyes shimmered with
  1.1096 +unspent tears. Tomoyo held Sakura’s hand in her own, looking up at
  1.1097 +the girl on rollerblades. “I wouldn’t want to date another boy. Or
  1.1098 +another girl. I wouldn’t want to date anyone who isn’t Sakura-chan.”
  1.1099 +She smiled sweetly up at the other girl, placing a hand on her cheek.
  1.1100 +She could feel a wet trail of a teardrop against her palm. Sakura
  1.1101 +sniffled again, another tear sliding down her other cheek. Tomoyo’s
  1.1102 +heart nearly snapped in two as she watched the lost and lonely look
  1.1103 +on Sakura’s face. She doubted that Sakura even understood why she was
  1.1104 +feeling the way she was. It still amazed the pale girl after what she
  1.1105 +had heard. It was a dream come true, but it felt unbearably painful
  1.1106 +to see it hurting her unknowing Sakura. Leaning forward, Tomoyo
  1.1107 +decided to show Sakura what she meant. After all, Sakura could be a
  1.1108 +little dense sometimes, but maybe she could find a way to explain
  1.1109 +things. She had promised to tell Sakura when they were older.
  1.1110 +Tomoyo’s lips kissed Sakura’s softly, her entire body tingling from
  1.1111 +the small touch. She slowly kissed the quietly crying girl, brushing
  1.1112 +away Sakura’s tears with her fingertips. The brunette’s lips quivered
  1.1113 +against her own as Sakura stood on the verge of sobbing openly.
  1.1114 +Pulling away after the short kiss, Tomoyo smiled at the brunette,
  1.1115 +both hands going to her wet cheeks. “I love you, Sakura-chan.”
  1.1116 +“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura whispered quietly. Her voice almost caught
  1.1117 +in her throat, coming out painfully. It wasn’t until then that she
  1.1118 +realized she was crying. Warm tears spilt past her cheeks, dripping
  1.1119 +down her chin. She sniffled weakly. “Tomoyo-chan!” She cried out,
  1.1120 +grasping onto the pale girl. She hung tightly onto her best friend,
  1.1121 +shaking in her grasp. She felt her body begin to relax as Tomoyo
  1.1122 +began to rub her back gently. Letting out a choked breath, Sakura
  1.1123 +hiccuped, her sobbing slowly trailing off. Hiccuping again, Sakura
  1.1124 +stood at arms length from Tomoyo, wiping at her eyes. She smiled
  1.1125 +warmly after wiping away her tears. “I.. I love you, too, Tomoyo-
  1.1126 +chan.” Tomoyo’s demeanor shifted in those few seconds. Sakura
  1.1127 +couldn’t quite tell what had changed about Tomoyo, but the pale girl
  1.1128 +seemed to glow with the light of an angel, a radiant joy cascading
  1.1129 +off of her. She looked simply gorgeous. Sakura stood in stunned
  1.1130 +silence for a moment before shaking her head. Something seemed wrong.
  1.1131 +Like she hadn’t quite finished everything. But what...? Oh! “Tomoyo-
  1.1132 +chan, I.. umm.. I was wondering..” Sakura took a deep breath. She had
  1.1133 +already done this once, even if it had only been a dream. Seeing
  1.1134 +those shining stormy blue orbs, Sakura pushed forward. “Tomoyo-chan,
  1.1135 +will you go out with me?” she asked quickly.
  1.1136 +Tomoyo didn’t miss a beat, though she was wondering how easy it
  1.1137 +would be to have a heart attack from what had happened in just the
  1.1138 +last few minutes. At least she’d die happy. “I would love to go out
  1.1139 +with you, Sakura-chan,” the heiress sang joyously. The look of relief
  1.1140 +that spread across Sakura’s face made her heart melt. She would have
  1.1141 +been happy to help Sakura throughout her life no matter what
  1.1142 +happened, but it seemed infinitely better to be there with Sakura for
  1.1143 +it. She wasn’t thinking about where the date would take place or
  1.1144 +when. Such things were trivial. It was that Sakura had asked that
  1.1145 +mattered. It was that they would. 
  1.1146 +Smiling delightedly, Sakura once again began for school, skating
  1.1147 +alongside Tomoyo, hand in hand. “Hanyaan..” she whispered. The dream
  1.1148 +seemed incredibly far away now, only a distant shadow. Life could be
  1.1149 +endlessly more fascinating than even the most beautiful dreams. 
  1.1150 +
  1.1151 +Kero: Now it’s time for Kero-chan’s Corner!! Hi, everybody! Did you
  1.1152 +have fun? Did you all follow the adventures of boy Sakura and his
  1.1153 +date with Tomoyo? We all know it would have been better if I had been
  1.1154 +able to give Sakura-chan that advice I was talking about earlier. But
  1.1155 +maybe this time she’ll ask me about it, ne? Anyway, for today, we’ll
  1.1156 +check out Sakura’s clothes. Basically, they were just the boys’
  1.1157 +school uniform and a cute shirt and shorts. She also wore her yukata,
  1.1158 +but I wasn’t in that scene, so does it even matter? Remember what
  1.1159 +happened to the girl who got everything she ever wanted. She lived
  1.1160 +happily ever after. Bai bai!! 
  1.1161 +
  1.1162 +Next Episode:
  1.1163 +Sakura: Syaoran’s lost the engagement ring he was going to give
  1.1164 +Meiling. Can I help him find it before Meiling finds out? Also, Kero
  1.1165 +eats cake. And lots of it. And will all of this talk of marriage get
  1.1166 +Tomoyo thinking? Hoe.. I’m too young to get married! Next on
  1.1167 +Cardcaptor Sakura: ‘Sakura and the Engagement Ring’. Let’s watch it
  1.1168 +together. Release!!
  1.1169 +. 
  1.1170 \ No newline at end of file