rlm@0: As soon as the final petal had reached the ground, the wind took up all rlm@0: of the petals and gathered them into a cluster. The petals continued rlm@0: flowing with the breeze while remaining in the same area above ground. rlm@0: Tomoyo stared at the pink mass with a curious look in her eyes, wondering rlm@0: what would happen next. Suddenly, the petals began to inch their way rlm@0: toward a section of the park with trees surrounding the entire area. rlm@0: Tomoyo quickly reacted by picking up the elephant and following the cheery rlm@0: blossom petals toward their destination. The wind picked up speed and rlm@0: carried the petals faster, making the girl run in order to try and catch rlm@0: up. Once the petals reached the trees, they escaped from Tomoyo's sight. rlm@0: After Tomoyo reached the first row of trees, she began to walk past them rlm@0: wondering where she would find the assortment of petals. The girl wandered rlm@0: around searching for her destination, but she had no idea where that was. rlm@0: As she pasted more of the trees, she started to get lost in her search, rlm@0: noticing that each new tree looked exactly like the one she just past. She rlm@0: was beginning to wonder if she would ever find the petals at all. But rlm@0: suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, Tomoyo spotted them, almost missing rlm@0: them completely. The petals had formed a circle around one of the trees as rlm@0: they began to orbit around it in a clockwise motion. Tomoyo smiled again rlm@0: once she had finally found where she needed to be. She was happy not only rlm@0: because she had found the petals, but also because she was in anticipation rlm@0: of what would happen next. As she crept forward toward the tree, the rlm@0: circumference of the petals began to increase in size as they spread out rlm@0: away from the tree. Tomoyo stopped in her advancement toward the tree as rlm@0: the petals broke its formation; brushing past the girls chest and rlm@0: connecting again behind her. The girl glanced at the pink circle and rlm@0: watched its movement until it stopped a couple feet away from her. When rlm@0: Tomoyo realized that the petals would refrain from moving, she turned her rlm@0: head towards the tree again as she awaited the next event to unfold. With rlm@0: only a few seconds of waiting, the young girl's hopes would be fulfilled in rlm@0: a manner that she thought she could only imagine. Revealing herself from rlm@0: behind the tree, with her right hand holding something behind her back and rlm@0: her left resting the Clow staff on her shoulder, Sakura gave Tomoyo a very rlm@0: pleasant smile. Tomoyo knew that Sakura would be waiting at the end of her rlm@0: search, but seeing the brown haired girl again put a vast amount of joy rlm@0: into her heart. "Sakura!" Tomoyo shouted in ecstatic jubilation as she rlm@0: ran toward the other girl and gently wrapped her arms around her neck. rlm@0: Sakura placed her left hand on Tomoyo's back while still holding onto the rlm@0: staff. She then turned the staff back into its key form, letting the chain rlm@0: attached to it dangle in between the spaces in her fingers. Her left hand rlm@0: was now free to give Tomoyo her soft, comforting touch. rlm@0: >> "I wasn't sure if I'd ever be able to see you again," Tomoyo said, her rlm@0: voice showing that she was close to breaking into tears. rlm@0: >> "I know, and I'm very sorry that I did that to you," Sakura explained, rlm@0: having regret in her voice but still indicating that she was happy things rlm@0: had come around for the two. "I would never intend to hurt you like I did, rlm@0: but, well I wasn't sure if how the way you felt for me...and now the way I rlm@0: feel for you, was even possible. But I've thought about it and now I rlm@0: realize I was just being foolish." Sakura removed her hand from Tomoyo's rlm@0: back and placed it on her shoulder, as she looked into her eyes. "It makes rlm@0: more sense to me than ever. And now that I realize that what we share is rlm@0: beautiful, I want to make sure it lasts as long as possible." The brown rlm@0: haired girl leaned in toward the other girl and whispered in her ear with a rlm@0: voice that made Tomoyo feel cool and with the words she had been hoping to rlm@0: hear. "I love you more than anything else in this world and I want to hold rlm@0: on to that feeling forever." After hearing those words, Tomoyo's face lit rlm@0: up as she knew that everything would be alright, even better than she had rlm@0: hoped. Once Sakura brought her attention back to the girl she loved, the rlm@0: two spent the time gazing at each other's beauty. Then, without any rlm@0: warning from either of the two, as the situation presented them with the rlm@0: same idea, Sakura and Tomoyo leaned toward each other for a kiss. As their rlm@0: lips meet, the kiss was light and tender, but the meaning within it was rlm@0: very passionate. After the two broke off their physical sign of love, they rlm@0: smiled and continued to look into each others' eyes, feeling content that rlm@0: they werte together. Then a thought suddenly came to Tomoyo's mind. rlm@0: >> "Oh, I just realized. I haven't given you your gift yet." Tomoyo rlm@0: exclaimed, almost forgetting she was holding on to the elephant this whole rlm@0: time. She then presented the elephant to Sakura with outstretched hands. rlm@0: "I hope you still want it." rlm@0: >> Sakura took the elephant in her left hand, examined it, and clutched it rlm@0: to her chest. "Thank you Tomoyo. Your gift really means a lot to me." rlm@0: >> "I'm glad that you still like it." rlm@0: >> "Do you know the reason why I really like it?" the brown haired girl rlm@0: calmly asked. rlm@0: >> "It's because you said it was cute, isn't that right?" Tomoyo said with rlm@0: a slight hint of confusion in her voice. rlm@0: >> "I did say that," Sakura responded as she loosened the grip on the plush rlm@0: figure and gently held it at her side, "and I still think it's cute, but rlm@0: there is a different reason as to why I like it now. I like it because it rlm@0: came from you. The fact that you gave it to me really means something. If rlm@0: anyone else had given it to me, it would just be another stuffed animal to rlm@0: add to my collection. But I can tell that you gave this to me because you rlm@0: love me. You put so much thought into giving this to me. It holds all of rlm@0: your feelings and that's why I like it. And besides, the elephant is cute, rlm@0: but it could never replace your natural beauty." rlm@0: >> The final set of words that Sakura said connected with the dark haired rlm@0: girl effectively as she began to blush. "Th-thank you," she said. "And rlm@0: thank you for understanding my intentions. I had hoped that you would." rlm@0: >> "Oh, and there's something else I wanted to say," Sakura began as she rlm@0: moved her right hand from behind to reveal what she had been hiding. "As rlm@0: far as putting thought and emotion into one's gift, that's what I had done, rlm@0: when I made these for you." The gift Sakura held out to Tomoyo, in a rlm@0: slightly proud, but still cheerful manner, was a pair of fresh roses from rlm@0: the Flower Card. rlm@0: >> Tomoyo smiled once she saw her gift. She took the two pieces of floral rlm@0: beauty and smelled them to find they emitted a heavenly aroma. "They're rlm@0: very beautiful. Thank you Sakkura." rlm@0: >> "And each of those roses both symbolize something." rlm@0: >> "Really?" Tomoyo asked as she looked up to Sakura. "What do they mean?" rlm@0: >> "Hm, one represents all the feelings I have for the girl I love, and the rlm@0: other is for the hope that the two of us will always be together." rlm@0: >> A warm feeling went through Tomoyo as she embraced the other girl again, rlm@0: and a gentle sigh escaped through her lips before she spoke. "I would rlm@0: really like to see that hope realzed." As the unnoticed minutes drifted rlm@0: by, the thoughts and desires of the two girls for each other went through rlm@0: their minds, while the comfort of the two close together physically rlm@0: acknowledged all of them. A cool gust of wind went by as Sakura and Tomoyo rlm@0: found themselves looking into each other's eyes again. rlm@0: >> "Well," Sakura began as she flashed a joyful smile, "I think now that rlm@0: we've found our way into each others hearts, we should probably celebrate rlm@0: our union. Is there anything that you want to do?" rlm@0: >> The dark haired girl gave the other girl a light kiss as well as her rlm@0: answer. "Just being here with you is fine with me. It doesn't really rlm@0: matter what we do." rlm@0: >> "Alright then." As Tomoyo took Sakura's arm, the two of them led each rlm@0: other toward one of the trees. They sat next to one another at the base of rlm@0: the tree while a feeling of calmness and serenity found its way into both rlm@0: of them. Tomoyo rest her head on her girlfriend's shoulder, and Sakura rlm@0: returned the gesture of affection by placing her hand on her girlfriend's rlm@0: head. Nothing felt out of place as the cherry blossom petals were freed rlm@0: from their dormant position above ground and were carried by the wind as a rlm@0: sign to anyone who saw them that two people had fallen in love. rlm@0: >> rlm@0: >> After another school day had come and gone, Tomoyo stood by the entrance rlm@0: waithing for Sakura to meet with her. The two girls had decided to buy a rlm@0: snack after school and share it with each other. To keep herself occupied, rlm@0: she took scenery shots of the school grounds with her camcorder. She only rlm@0: got a few minutes worth of footage before Sakura came out and greeted her. rlm@0: >> "Sorry to keep you waiting," Sakura said a little bit embarrassed. rlm@0: >> "Oh it's no trouble at all. I'm just glad you came, and I knew you rlm@0: would be here," Tomoyo answered while recording Sakura on film. Since the rlm@0: two were closer than ever, Sakura no longer felt shy or embarrassed about rlm@0: being in front of Tomoyo's camcorder, especially now that she knew why she rlm@0: was he dark haired girl's favorite thing to record. rlm@0: >> "So, do you still like the gift that I gave you?" Sakura said as she rlm@0: struck a pose for the machine's lens. rlm@0: >> Tomoyo responded with a smile as she took the camera away from her face rlm@0: to look at her girlfriend with her own eyes. "Being with you has always rlm@0: been a gift, and I will always enjoy that." rlm@0: >> rlm@0: >> rlm@0: >>So what did you think? Did you like it? Dislike it? Or are you just rlm@0: indifferent? Anyway, please tell me what you think. I will take comments rlm@0: and criticism of any kind. Just send it to me at mebrown@dubuque.net, I rlm@0: would really appreciate it. Thanks a bunch.