Hello! ^-^ This is a Quantum Leap/Cardcaptor Sakura crossover, so I

 hope that 

 explains why this is so strange. ^^;;; I’m always so worried about

 crossovers 

 because it’s so difficult to pull off merging two series together.

 So I hope this 

 goes well. ^-^ The idea has been playing around in my head for quite

 a while 

 now. Sam’s supposed to ‘put right what once went wrong’ so why can’t

 he set 

 right the biggest problem in Cardcaptor Sakura? I’d like to thank

 Boco the 

 Chokobo, who’s ideas helped me quite a bit with this. ^-^ Thanks!

 *hugs* I’m 

 using the leaping mechanics from Ashley McConnell’s Quantum Leap

 novels 

 because I like the idea of Sam actually switching bodies with who he

 leaps into 

 rather than him just taking their aura. Anyway, I really hope you

 enjoy this! ^-^ 

 I always love feedback, so if you have the time, please e-mail me! ^-^

 

 

 Across the Distance

 by Amazoness Duo

 amazonessduo@hotmail.com

 

 

 	Dr. Sam Beckett was always disoriented when he began a leap. Leaping 

 from life to life, trying to put right what once went wrong, was a

 very stressful 

 job.  He always found himself in the strangest situations, with no

 knowledge of 

 who he was now or what situation he had leapt into. So he had gotten

 very good 

 at trying to read his surroundings very quickly. But the first few

 minutes never 

 allowed him such luxuries and it was up to him to wing it. 

 	And he had absolutely no idea how to do so as the good doctor found 

 himself locking lips with a teenage, brown haired boy. The kiss

 lasted for 

 another few seconds but it could very well have been an eternity. As

 Dr. Beckett 

 stumbled backwards, trying to catch his breath, a quick glimpse down

 finished 

 putting at least part of this scene together. He was a girl. Again.

 And the boy 

 that had just been kissing him must be her boyfriend. “Oh boy...”

 

 	The boy blushed fiercely after Sam backed away. “Daijobu? Sakura-

 chan?” He took a few steps closer, finally taking Sam’s, or the body

 Sam was 

 currently inhabiting, hands and pulling him closer. Sam stumbled

 forward, his 

 head resting on the boy’s chest. His mind was spinning. Had he ever

 leapt out of 

 the US before? His swiss cheese memory betrayed him. He had no idea.

 The boy 

 continued saying something, but it wasn’t making any sense. Wait, it

 was. Sam 

 couldn’t remember if he’d taken Japanese in school or not, though he

 very well 

 could have, or if it was something left over from his host, but the

 jumbled words 

 began to make sense.

 	“Yeah, I’m fine,” Sam said with a nervous smile. “I just... was a

 little 

 distracted.” How often had he used that excuse? Too many times. But

 after all 

 these years of leaping, he still hadn’t come up with a better one. 

 The boy’s amber eyes stared at Sam skeptically for a long moment, as 

 if he didn’t quite believe that. But finally he nodded. “We better

 get to school. I 

 made sure that I’d be in the same homeroom as you.” He waited for

 some 

 acknowledgement of his statement, probably wanting to hear a shrill

 of joy from 

 his girlfriend, but Sam just nodded, still unsure as to how he was

 supposed to act 

 now. Grasping Sam’s hand, he began leading the way presumably to the

 school. 

 At least, Sam sure hoped so.

 The two walked along in relative silence for a while. Which was fine 

 by Sam because it gave him a chance to think. Where was he?

 Apparently Japan. 

 When was he? It looked pretty recent, but Sam couldn’t remember if

 he’d gone 

 there or not so it was difficult to be sure of an exact date. It was

 much easier 

 guessing dates back in the US. Finally, who was he? The boy had

 called him 

 Sakura, so at least he had a name. And a quick glimpse in a passing

 shop 

 window gave him a face. She was a very pretty girl with short,

 reddish brown 

 hair and emerald green eyes. She looked to be about fourteen or

 fifteen and was 

 wearing her school uniform.  “Oh boy...” he muttered under his

 breath. This 

 whole thing was too strange for him. If anything could get too

 strange for a time 

 hopping physicist. And being a girl was always... awkward for him.

 When he 

 leapt into other men, at least the equipment was still the same. Now

 he’d have to 

 deal with a teenage girl’s body. He’d ask Ziggy about what affects

 that would 

 have on his mind, but he knew it would have to go through Al. He

 could picture 

 the grin on his friend’s face as he asked the question and

 immediately dismissed 

 it. He’d figure it out on his own.

 “I thought I’d come out and surprise you. I was going to send a

 letter, 

 but I decided to head out here as soon as I could instead,” the boy

 was 

 explaining. 

 	Sam nodded quickly, offering what he hoped was a sweet smile. So he 

 was probably here to make sure things went smoothly between them.

 “Oh good. 

 I’m really glad you came all this way.” Wherever it was he had come

 from. 

 	The two finally happened upon the school gates. Sam gave a sigh of 

 relief. He could handle jr. high school. Probably a lot easier than

 dealing with a 

 lovestruck boyfriend. It would give him a chance to concentrate and

 wait for Al. 

 Where was Al, anyway? Wasn’t he usually here by now? What was taking

 him 

 so long?

 	“Ohayo gozimasu, Sakura-chan!” a cute, pale girl with very long,

 dark 

 hair said as she stepped up, a sweet smile on her face. Her stormy

 blue eyes 

 were entrancing. Sam wondered for a moment if she was sick to have

 such a 

 pale complexion, but she seemed to be just fine. She looked a little

 surprised to 

 see Sam’s new boyfriend there, but she recovered quickly. “Ohayo, Li-

 kun! 

 Sakura-chan must be very happy to have you back. She’s been talking

 about you 

 so much lately.” Her smile returned almost as quickly as it had

 disappeared, 

 leaving Sam to wonder if it had ever left at all. But that did give

 Sam a hint, at 

 the least. His name was Li. Good.

 	The boy just frowned, beginning to flush slightly before he turned

 back 

 to Sakura. 

 	“Well, I’m very glad to have Li back. I’m sure everything’s going

 to be 

 great now,” Sam said quickly, smiling. The looks he got from the

 other two 

 made him wonder if he’d said that wrong. He sighed. These things

 were always 

 so difficult. Sam felt him squeeze his hand and then nodded.

 	“It will be. I’m back now. I won’t let anyone force me to go back to 

 Hong Kong again. I’ll stay this time, Sakura-chan.”

 	Hong Kong. Okay, at least he was starting to get somewhere with all 

 this. So the boy, Li, had come from Hong Kong and had apparently

 been away 

 for quite some time. “I’m sure, Li. Thanks. I really missed you.”

 Sam smiled 

 again, and Li seemed to accept it, but he was getting an odd look

 from the dark 

 haired girl. Her stormy blue eyes seemed to be looking through him.

 The 

 familiar sound of the Imaging Chamber door opening sent a breath of

 relief 

 through him. He quickly turned to spot Al. When he finally did, he

 was 

 surprised. Al’s usually wild attire was much more subdued. He was

 wearing a 

 black suit and tie. He had dark bags under his eyes and he looked

 even older 

 than usual. Sam frowned, staring at his holographic friend

 concernedly. “I.. 

 uhh... I’ll be back in a minute.” He let go of the boy’s hand and

 ducked past the 

 pale girl and made his way through Al, signaling the observer to

 follow over 

 near a tree. “Al! What took you so long? Where am I?” He paused for a 

 moment, studying the observer. “Are you okay?”

 	Al shook it off, plugging away at the handlink, offering his usual

 abuse 

 to the poor thing. “It took Ziggy a while to find you, Sam. You’re

 only a month 

 behind us. Ziggy’s freaking out. She’s never seen anything like this

 before so 

 she doesn’t know what to do about it. As far as details, we don’t

 know why 

 you’re here yet. It’s only a month ago and in Japan at that, so we

 don’t have a lot 

 of information to go on. Donn.. Err...” Al mentally stopped himself

 from 

 mentioning Donna’s name. She didn’t want Sam knowing that she was

 still there 

 waiting for him. It would be easier for him this way. “Everyone here

 at the 

 Project is a little worried about this. I mean, you’ve never been

 this close before, 

 Sam.”

 	Sam gasped in shock. “Only a month? Al, I’m really that close? Maybe 

 I can... No, I shouldn’t, but...” He shook his head, brunette hair

 flailing from 

 side to side as he did so. This was all too much. He could call up

 Project 

 Quantum Leap and ask to talk to the Al of this time. Or he could

 look up 

 material on a Doctor Samuel Beckett and try to replace the swiss

 cheese holes in 

 his memory. But Al looked less than excited. “So what do you have so

 far?” 

 	Al pulled up the handlink again, though by this time he didn’t need

 it. 

 He’d been reading the information ever since the plane ride back.

 Over and over 

 and over. He sighed, trying to keep the lack of sleep from showing.

 “You are 

 Sakura Kinomoto, a fourteen year old school girl in Tomoeda, Japan.

 She’s a 

 fair student and seems to be pretty athletic. Hey, Sam, you’re on the 

 cheerleading team.” Al attempted a grin, but only got a stare from

 the younger 

 girl that housed the spirit of his best friend. He held up his arms

 in defense. “Just 

 pointing that out to you. You always want as much information as

 we’ve got. 

 Anyway, the Chinese boy over there is Syaoran Li, part of some

 powerful 

 family in Hong Kong.  It looks like he’s your sweety. He was here in

 Japan a 

 few years ago and left, but not before you two hooked up. You’ve

 been sending 

 letters back and forth since.” Al wasn’t even looking at the

 handlink anymore. 

 He’d heard all this days ago, before Ziggy even found out this was

 where Sam 

 had leapt to. 

 	Sam coughed into his fist and shook his head, the memory of the kiss 

 still fresh in his mind. “Well, why am I here, then? What am I here

 to change? It 

 sounds like they end up alright.”

 	Bringing the handlink up again, Al crammed some buttons at random. 

 “Ziggy’s trying to run some simulations and Dr. Beeks is talking to

 Sakura right 

 now so we’ll try to figure that out.” The retired admiral paused for

 a long 

 moment. There was something else he wanted to say. Sam waited.

 	“Sakura-chan? Daijobu?” The pale girl asked. She looked very 

 concerned for ‘Sakura’. Her hand went to Sam’s forehead, feeling for

 a 

 temperature. Her stormy blue eyes met the emerald green ones that

 replaced 

 Sam’s own for a long moment. She leaned forward a bit, whispering

 with her 

 wonderfully soft voice into Sam’s ear. “Is it because of Li-kun? Are

 you 

 nervous? You shouldn’t be. He’s happy to see you again. You can be

 together 

 now.” She stepped back, smiling brightly, her eyes closed.

 	Sam laughed nervously. “Of course! I’m really happy, too. Yeah, I’m 

 just a little nervous is all. I’m sure I’ll be fine soon.”

 	“I’m sure Sakura-chan will, too. I know things will work out for the 

 best for you.” The smile seemed to come to her quickly, as if she

 smiled often, 

 or practiced it quite a bit. It was a warm, gentle smile that

 somehow eased Sam’s 

 spirits. He nodded quickly as she took his arm, the bell ringing to

 signify their 

 first class. “We better hurry, Sakura-chan.”

 	Sam looked to see Li pulling along beside them, taking his hand. The 

 pale girl waited a second before letting go, keeping her distance.

 Sam met her 

 gaze and she smiled again, ushering him towards the correct class.

 Glancing 

 back over his shoulder, he looked for Al, but the observer was

 already gone. 

 What had he wanted to say?

 

 	Class went by strangely. It had been a while since Sam had been 

 anyone this young and he found it awkward to be taking classes in

 Japanese. But 

 he still managed to get along well enough. The teachers even seemed

 amazed at 

 some of the answers he was giving. Sam had always found academics

 calming. 

 They didn’t have the same chaos that was inherent in everything

 else. Especially 

 leaping. So he found it relaxing to lose himself in class, even with

 the slight 

 difficulty of taking it in another language. 

 	Throughout the day, he kept making little mistakes, but nothing that 

 seemed too big. Besides, it was part of every leap. He had to gauge

 other 

 people’s reactions to him to decide if he was acting properly or

 not. He seemed 

 to be doing well enough, but the dark haired girl seemed to be

 getting 

 increasingly concerned. He tried to play it off, but she was always

 close by, 

 offering help whenever she could and trying to see if anything was

 wrong. 

 	Syaoran walked him from class to class, which he found a little 

 embarrassing but there wasn’t much he could do about it. He got used

 to holding 

 the boy’s hand from class to class as lunch finally rolled around. 

 	Stormy blue eyes caught Sam’s attention quickly as the dark haired

 girl 

 caught up with him. Sam just waited for her. She still held that

 warm smile of 

 hers as she fell in step with him. “Sakura-chan seems to have

 studied a lot last 

 night. You should have told me. I would have been happy to help you,

 Sakura-

 chan.”

 	“Oh, I was bored. I didn’t want to bother you. I thought I’d catch

 up in 

 class and try to do a little better,” Sam supplied, hoping it

 sounded reasonable 

 enough. This whole leap was confusing him. Especially this girl. She

 must be 

 Sakura’s best friend. She was obviously very caring towards her. 

 	The girl nodded thoughtfully, tilting her head to the side. “You

 even 

 got that engrish poem down that you were worrying about. I knew

 Sakura-chan 

 would be just fine as long as she did her best.” She smiled happily,

 as if waiting 

 for Sam to explain something.

 	“I.. uhh... Yeah, I guess it was easier than I thought,” Sam

 muttered 

 quickly. He looked around after a moment and noticed that he was

 going down a 

 dead end.

 	“Lunch is this way, Sakura-chan,” the girl said politely, taking

 Sam’s 

 hand and leading him off down another corridor. Her hand felt soft

 and held 

 onto Sam’s with a very gentle care. She looked at Sam with that

 concerned look 

 again, but he just smiled and tried to brush it off. “It’s good that

 Li-kun’s back. 

 Sakura-chan shouldn’t have to be lonely. The two of you look so cute

 together.” 

 She squeezed Sam’s hand softly. “You’ll have to let me videotape the

 two of 

 you later. It can be Sakura-chan’s Happy Reunion.”

 	Sam laughed and nodded. The girl was eccentric, but he liked that.

 She 

 must be a fun best friend. “Yeah, that sounds good. We should do

 that later. I’m 

 sure it’ll make for great memories.”

 	“Not for her, Sam.”

 	Sam turned on his heel and spotted Al behind him. Al shook his head 

 and motioned for him to keep walking. Sam complied. “Hmm?” Sam asked, 

 trying to look interested in the dark haired girl’s explanation of

 some outfit for 

 him to wear. 

 	“Those obviously won’t make good memories for her, Sam. That's 

 Tomoyo Daidouji. Heiress to the Daidouji fortunes and all 

 around talented girl. Got the voice of an angel. I heard her sing

 one time.” Al 

 grew silent for a moment, not even glancing at the handlink. He

 didn’t need it 

 for this. “She kills herself about a month from now. You could never

 tell with all 

 those smiles.” Sighing, the observer shook his head, watching the

 pale girl for a 

 time before continuing. “She drowns in a lake at a park near here.

 Left a note 

 and went off to take a swim. The problem being that she doesn’t know

 how to 

 swim," Al explained grimly.

 	“She what?” Sam shot out, his eyes wide. He immediately regretted it 

 as Tomoyo looked back at him. He just shook his head quickly.

 “Nothing.” Sam 

 stared at his friend aghast. It seemed hard to believe that this 

 cheery girl would ever consider something quite so drastic.

 Al shook his head after a moment, knowing what Sam must be 

 thinking. "Ziggy says that's not why you're here. It's a month from

 now. If that

 was the reason, you'd've leapt in a few days before it happened. She 

 says it's more likely got to do with the girl you leapt into."

 	Sam smiled as sweetly as he could and pulled his hand away from 

 Tomoyo. “Excuse me for just a second. I need to... take care of

 something.” 

 They had finally gotten outside and Sam took the chance to head

 around the side 

 of the building. “No! That can’t be it. Why? What happened? Maybe it

 wasn’t a 

 suicide. That means it was only a few days ago for you. Maybe Ziggy

 doesn’t 

 have all the information she needs. She’s too sweet a girl for that.”

 	Al sighed. He knew Sam was going to be like this. And it wasn’t as

 if 

 he hadn’t been trying to work this out himself. “Ziggy didn’t know

 until an hour 

 ago. I found out two days ago. Sam, I just got back form her funeral.”

 	That news sent a shock through the leaper. Leaning heavily against

 the 

 wall, he looked over at Al. “You what? Why?”

 	Al was deep in thought, contemplating an unlit cigar. It had been

 days 

 since he’d had one, but for some reason he just didn’t feel in the

 mood for it. “It 

 was a lovely funeral. Her mother really spared no expense. Sakura,

 the girl you 

 are, was there, too. It was a big thing. Her mother was all broken

 up about it. 

 Lost her only little girl.” Al closed his eyes, trying to force out

 the images. “You 

 probably don’t remember this, but back when we were looking for

 funding for 

 the project, we met with a whole lot of people. One of those people

 was Sonomi 

 Daidouji. Strong willed woman. But you get to like her. Won’t take

 no for an 

 answer. Anyway, I got to talking to her about funding for the

 project. She runs a 

 pretty big business in Japan. We wound up getting picked up by the

 government 

 for funding, but after I explained what the Project was about, she

 was all too 

 thrilled to get me all the Japanese technology we needed from the

 Amamiya 

 Corporation. Hell, half of Ziggy’s thanks to her. She never asked a

 thing from 

 us, just wanted to know how the Project was going from time to time.

 So I’ve 

 been staying in touch, talking to her about this and that. But when

 I found out 

 her daughter killed herself a few days ago, I rushed out there.

 She’s really 

 broken up, Sam. She doesn’t have anyone else now. Just her business.

 She was 

 really emotional at the funeral, and she had a right to be. It was

 awful to see. I 

 wish you had leapt in a few days ago and stopped that. But you’ve

 said it 

 yourself, you can only change what you’re supposed to.” 

 	“Oh no... That can’t be right. How can I possibly stop that from

 here? 

 Unless I can find a way to keep it from happening. Something must

 have 

 happened that made her want to do that. We just need Ziggy to find

 out,” Sam 

 nodded, thinking deeply. 

 	“Sam, I already know. Her mother told me. I found out while I was 

 there. She killed herself over you.” Al rubbed at an ache in his

 neck, sighing. 

 “She killed herself because she’s in love with you.”

 	“Oh boy...”

 	“Yeah, so it doesn’t look like there’s anything you can do about

 it. At 

 least for now. I’ll get Ziggy working on those simulations. Maybe

 she can come 

 up with...” Al’s eyes went wide as he read the handlink. “She’s

 what?!” Without 

 another word to Sam, Al vanished through the door.

 

 	“What the hell is she doing here?” Al asked to no one in particular

 as 

 he stormed down the hallway. The former admiral came to a halt when

 he 

 finally caught sight of the younger Japanese woman. She was flanked

 by several 

 woman wearing dark clothes and sunglasses. They all looked like they

 were 

 good at what they did. Which was probably to protect Miss Daidouji.

 Al would 

 have gawked at the pretty ladies if he wasn’t still in shock.

 “Sonomi, why are 

 you here? The Project is off limits to all non-essential personal.

 Now I 

 appreciate all you’ve done for the project, but you certainly aren’t

 a member of 

 the staff.”

 	“Arru, please... I need to see my little girl again. I know that

 she’s here. 

 She has to be. You can save her, can’t you?” Sonomi’s eyes were

 pleading. She 

 looked desperate, grasping at the final string dangling in front of

 her. The 

 woman had suffered so much in the past few days. 

 	Al remained silent, his lips pursed tightly together. He didn’t

 like this at 

 all. She shouldn’t be here. This whole leap was already playing with

 all the rules 

 they’d set up years ago. This wasn’t helping.

 	“Please, Arru. I need to see Tomoyo-chan.” Her eyes conveyed how 

 deeply she meant that. She did need to see her. This woman was

 strong, but 

 losing her only child after that was killing her. He knew that she’d

 agreed to 

 help the Project in the hopes of one day bringing back her cousin,

 her one true 

 love, but now she had lost her daughter as well. 

 	He sighed. He had been able to see Beth, his first wife and the only 

 woman he had ever truly loved, even if for only a short time. They

 may not be 

 able to save Tomoyo, but was it fair to rob her of a final chance of

 seeing her 

 daughter alive? “Sonomi, you’re putting me in a hard spot here. Let

 me get you 

 and your friends some rooms and we can talk about it.”

 	“He’s there, isn’t he? He’s back with my Tomoyo-chan. He can save 

 her, right?” Sonomi had eliminated the distance between herself and

 Al. This 

 was her last chance. She had to pray it would work. She had barely

 survived 

 Nadeshiko’s loss, and that was only because she had had Tomoyo. Now

 she had 

 nothing. She couldn’t let things stay this way. 

 	Looking away, Al frowned. “He’s... Back around then. But not close 

 enough to stop it. A month back. We think he’s supposed to fix

 something else.”

 	Sonomi balled her fists angrily. “No!! He’s back there to save

 Tomoyo-

 chan! Maybe he got sent back too far or he needs to fix something

 else while 

 he’s at it, but he’s there to save my dear Tomoyo-chan!” Her English

 was 

 heavily accented, the long plane ride making it difficult for her to

 concentrate. 

 	“Let me get you a room first and then we can figure everything out.

 I 

 promise I’ll let you see her. Sam’s back with her now.” Al motioned

 for them to 

 follow, but Sonomi moved past him. 

 	“I need to see Tomoyo-chan now. I need to see her alive and well. 

 Moving and smiling and singing. I need to get the image of her in a

 casket out of 

 my head. I need to see my baby.” Sonomi stopped as she tried to

 remember the 

 layout from the blueprints she’d seen. Where was the Imaging Chamber

 again?

 	The bodyguards tensed up as Al grabbed her shoulder. Sonomi hardly 

 seemed to notice. Al’s hand eased off when he noticed the tears in

 her eyes. “It’s 

 this way.” 

 

 	Sam blinked as he watched the space his holographic companion had 

 occupied moments before. Al had looked pretty shocked about

 something, but 

 he hadn’t bothered telling Sam about it. And so he was stuck with

 the news that 

 the best friend of the girl he was currently inhabiting would kill

 herself in a 

 month’s time and that it didn’t look like there was anything he

 could do about it. 

 This didn’t make for a very comforting break from classes. A hand on

 his 

 shoulder nearly sent him into a panic.

 	“Sakura-chan? What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” 

 Tomoyo watched the brunette in front of her carefully, brushing some

 hair from 

 Sam’s eyes. Her stormy blue eyes were so loving, so concerned for

 the well 

 being of this Sakura. Even if the situation was a little strange, it

 still tore at 

 Sam’s heart to know where it would lead. 

 	“Err... Yeah, something like that, Tomoyo. Don’t worry about it.

 Let’s 

 get some lunch.” Sam offered another smile, but he couldn’t help but

 cast 

 another glance back at the pale girl as he headed for a bench to eat

 at. He 

 couldn’t tell that anything so dark could be lurking under Tomoyo’s

 peaceful, if 

 eccentric, exterior. Could Al have been wrong? No, not likely. So it

 seemed that 

 she was extremely good at hiding her feelings. Which was probably

 why Sakura 

 had no idea about them. But that didn’t make it any easier to handle

 the 

 situation. And what about the long awaited return of Sakura’s

 boyfriend? What 

 was he supposed to do about it all? 

 	Tomoyo sat down next to Sam, watching him closely as he ate. He 

 fumbled with the chopsticks for a moment before she reached over and

 helped 

 adjust his grip. She smiled pleasantly as he got out a quick thanks.

 It went on 

 quietly for a few minutes, her eyes never leaving Sam as he ate. She

 finally 

 tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. 

 	Sam looked back in confusion, some rice half in his mouth. “Is 

 something wrong?” he asked after a moment. This girl did act rather

 strangely, 

 so he wouldn’t be surprised if this sort of behavior was normal for

 her. 

 	“You’re not Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo whispered, leaning closer so that 

 no one would hear. Her eyes were locked on Sam’s, as if looking past

 the body 

 and deep into his soul, as if he couldn’t hide in it at all. 

 	Sam dropped the little ball of rice, his eyes wide. He almost

 choked on 

 what was in his mouth. “What?” he got out quietly, a little above a

 chirp. This 

 couldn’t be right. No matter how poorly he did as someone, people

 rarely ever 

 guessed that anything was wrong, let alone that he wasn’t who they

 thought he 

 was. “What do you mean?” He tried to keep his voice steady this

 time, throwing 

 in the confusion that was swirling through him.

 	Tomoyo shook her head. “You’re not her. I don’t know who you are. If 

 you’re a mage or another Card or something else entirely. But you’re

 not 

 Sakura-chan. You’ve been acting strangely all morning, nothing like

 her. Your 

 mannerisms are all wrong. You don’t have the same look in your eyes.

 Your 

 smile’s different. You aren’t lost in a haze of emotions that ebb

 and flow 

 rapidly. You don’t have the energy she does. You’re soul’s completely 

 different.” She paused, watching his reaction. She could have gone

 on for hours 

 about the differences between him and her beloved Sakura-chan, but

 that 

 seemed to be enough. Her panic was suppressed, but barely. If this

 person was 

 replacing Sakura, then where was the Cardmistress? 

 	“I... uhh... Al...” Sam looked around quickly, hoping for any sort

 of 

 back up that he could get, even the holographic type. She didn’t

 seem to have 

 any sort of psychic ability, yet somehow she had seen through him.

 And he 

 didn’t know what to do about that. So he gave up. A sigh escaped his

 lips, or 

 Sakura's lips, as the case may be. “Well... No, I’m not. My name is

 Dr. Sam 

 Beckett. I’m from the future. Or I used to be. But I’m here to fix

 things. To put 

 right what once went wrong.”

 	Tomoyo clasped her hands together worriedly. “Did something bad 

 happen to Sakura-chan? Is that what you’re here to fix? Where is

 she? Please tell 

 me. I need to know what’s become of her.” Her mind came up with

 plenty of 

 images of what could have happened to the Cardmistress, but she

 pushed them 

 back with all of her might. Now wasn’t the time to panic. She had to

 stay calm 

 so that she could figure out what had happened to Sakura. Her dark

 eyes pleaded 

 with Sam’s to explain to her.

 	“No, she should be just fine. She’s back in the future right now.

 Where 

 I come from. We think that something went badly in her life or the

 life of 

 someone she knows.” ‘Like you,’ Sam mentally added. “So I’m here to

 try and 

 fix it so that things can go smoothly for her.”

 	“You’re a sweet person to want to fix things for Sakura-chan. But

 what 

 could be wrong for her? I’ve been keeping a close eye on her and

 she’s been 

 perfectly fine.” Tomoyo’s fingers gripped the cool grass beneath her

 as her mind 

 swam, trying to find anything that would have gone wrong. “She’s

 been doing 

 perfectly well lately. And now that Li-kun’s back...” Her melodious

 voice trailed 

 off as she began picking up on it. “Now that Li-kun’s back, things

 are changing. 

 So I don’t know what will happen to her.” This was all so sudden.

 She had 

 known that something had happened to Sakura when she’d started acting 

 strangely this morning. But now her fears were proven by her

 replacement. 

 What could have gone wrong? Things seemed perfect for Sakura. She

 had her 

 beloved back in Japan with her and she didn’t have anymore troubles

 with the 

 Cards and her high school entrance exams were still over a year away.

 	Before Sam could reply, the boy in question sat down next to him.

 Sam 

 smiled warmly before casting an apologetic glance to Tomoyo. He’d

 have to 

 explain later. For now he’d have to keep things up with his

 boyfriend. Scooting 

 closer to the Chinese boy, Sam let out an inward sigh and kept

 eating. An arm 

 slowly went around his shoulders, pulling him even closer. It did

 feel nice and 

 warm...

 

 	Everything was upside down. At least, that’s how Sakura felt. What 

 had happened? It took her a moment to fight through the

 disorientation and 

 finally sit up. She was in a bed with the sheets tangled around her.

 So it must 

 have all been some horrible dream. She had been in some strange

 place all 

 alone. No Tomoyo-chan or Syaoran by her side. Her school fuku had

 been 

 replaced by some white bodysuit. And the body in it was most

 certainly not her 

 own. It seemed to belong to a much older man. She had screamed and

 fainted 

 upon her discovery. But now that she was awake in bed, the whole

 thing must be 

 over. The last thing she could remember before the nightmare had

 been seeing 

 Syaoran again. He had been just about to kiss her before she found

 herself in the 

 strange room. A melancholy sigh escaped her lips at that. Syaoran

 must have 

 been a dream as well. He was probably still in Hong Kong. Oh well.

 She’d have 

 to tell Tomoyo about her dream and see what she thought. Tomoyo

 always made 

 her feel better about things when she was confused or nervous. Or

 lonely. Which 

 was probably why she dreamed up Syaoran being with her in Japan. 

 	Her heart sinking in her chest, Sakura slid off the small bed. She

 yelped 

 a little when her bare feet touched the cold ground. Where were her

 slippers? 

 And why was the ground cold? Blinking groggily, her eyes traversed

 the room 

 she was in. It was empty aside from the small bed in the center and

 completely 

 white. The lights from above cast dark shadows against the white

 floor. Her 

 heart started pounding in her chest as she turned around, trying to

 find out where 

 she was. She was trapped somewhere. That realization brought a

 trickle of fear 

 through her soul. What was going on? She had all of the Sakura Cards

 now, so 

 this must be some other form of magic. But who would do this to her?

 She 

 clutched for the key, but her hand grasped nothing but air. Her eyes

 darted down 

 in horror to see the all white jumpsuit on again. And a masculine

 body 

 underneath. Another scream escaped her lips, but this time she

 retained 

 consciousness. Silence reigned throughout the small room, punctuated

 only by 

 her rapid breathing.

 	“Where am I? What’s going on?” she asked in a tiny voice. She turned 

 around in a circle, looking for some sort of door or any way out.

 Anything but 

 the constant white cube she was imprisoned in. If she didn’t have

 her magic, 

 what could she do? No, someone would notice she was missing. They

 would 

 find her. Tomoyo would know something was wrong. And Syaoran, Yue,

 and 

 Cerebrus would come to her rescue. Slumping back on the bed,

 Sakura’s mind 

 raced for some sort of explanation. Her heart nearly stopped when

 she heard a 

 whooshing sound and a door she hadn’t noticed sliding open. In

 walked a 

 woman in a lab coat with dark skin. She smiled softly to the

 bewildered 

 Cardmistress as she stepped forward slowly. The woman’s mouth opened

 and 

 she began speaking oddly, in a language that Sakura had trouble

 following. She 

 could make out some of it from her english class, but she wasn’t

 fluent enough 

 to make it all out. The woman sighed and said something to a

 ‘Ziggy’. A female 

 voice replied from some point in the roof and then translated what

 the woman 

 had said into Japanese. Sakura sighed and closed her eyes. This was

 getting 

 more and more difficult to make any sense out of.

 	“Hello. My name is Doctor Verbeena Beeks. I’m sorry that we didn’t 

 have a chance to speak earlier, but you passed out before I could

 come in.” She 

 had a calm, almost motherly manner about her. Something about the

 woman 

 helped put Sakura at ease. At least a bit more than she had been.

 Dr. Beeks 

 gestured for her to take a seat on the bed, holding a notepad under

 one arm. 

 Sakura complied, sliding up onto the bed, never taking her eyes off

 of the only 

 other person in the room. “Now maybe I can help make things a little

 more 

 comfortable for you. And maybe you can give me a little information

 so we can 

 get you back home sooner.”

 	“What’s happened to me? Why am I here? Where is here? Hoe...” 

 Sakura could feel the fear welling up inside of her again, but she

 refused to let it 

 get a good grip. She had been through too much by now. This was

 bizarre, but 

 she would make it out all right. Everything would always be all

 right. She had to 

 believe that. Even if it was hard to sometimes. She heard her words

 being 

 translated into English and again looked around for the source of

 the voice. 

 	The woman spoke again, a slight delay carrying between her words and 

 the translation from the voice in the roof. “You’re here in what we

 call the 

 Waiting Room. It’s a little Spartan, but we never know who will show

 up.” She 

 paused for a moment as she tried to decide how much she should

 divulge to the 

 visitor. Some people she had explained their situation to, but most

 of them 

 wound up thinking they had been kidnapped by aliens or that it had

 all been a 

 bad dream. It was easier when there wasn’t such a big difference

 between the 

 bodies. She had already had trouble with a young girl in Sam’s body.

 It didn’t 

 seem like there had been any permanent mental trauma, thankfully,

 but she 

 didn’t want to try again with this girl, even if she was a bit

 older. She hoped that 

 this leap would be over quickly enough. “You’ve been replaced by a

 friend of 

 mine, a Dr. Sam Beckett. He’s living your life for a few days to fix

 something 

 that had gone wrong in it the first time around. When he’s done,

 you’ll go back 

 and everything will be perfectly fine again.” Her voice remained

 calm, soothing. 

 Even if Ziggy had to translate for the both of them, she still

 wanted to convey a 

 reassuring tone to the younger girl, something that Ziggy didn’t

 always worry 

 about. Ziggy was too worried about her calculations at this point

 anyway. Sam 

 had never leapt this close to home before and she was having

 difficulty finding 

 any solid information about any of it. Which frustrated the hybrid

 super 

 computer to no ends. 

 	“Nani!?” Sakura’s emerald eyes went wide as she swallowed the 

 information. Her head shook quickly. No, she didn’t like that at

 all. This was 

 definitely not a good usage of magic at all. “But why? I have Onii-

 chan and 

 Tomoyo-chan and Yukito-san and Kero-chan and Syaoran all looking out

 for 

 me. And I’m the Ca... I can take care of myself, too. And why

 couldn’t you just 

 tell me if something was going to go wrong? You didn’t need to

 replace me for 

 it.” 

 	Dr. Beeks sighed, pulling up her notebook and the information Ziggy 

 had given her on fourteen year old Sakura Kinomoto. The man on the

 bed that 

 looked exactly like Sam Beckett looked uncertain and confused, a

 tinge of fright 

 in his eyes. But there was also a determination laced underneath it

 all, even 

 amidst the swirling emotions. And with the way he was sitting, he

 looked very 

 much like a little girl that had been lost in a store. After all

 this time of working 

 with Sam’s body and whatever soul was currently inhabiting it, she

 had learned 

 to ignore the fact that it always looked the same and to look for

 the mannerisms 

 of the person underneath. “I’m afraid that it just doesn’t work like

 that. We don’t 

 have any control where he goes. He just replaces the person for a

 little while to 

 fix something in their life.”

 	“But there’s nothing wrong in my life!” Sakura said in frustration.

 She 

 knew she was close to tears, but she didn’t care. This whole thing

 was just too 

 much for her to be taking at the moment. She wanted to be back home

 with the 

 ones that loved her. There was nothing in her life that needed

 fixing. At least, 

 nothing she couldn’t handle. This place was all wrong.

 	Smiling a little sadly, the doctor shook her head. “I’m afraid God,

 Fate, 

 Time, or whoever’s leaping Sam around through time doesn’t seem to

 think so. 

 But try not to worry too much. It usually works out for the best.”

 Pulling up the 

 notes again, she thought to herself, ‘Let’s hope this isn’t one of

 the few times it 

 doesn’t.’ 

 

 	“Ziggy, I need you to draw some more power for the Imaging 

 Chamber. I need enough so that someone else can be seen, too,” Al

 said as he 

 brushed past Gooshie and Tina. The two watched in confusion as the

 Japanese 

 woman and her entourage of bodyguards followed close behind. 

 	“But Admiral, what would the purpose be of allowing Dr. Beckett to 

 see Ms. Daidouji?” the female voice that was Ziggy asked from

 everywhere and 

 nowhere in particular.

 	“Just do it, Ziggy. I don’t have time for this. Unless you want to

 give 

 me some information on what’s going on.” Al paused in front of the

 Imaging 

 Chamber door, waiting for a response. He knew he’d hurt Ziggy’s

 feelings as 

 the computer paused for a moment. There was no other reason for the

 pause 

 because the computer worked at unimaginably high speeds. But she was

 very 

 tempermental, especially about this leap.

 	“Admiral, may I remind you that with the leap taking place little

 more 

 than a month ago, I am highly limited in my abilities to gain

 information about 

 the situation Dr. Beckett finds himself in. He shouldn’t be this

 close to us. How 

 am I supposed to find the necessary data when I have nothing to base

 any of it 

 on? A young Japanese school girl from the past month is difficult to

 find 

 information on, especially anything vital enough to require Dr.

 Beckett’s 

 immediate attention. I’m putting all available resources to

 discovering the 

 reason for this leap as well as why Dr. Beckett is so close to our

 time. Perhaps 

 we could switch jobs and you could perform mine to your liking,

 Admiral.” 

 Ziggy’s calm voice still managed to showcase her frustration and her

 bruised 

 ego.  

 	Al sighed, rubbing his temples. He was getting too old for this. 

 “Nevermind, Ziggy. Just draw up some more power, will ya?” This leap

 was 

 getting to everyone. Ziggy was having trouble because of the near

 impossibility 

 of this leap, Donna because Sam was so close to home, and he was

 still trying to 

 hold the whole circus together. 

 	“So that is Ziggy? How remarkable.” Sonomi looked at the oddly put 

 together computer. She had heard of some of the design

 specifications for the 

 hybrid super computer and had heard Al’s complaints about her ego,

 but she had 

 never actually thought she was this advanced. But she had a feeling

 she liked the 

 computer’s personality already.

 	“This way, Sonomi-san,” Al said, gesturing to the door with the 

 handlink. Punching in a button, the door slid open. He sighed and

 took a step 

 into the glowing light. He may not like this, but he understood. It

 had torn him 

 up to see Beth that one last time when she couldn’t see or hear him,

 but he knew 

 that he had needed it. He missed her so much, that he treasured even

 that one 

 bittersweet moment with her. He knew that Sonomi had gone through

 the same 

 with someone named Nadeshiko. That was part of why they had stayed

 in touch. 

 They had both suffered through losing their only true love and had

 somehow 

 managed to continue on through the pain. In a way, it was why both

 of them had 

 put faith into Project Quantum Leap. And now Sonomi had lost the

 last thing 

 keeping her going. So despite his doubts, he had to let her see.

 Especially if Sam 

 couldn’t fix things for her. Then this might be the last time she

 would see her 

 alive.

 	Sonomi stopped for only a moment to motion the bodyguards to stay 

 where they were before stepping after Al. Her heart pounded with

 anxiety. What 

 would happen? Would she be there? She needed to see her little girl

 again. The 

 past few days had been hell for her. First Nadeshiko and now her own

 daughter, 

 who reminded her so much of her dearly departed cousin. She had no

 idea why 

 she was still going on or what was holding her together. Her pain

 was getting 

 ever more acute, and she had no place for it to go. She couldn’t

 hate Sakura, not 

 the way she hated Fujitaka. Yet both had taken away those she loved,

 albeit 

 Sakura had done so unknowingly. But she still couldn’t quite forgive

 the 

 brunette for taking away her loving daughter, even if she was

 Nadeshiko’s 

 daughter. 

 	And suddenly, everything was different. They were standing outside

 of 

 Tomoyo’s school. It appeared to be around lunchtime, with all of the

 students 

 sitting in groups, eating. It was as if they had stepped directly

 from that door in 

 Project Quantum Leap out into Tomoeda. Sonomi stood in shock as a

 student 

 walked right through her. She knew this was all one big hologram,

 but it seemed 

 so real. 

 	Sam stared at the observer and the woman standing next to him. A boy 

 had passed right through her. Which meant she was in the Imaging

 Chamber 

 with him. He tried to extricate himself from Syaoran’s grasp, but

 the Chinese 

 boy continued holding on. He mouthed ‘What is she doing here?’ to

 Al, who 

 shook his head uncomprehendingly for a moment before nodding. 

 	Taking a few steps closer, Al hunched next to Sam, out of Sonomi’s 

 range of hearing. “Ohhh... She’s Sonomi Daidouji, Sam. Your best

 friend’s 

 mother. She wanted to see Tomoyo again. And don’t argue, you big boy

 scout. It 

 won’t change my mind. I’m still in charge of the Project from here.

 Besides, she 

 misses her daughter. You have to understand that. I couldn’t just

 send her away 

 without ever being able to see her again.”

 	Sam sighed in defeat and nodded. It did make sense, even if he

 didn’t 

 really like the idea. But if he couldn’t stop Tomoyo from killing

 herself, then 

 this was for the best. How would he feel if she never saw her again? 

 	“Is your friend here?” Tomoyo whispered to Sam, unknowingly also 

 next to Al’s ear. Al stared at Sam incredulously. “You told her?

 Sam! You know 

 you’re not supposed to tell anybody. Great. This is just great.”

 	“She guessed,” Sam got out through a nervous smile. He went back to 

 eating as Syaoran looked at him oddly. He nodded in acknowledgement

 of 

 Tomoyo’s question. 

 	“Guessed?” Turning his attention to the pale girl, he could see her 

 stormy blue eyes, deep and intelligent. Sonomi had always told him

 that she was 

 very perceptive and the few times he had met her had proven that. He

 just hadn’t 

 guessed to what extent. 

 	“Tomoyo-chan...” Tears dripped down Sonomi’s cheeks as she saw her 

 daughter, alive and well before her eyes once again. It hadn’t been

 that long ago 

 that she had seen the young girl in a coffin, her soul already gone

 from her 

 beautiful body. But here she was again, shining the way she always

 had, an 

 ephemeral shimmer that seemed to encompass her sweet spirit. “Oh,

 Tomoyo-

 chan... My baby, I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there when you

 needed me. 

 You’re the most precious thing in my life. Honey, I never should

 have left you 

 alone when I saw you breaking. I noticed the cracks in your shell

 and I tried to 

 help, but you kept insisting that everything was all right. I wanted

 to help, but I 

 thought that all I could do was be there for you when you needed me.

 I never 

 thought that you’d...” Her fists clenched, her nails digging into

 her palms 

 painfully as she fell to her knees beside the young heiress. “Tomoyo-

 chan, I love 

 you, my little daughter. I never wanted to see you get hurt the way

 I was. I never 

 wanted you to have to live through that. But now... My baby...” Her

 body shook 

 as she reached out to Tomoyo, her fingers slipping through the

 hologram. 

 Tomoyo still looked happy, but Sonomi could see that it was masking

 her 

 nervousness and fear underneath. For what? Probably for Sakura.

 Sonomi’s gaze 

 fell on the girl with the emerald eyes, her tears still streaming

 down her cheeks. 

 Her heart rolled over as she watched, still being held by Syaoran.

 And yet 

 Tomoyo was still pretending to be happy. She had kept up that mask of 

 happiness for her friend until the day she had died. 

 	“It’s not her, Sonomi,” Al explained as he stood up. “That’s Sam. We 

 don’t know why he leapt back into Sakura yet, but we’re looking into

 it.”

 	Shaking her head, Sonomi tried to compose herself, not moving from 

 Tomoyo’s side. “To keep Tomoyo-chan from killing herself, of course!

 Why 

 else would he be back here?” She was still nearly frantic, finally

 able to see her 

 daughter again but unable to even talk to her. “It will be all

 right, Tomoyo-chan. 

 I promise. We’ll fix everything. You just stay strong for your

 mother. I promise 

 I’ll make everything better,” She said reassuringly, trying to

 stroke her 

 daughter’s hair. Her fingers went through the empty space, but it

 almost looked 

 like she had heard her. “Oh, Tomoyo-chan...” It hurt to look at her,

 but she 

 couldn’t take her eyes away. The last time she had seen that face,

 her eyes had 

 been closed for the last time. Sonomi’s heart paused with every

 blink. 

 	Al watched from the side for a moment, glancing down to the handlink 

 and back up. He knew what torture it was to finally see someone

 you’d lost and 

 not be able to interact with them. In a way, this would have been

 easier to handle 

 had Sonomi been here to see Nadeshiko. When she had lost Tomoyo, she

 had 

 lost everything. This was a woman in huge amounts of pain. He only

 hoped that 

 the sight would give her hope. Turning his attention back to Sam,

 the handlink 

 gave its usual squeak of protest as Al slapped it on the side.

 “Still no new 

 information, Sam. And Ziggy’s not very happy about this at all. She

 says you 

 shouldn’t be leaping so close to us. I’ll tell you what we figure

 out as soon as we 

 find it. Whatever it is. I’ve got Beeks talking to Sakura right now

 and maybe 

 Sonomi can help us figure out what you’re here to fix.” His eyes

 went back to 

 the grieving woman, not noticing Sam’s slow nod of approval. He

 shook his 

 head and punched up the door. With all that she had been through, he

 didn’t 

 want to interrupt her. He would come back in a bit. 

 	Sitting next to her daughter, watching her intently as if afraid

 that she 

 would soon enough drop dead in front of her very eyes, Sonomi

 continued 

 whispering assurances to the smiling dark haired girl. And unknowing

 of the 

 guardian angel watching over her, Tomoyo continued her lunch.

 

 	It had been difficult for Sam to ignore Tomoyo’s mother for the

 rest of 

 lunch, but he was the only one who could see her. He wanted to help,

 to say 

 something that could take that terrible pain from her eyes, but he

 couldn’t with 

 everyone around. She had finally left a little after lunch had

 ended, talking to Al 

 for a bit before the Observer had finally convinced her to leave the

 Imaging 

 Chamber. Sam had considered telling Tomoyo, but thought it would only 

 complicate matters if she knew her mother was there. Let alone why

 she was 

 there. 

 	School had finally ended and he had absolutely no idea where his

 home 

 was. And no Al to tell him either. He sighed and glanced around,

 hoping to see 

 the Imaging Chamber door opening and the always oddly dressed Al

 walking 

 out. No such luck. A hand grabbing his own shook him from his

 thoughts. 

 Turning, he saw Syaoran’s face in it’s usual impassive look. But he

 could notice 

 a slight blush coloring his cheeks. Sam smiled a bit. It looked like

 the body he 

 was in gave a good impression at the least. 

 	“Do you want to come with me? I still have some unpacking to do, but 

 I thought we could do something when I’m done with that,” the

 Chinese boy 

 said after a moment’s hesitation. 

 	“I’m sure she would love to, Li-kun, but Sakura-chan’s not feeling

 very 

 well. I just cancelled her cheerleading for today and I’m going to

 take her right 

 home. But Sakura-chan would love to go see it when she’s feeling

 better. I’m 

 afraid all of the excitement today has taken its toll on her. You

 know how 

 worked up girls can get over their boyfriends, Li-kun.” Tomoyo’s

 sweet voice 

 drifted to the two as she exited the front door to the school and

 approached 

 Sam’s other side. She was smiling her usual insanely cute smile.

 Syaoran didn’t 

 seem impressed with it. 	

 	Sam nodded in agreement quickly. “Yeah, I really should get some

 rest. 

 I haven’t been feeling like myself all day. I’ll see you soon,

 Syaoran.” He felt 

 bad to be leaving Sakura’s boyfriend behind the day he had returned

 to Japan to 

 see her, but it was so much easier that way. He didn’t want to think

 about all of 

 the problems of going over to his house and dealing with it all. 

 	Shrugging noncommittally, Syaoran looked at Sam. “Okay. I’ll see you 

 then. Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you home instead?”

 	“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it. You just finish

 packing,” Sam 

 answered with a smile. The last thing he needed right now was to

 talk about the 

 ‘old times’ that he had no idea about. 

 	“And the sooner you finish packing, the sooner you can come and see 

 Sakura-chan in bed. I’ll do my best to nurse her back to health for

 you,” 

 Tomoyo added kindly, taking Sam’s other hand. The fingers

 intertwined with 

 those of Sakura’s body in a smooth, unconscious movement. 

 	Syaoran frowned and shook his head. He had finally gotten back and 

 now Sakura had to get sick. It wasn’t fair. She was the whole reason

 he had 

 come back in the first place. “I’ll try to see you later tonight,

 Sakura-chan. Feel 

 better soon.” Hesitating for a moment, but getting a look of

 reassurance from 

 Tomoyo the same way she had always tried to get him to tell Sakura

 how he felt, 

 he leaned forward and kissed Sakura.

 	Sam’s eyes went wide as he felt the boy’s lips against his own

 again. 

 Well, the one’s he was using at the moment anyway. But it didn’t

 feel altogether 

 unpleasant as his lips pressed against those of the Japanese girl he

 was 

 inhabiting. And he needed to keep things together until his host

 returned. 

 Sighing inwardly, Sam kissed back slightly. Syaoran finally pulled

 away, 

 blushing a bit. Saying their goodbyes, he hurried off for home. Sam

 stood where 

 he was for a few moments, trying to shake the whole feeling off. But

 being in a 

 hormone ridden teenage body really didn’t help matters. 

 	“Are you ready, Sakura-chan?” Tomoyo’s voice asked from Sam’s left. 

 When she saw him nod, she began to lead him back home. It was

 strange seeing 

 Sakura’s body, but not Sakura in it. It was like seeing someone

 wearing a 

 friend’s clothes. They clothes may look the same, but the person

 underneath was 

 different. It was the same watching Sam in Sakura’s body. It looked

 like Sakura, 

 but everything was off. The movements, the way he spoke, everything.

 All of it 

 strengthened her longing to have her friend back. Her mind had been

 centered 

 on the Cardmistress all day, barely keeping from panic. She needed

 to know that 

 Sakura-chan was all right. 

 	It took Sam a moment to realize that they were moving. At least 

 someone knew where his home was. That solved one problem. As they

 walked, 

 Tomoyo chatted pleasantly about all sorts of things, from camcorders

 to sewing 

 to how cute Sakura was. He wondered how Sakura hadn’t noticed the

 girl’s love 

 for her. It seemed obvious enough and she was so warm and caring

 towards her, 

 even if Sam was occupying the body for the time being. “Why didn’t

 you tell 

 her how you feel?” Sam interrupted as she was in the middle of

 explaining how 

 difficult it was to videotape someone on a flying staff that was

 dodging magic. 

 	Silence grew between the two for a moment. Tomoyo was smiling 

 again when she looked at Sam. “Did your friend tell you? They must

 have a lot 

 of information on Sakura-chan.”

 	Sam nodded quietly. He felt a cold chill as he remembered Al’s 

 explanation of why she had killed herself. “Yeah, he did. We have

 some 

 information, but not as much as we’d like. But he did tell me that

 you’re in love 

 with her. Why didn’t you tell her?”

 	Tomoyo looked away, concentrating on their surroundings instead of 

 the body of her best friend. Her smile was still there, but it

 looked marginally 

 weaker, as if Sam had hit on a weak spot. “Because she loves Li-kun.

 There’s no 

 reason to tell her how I feel. That would only complicate things for

 her. She’s 

 happy now. As long as the one I love is happy, I’m happy, too.”

 	“But it can’t be healthy to keep all of that inside all the time.

 Don’t you 

 ever talk to anyone about it? Don’t you think that she would want to

 know how 

 you felt?” Sam asked, wanting desperately to change the pale girl’s

 apparent 

 fate. How could he make her understand?

 	“I think Sakura-chan was very confused about Li-kun’s feelings for

 her. 

 But she finally decided that she returned his feelings. And she’s

 happy with that. 

 I think telling her how I feel would confuse poor Sakura-chan and

 she would 

 feel bad about rejecting me, so it would just hurt her. If that’s

 the case, then 

 there really isn’t a reason to tell her. I’ll always love her,

 whether or not she 

 knows that. So if it comes between telling Sakura-chan and hurting

 her or 

 keeping it to myself and holding it all inside, I would much rather

 keep it locked 

 up inside. I never want her to suffer because of me.” Tomoyo’s

 gentle voice held 

 a tinge of sadness in it, but her smile didn’t falter again. She had

 made her 

 decision a long time ago. She would live her entire life alone if

 she had to. But 

 she wouldn’t hurt Sakura out of selfishness. Even if she did want

 Sakura to 

 know, no good could come from it.

 	Sam watched the pale girl closely for a few seconds. No wonder she 

 tried to kill herself. She was keeping it all pent up inside. Not

 only her love, but 

 all of her pain as well. It had no place to go, building up as it

 ate away at her. It 

 finally must have grown too much for her to carry. “But don’t you

 think killing 

 yourself would make her sad? If you’re her best friend, do you

 really think she’d 

 be happy about that?” He locked eyes with Tomoyo, trying to get

 through 

 somehow.

 	Tomoyo paused for only a moment before replying with another smile, 

 her head tilted to the side. “I’m here for Sakura-chan for as long

 as she needs 

 me. I will stay by her side for as long as I’m necessary to her. But

 now she has 

 Li-kun. And she’ll probably move back to Hong Kong with him. He’s

 going to 

 be the one that she’ll run to from now on. He’s the one who will be

 the most 

 important person in her life. She doesn’t need me anymore. He’ll be

 the support 

 that I always gave her. And he’ll protect her in ways I never could.

 He’ll give 

 her a child. So I understand that I couldn’t stay important to

 Sakura-chan 

 forever. I knew that she’d leave eventually and that I would just be

 a memory. 

 And that’s okay. Because I want her to be happy. But she doesn’t

 need me 

 anymore.” It did hurt inside. It hurt so badly. She wanted to stay

 important to 

 Sakura forever, to always be by her side. But now that was Li-kun’s

 job. She 

 had vowed to stay by Sakura for as long as Sakura needed her, but

 that wouldn’t 

 be much longer now that Syaoran was back. And so Tomoyo had thought

 it best 

 to fade into the background, letting herself slowly slip from Sakura

 so that it 

 wouldn’t hurt the other girl. Sakura wouldn’t need to miss her

 because she’d 

 only be a memory soon enough. A vague memory. But her heart would

 always 

 hold Sakura very close, always loving her. No matter what. There was

 no reason 

 for her to stay outside of Sakura’s life. 

 	“No, that’s not true! She does need you. Even if she’s in love with 

 some other boy, that doesn’t mean you aren’t important to her.

 You’re her 

 friend. You’ll still remain important to her whether or not other

 things become 

 important in her life. You can still be happy. You can find someone

 else and 

 stay friends,” Sam argued, wanting something to shake the dark

 future that lay 

 ahead. 

 	Shaking her head almost imperceptibly, Tomoyo stopped. Her long, 

 dark hair fluttered behind her in the wind. “I don’t want anyone

 else. I love 

 Sakura-chan. And I always will. It doesn’t matter if I’m with her.

 Why would 

 that change my love for her? Why would I want to find someone else?

 To 

 replace her? No, I’m perfectly content to hold her deep in my heart

 for eternity. 

 And I’ll always be her friend. Whether or not I’m here.” She smiled

 again at 

 Sam and continued on before he could answer. “Your brother’s

 probably home. 

 Try to act angry at his taunts, but don’t worry about them. He

 really looks out 

 for you. We’ll get you to your room before he can notice that

 anything’s 

 wrong.” Pulling up Sakura’s backpack, she reached in and grabbed the

 key. 

 	Sam sighed as she opened the door and motioned for him to follow. 

 This leap wasn’t offering him any easy answers. Feeling Tomoyo’s

 hand still 

 holding his own, he let her pull him inside. 

 

 “You... You killed her. You killed my precious daughter all because 

 you were too blind to see her devotion to you. You never saw the

 pain in her that 

 I would always see seeping around the edges whenever I would get

 home. Why? 

 Why did you have to take away my daughter?” Sonomi asked

 incredulously. 

 Sakura sobbed on the bed as her friend’s mother came closer, a look

 of pure 

 torment on her face. 

 “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Sakura cried in protest.

 She 

 had been so happy to see Sonomi, to see anyone at all that she

 actually knew. 

 But after running to her and hugging her, Sonomi had broken down

 into tears, 

 blaming Sakura for Tomoyo’s death. Sakura was completely taken by

 surprise. 

 Tomoyo was dead? What had happened? What had she done? 

 “She loved you so much. She was always there for you. Why weren’t 

 you there when she needed you, Sakura-chan? How could you hurt her so 

 badly?” Shaking her head, the distraught mother paused for a moment,

 trying to 

 get a grip on herself. She was trying desperately to remember that

 this was 

 Nadeshiko’s daughter as well as Fujitaka’s. It pained her greatly

 just to be there 

 with her. She knew damn well why Tomoyo had killed herself. She knew

 how 

 much her little girl loved Nadeshiko’s daughter. It was almost

 impossible to 

 think clearly. She had thought she would be able to handle seeing

 Sakura this 

 time. At the funeral she had brushed her aside, barely able to stand

 the sight of 

 her even though Sakura had been trying to offer comfort. But now, it

 all came 

 back to her. The phone call after they had found her daughter’s cold

 body in the 

 lake, the letter from Tomoyo telling her not to be sad, the entire

 funeral flashing 

 before her eyes. 

 “Sonomi-san, please tell me what’s going on,” Sakura begged, wiping 

 at her eyes. “Tomoyo-chan... She’s not...” The words refused to

 leave her 

 mouth. No, that couldn’t be it. Tomoyo had to be all right. That

 couldn’t be why 

 she was here. But she had never seen anyone in so much pain before.

 It was 

 frightening. Her own heart was on the verge of breaking. If she lost

 Tomoyo, 

 what would she do? Tomoyo was always there for her, always sweetly 

 supporting whatever she did. She always went to Tomoyo for

 everything. 

 Tomoyo was the sun in her sky, keeping everything in her life lit

 brightly. The 

 brunette couldn’t fathom a world without her brilliantly smiling

 face. That 

 would just be too lonely. Like a world without stars in the sky or a

 big, shining 

 moon. Darkness would encompass her life. She needed Tomoyo.

 Somehow managing to grasp a hold of her composure for a moment, 

 Sonomi glared at Sakura as she stood up to her full height. “Tomoyo-

 chan died 

 two days ago. She drowned in a lake at the park.” Sakura gasped at

 Sonomi’s 

 words, tears spilling down the cheeks of the quantum physicist whose

 body she 

 was inhabiting. Closing her eyes, Sonomi continued. “She killed

 herself over 

 you, Sakura-chan. She couldn’t live without you. And I don’t blame

 her. You 

 meant the world to her. She loved you with all of her heart.” Her

 words echoed 

 in her head as she choked past them. She could almost see Tomoyo’s

 sad ghost 

 shaking her head, pleading with her not to be angry with Sakura.

 Sonomi 

 couldn’t blame Tomoyo for killing herself. But Tomoyo wouldn’t want

 her to 

 blame Sakura either. 

 “No...” Crying into her hands, Sakura tried desperately to find a way 

 out of this nightmare. It couldn’t be true. Things were getting

 worse and worse 

 in this horrible dream. First she was stuck all alone in some man’s

 body while he 

 tried to fix something that went badly in her life, then Sonomi came

 and got mad 

 at her and now she found out that her best friend was dead. And that

 it was her 

 fault. Her body shook as she was wracked with sobs. ‘Please let me

 wake up 

 from this! Please...’ she thought weakly to herself, her thoughts to

 painful to 

 continue on rationally. Her only thought was Tomoyo’s smiling face,

 glowing 

 brighter and brighter as she faded until all that was left was a

 vague outline. Her 

 hands dropped to her sides as the brunette woman grabbed her

 shoulders, 

 forcing her to look up. 

 “Sakura-chan, she would never tell you because she wanted to be 

 happy, no matter how much I told her she should. Because she thought

 you 

 shouldn’t know. But damn it, I can’t let you keep on ignoring my

 daughter 

 forever. She deserves for you to know, even if you can’t love her

 back. Sakura-

 chan, she loves you. She still does, my sweet little angel. She’s

 probably 

 watching over you just as surely as Nadeshiko-chan is.” Sonomi’s

 gaze was 

 piercing, the same stormy blue eyes that Tomoyo had inherited from

 her looking 

 deep into Sakura’s soul, unflinching in their determination.

 	Bursting into sobs at the intense gaze, Sakura’s eyes clenched shut 

 again. Tomoyo’s voice chorused in her head, hundreds of different

 things she 

 had said tumbling end over end through her mind. She had filed them

 all away 

 as just strange things Tomoyo had said, but now they all began

 making sense, as 

 if Tomoyo was saying them all from right behind her.

 	“Not only is she fast, but she’s cute, too!”

 	“I guess you can hear the name of the person you like no matter what 

 the circumstances.”

 	“Sakura-chan is so cute and happy now, so I’m happy, too.”

 	“Of course I would be happy if my special person liked me. But I’ll

 be 

 happy as long as my special person is.” 

 	And most painfully, “I love you, Sakura-chan.”

 	“I love you, too, Tomoyo-chan,” she had replied with a smile.

 	“I don’t think my love is the same as Sakura-chan’s,” Tomoyo had 

 replied, looking at her sweetly as she often did when she would say

 such things. 

 And shortly after Sakura’s confused response, “I’ll explain when

 you’re older.” 

 But Tomoyo never did. Sakura had forgotten all about it and Tomoyo

 hadn’t 

 tried to explain to her, always being kind and loving but never

 telling her as the 

 years went by and she grew closer to Syaoran. And apparently, Tomoyo

 never 

 would have the chance to explain it to her.

 “Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura cried quietly, shuddering. They had grown 

 even closer over the past few years while Syaoran was back in Hong

 Kong. The 

 thought of living without her left her feel freezing cold inside.

 Her heart felt like 

 a wasteland. 

 The older woman pulled her cousin’s daughter close, unable to watch 

 her tears anymore. She couldn’t feel angry at Sakura any longer, the

 tears 

 showing her own pain at losing Tomoyo. Sonomi kissed her forehead

 gently, 

 stroking her back as she held her close, the older male body making

 the whole 

 scene seem awkward. “She loved you very much, Sakura-chan. She

 always did.” 

 Right now, she didn’t see Nadeshiko in Sakura. Nor did she see

 Fujitaka. She 

 saw herself, crying over the loss of her beloved Nadeshiko. She saw

 that same 

 pain in Sakura. Her own soul was mirrored in Sakura’s sobs and

 tearful eyes. 

 "Oh, Sakura-chan...”  

 Dr. Verbeena Beeks sighed and let the door slide closed again. She

 had 

 been about to enter to put a stop to the whole fiasco, but it looked

 like she 

 wasn’t needed after all.

 

 	Sam sighed as he sat down on his host’s bed. Glancing around the 

 room, her noticed that it looked nice and fairly organized, a

 television in the 

 corner with a gaming system that a little yellow stuffed bear was

 placed in front 

 of and other stuffed animals placed around the room. There was

 another stuffed 

 bear on the bed as well as a little doll that looked a little like

 Sakura in a 

 costume. Overall, it was a very nice, cute room. Not much like

 Sam’s, if he 

 could remember it at all. 

 	Sitting elegantly next to him, Tomoyo smoothed down her skirt and 

 smiled softly. “You did pretty well with Touya-san. I don’t think he

 noticed that 

 too much was different about you. But you should probably stay away

 from him. 

 He can be very perceptive about things, especially concerning people

 around his 

 sister,” she suggested helpfully. 

 	Kero ignored the two girls talking behind him. He had more important 

 things to think about, like finally beating the game he was

 currently playing. He 

 hadn’t saved a single time yet and he was already so very near the

 end. “Jump!! 

 C’mon!!” 

 	Staring at the little bear over by the gaming console, Sam began 

 crawling across the bed. He felt a hand readjust the skirt as it had

 gotten 

 bunched up. Blushing a bit, the leaper shrugged it off and

 concentrated on the 

 stuffed animal. “It just talked, didn’t it?” He sincerely hoped he

 wasn’t going 

 insane. After so many leaps, he would not be at all surprised if he

 was. But that 

 was the last thing he needed.

 	“That’s Kero-chan. He’s the Seal Beast for Sakura-chan’s Sakura 

 Cards. She’s the world’s best magical girl,” Tomoyo explained

 cheerfully, 

 smiling. 

 	“She’s the only magical girl you know,” Kero pointed out, only

 paying 

 half attention to her. “But yeah, Sakura-chan’s the best.”

 	“That’s amazing...” Sam breathed in wonder. In all his years of

 leaping, 

 all of the technological wonders he had worked on, this was like

 nothing he had 

 seen before. Walking over to the stuffed animal, Sam knelt down,

 watching it 

 play the video game. He poked lightly at the small wings on its

 back. They 

 fluttered in irritation at the touch. 

 	“Sakura-chan, I’m a little busy right now. I just have to...

 Almost!! 

 C’mon!! Just wait till I show you my hurricane special move, the

 Kero-chan 

 Special!!” Kero yelled enthusiastically. 

 	Shaking his head, Sam sat back and laughed. “I can’t believe it.

 It’s 

 real. I mean, it actually talks.” He shook his head, laughing again.

 Sam Beckett, 

 for all of his knowledge, had always been driven by his childlike

 curiosity. It 

 had always pushed him forward. And he was delighted to see the

 magical being 

 in front of him, entirely absorbed in a video game.

 	Giggling softly, Tomoyo watched the person that looked like Sakura. 

 “Hai, he has a lot to say.” She looked thoughtful for a moment,

 tilting her head 

 to the side. “So if you don’t know that she’s a magical girl, how

 much do you 

 know about Sakura-chan?”

 	“Not an awful lot, I’m afraid.” Sam sighed, finally turning back to

 the 

 pale girl. “Not enough to know what I’m here to fix yet.” Averting

 his gaze, his 

 mind questioned his answer. 

 	“But you have an idea,” Tomoyo supplied, watching his reaction. “You 

 need to help Sakura-chan. I’ll do whatever I can to help you. I just

 want her to 

 be happy.” Her eyes closed and a weak sigh escaped her suddenly

 fragile 

 looking form. The day had taken quite a bit of her strength. She

 just wanted to 

 see Sakura again.

 	“But what about you? Why can’t you be happy, too?” Sam shot back, 

 regretting it as the words left his mouth. But he still couldn’t

 understand how 

 that one person could mean so much to her that she would end her

 life. Not the 

 way Al seemed to, at least. She was such a sweet, innocent girl. He

 couldn’t let 

 that fate befall her. There had to be a way for him to stop it.

 	Tomoyo smiled softly and brushed back some of her lavender hair from 

 her eyes. “But I am happy. I’m happy knowing that Sakura-chan will

 be happy 

 with the one she loves.” Before Sam could argue, she continued.

 “That doesn’t 

 mean that I don’t hurt as well. I love her so much. I would do

 anything for 

 Sakura-chan. To be in her arms, I would certainly have to be in

 Heaven with its 

 most beautiful angel, Sakura-chan. But I can’t have that. And I

 understand. So I 

 will do whatever I can to make Sakura-chan happy. That means much

 more to 

 me than my own happiness.”

 	Sam shook his head in confusion. “But how can you do that when it 

 hurts you so much? When you can’t survive the outcome? It doesn’t

 make sense. 

 Don’t do this to yourself! You can stop it all from happening. You

 can still be 

 happy without her.”

 	Her smile faded slightly but it remained on the pale girl as she

 closed 

 her eyes, clasping her hands together. “It’s like I have fallen in

 love with the 

 stars in the sky. They shine down in our lives, twinkling happily

 and giving us 

 glimmers of dreams. But you can never reach them. Just as I have

 fallen in love 

 with Sakura-chan. Even if I can’t quite reach her the way I would

 like to, she 

 shines on me and makes me feel so blessed just to have known her. To

 repay her 

 for all of the wonderful dreams and happiness she has granted me

 through my 

 years with her, I will repay her as best I can, by making her happy.

 And if I can’t 

 be the one to make her happy, then I’ll be glad that Li-kun can.

 Even if I don’t 

 want to stay here without her, I’m eternally grateful to her for

 being in my life 

 for as along as she was. And I will not burden her by staying in

 hers. But I will 

 watch over her happily when I’m gone, the knowledge that she is

 happy filling 

 my heart.”

 	Blinking in surprise, Sam looked away. He was speechless. He really 

 didn’t know how to respond to Tomoyo. She was so convincing, even if

 he 

 believed that she was wrong. 

 	“Sam!!” Al yelled out as soon as he stepped out of the Imaging 

 Chamber door. “Ziggy’s got something! You’ve gotta get down to

 Syaoran’s 

 house now!” 

 	Standing up quickly, Sam ignored the fluttering skirt around him and 

 nodded. “Where is it, Al? What’s going on?”

 	“Just get outside! I’ll show you from there. And I’ll explain along

 the 

 way.” With a few buttons on the handlink, I’ll repositioned himself

 outside.

 	“I need to get to Syaoran’s house,” Sam said hastily, heading out

 the 

 door.

 	“Sakura-chan, matte! I’ll show you where it is.” Taking Sam’s hand, 

 Tomoyo hurried with him down the stairs, leaving an oblivious Kero

 to the last 

 level of his game. She watched the person inhabiting her beloved

 Sakura 

 carefully, wondering what the invisible friend could have said to

 get his 

 attention this way.

 	“Where are you headed off to so quickly, monster?” Touya asked 

 conversationally from the kitchen. 

 	“We’ve got to go study!” came Sam’s response as the rushed out the 

 door.

 	Touya watched after the two girl’s curiously, sipping his tea. His 

 attention turned to the white haired boy sitting next to him at the

 table. “Since 

 when did Sakura ever hurry to go study?”

 	Yukito smiled pleasantly, his glasses shimmering in the afternoon

 light 

 filtering in through the window. “Maybe it’s not the studying, but

 being able to 

 study with Tomoyo-chan. Studying seems to be the last thing on your

 mind 

 when we study,” the snow bunny commented thoughtfully, earning him a

 dirty 

 look from Touya. He just grinned even further. 

 

 	“So what’s going on, Al? What did Ziggy find out?” Sam asked 

 impatiently as Tomoyo led the way to Syaoran’s house while the

 holographic 

 observer followed along. It had been decided that she should lead,

 knowing the 

 area much better than Al, even with the maps displayed on the

 handlink. 

 	“It took forever to find, but she finally found some records that

 were of 

 some interest. Okay, okay. She wants me to say what a supreme effort

 it took on 

 her part to obtain the information. Alright!” Al grimaced at the

 handlink and 

 pounded on the side. “And that she found it right in time because

 this window of 

 opportunity is rapidly shrinking. Egomaniacal hunk of...” he

 muttered under his 

 breath. Looking back up, Al continued on. “Syaoran’s getting a visit

 right now 

 from someone important to all of this. His fiancee, a girl named

 Meiling. After 

 finding out he went back to Japan to be with you, she booked a

 flight and 

 headed out to try to convince him otherwise. They get into a huge

 argument and 

 she leaves, apparently broken up by the whole thing. Seems she

 really had it big 

 for your boyfriend.”

 	“Can you please quit calling him my boyfriend?” Sam asked 

 exasperatedly. Shaking his head, he looked back at Al. He was glad

 for Sakura’s 

 athletic body during the long walk, but Tomoyo seemed to be

 breathing with 

 difficulty. He hoped they would get there soon. “All right, so what

 happens with 

 Meiling?”

 	“Well, she doesn’t kill herself, but she doesn’t seem to take it

 much 

 better than Tomoyo other than that. Ziggy says there’s a 73%

 probability that 

 you’re here to make sure that she gets with Syaoran and that he

 doesn’t ruin 

 things with her. She says that things probably won’t work out with

 you and him 

 and that the relationship will eventually fall apart, but by then

 it’ll be too 

 shattered to pick up any of the pieces for anyone involved.”

 Motioning towards 

 Tomoyo with the handlink, he sighed. “Especially for her.”

 	Sam stopped dead in his tracks, nearly dragging the dark haired

 girl off 

 of her feet at the sudden stop. “Only 73%? Al, can’t you give me

 something a 

 little better than that? I can’t ruin Sakura’s relationship with him

 over that. What 

 if they can work things out? What if they’re meant to have kids? How

 can I do 

 that, Al?” A sigh escaped his lips. This leap was really starting to

 wear him 

 down.

 	“It’s all right, Fake Sakura-chan,” Tomoyo said with a warm smile

 and 

 a gentle squeeze of Sam’s hand. “If you worry like that, then you

 won’t be able 

 to help Sakura-chan out when she needs it. I trust you to fix things

 for her. 

 Please believe in yourself. Whatever you decide.” Her eyes took on a

 pleading 

 look. “Please make sure that Sakura-chan can be happy.”

 	“I promise that I’ll try my hardest to make sure she can be,” Sam 

 promised, smiling a little in return. Turning his attention back to

 Al, his eyes 

 narrowed. “Even if the odds are only 73%.”

 	Sighing, Al shook his head as a loud trill came from the handlink. 

 “Ziggy’s not too pleased with your attitude about this, Sam. She had

 to hack into 

 a whole lot of systems to get the information that she did. And

 besides, why do 

 you always have to be this way about the odds? I give you bad odds

 and you beg 

 for better ones. I give you good odds and you’ll say that’s not why

 you’ve leapt 

 in and do something boneheaded on your gut instinct.”

 	Sam frowned and looked away. “But most of the time I’m right when 

 it’s my instinct,” he argued. Closing his eyes, he sighed. “But we

 don’t have 

 time for that. Especially if we don’t have much time left. Besides,

 this sounds 

 like it could hurt a lot of people in the end.”

 	A door flew open near them and a black haired girl stepped out,

 tears in 

 her eyes and fists clenched. “And if that’s what you want, Syaoran,

 then you can 

 go ahead and have it!! I’m going back to Hong Kong, you selfish

 asshole!! I 

 hope I never see you again!” 

 	Sam winced as he watched her gaze icily at him. Of course, he was

 the 

 reason she was angry. Syaoran stumbled out the door after her,

 holding his 

 stomach as if he had been punched there. Which, surprisingly, he had

 been. 

 Meiling seemed to be a very... fiery woman. Not someone he wanted

 mad at 

 him. He nearly backpedaled as he approached. 

 	“Sam... Don’t get into a catfight with her, okay? I know you know 

 some martial arts, but trust me, you don’t know anything compared to

 her,” Al 

 warned from Sam’s side, punching up information on the handlink.

 “Ziggy says 

 not to piss her off. Oh, thanks, Queen Ziggy. That’s something he

 couldn’t have 

 figured out for himself.”

 	“Sakura-chan..?” Syaoran asked in surprise, standing up straight

 when 

 he saw Sam. He looked at her in confusion before looking back to the

 still angry 

 Meiling. 

 	“I’m going home. I hope you two are happy with each other!” Meiling 

 turned, wiping at her eyes as she began to walk away from the house.

 Syaoran 

 stood on the sidewalk, frozen with indecision. He shouldn’t go to

 stop Meiling 

 with Sakura here. He had made his decision and he would have to

 stand by it. So 

 he would have to let Meiling leave, possibly never to speak with her

 again. But 

 there was nothing else he could do. He never had been good at

 expressing his 

 emotions and this situation was no different. If anything, it just

 made it more 

 difficult. But he didn’t want to see Meiling leave like this.

 	“Wait, Meiling!” Sam grabbed her arm, trying to stall her. She

 easily 

 pulled from his grasp, turning on an agile foot and glaring directly

 at the 

 displaced time traveler. 

 	“What the hell do you want, Sakura? You already have Syaoran. Leave 

 me alone. I’m leaving.” The rest of what she said was in Chinese and

 didn’t 

 make any sense to Sam. She was obviously very upset, masking her

 pain with 

 sheer, seething anger. She was not going to be easy to deal with at

 all. Her 

 beloved had just fled to Japan to be with another woman, leaving her

 all alone. 

 And arguing with him had just made things worse, painful words

 flying both 

 ways as it raged on. Right now she wanted to be on an airplane back

 home 

 where she could forget about sorcerer’s that didn’t keep their

 promises to wed 

 and magical girls that weave spells and steal fiancees. 

 	“Please, don’t go, Meiling. You’ll regret it if you leave today. I 

 promise. We have to talk about things,” Sam urged softly, hoping

 that he could 

 contain the situation. If Meiling wanted to leave, there was

 absolutely no way he 

 could stop her. And that was possibly his only chance to fix things.

 “Please?”

 	“I already regret coming here. What’s another regret?” Meiling shot 

 back angrily, her eyes still bloodshot from her tears. But she

 seemed to at least 

 consider it, making no move to leave. Her eyes darted back towards

 Syaoran 

 who refused to look at her. He had no idea why Sakura was doing

 this, but it 

 was only making things harder. He had done this for her. Why was she

 making 

 it more difficult than it had to be? Meiling looked away again, her

 heart torn in 

 two at the sight of the boy she loved waiting to be with the

 Japanese girl. 

 	Sam took a deep breath, looking from face to face to face. Did

 Sakura 

 know how many lives she could affect? All of these people could be

 hurt terribly 

 by an innocent sin that Sakura had no idea to prevent. Sam only

 hoped he still 

 had time. Tomoyo would die at her own hands out of grief, Meiling

 would be 

 broken over the loss of her fiancee, and Syaoran and Sakura would

 probably get 

 hurt by the personal loss of the two girls, even if Meiling didn’t

 leave in the 

 same way. Now how did he fix all that? He glanced to Al, hoping for

 some idea. 

 The Observer had to know some way to resolve this, right? Otherwise

 he 

 wouldn’t be able to do anything. But how could he break up Sakura and 

 Syaoran? It hardly seemed fair to do that to them. The sound of the

 Imaging 

 Chamber door whooshing open shook him from his thoughts. He stared

 in shock 

 as he saw himself standing next to Al wearing the all white fermi

 suit that was 

 used for multiple purposes at Project Quantum Leap. He hadn’t seen

 himself in 

 so long. But what was he doing there?

 	“Tomoyo-chan...” Sakura whispered softly as she looked at the dark 

 haired girl standing next to her body. It took all she had to keep

 from bursting 

 into tears after what Sonomi had told her earlier. She sniffled

 slightly but smiled 

 at the brown haired boy standing a bit away from her. None of them

 could see 

 her, which was a bit eerie. “Thank you, Syaoran-kun. You were right.

 I 

 shouldn’t cry. It won’t fix anything. Thank you for teaching me

 that. I need to 

 solve my problems.”

 	“Sakura?” Sam asked in shock. What was she doing here? Why was Al 

 parading people through the Imaging Chamber? If they were all going

 to see 

 Tomoyo before she died, couldn’t the watch from Ziggy’s monitors? 

 	Sakura bowed to Sam, a little awkward in his taller body. “Gomen 

 nasai. Thank you for trying to fix my life. But I need to fix my own

 problems. 

 It’s not right to have you fix them all for me. Then I won’t have

 learned 

 anything. If you run away from your problems, you will regret them

 for years 

 afterwards. I learned that from Sonomi-san.” 

 	“I... uhhh... sure..” Sam nodded, still a little confused about the

 whole 

 situation. He hoped this leap would start making sense soon. 

 	“Sakura-chan, are you okay?” Syaoran asked, his eyes narrowing as he 

 looked around for who Sakura was talking to. “Who is it?”

 	Sam shook his head quickly, brushing back some reddish brown hair 

 that got in his eyes. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it. I’m just

 trying to think 

 about what to say.” He glanced back to Sakura, hoping that she had

 some idea 

 about how to resolve this whole thing.

 	Sakura’s hands went to her chest, her eyes closing. She sighed

 deeply, 

 trying to concentrate. This would be difficult to do, but she knew

 she had to. 

 Opening her eyes, determination flared through them. She smiled

 sadly at 

 Syaoran, stepping up to him even if he couldn’t see her. “Syaoran-

 kun, thank 

 you so much for coming back to see me. I missed you so much. You

 were such a 

 great help with the Cards and with all of the dangers that I faced.

 I couldn’t have 

 asked for a better rival. I’m glad that we stopped that and that we

 got to grow 

 closer. You’re really sweet when you let it show through. I’m glad I

 got to see 

 you again. But I’m afraid that I can’t say I feel the same way I

 used to. Or that I 

 ever did. I never really got to decide for myself who I was in love

 with. 

 Everyone seemed to think it was you. Tomoyo-chan, Yukito-san, Eriol-

 kun, they 

 all seemed to lead me to you. So when you told me how you felt, I

 felt like they 

 already had told me. So I thought I had to return your feelings. But

 they didn’t 

 know my heart. Neither did I, back then. I’m so sorry. I think you

 belong with 

 Meiling-chan. She really does love you very much and she’s so open

 about it. I 

 think you’d be sad if you never see her again or if she’s mad at you

 about this. I 

 hope things work out. Hoe... I’m so sorry about all this. But I’m

 really happy I 

 got to meet you. And that we had all of the adventures that we did.

 You’ll 

 always be an important friend to me, Syaoran-kun.” She tried to hug

 him, 

 smiling weakly, but she nearly fell through him. Sighing, she

 stepped back, 

 watching the sad look on his face as Sam repeated what she had said

 to him. He 

 didn’t want to understand. He didn’t want it to be true. Her heart

 went out to 

 him, but she knew that she had to continue.

 	“What?” Meiling asked in shock. Why would Sakura give up Syaoran 

 all of the sudden? She never would in Sakura’s position. A slow

 smile crept 

 along her lips. Who cared if Sakura had suddenly gone insane? This

 meant 

 Syaoran would be all hers after all. It had been worth coming to

 Japan again. 

 “Poor Syaoran,” she said, mock pouting as she took the still shocked

 boy’s arm. 

 “Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you.” She smiled sweetly and

 rested her 

 head on his shoulder, delighting at the way it felt to be next to

 him again. Yes, 

 she’d make sure that Syaoran never did anything that stupid again.

 Or else.

 	Still in Sam’s body, Sakura blushed a bit, wringing her hands as she 

 looked at Tomoyo. While in the Waiting Room, Sakura had had quite a

 bit of 

 time to think. And Sonomi’s explanations had given her a chance to

 realize a 

 horrible mistake that she would have made. She only hoped that she

 was in time 

 to fix it. “Tomoyo-chan, I finally understand what you meant. I.. I

 love you, too, 

 Tomoyo-chan. I need you. More than you could ever know. Tomoyo-chan,

 you 

 make me feel so warm and happy inside. So hanyaa. Whenever I feel

 bad, 

 you’re right there to help me back up again. When I’m happy, you’re

 there with 

 me recording it all and watching me. And that makes me even happier,

 that you 

 can be there to share it with me. Tomoyo-chan, you don’t have to

 just watch 

 your special person be happy. Because I don’t think I could be happy

 without 

 you. I... I want to make you happy, too.” Clasping her hands

 together, Sakura 

 looked down at her friend, watching her intently. Finding out how

 Tomoyo felt 

 about her hadn’t surprised her as much as she would have thought it

 should 

 have. But it just made sense now that she looked back on all that

 Tomoyo had 

 said and done for her. It didn’t take long to realize that her own

 feelings had 

 begun to flow along with Tomoyo’s long ago. She had begged them to

 let her 

 see Tomoyo when she had finally found the love hiding in her own

 heart. 

 	Tomoyo listened in disbelief to her friend’s sweet voice. That

 couldn’t 

 be right. Could it just be the person who was in Sakura saying that?

 The 

 mannerisms showed that it was still the fake Sakura, but those words

 were the 

 Cardmistress’s. So that meant Sakura was here. Saying this to her.

 Her cheeks 

 brightened as she looked around for her best friend. In desperation,

 she grabbed 

 onto the person impersonating Sakura, holding on tightly to the body

 of her best 

 friend. “Sakura-chan...!” Her stormy blue eyes closed tightly, her

 heart pouring 

 out to Sakura, wherever she was. Sakura had been gone all day and

 this was the 

 first time she had the chance to be near her, to know that she was

 there. The real 

 her. It left the pale girl feeling weak inside, especially at

 Sakura’s words. She 

 would have just been happy to know that the magical girl was back.

 This set her 

 soul afire, almost too much for her weary body to handle. A dam had

 broken in 

 her heart, letting all of the love she kept pent up inside for

 Sakura flow out, 

 nearly drowning her in its strength. Everything disappeared in the

 storm, Sakura 

 the calm at its center. “I know you’re there, Sakura-chan. I love

 you, too. I 

 always have, Sakura-chan.”

 	Blushing at Tomoyo’s declaration of love, Sakura let her eyes fall 

 closed as she stood in the same spot as Sam. Wanting so much to be

 there, to 

 feel the small dark haired girl, Sakura’s arms went around the

 hologram of 

 Tomoyo in the Imaging Chamber. 

 	Sighing, Syaoran shook his head. He couldn’t believe any of this. He 

 certainly hadn’t been expecting it. He never should have come back to 

 Tomoeda. Not if this was going to happen. But he should have known

 that 

 Sakura didn’t feel that way about him anymore. Especially with how

 strange she 

 had been acting all day. He suddenly regretted what he had said to

 Meiling just a 

 short time earlier. He opened his mouth, trying to apologize, but

 she shook her 

 head. Leaning forward, she kissed him softly, the rest of his

 conscious thought 

 melting away as he stared at the floor, too embarrassed to utter a

 word. Meiling 

 giggled in triumph.

 	Al motioned over towards the two members of the Li Clan with a 

 flourish of his cigar. “Looks like things just might work out after

 all. Ziggy’s 

 finally breathing a sigh of relief.” 

 	Shooting the Observer a skeptical look, Sam motioned his head 

 towards Tomoyo. He was still a bit concerned about this whole leap.

 It had 

 definitely been bizarre all the way around. “But what about...?”

 	“I wouldn’t worry about that, Sam. Something tells me she’ll live

 for a 

 good long time now that she’s got a reason to.” Grinning, the

 observer made 

 room for Sonomi, ignoring the trill of the handlink.

 	“I’ll see you soon, my baby girl,” Sonomi whispered softly, her

 fingers 

 fading through Tomoyo’s holographic hair. She smiled softly, finally

 feeling at 

 ease for the first time since the funeral. Soon enough this would be

 all over and 

 the funeral would never have happened now that Tomoyo wouldn’t wind

 up in 

 that position in the first place. Though there was no breeze in the

 Imaging 

 Chamber, she could almost feel it just by watching Tomoyo’s dark

 gray hair 

 flutter near her fingertips. A lighter gray caught her eye nearby. A

 faint image, a 

 smiling angel looked back at her. Unseen to the group just as surely

 as the 

 holograms were, the woman watched over the two young girls. So much

 like 

 herself and someone else at that age. “Nadeshiko-chan...”

 	Smiling softly, Sam returned the hug to the overjoyed heiress. He

 knew 

 he’d be gone soon enough, but he had the feeling that Al was right,

 that things 

 would work out. He was glad he had come, even if it was only for a

 short time. 

 “Good luck, Tomoyo.” For just a moment, after setting things right

 that had 

 once gone wrong, Doctor Sam Beckett felt at peace. For just one

 moment, his 

 journey didn’t seem so incredibly long. Home didn’t seem quite so

 far away. 

 With that, he leapt. 

 	With a tingle that Sakura couldn’t quite tell if it was caused by

 magic 

 or by the feeling of being in Tomoyo’s arms, the Cardmistress was

 back. She 

 couldn’t really remember from where, but she felt relieved to know

 that she was 

 home again. With a furious blush, she could remember telling Sakura

 the 

 feelings that rose up inside her heart. She clutched onto the pale

 girl tightly, 

 feeling Tomoyo buried against her, her fingers lightly stroking

 Sakura’s back. 

 Tomoyo almost stumbled back but quickly regained her balance,

 whispering 

 Sakura’s name over and over in her ear. Tomoyo’s gentle touch

 quickly forced 

 away the disorientation that had lingered in the brunette’s mind.

 All that 

 mattered was that she was with Tomoyo once more. And for once, the

 warm 

 feelings in her heart made sense to their owner. It tossed her like

 a balloon, 

 turning her around and around until she didn’t know where she was.

 But it 

 didn’t matter. Now she wouldn’t ever be lost again. She wasn’t fully

 aware of 

 when she had come to the realization that Tomoyo had captured her

 heart, but 

 she knew Tomoyo had as surely as Sakura had captured any cards.

 Tomoyo had 

 bound her heart to her long ago. “I love you, too,” she whispered in

 response to 

 Tomoyo sweet voice in her ear. 

 	It was her again. Tomoyo knew it. She was enveloped in Sakura. Her 

 warm touch, her soft hair, her wonderful scent. It wrapped Tomoyo up

 in 

 ribbons of sheer joy. She never wanted to be free of the ribbons

 that wound 

 themselves tightly around her heart and soul. The pain, the cracks

 in her soul 

 began to heal from Sakura’s presence, soothing her battered spirit

 and warming 

 the icy chill that had threatened to consume her heart. Her pain

 meant nothing in 

 the face of Sakura’s love. It was as if it had never been there at

 all. Sakura’s 

 hands slowly began running through Tomoyo’s hair, smoothing away all

 of 

 Tomoyo’s worries at the same time. “Sakura-chan... I knew that you

 would 

 rescue me,” she whispered softly. Stormy blue eyes opened to meet

 emerald 

 orbs gazing back into them. The dark haired girl smiled contentedly,

 her heart 

 almost overflowing with the outpouring of her love and the influx of

 Sakura’s. 

 She had been the princess locked up in the castle, cursed to an

 eternal night. And 

 like she had always hoped, Sakura had pulled her out into the

 sunshine. Leaning 

 closer, Tomoyo marveled at the even deeper blush that colored

 Sakura’s face as 

 Sakura realized what she intended. Sakura met her softly, their lips

 pressing 

 together. The two girls held each other as if afraid the other would

 slip away. 

 Tomoyo was surprised at the vigor with which Sakura returned the

 kiss, 

 shattering the cage that had held Tomoyo completely and setting her

 adrift in 

 Sakura’s arms. Kissing back as passionately as she could, the dark

 haired girl’s 

 arms went around Sakura’s shoulders, pulling her closer. “Sakura-

 chan is a very 

 good kisser,” Tomoyo said breathlessly as their lips finally parted.

 	“Tomoyo-chan, was that your tongue?” Sakura asked quietly, her 

 cheeks flushing scarlet. “Hoe...” Resting her head on Tomoyo’s

 shoulder, she 

 felt Tomoyo’s gentle embrace as her musical giggle filled Sakura’s

 mind. 

 Whatever had happened, she was glad for it. She had to have a

 guardian angel.

 

 	Sam found himself kneeling in a church in prayer when he finally

 came 

 to his senses. That didn’t seem too awkward. He had been a priest

 before during 

 another leap, after all. But he didn’t seem to be a priest this

 time. The long white 

 dress seemed to indicate that he was a nun instead. Another girl

 stood in front of 

 him, her mousey brown hair done up in a high pony tail with a black

 bow. She 

 wore what looked like a black magician’s outfit with a pink skirt

 and held a top 

 hat in one hand. “Seira-chan? You don’t look so well.”

 	“Oh boy...”