18 December, 2000

Author's Note: I know this part took a long time to be posted and I apologize. December was never a quiet time for me.

I'd like to thank Sumiki, Digidestiny and BCzeon27 for all your encouragements and help. Flame me if you must for posting it this late, but enjoy this latest installment. This is kind of the end, but not the end. Never mind, you'll see what I mean.

Warning: this is a long one.

Ja ne!

Card Captors

"Dimensions"

By : The MOUSE...........................

Doctors, medical residents and nurses ran back and forth in the Emergency Room, shouting orders and information to each other as they went. At their center, lying prone and barely clothed on the examination bed, was the pale and still form of the world's most powerful sorceress, Kinomoto Sakura. A clear breathing mask was strapped to her face over her mouth and nose, forcing oxygen into her lungs with each shallow breath she took. Half a dozen different machines monitored her life signs while several intravenous bags dripped clear, colored and red substances into her veins to help repair what damage had been done. Her own blood still stained her face from the nosebleed and the blood trickling from her mouth. The deep lacerations along her arms had been stitched and bandaged. No questions had been asked on how she had received the injuries.

Standing off to the side of the room, his eyes the deep color of Tiger's Eye never leaving Sakura's form for even an instant, was a silent and completely invisible watcher. A lone wolf. The Chinese warrior had his ghostly arms crossed over his chest, the tip of his thumbnail lodged firmly between grinding teeth in worry. Li Syaoran could barely stand it. His Ying Fa, his eternally beloved soul mate was hovering ever closer to death and there was nothing he could do except watch. He had just recently discovered that she was meant to be with him, they were of one soul. But he had waited too long to tell her how he truly felt. And now he was losing her, her usually bright aura growing ever dimmer.

Despite the medical team's best efforts, Sakura was slowly slipping away. The chief medical doctor was nearing his wit's end.

"What's her BP now?" he demanded of a nurse.

"Eighty over sixty and falling."

"X-rays?"

"Negative, no breaks." a resident replied.

"CT scan?"

"No signs of bleeding or head trauma."

"PET scan?"

"Also negative for trauma."

He peered anxiously at the partially clothed body lying on the examination bed. "Dammit, then where's all this blood coming from? There has to be a bleeder somewhere!"

"Found them, multiple bleeders!" a nurse called from an ultrasound monitor, holding the scope over Sakura's chest. "Stress lesions all along the superior Vena Cava spilling into the chest cavity! More lesions along the anterior left lung and the bronchi! You can barely see them which explains why the PET scan didn't pick them up! That's where the blood's coming from! Together they're spouting enough to bring her pressure down significantly!"

"Right, well done! Prep her for immediate surgery! Have six units of A positive ready for her up there and have some O positive ready as a backup in case we run out! Let's move, people!"

Syaoran watched in abject worry as they wheeled the Mistress of the Cards away at a breakneck speed. From what little he understood of the medical jargon, his Ying Fa was dying. But these doctors could save her. They had to save her.

Onegai, Sakura. Come back to me, he pleaded silently, desperately, feeling a great weight tighten around his heart.

* * *

"And just what was she doing at the school yard at this hour?" Kinomoto Touya demanded, his voice raised in livid anger.

Daidouji Tomoyo and Li Meilin Rae cringed at the worried rage written on the face of Sakura's Onii-chan. "I told you." Tomoyo began the lie yet again. "She got a call on her cell phone from someone claiming to be Naoko and who said she urgently needed her help."

"And why were you two there?"

"Sakura, go alone someplace? As if! She called us to back her up. She felt something wasn't right about it all."

"You, I understand, Tomoyo, but why did she call her to come along?" and he viciously stabbed a finger at Meilin.

The fiery-eyed Chinese girl frowned in growing annoyance. "Whether you like it or not, Sakura and I are friends now. She doesn't need your approval or permission to be friends with someone or like someone, no matter what you think."

He glowered and took a menacing step forward. "Why you little--"

"That's enough, Touya." Kinomoto Fujitaka warned patiently.

"But, Otou-san--"

"I said, enough!" He sighed. "I know you're worried about your Imoto. We all are. But that doesn't give you the right to vent your anger and frustration on her friends."

The tired and worn looking man motioned for the two teen girls to come sit at his either side and he held them both comfortingly as only a Otou-san could.

"Sakura will be just fine. She has a strong and stubborn spirit, just like her Okaa-san did. She'll pull through this."

"Of course she will." Tomoyo agreed, near choking on a sob.

Meilin felt a little awkward. She wasn't used to this kind of affection from someone whom, only moments before, she had considered a stranger. The few times she had met Sakura's Otou-san she had been very determine to upstage his Daughter in everything, to belittle her at every turn. But he didn't seem to remember. Or he had forgiven her for it all. All he was right now was a Otou-san worried about his Daughter. A man silently thankful his little girl had such good friends in her life. Meilin blinked. So this was the reason for the amount of love and forgiveness in Sakura's heart. She was surrounded by it in life.

Slight movement caught her eye and she looked up. Easily passing through the closed door as if nothing was there was her Cousin's spirit. Try as she might, she would never get used to seeing him do things like that. He seemed to pause, as if unsure her should even be in this private waiting room. Meilin felt sorry for him. Syaoran never had been able to handle the waiting and worrying about a loved one. It was often too much for him. She also saw the look on his face that said he knew what was happening to his heart's desire. Meilin slowly pulled herself away from Sakura's Otou-san and stood on shaky legs.

"I think I'll get us all some coffee. Tomoyo, come help me?"

Bravely holding back her tears of worry for her childhood friend, Daidouji Tomoyo looked up and noticed the phantom hovering near the door behind the raven-haired girl. She blinked in understanding.

"Oh, yeah, right, sure." and she followed her out behind the spirit, making sure to bring the inanimate Kero along.

They walked the halls in silence, following Li Syaoran's ghost down a quiet, unused hallway and into an empty storage-like room. Once out of sight Kero sprang to life immediately and flew up to be at everyone's eye level.

"So, you were in the ER. What's going on with Sakura?" the Guardian Beast of the Seal demanded rather impatiently.

The warrior had a slight, pained hesitation, looking down at his transparent hands. "They just took her up to surgery now."

"Surgery?" Meilin blinked, understanding how serious everything had become. "What for?"

Again he hesitated. "They... they found... lesions along one of the major blood vessels and her lungs. They're going to try to fix them."

Kero let himself drop into Tomoyo's hands at the news, his tiny form trembling in growing worry and concern for his Mistress. "How... How did this happen?"

"They said it was stress. She never let it show. I should've known. She hasn't had the needed training to cope with Card Capting. There are meditations you're supposed to do to decompress."

"Will... she be alright?" Tomoyo thought to ask.

"... I don't know." Syaoran answered heavily, tears beginning to burn his eyes. "But, by the Great Dragon, I hope so. She has to be all right. She just has to."

* * *

Eternally long minutes soon changed into infinitely long hours. Numerous empty cups of coffee now littered the waiting room's low table and part of the floor. Tomoyo tried to get some rest on one of the couches, her head pillowed on Fujitaka's thigh as she held Kero close for both of their comfort, but found sleep just wouldn't come. She was too restless. Kero twitched nervously in her hands. Meilin sat in a nearby chair, her arms wrapped around her legs to have her knees tucked under her chin. She stared at the blank wall across from her. Touya paced the room in mounting impatience at the lack of news about his Imoto.

And in a far corner, elbows resting on his knees, his face hidden in his arms, was the specter of Li Syaoran, unseen by all except his Cousin, the videographer and the Guardian Beast of the Seal. Worry was slowly and steadily eating away at his spectral heart. He looked to the other occupants of the room, noting the level of worry each one showed. He loved Sakura more than all these people combined, he was certain of it. Touya was her Onii-chan; his was family love. Tomoyo was her best friend since a tender age; hers was the love of a best friend. Kero was her Guardian and protector; his was the love of a defender. Fujitaka was her Otou-san, a special emotion but family love just the same. And Meilin was a new friend of Sakura's, a blossoming affinity for the kind teen that had forgiven her.

But Syaoran's affection ran deeper. He was Sakura's soul mate, her partner in Card Capting. He saw her at her best and at her worst. He knew everything about her without her having said a thing to him. The wait was excruciating for the apparition. His tortured mind and heart asked him what he would do if she happened not to survive the surgery. The answer was plain and quick in coming. Syaoran wouldn't seek to reunite with his body. Instead he would let go of the thin thread holding him to the mortal world and join his beloved partner in the next world. She was his reason for existing. He couldn't live without her, not now after having known her, lived and fought at her side for so long.

Think positive, Syaoran, he suddenly argued with himself. She'll survive this. She's strong. Think more what you'll do if she does survive.

A tiny smile touched his lips at the thoughts he conjured in his mind. I'll give up my clan for her. She's my everything. I realize that now. Living without her is pointless.

But what will you do?

Anything I have to!

"Hey, Meilin?" Touya called as he paced, attracting everyone's attention to him.

"Yeah, what?" she near snapped.

"Where's your gaki Cousin? I would've thought he'd be here."

She paused, meeting her phantom Cousin's eyes for guidance. "He... He doesn't know she's in the hospital. He's been in Hong Kong for the last month and a half." she lied, receiving an approving nod from Syaoran.

"Hong Kong? What for?" Touya probed.

"Family business. I'll call him later to let him know. He'll want to know this."

"Why would that good for nothing gaki want to know what happened to my Imoto?"

Again, she looked to her Cousin's ghost who nodded, urging her to say the words. She sighed. "Because he loves her."

Touya froze in mid-step and rounded on her. "He what!?"

Meilin held her ground with a frown. "He loves her. I know he's been in love with her for the last four years, but I never wanted to admit it."

Touya was near livid. "That gaki attacks my Imoto the first day he meets her and now you tell me he's been in love with her all this time!? Who the hell gives him the right?"

"She gave him the right!" Tomoyo shouted, abruptly sitting up.

He looked at her. "Nani?"

"Sakura gave him the right! I know for a fact Li would rather die than let anything bad happen to Sakura! It kills him to know she's hurting in any way! She tells me everything and she told me she loves him too! Both of them are just terrified to take the next step because they have you breathing down their necks to keep them apart!"

Syaoran's eyes were as wide as Touya's as they both stared at Tomoyo. It was true. The Card Mistress and the amethyst-eyed videographer were the ultimate of best friends. They had no secrets from each other. And if they did it never stayed a secret for very long. And Tomoyo would never lie about something like this. Hope once again sprang to life within the teen warrior's heart. All these years, Sakura was his and he didn't even know it. All he had to do now was ask her. The decision was made. His clan would lead itself; he would stay with his soul mate.

Touya dropped heavily into a nearby chair in a stunned shock just as someone knocked gently on the door. Bare instants later a doctor and a medical resident walked in. Everyone's anxious eyes were focused on the two. The medics looked at them all sitting quietly in clear confusion.

"We heard screaming...?"

Fujitaka waved off their concern. "Just the settling of a problem." He then looked at them in abject worry. "My Daughter... Sakura..."

"Will be fine now." the doctor smiled reassuringly.

A great sigh of utter relief went through the family, friends, and lone spirit. Even diminutive Kero almost forgot to keep as still as a doll at the wonderful news.

"The surgery went very smoothly." the resident continued with a smile. "We managed to keep her blood pressure stable all the way through it. She's a very strong young lady. She's presently recovering in the ICU as we speak."

"When can we see her?" Meilin queried, surprising even herself by the request.

"In a few hours from now, at the start of visiting hours. Give her time to fully recover from the anesthetic first. I suggest you all go home and get some rest. If there's any change in her condition we know where to contact you."

For the first time in several hours Tomoyo got up with inanimate Kero in her hands and walked up to the two medics. "I was wondering... Could you put this on Sakura's pillow? I know she'd feel a lot better if she saw him nearby."

The medical resident smiled. "Of course." and he accepted the Guardian Beast of the Seal from the teen.

Syaoran's eyes smiled at the teen as she retrieved her coat from the couch. "Arigatou, Tomoyo. Now I can just follow them and see where Sakura is."

Unseen except by the spirit, she smiled in return with a slight nonchalant shrug. "Anything for the most kawaii couple in the world." she whispered ever so softly as she slipped on her coat.

The warrior didn't argue with her this time. He couldn't. He had just learned the love of his life would live and that she loved him as well. How could he deny that? He merely stood, unseen, unfelt, next to the two medics and watched as his friends and Sakura's family left the hospital in much lighter spirits. Things were actually starting to look bright again. And, possibly in a few days, he would be restored to his flesh and blood self. A smile crept over his lips. He had plans for after that happened. A sudden yawn from the medical resident snapped him out of his reverie and he turned to the two medics.

"Long night?" the doctor questioned of his co-worker.

"Hai." this one replied simply.

"C'mon, I'll buy you a coffee downstairs."

The resident smirked a slight wince. "Oo, cafeteria coffee. Yeah, that'll keep me awake for the rest of my life. Or kill me right there. Just let me drop off the stuffed animal here and we can go."

Syaoran laughed, glad these medical personnel couldn't hear him. But Kero did and fumed silently at being called a stuffed animal by someone other than the young warrior, struggling to stay as still as possible while he planned a mini revenge. The hospital's intensive care unit was eerily quiet at this time of day. The only sounds were the occasional hushed whispers from the attending staff, the beeping heart monitors in various rooms and the whooshing sound of the respirators. A deep and solemn feeling hung in the air here. The ghostly warrior followed close behind the medics in complete silence, not daring to look through some of the open doors for fear of what lay beyond. He kept up with the duo and followed them into one room in particular. He froze at the door at the sight he beheld.

There she was.

There was the beautiful and ethereal Card Mistress lying amid thin white hospital sheets that seemed to cling to her form. The warrior almost believed the thin sheets to be taunting him, silently telling him that he would never be as close to her body as they were. Was it possible to be jealous of a blanket? Her hair formed an auburn halo around her head on the soft pillow. A thin breathing tube passed under her nose to encourage her to breathe. A number of machines beeped and hummed as they monitored the teen girl's life signs. High tech machines. Machines the Chinese phantasm was completely unfamiliar with. Syaoran had been trained and schooled in the ancient arts. The new sciences of medicine and chemistry were something he was still trying to get used to. If he stared at these monitor screens long enough he could probably figure out what each one was responsible for, but his warm phantom eyes were too engrossed in gazing at the sleeping beauty on the hospital bed.

"Kinomoto-san?" the resident called gently to the sleeping figure as he approached the bedside. He looked nervous, as if he had no right to disturb the slumber this angel. "Your friend asked me to give you this. It's your stuffed animal." and he nestled Kero on the pillow.

Kinomoto Sakura slept on, still under the influence of the anesthetic. The resident sighed a small smile as he walked back to the door. Both medics stood there for a long moment, just staring at the recovering teen, not seeing the spirit that moved to stand at her side.

"Got to admit, she a looker." the doctor finally stated.

"That she is. Whatever guy will manage to land her as a girlfriend can consider himself the luckiest man alive." and the two left.

Kero sprang to life as soon as they were out of sight, his round face red with anger. "I am not a stuffed animal!" he very nearly shouted.

Li Syaoran chuckled in clear amusement. "See? I'm not the only one who thinks you look like a--"

"Don't say it!"

He grinned almost evilly. "A stuffed animal."

Kero growled in menace. "Just you wait until you're solid again, gaki. Then you'll regret it."

"Right. I am so scared." he chuckled.

Syaoran turned his attention back to his beloved sleeping soul mate, his smile softening in great affection towards her. He silently pulled a chair over to her bedside and sat, resting his arms on the edge of the bed to simply watch her sleep. She was exquisite, a work of art made flesh. Her every line, from the curve of her neck to the sweep of her nose, was sheer perfection. Her breaths were slow and regular now; her once pale and ashen skin had recovered its rosy hue once again. He rested his chin on his arms with a silent sigh, carefully toying with a lock of her honey auburn hair. He could watch her sleep for an eternity if he wanted to. He did want to, but he also wanted her to wake up. The piercing evergreen of her eyes was a sight so much more magical to behold. A person could drown in their sea of green. And he desperately wanted to see them again. Of all her stunning features, her eyes were the most striking of them all.

Kero watched him carefully, noting the tenderness of his actions towards his Mistress. As much as he didn't like the Li Clan warrior/sorcerer it was plainly clear that he would never willingly or otherwise be able to hurt Sakura in any way, that he would always protect her. The Guardian Beast of the Seal was almost jealous at this, but at the same time he was reassured that she would always be safe if she stayed with the young warrior. He had seen the young warrior's feelings evolve from one of hate, to rivalry, finally to affection. From there the affection progressed. He sighed to himself. Clow Reed always knew that if ever there were two Card Captors they would ultimately fall in love. They fought for the fate of the world together; they had the weight of an almost impossible destiny on their shoulders. No one could really understand them and their plight save for each other. It was a strong bond, made even stronger by the fact they were soul mates. An added bonus. Kero crawled across the pillow to be on the other side of Sakura's head and curled up into the crook of her neck. There he drifted off to sleep, secure in the thought that nothing would ever happen to his Mistress now.

The Chinese protector continued to watch his adored soul mate, unable and unwilling to tear his eyes away from her even for an instant. He didn't notice the hours tick by, his whole attention focused on the sleeping angel lying before him. Syaoran felt he could never tire of just gazing at her. Mentally, he grinned. In spectral form he didn't need sleep or food to keep him going so technically he could stay here forever. Each look, each glance revealed a new and subtle beauty to add to an already infinitely long list. He smiled. And she was his match. This mortal goddess was his soul mate. Never in his life had he ever dreamed he would want someone so completely. Five years ago, had someone asked him if he would ever fall in love he would have beat them to a bloody pulp for even suggesting the notion.

Now...

Syaoran couldn't picture his life without her. To never see her glowing eyes, to never see her smile or hear her laugh, to never again feel her warm pink aura. The thought was painful. He trailed a gentle finger across her cheekbone and saw her twitch slightly at his touch. His head shot up at this. The anesthetic was finally wearing off. She was waking up. Her lush black lashes fluttered slowly as her green eyes blinked open. The fantastic orbs shone through barely open slits, momentarily staring at the ceiling. Then, having felt his aura so near, she turned her eyes to Syaoran. A weak smile touched her lips as she turned her head towards him and his heart melted all over again.

"... Syao-... ran..." she managed in a hoarse whisper.

"Ohayo." he greeted softly with a smile.

"... Ohayo..." she returned.

"How're you feeling?"

She sighed. "... Like... a torn up... rag doll..."

He chuckled lightly, overjoyed that she would be all right. "Well, the beautiful doll did have something wrong with her so they opened her up, fixed all the little problems, then stitched her back up again." She smiled, amused, and Syaoran stroked her head gently, feeling his whole ghostly being warmed by her smile. "You had me-- us worried."

Her eyes twinkled in the dim light, catching the quick correction he had made. "... Gomen..."

"It's not your fault, Sakura. You could hardly help it."

"... Hos-... pital...?"

He nodded. "Tomoyo called for an ambulance on her cell phone right after you passed out." he explained.

"... Others...?"

"Well, the cotton ball is sleeping on your shoulder there. Visiting hours start in about three hours from now. The doctors suggested the rest of them go home and get some rest before coming back. Meilin and Tomoyo will come by after school. No doubt your Otou-san and Touya will be here in exactly three hours, to the minute."

She nodded slowly with a smile, a smile that suddenly vanished at a thought. "... What... hap-... pened... to me...?"

He paused, then sighed softly. "Card Capting is hard and stressful business. It takes years of intensive training to get one ready for it. You never got the training you should have gotten for it. The stress punched holes in all the wrong places. Combine that with the pain from separating..."

Her eyes quivered at the memory. "... It hurt... so much... felt... in-... complete..."

His eyes softened. "I know, I felt it too." and he tenderly thread his phantom fingers through her bangs. "You should get some more rest now. You've been through a lot."

"... Can't..." Tired and pained crystalline tears fell from her eyes, her bottom lip trembling, as she tried to curl herself into a fetal position. "... Hurts... so much..." she began to sob softly.

Everything churned painfully within the young warrior at the sight of her tears. This was his weakness. She was his weakness when she cried. His throat felt suddenly constricted. "Don't cry, Sakura." he pleaded. "I could never stand to see you cry." he tried to soothe as he dotingly wiped away her tears with feather light fingers. "It'll be alright."

But his words and gentle actions didn't seem to help her.

"... In-... complete... Feel... so alone..." she hiccuped quietly.

He blinked abruptly at her words, a sense of understanding invading him. He knew exactly what pain she was talking about and why she was crying this way. The larger part of their beings had joined, merged completely, and for a short time they had existed as one. He could remember how that had been, how it had felt. There was no way to quite describe it, a feeling of such utter peace, of being whole, complete. It had been as if his life's puzzle had been assembled, all the missing pieces had been found. And, hai, being apart again did hurt. It was a deep hurt. A soul hurt. More than anything his soul screamed to be a part of her again, to be ever so near. And he so wanted to join, to merge with her again, but his heart screamed no. She would never survive another joining. He would not be the selfish instrument of her death. In the blink of an eye Syaoran threw down all the hard walls he had spent years building up and carefully stretched out at Sakura's side, enfolding her pained and trembling form in his wraithlike arms. Part of the dull ache he felt within him eased, comforted by the feel of her heart beating against his phantom chest. Silently he blessed the Fates for at least allowing him to feel solid to the one person who meant the world to him.

"Shhh, I know." he soothed gently in her ear, tenderly stroking her hair. "I feel it too. Hurts all the way past the heart."

She nodded shakily. Her tired and leaden arms clutched at his near transparent figure to keep him close, thankful he was solid to her. He felt so warm compared to the glacial feeling she felt deep down.

"... Feel... so cold..." she sobbed in a hush. "... So... alone..."

His arms tightened protectively. "You'll never be alone."

She raised her eyes to look at his dark gold eyes. "... Promise...?"

Syaoran hesitated, delicately wiped away her tears. "I break every other promise I ever made by saying this, but, hai, I promise you'll never be alone in this world or the next... beautiful Sakura."

Sakura blinked in surprise at his words, a pleasant thrill racing up her spine.

"Go to sleep now, my Cherry Blossom. You need your rest." he whispered.

A tiny, blissful smile touched her lips as she let herself be cuddled in her beloved warrior's arms, his airy breath tickling her cheek soothingly. "... Must already... be... dreaming..." she managed to breathe.

"What makes you say that?" There was a smile in his gentle voice.

"... Never... used... pet names... before..."

He tucked a stray strand of her hair away from her face. "Then maybe I should start."

Glowing springtime green met warm golden ocher in slight confusion at his words. What was he saying? He already had his mystery girl, didn't he? His ghostly fingers trailed a light path along her jaw line, banishing all her further silent questions from her mind, his ethereal eyes seeming to memorize every aspect of her face with great attention. Sakura felt her heart start to flutter, a blush coloring her cheeks. He was just so close. Then his phantom lips tenderly and gently pressed against her brow in a loving caress. She sighed a delighted smile, her eyes closing on their own.

"... Syao-... ran..."

A light finger touched her lips to silence her. "Shhh, sleep now and know you'll never be alone... I promise."

* * *

Sakura observed Kero polish off his sixth helping of butterscotch pudding in bored interest, tugging at the thin, pale blue shirt of her hospital issue pyjamas. Sometimes she marveled at how much the tiny creature could eat without exploding. But he was a magical being after all. He probably had a black hole for a stomach. Still bored she cast her mind back to the events of that morning and chuckled lightly. It had been completely understandable that her Otou-san had been worried about her. He was her Otou-san. But it was the caring concern Touya had shown that had greatly surprised her. He nearly fawned over her, making sure she was comfortable and had everything she needed within easy reach within the private hospital room she had been moved to. He even went out of his way to get her anything she wanted. She remembered how invisible Syaoran had laughed at her Onii-chan's anxious efforts, unheard by all save her and Kero.

Hours later Tomoyo and Meilin had stopped by for a visit on their way home. They brought her numerous speedily written notes and well wishings from friends who had learned what had happened to her from the two girls. A fictitious rendition, of course. The modern world wasn't yet ready to know about her abilities or about the Clow Cards. Sakura counted her lucky stars each and every night that she had such good friends as the two teen girls.

Sakura sighed abruptly and stared up at the ceiling, beginning to count the tiles there in the dark. A soft breathy chuckle reached her ear from the room's door. Tearing her eyes away from the ceiling she saw the wispy outline of her beloved warrior framed in the light from the hallway. Syaoran leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest with his head cocked to the side. He still wore the ghostly rendition of his clan's traditional battle costume. A shivery warm smile was on his lips. She smiled at him. Silently she blessed him for having stayed after everyone else had left for the night.

"Of course I'll stay." he told her softly.

Sakura blinked. "How did you know what I was thinking?"

He pushed off the doorframe and walked towards her. "We've been partners for five years, Sakura. If I don't know what's going on inside that pretty head of yours then we have a problem, now don't we?"

She blushed a timid grin. "You know me too well."

The ghost sat in the chair close to her bedside with a serious expression. "Sometimes I think not well enough." He regarded her thoughtfully for a moment. Then, "Why didn't you tell me you were going after the Death Card last night?"

Her grin faded as she stared at her hands in shame. "Gomennasi about that, really, I am. It's just, I knew you would've tried to talk me out of luring it out in the open to fight it."

He frowned. "Damn right I would've."

She met his eyes. "But I had to try anyway. I... I wanted to prove to myself that I could do something without having to always rely on you being there to back me up. I guess I still have a lot to learn before then, but I had to try."

He nodded slowly in understanding, knowing how important it was to know and prove you could stand on your own two feet without someone always there to hold you up. He had done the same with his clan all those years ago, trying to prove to the that he was both ready and worthy to do things on his own. It wasn't something that had been easy to do, even for him. He suddenly smiled at her.

"I think it's that stubborn streak of yours. Keeps you from hearing words like no and can't and quit."

"Would you have rather she quit all those years ago?" Kero questioned casually as he licked his spoon.

Syaoran leaned back in his seat with a thoughtful expression. He thought back to when he first realized she was a Card Captor and he tried to force her to give him the cards. He winced as he remembered having hurt her in the process. She had been timidly brave, sure yet unsure, defiant of his claim on the cards. Her confusion at it all back then had made her look so painfully adorable. Part of him had noticed her for who she really was, a stunning young girl and classmate. But the devoted warrior in him had shunned those thoughts, deeming them soft. Now, he saw such amorous and caring thoughts towards her as his greatest strength. Had she given up the cards five years ago then he wouldn't have given her a second glance and would have missed out on the best five years of his life. He shook his head in negative in answer to Kero's question.

"No, I think things are a lot more... interesting this way." He unexpectedly began to chuckle, turning back to the Card Mistress. "And I know for a fact the stuffed animal and I would've never gotten along. At this date I would've probably been fingerless."

Sakura giggled as Kero growled menacingly, his little body floating up from the table to add emphasis to his anger and annoyance. "I am not a stuffed animal!"

His face abruptly contorted and turned an unnatural shade of green, his arms holding his stomach. He burped.

"Oh, too much pudding..." he groaned.

His tiny paws quickly clamped over his mouth with an expression of panic and he dashed for the bathroom, the door slamming shut behind him.

"Ew!" the Card Mistress laughed.

"Wow! I didn't think he'd ever be able to get that full." the spirit chuckled.

"That or it's because he was eating hospital food."

He laughed. "Even better."

"On a different note, when do you think the doctors will let me out of here?"

He sobered and straightened in his seat. "Ah, there I have excellent news. A little while ago I managed to sneak a peek at your medical chart. By the way, I didn't know you had a mole on your--"

"Syaoran!" she chided in shock.

He shrugged it off casually with a playful grin. "Anyway, they're letting you out tomorrow afternoon."

"That soon?"

He nodded. "I think they call this sort of thing drive-thru surgery now."

She grimaced. "A side order of fries with that bi-pass." she quipped grimly. "But, in a way, I'm glad I'll be out tomorrow."

"In what way?"

"In the way that I still have one friend to shop for before Christmas."

He raised a curious eyebrow. "Who?"

"You, baka." she giggled. "It's the ultimate Christmas gift. Out there somewhere is a body with your name on it."

He chuckled. "Oh, that."

"Don't tell me you actually forgot, you of all people?"

"No, not completely." Syaoran warmly covered one of her hands with his own. "I just had a more important concern on my mind." he smiled timidly.

An awed smile spread across her face and she carefully turned her hand over to grip his transparent hand. He was being so caring towards her all of a sudden. Not that she wasn't flattered, but she was also confused by it. Why was he doing all this now? Whatever happened to the love he had for that mystery girl he had mentioned to her a while back? Had that girl given him up for dead or loss after so long? She smiled inwardly in growing hope. The other girl's loss if she had given him up. But how anyone could possibly let him go was beyond the Card Mistress. Amid these and some such thoughts, something odd struck Sakura. And the more she focused on that particular thought, the more a pondering frown formed on her face. She should have at least one card in hand, shouldn't she?

Syaoran noticed the subtle change in her aura and looked up, seeing her frown. "What's wrong?"

"Just wondering something... Do either Meilin of Tomoyo have the Death Card? They didn't mention it to me if they did or not."

He paused in recollection. "No... I don't think they have it."

"The hospital staff then?"

"No, I would've seen it and-- Oh no!" he abruptly exclaimed, sitting bolt upright in shock.

"Nani? What is it?" she demanded in urgent concern.

"I know where we left the card."

"Where?"

"Back at the schoolyard."

"Nani!?"

"We were so busy trying to get you some help and keep you alive until then that we didn't immediately notice you drop the card. We forgot about it."

"Oh, for the love of..." and she leapt out of bed onto shaky legs.

He took hold of her shoulders to both steady and restrain her. "And where do you think you're going?"

"To get that card." she replied matter-of-factly.

"Oh, no, you don't! You can barely stand right now. Call Tomoyo or Meilin and they'll go find it for you."

"But--?"

"No buts. Give yourself time to rest and recover from the surgery." He cupped her face tenderly. "Onegai, Sakura. Almost losing you twice is more than I can handle."

Her green eyes pleaded for a moment more, trying to make him see the urgency of the situation, then seemed to relent to his gently voiced plea. It was to no avail to argue with him. Sakura may have been stubborn, but the Little Wolf was just as bad. Worse at times. She lowered her head in defeat and allowed him to turn her back towards the bed in order to get her to rest again. She took a step forward as if in compliance. At the last minute she twisted on herself and ducked under Syaoran's phantom arms, out of his grasp, bolting for the open door.

"Sakura!" he called after her, he and a still queasy Kero beginning the chase.

The teen Card Mistress's stitches burned atrociously with pain, still fresh from her emergency surgery just the other night, as she ran down the hospital corridors, but she ignored the pain and ran on. She could hear her beloved protector and her magical guardian both calling to her to stop, but she ignored them too. She was on a mission. She had to find the Death Card before someone accidentally released it. Part of her mind chided Kero for being so careless. How many people could see and hear him now? But then another thought answered her chide. All these people were either staff or patients. The staff could chalk up the sight of the tiny creature to being overworked while the patients could blame their medication for the hallucination. A small grin touched her lips. He wasn't as careless as she thought. Running hard to catch up to the lithe High School cheerleader, Syaoran saw a medical gurney be wheeled into the hallway by an unsuspecting male nurse not far ahead, effectively blocking the girl's path of escape. He silently hoped that would be enough to stop her.

It wasn't.

Calling on her years of gymnastics training she lunged over the gurney, going into a perfect and flawless diving roll. Quickly she got back up to her feet and continued to run before the hospital security, nurses, or Syaoran could stop her. On she ran...

Down stairs...

Past stunned hospital staff...

Past doctors and nurses...

... until she finally reached the main door leading outside.

The night was bitterly cold, biting at her skin through the pyjama's thin fabric. Her bare feet crunched in the snow, making it seem as if she was walking on sharp knives or broken glass from the cold. The sky had opened up to dump feather light crystals of ice on a gentle yet frigid breeze. She continued her sprint, dashing across the near empty street and darting into an alley beyond it. Try as they might, Syaoran and Kero had a hard time trying to keep up with the escaped teen girl. She knew Tomeda District like the back of her hand so she knew the streets and alleys that were otherwise a complete maze to the teen warrior. Turning another bend he lost her from sight, but he didn't panic at this. He knew where she was going.

"Kero, go find Meilin and Tomoyo!" he called to the Guardian Beast of the Seal hovering above him. "Bring them to the High School!"

"What do you need them for?"

"If we lose her again, four pairs of eyes will be better than two!"

"Good point!" and the creature flew off to do as ordered as the warrior sped on towards the High School.

* * *

Kinomoto Sakura reached the schoolyard in record time, her breath pained and labored from the race and her stretching stitches. She looked around anxiously, trying to find some trace, some little clue of the battle fought on the previous night. The snow had been completely trampled by the students going about their daily classes. There was nothing for her to go on. An ever so slight tingling at the back of her mind told her that her soul mate would join her in a few minutes' time. She had to find the card before he arrived. Concerned as he was he would only try to force her back to the hospital.

Sakura shuddered.

She didn't like hospitals all that much. When she had been three her Okaa-san had died in a hospital. She knew it wasn't the doctors' fault, but the fear remained that these were places where people died.

Sakura brushed the thought aside and focused on finding the lost card. She used her magical senses to sweep the snow covered ground to locate the powerful Clow Card. Her senses tingled suddenly at one particular spot in a snow back. She dove straight for it, digging frantically with cold and numb hands. In the distance she heard the Elementary School's clock tower chime two in the morning. Part of her mind was shocked at how much time had passed. Of course her room had been devoid of timepieces and windows so she never could be sure of the passage of time. Again she pushed the thought away and concentrated on the task at hand. She clawed at the crunchy snow in growing desperation until her numb fingers finally revealed the shape of the Death Card. Sakura laughed in relief as she held the card up to the moonlight. The cloaked, dark figure of Death holding its scythe stared back at her from under its hood. Then the background of the card seemed to catch the Card Mistress's eyes.

It was a grove of some sort with a gaping chasm at its center.

She blinked.

Why was that image so familiar?

"Sakura!" she heard a familiar voice call to her in the distance.

She turned in panic. No, not now! Onegai, I'm so close to the end of all this!

Then she thought of a trick that Kero had taught her to fool the magic sensitive. It had to work on Syaoran as well. Concentrating hard on completely suppressing her aura she ran towards the other end of the schoolyard where a group of trees grew and quickly hid behind them. Short moments later a misty form came running around a corner into the vast schoolyard. The figure stopped and took notice of the hole in the snow Sakura had dug.

Onegai, don't find me, Syaoran, she pleaded silently. Onegai, not yet. Let me find the Life Card first.

She looked down at the card in her hands.

Where have I seen that place before? she questioned about the background with a frown.

Then it hit her like a flash. She had seen this place before. Syaoran had showed it to her all those weeks back. She had to get to King Penguin Park. If she could get there that night without being seen then her beloved Little Wolf would live once again, as he had always done. She frowned at herself for not realizing before where the Life Card was.

Oh, sometimes I can be such a dense baka! and she ran off, making sure to stay out of sight.

* * *

The spirit of Li Syaoran ran around the corner to the stone fence surrounding the High School into the vast recreational yard. It was eerily quiet at this time of early morning, but one could almost hear students laughing and calling to each other all the same. That much residual energy from hormone driven teens was powerful magic indeed. He examined the trampled snow and noticed a recently dug hole in one of the low snow banks. He approached it for a closer inspection, kneeling in the snow. He could easily feel the residual imprint of Sakura's aura from this area. It was still fresh. She must have spent at least a few minutes digging here and had obviously found the card. His dark, near golden eyes raised from the hole to look around.

But where was Sakura now?

The snow was so horribly trampled that it was impossible to locate her footprints. He closed his eyes to the world and stretched out his senses: listening for her breath; feeling for her aura.

Nothing.

Not even a precious glimmer.

His eyes snapped open in surprise to this. As he stood Tomoyo and Meilin came running into the schoolyard with Kero flying in their lead. For the moment he ignored them as he turned in place, visually and magically surveying the vast snow covered area to find his beloved partner. Syaoran felt an unfamiliar emotion well up within him as he failed to find her: panic.

"Well, where is she?" Kero demanded.

"I... I don't know." Syaoran replied, still looking around for any sign of Sakura.

"What do you mean by that?" queried Tomoyo, irked at having been awakened so early in the morning.

"I mean I got here and she was already gone."

Meilin frowned, unconvinced, stifling a tired yawn. "Li Syaoran, you always know exactly where she is no matter the situation."

He nodded, still looking around. "Usually."

"So you should be able to find her now without trouble."

The warrior's ghost shook his head in a negative. "If I knew where she was right now do you really think I'd still be standing here looking completely lost?"

Tomoyo could only stare at him for a moment, seeing a very different person than the warrior/sorcerer she had known for the past five years. He was always so confident, but now he did look lost, and more than a little worried. It didn't take a genius to see something was wrong. Part of her understood why. One didn't hang around with magic users for so long and not learn a few things about their senses. The lack of an aura usually meant the person was dead. For him not to feel the Card Mistress's presence was in itself a bad sign, but she didn't want to believe it. Sakura was not dead. She refused to believe it, but she needed to be clear on the subject.

"Li, what are you trying to tell us?" she asked him carefully, verbally pointing out his anxiety to the oblivious Meilin.

His haunted eyes continued to scan their surroundings desperately. "What I'm saying is that, somehow, I can't feel her anymore. She's... gone."

* * *

Sakura leaned heavily on a street lamp, a hand pressed to the center of her chest as she panted desperately for air. The bandage wrapped around her chest didn't seem to want to stretch enough to let her breathe. The tiny row of stitches burned with pain from her exertion. Her whole body felt frozen, but she knew she had to press on. She was almost to her destination, no use quitting now. She could afford to go a little slower, certain no one was following her. Her bare feet were so cold and numb that she didn't feel the sharp ice or snow beneath them. At a slow jog Sakura continued down the street towards the park's entrance just ahead. Sakura stopped just within the stone arch and gazed at the ethereal scene offered up to her eyes. The snow looked so white and pristine in the moon's silver light, almost untouched. A recent snowfall had covered all signs of activity while she had been in the hospital. It was a winter wonderland of glowing snow and twinkling ice.

She jogged along one of the park's many paths until she came to a stone bridge. She smiled, memories from weeks past flashing before her mind's eye. The escape from Meilin and then the playful fight she had with Syaoran over his pendant. She touched the onyx sphere hanging at her throat with the Key of Clow. At least the hospital staff had let her keep it with her. Then, pushing the memories away, she leapt over the railing to the hard, frozen ground below. The once babbling brook was now a solid pane of ice shimmering in the moon's interstellar beams. After a few moments of walking on frozen mud and frosted reeds, she arrived at a vast and tall wall of trees and stone.

She looked up at the imposing wall, her expression grim. Last time I had the Jump Card to get over this thing.

She mentally cursed herself for not having taken them with her for the battle against the Death Card, even if they were useless against it.

Can't go around it, can't go under it, can't go through it, have to go over it, Sakura.

Foothold by foothold, branch by branch, the teenage Card Mistress managed to climb the tree and stone wall to where it thinned out. She carefully squeezed between two mighty boughs and began the slow, cautious descent on the other side. Her near frozen limbs made both the climb and descent all the more treacherous. She could barely feel the handholds or footholds beneath her. And ice made the cold, stone ledges slippery, something unfelt under her numb feet. Carefully she negotiated them to the largest ledge where the now bare cherry trees stood. She remembered the day when Syaoran had first showed her this magical place, remembering the natural beauty of it all. Or should she say magical beauty. This was a creation of the Life Card. Her vision suddenly began to blur as she approached the edge of the ledge. Her legs finally gave out and she fell to her knees.

No! she wailed inwardly. I will not be stopped now! I'm so close!

She gripped her pendant and concentrated, causing it to glow and float before her.

"Oh, Key of Clow,

Power of magic, power of light,

Surrender the wand,

The force ignite!

Release!"

The Clow sealing wand formed from the key-like pendant, instinctively finding its Mistress's waiting hand. She closed her eyes to help steady her rapidly spinning world.

"Life Card! Reveal yourself in your true form!" she ordered to the grove.

She felt rather than saw the energy and magic swirling to coalesce into the glowing figure that represented the card. To her magical senses it felt warm, comforting, loving. A friendly card. Sakura felt relief fill her heart at this. She wouldn't have to fight the card to seal it. It was a good thing since in her present condition she neither had the strength or the energy to do it. Sakura's dizziness got worse. Was this the card's attack? Her limbs were aching from the cold. She had stopped shivering a long time ago. She knew this was a bad sign.

"... Onegai... one request... Bring... Li Syaoran... back to... life..." she pleaded. She could barely keep herself awake since she was so cold. "... If not... a trade... My... life ... for... his... onegai..."

She couldn't hold herself upright anymore and let herself drop to the frost covered ground. She felt the card approach her in worry. It caressed the Mistress's head with a warm and gentle hand, confused that she didn't try to seal it. Instead, she asked for a life to be restored, to trade her life for another's. Why? Why was this other she was trading for so important to her? The Life Card decided to wait. It wanted to see who this other was to have commanded such devotion from the Card Mistress. But it wouldn't accept the trade. If anything, Life was fair. If the other didn't want this trade, then it would find another way, but in the end it would discover why she was so willing to die for the other.

"... onegai..."

Sakura felt a subtle shift in the card, a feeling of acceptance. All it needed was the warrior/sorcerer's spirit here to complete the deal. The teen managed a tiny smile and abruptly dropped all the barriers that blocked her aura from the world.

I'm ready to be found now, Syaoran. Find me, she wished before passing out.

* * *

Syaoran was nearing utter panic, something completely unusual for him. Of course, these were unusual circumstances. His adored partner, his soul mate, was nowhere in sight. And to make matters worse he also couldn't feel her aura. Ever since he had come to Japan, five years ago, he had already been able to feel the Card Mistress's presence. It's what had alerted him that he was in the right place to find the Clow Cards. Her presence had always been a bright and comforting spot just on the edge of his mind. It was what had kept him close to her all these years. Peace, joy and love simply radiated from her, feelings he had never experienced before but that he relished. But now there was nothing, no glimmer, and this terrified him.

"Take it easy, Li." Tomoyo tried to soothe the agitated spirit. "We'll find her soon enough. There has to be an reasonable explanation to why you can't feel her."

"Yeah." Meilin readily agreed to help ease her Cousin's worries. "It could be she's just too far right now."

He shook his head in negative. "Distance was never a factor. She could be across the planet from me and I'd still feel her, just on the edge of my mind."

He noted how Kero remained silent about his missing Mistress, his tiny body fidgeting slightly. It was odd that the Guardian Beast of the Seal wasn't making more of a fuss over Sakura's disappearance. Syaoran fixed him with a frown.

"You know something you're not telling us." he accused, calling the two girls' attention to the creature.

Kero looked decidedly nervous under the gaze of the three teens. "I... uh... that is..."

"Spill it, cotton ball."

"It's... um... a little something I taught her... um... a way to hide from other magic sensitive."

Tomoyo was intrigued. "How does it work?"

"Just by concentrating hard enough Sakura can pull her aura inwards and hide it, make herself invisible to a magic sensitive. To enemies trying to kill her she would seem dead."

"So why is she using it against Li?"

Syaoran suddenly blinked as he remembered the conversation he had with Sakura earlier. "... something to prove..." he muttered softly.

Meilin heard him and frowned. "Something to prove?"

"She told me earlier that she wants to prove to us and herself that she can do this without having to count on our backup."

Tomoyo's lovely features frowned as she pondered this, then shook her head in a negative after a short moment. "No, I don't think that's the only reason. She's determined to do this on her own, hai, but not just to prove she can. She's determined to get you back the way you were. Am I right in saying that if you found her right now you'd physically force her back to the hospital?"

"Hai."

"Then that's it. She knows that's what you'd do. She wants to do this as soon as possible and bring you back because she loves you, but you'd only end up stopping her."

He blinked at the words Tomoyo voiced. He still found it hard to believe Sakura, the amazing and ethereal Mistress of the Cards, the most powerful sorceress he had ever encountered, loved his insignificant little self. Then he frowned, still frustrated at not being able to find his soul mate.

"All this is great and good, but it doesn't tell us where--"

He froze suddenly in mid-sentence, going stiff as a very familiar glow touched his senses.

I'm ready to be found now, Syaoran. Find me, came a sweet and gentle voice in his mind.

He blinked, allowing his mind to instinctively latch on to the direction the voice and feeling were coming from. It was Sakura, calling to him. It was like a magnet's pull, a siren's song. He had to follow it. He could hear the trio with him questioning him in worry at his sudden silence. Syaoran never answered them. In the blink of an eye he was off and running, his whole being focused on the guiding glow of Sakura's beautiful and warm aura. He didn't bother to check to see if the others were following. He didn't even bother to circumvent walls or other obstacles in his way. The shortest distance between two points was a straight line, and there was nothing straighter than the line he was following. All he was really concerned about was finding his beloved heart's desire.

"Kero! Fly up higher! You'll be able to keep an eye on him for us!" Meilin ordered as she and Tomoyo ran hard to catch up to the warrior.

The Guardian Beast of the Seal didn't argue, only did as told. The running ghost was their only lead to finding the missing Mistress of the Cards. Their link was a powerful one. Kero's sharp golden eyes could see the spirit pass through everything in his path as if nothing was there. Syaoran was following a very straight line in a direction that couldn't be mistaken.

"He's heading for the park!" Kero called down to the two running girls.

"Stay with him, Kero!" Tomoyo called in return as she and Meilin began to negotiate the streets and alleys towards King Penguin Park.

* * *

The dark of night faded to a paling midnight blue of the pre-dawn hours. The air was still now, quiet. The park's snow covered ground was crisp, un-trampled by the day's many people. Not even the lone ghost running across the grounds broke the silence or disturbed the pristine snow. Syaoran ran hard, his mind focused on the beacon-like presence somewhere ahead. He stopped when he reached a familiar stone bridge and looked around to orient himself. Part of him noted that he wasn't even breathing hard after such a run. There were some advantages to being a spirit. Peering over the railing he noticed a pair of footprints along the brook's bank. The warrior allowed himself a smile. The feeling had been right as always. He leapt over the railing and ran along the bank. Sakura's aura got stronger as he approached his destination.

But there was something off about it.

Instead of the gentle and soothing swirling pattern it usually was her aura was now a chaotic mess. A jumble without control. A lack of thought. Was she unconscious? He ran faster in worry. In her condition, her being unconscious was dangerous. He ran until he reached the wall of tall tree and stone, one of his secret hide aways in Tomeda District. He could feel Sakura's presence just on the other side of this wall.

He smirked. No need to go over this thing when you can just walk through it.

Syaoran took a bracing breath, closed his eyes and took a step forward right through the barrier. It was an odd sensation passing through otherwise solid objects. It was like walking through water. There was resistance, but if one pushed hard enough one could get through whatever the object was.

He reached the other side of the wall and felt himself reel and gasp at the onslaught of sensations. Syaoran hadn't been to this place since the incident with the Portal Card. The power in this place had always been spectacular, but in spirit form it was near overwhelming. His magic senses were at their highest in this form. He forced his eyes open he hadn't realized he had closed, concentrating to dull his senses to the magic. The grove and chasm still looked as mysterious as ever, now devoid of the greenery for the winter season. His ghostly eyes glittering in the dim light, drifting over his surroundings. His heart wrenched painfully at the scene.

There, lying on the forbidden end of the ledge, was Card Mistress Kinomoto Sakura.

Her pale form looks so still. And hovering above the motionless body was the glowing form of the Life Card. The being was feminine in form with pure white skin and immaculate long robes and long, flowing, pale gold hair that seemed to float on some unfelt breeze. It had large doe eyes of the most azure of blues that peered down at the unconscious Mistress of the Cards. It seemed almost concerned and confused by the teen lying before it. Afraid for her life Syaoran rushed to Sakura's side. He would defend her with everything he had and was since she couldn't do it for herself. The warrior stood protectively over the body of his beloved, ready for any attack, glaring at the card.

But the Life Card merely floated back away from him in a clear show of non-hostility.

The ghostly teen blinked in slight surprise. He had only ever known Clow Cards to attack, never to back away this way. He held his menacing stance just the same, ready for any tricks. "I won't let you hurt her!" he ground with ferocity.

The card smiled sweetly, placatingly, with a shake of her head in a negative. She wouldn't do either of them any harm. Syaoran's protective stance relaxed slightly, suddenly curious about this card. The Life Card then pointed to Sakura, made a kind of switching motion with its arms before it, then pointed to Syaoran. The Chinese warrior blinked in rapid succession as he tried to piece together what the card meant.

Sakura...

Switch...

Me...

He frowned.

Sakura... switch... with me!?

His eyes suddenly went wide in pure shock. How could his beloved partner have even suggested, let alone, thought of such a thing?

"No!" he shouted at the card.

The glowing Clow Card flinched and looked at him strangely with blinking blue eyes.

"No switch." he continued, a little calmer. "I won't let her give her life for me just so I can live. I don't want to live without her!" he ended vehemently.

The Life Card tilted it head to one side, staring intently at the young warrior/sorcerer as if trying to determine if his words were true or not. This gave Syaoran his first real opportunity to get a close up view of the card floating before him. It... she... was ethereal in its own right though, to Syaoran, no one could compare to Sakura. The card's loose robes and long hair floated lightly on the mysterious breeze that held it aloft, making it seem as if it had gossamer wings. But it was its face that kept the specter's focus. Its features were soft and beautiful, but not in a wholly attractive or lustful way. It held elements that seemed familiar to the warrior. Its expression was gentle, almost bordering on chiding in a way. He knew that look.

Syaoran abruptly blinked.

This was the expression no child ever forgot. This was the loving look of a life giver. This was the patient expression of an Okaa-san. A tiny grin touched the corner of his lips. It made perfect sense it should look this way. Mothers were the Universal symbol of life for they were the only mortal creatures who could grant and give life.

The Life Card suddenly smiled, coming to a conclusion. It pointed to the young warrior spirit, placed a hand over where its heart would be if Clow Cards had such an organ, then pointed to the unconscious form of Kinomoto Sakura. Syaoran blushed fiercely, his pale cheeks taking on a deep reddish hue, understand what the card meant by its actions. He looked down at the sallow form lying at his feet, abruptly feeling pain grip him deep within at seeing her so limp and frail this way. It pierced him to his very core. The sorcerer kneeled at his sorceress's side and carefully cradled her limp and frozen form in arms incapable of giving enough warmth to help her. The thought of losing her entered his mind again since the hospital. This time it seemed possible it would happen and there was no subconscious voice trying to talk him out of such thoughts. Sakura was just so pale, so limp, and so unresponsive. It seemed impossible she could ever survive this. His remaining emotional walls came crashing down as tears began to fall from his eyes. Phantom tears. Tears that became nothing more than mist as soon as they touched the female Card Captor's cheek. Syaoran looked up at the Life Card with baleful golden eyes.

"I'll give everything I am to have her survive." he whispered, his voice hoarse from the amount of emotion and affection he felt for the teen in his arms. "I just found out she was a part of me. I can't lose her now... not without having told her how much she means to me... how much I love her."

The Life Card watched the young warrior carefully cuddle the sorceress, unable to wake her. It saw the vaporous tears being shed by the wraith for a life he was unable to save. It could feel the deep soul pain he was feeling for his partner. The card smiled softly. He was devoted to her, heart and soul, willing to give his life for her. Just as she had been willing to give her life for him. What the card was witnessing was the reason for their selfless sacrifices. They loved each other, completely. But the card had seen them all those weeks ago and had seen them arrive here separately. This was a sign that these two teens had not yet voiced their feelings to each other. They were oblivious to each other's feelings, afraid. As the card looked on in sympathy a thought entered its mind. This boy could still save the girl he loved, but not as a wraith. True, it itself could just revive her easily, but that would take away the sense of worth from the warrior. He had to feel his life had purpose still. The Card Mistress had asked it to restore the sorcerer to life. This it would do.

The Clow Card floated down to the duo and gently touched the apparition's ghostly cheek. He looked at it and waited, blinking away tears. Deftly it freed Sakura's body from Syaoran's arms, gently caressing the girl's motionless face, then set her down on the cold ground. Then it took its creator's descendant's hands to lead him away by a few steps. It tapped Syaoran chest with its fist and shook its head in a clear negative, a frown marring its lovely features.

The warrior cocked his head to one side with a puckered brow. "You can't give me back my body?"

The glowing being gave him an apologetic nod.

Disappointed, Syaoran could only say, "Oh." His fears were true then. Not even the Life Card could restore him.

The card abruptly broke into a wide, pragmatic grin and held up its index finger to tell the spirit to wait a moment. It floated back a ways, still facing the confused wraith. For this next action the card needed ample room. Its hair suddenly grew to an impossible length while its robes seemed to lengthen and expand, both swirling wildly towards the hapless specter. Before he could even think to move out of the way the hair and robes had him surrounded, covering every inch of his non-corporeal form in follicle and fabric. He couldn't move at all, feeling these strange bonds contract against him to hold him firmly in place. Li Syaoran mentally cursed himself viciously for ever dropping his guard around a free Clow Card. Whatever this attack was he could feel every molecule of air burning his ghostly skin. His phantom heartbeat and mimic of a living breath sounded so much louder to his ears.

Was this spirit death?

Just when he thought he would be completely overwhelmed by the sensations and sounds the card was forcing upon him, the cocoon surrounding his vanished without warning. Dizzy from the onslaught, Syaoran fell to his knees, panting for breath. He blinked in abrupt realization.

He was out of breath!

Spirits didn't need to breathe, yet he could clearly feel the crisp winter air filling his lungs with each desperate pant. Then he registered the pain in his knees from having fallen to the hard and unforgiving ground.

Pain!

Real pain, not just some mimic or habitual emotional response. A smile began to grow on his lips. Solid, opaque hands came up before his eyes.

His hands.

Real!

He was real!

Syaoran laughed breathlessly, a touch of hysteria present in the outburst, watching his breath crystallize in the cold air, a bitterly frigid temperature he could now feel. But, for once, he didn't care about feeling the cold night.

He was alive!

The warrior beamed his gratitude to the innocently grinning Life Card. His fears had been unfounded. The card had lived up to its name. Then, the cold made Syaoran remember an all important fact. There was someone else in this magical place who could feel the bitter freeze that reigned and had no way to fight it properly.

"Sakura!" he breathed in abject concern, whirling around to return to his sorceress's side.

In one fluid movement he tossed his belt aside and gathered up her form in his arms, slipping her limp body under his green robes to have her close to himself. He could feel how frozen she was even through the white tunic he wore under his robes. Combined with recent surgery, Sakura's reserves were dangerously low to fight the hypothermia and exhaustion. The young warrior cradled his beloved tenderly, keeping his robes wrapped around her to share his body heat with her. Her pallid cheek rested against his shoulder, her faint breath was a light caress against the side of his neck. Syaoran rocked her in his arms like he would a small child.

"C'mon, Sakura, you can fight this too." he whispered fiercely, willing her to draw on his strength. "You're too stubborn to give up, remember?"

She remained still, quiet.

"Onegai, you can't quit now. I still need you." he pleaded in a half whisper, gazing down at her features.

As if answering his plea her ebony lashes began to flutter ever so slightly, a soft and tiny cry escaping her throat. Then, she moved weakly, instinctively trying to find more warmth to ease the cold. Syaoran willing and gratefully obliged her, wrapping her lethargic form in more of his ceremonial robes. Delicately he titled her head back a bit to see all of her lovely face. Her usually rosy lips had a slight bluish tinge to them now, her skin extremely pale. She looked so peaceful, but it was a hypothermic peace. A false peace. She had to wake up.

"You have to stay awake, Sakura. Open your eyes."

If he could just see her eyes then he would know she would be alright. The Life Card moved closer to the Card Capting duo in rapt fascination. In all its centuries of existence it had never seen such devotion shared between two individuals. Its eyes caught sight of the Death Card lying off to the side and it picked it up. Its opposite stared back at it from its magical prison. The still free card then looked at the duo before it in sudden understanding. The only way to have captured its powerful counterpart was if they either possessed tremendous magic which, separately, they obviously didn't have, or if they were soul mates. That had to be the answer. What Life had first thought to only be love turned out to run far deeper than the heart. Their bond was to the soul.

A bright flash of emerald light shone through a thin opening between thick ebony lashes. Her unfocused eyes twinkled brightly in the dim pre-dawn light filtering through the trees. She stared ahead of her, blankly. The chaotic pattern of her aura began to settle as her eyes began to focus on the Chinese teen holding her ever so close and tenderly. She could feel herself being warmed by his gentle sunrise gold eyes. Sakura blinked feebly, a small trembling smile touching her lips. Syaoran smiled back, happy tears burning his eyes, as yet unshed.

"... you're... alive..." she managed mellifluously.

He tucked a stray strand of her light copper hair away from her face as he chuckled softly, a languid tear tracing a trail down his cheek. "Thanks to your stubborn streak. You never gave up."

Sakura's blurry eyes noticed the tear on his cheek and reached up to wipe it away with trembling fingers. Syaoran responded by gripping that hand to help steady the trembling. He then placed a soft and gentle kiss on the inside of her wrist before pressing her lithe body tight to his chest, his face buried in the cool crook of her neck. She blinked in surprise, but neither had the strength or desire to fight him. She had long wanted to be held by him, to feel his strong arms cradling her against his heart.

"I was so afraid I'd lost you." Syaoran whispered against her skin.

Again Sakura blinked.

He was afraid to lose her?

Why?

Was it because she was the only one out of them who could seal the Clow Cards?

Mentally, she shook her head in negative. Somehow this felt more poignant, more emotionally important, than just a practical worry about the cards. Perhaps it was because his aura was wrapping itself protectively around her, almost tenderly intertwining itself with her own. Pieces of this grand puzzle were starting to come together in her mind, but the picture wasn't yet clear enough to her muddled mind. He was hinting at something, she could feel it, but the cold had addled her brain too much for her to clue in on what it was.

Syaoran then pulled back enough to be able to take in all of his beloved's facial features, the backs of his fingers tracing a tender trail down the side of her face. Tiger's Eye colored eyes seemed to memorize every little detail of her face with meticulous care while peridot colored eyes stared back with equal attention. Syaoran allowed himself a small grin, noticing her stare. The innocently clueless look she had right there and then made her appear so painfully adorable it was all he could do to keep himself from embracing her tight and never let her go. And to Sakura, the look the sorcerer sported was pure seduction, whether he knew it or not. Deep down, she was sure he knew.

The physical representation of Life floated towards them on a breeze and cautiously handed the sealed Death Card for either of them to take. This was the first time the Card Mistress got a clear view of the glowing magical being. She had to smile. This card was truly beautiful, as life should always be. She thought she saw aspects and features of her Okaa-san, Nadeshiko, in the being, but dismissed the thought as quickly as it had come. Her Okaa-san was not a Clow Card. That would have just been to cruel of Fate to do such a thing to a woman who only ever had love for those around her. As Syaoran took the offered Death Card, Sakura raised her sealing wand to capture and seal the Life Card. But her beloved Chinese warrior gripped the wand to prevent it. The sorceress looked to the sorcerer with confusion shining in her tired eyes. Usually he would have been the one to insist on the card being captured. He had always said a card on the loose was dangerous.

So why didn't he want this particular card sealed?

"Let it have its freedom a little while longer." he answered her silent question softly. "We both owe it at least this for what it's done."

Despite the cold, the young Mistress of the Cards felt herself melt under the warmth of his eyes and smile. How could she ever resist him anything when he gave her a look like that? The wand lowered, then vanished into its key-like pendant form. The Life Card smiled in gratitude at the two magic users and drifted away until it hovered over the center of the chasm. It then floated upwards until it almost reached the tree canopy. It just dangled there for a moment, it's glow increasing in intensity all of a sudden. Then, giving no prior warning what so ever, the iridescent being exploded into a gentle shower of shimmering lights. Both teens were in awe at the marvelous sight. Each floating sphere of light floated on the breeze, exploding into a miniature shower they were born from each time they hit something solid. It was something out of a fantasy dreamscape. At an unspoken command the massive trees began to tremble, then shrink to the size of saplings while the gaping chasm abruptly filled and sealed itself up. Within very short instants the area appeared as if the magical grove and deep chasm had never existed. Sakura looked around in slight disappointment. The only things that were left, to testify that these had not been creations of the Life Card, were the frozen brook and the bare cherry trees alongside the crumbling stone wall. The place that had once belonged to her and Syaoran was now gone. Syaoran used his magical senses to sweep the area, trying to locate the missing Life Card, but to no avail.

It was gone.

But there was another magical being rushing towards them. The warrior groaned slightly as he identified the feel of this creature's presence.

"Sakura! Li!" a familiar voice called to them.

The sorceress recognized the voice and smiled. She should have known he wouldn't be very far away. With a small blissful sigh she leaned back into the warrior's arms, snuggling closer to him to stay warm, and closed her tired eyes. Everything would be fine now. Her beloved partner wasn't a ghost anymore. Her smile softened in peace as she listened to the living heart beating strongly in his chest.

"Over here, fluff ball!" Syaoran called to the Guardian Beast of the Seal.

Yellow, rodent-like Kero flew down to them and hovered near the almost dozing Card Mistress, too worried about her pallor to have noticed the name Syaoran called him.

"Is she okay?" the Guardian with the golden eyes queried.

Syaoran nodded, warmly enfolding his soul mate in his arms and robes. "She'll be just fine after she warms up and gets a lot of rest. She pushed herself too hard too soon."

Keroberus sighed in relief, then looked up at the warrior as if noticing him for the first time. He circled around him in examination and smirked almost proudly.

"So, I guess you guys found the Life Card after all."

"Sakura found it actually. She's gotten extremely good at it."

"Let's see it then."

"See what?"

"The card, you baka gaki!"

"We don't have it."

"What do you mean, you don't have it?"

"It's gone, cotton ball. We let it go."

"You what!?"

"Relax, stuffed animal. The Life Card is an easy capture and isn't one to cause any harm to anyone. We'll catch it the next time we find it. Right now we have someone more important to worry about."

Kero blinked in confusion, then had a violent start in realization. "Oh, right! Sakura!"

"Go tell Tomoyo and Meilin to meet up at my place."

Not hesitating a single instant the Guardian Beast of the Seal took off like a shot. Syaoran watched him disappear around a bend, then turned his attention back to the lovely sorceress resting against his chest. Ever so carefully he took off his green robes and wrapped Sakura's still frozen body in them. She made a sound of protest when he had moved away from her, but quieted when he gathered her close again. The young warrior/sorcerer easily lifted her bundled form off the ground in his arms. She had always been so light and felt so fragile that Syaoran always felt he might break her if he wasn't careful. Sakura rested her cheek on his shoulder and breathed in his scent in contentment. She would forever associate the scents of spice, sandalwood and autumn leaves with her beloved secret love. Her sigh caused him to look down at her. The small grin on her lips made him chuckled softly.

"Let's go home, Ying Fa." he breathed ever so gently.

And, with his back to the great orange orb of the rising sun, the Little Wolf carried his Cherry Blossom away. Away, from the place that had contained so much magic and had helped kindle their spirits together, towards the buildings beyond the park's walls. He cradled her tenderly, resting his cheek on her head, listening to her soft breathing while he inhaled her intoxicating scent. Heather and cherry blossoms. Not even the regal rose could compare to such flowers who had given their perfume to the angel in his arms. A slight pain touched his heart as his mind reminded him that he had come so close to never breathing such a fragrance again. He had come so close to losing this precious life in his arms three times in only a few weeks without admitting his feelings for her. The first time during the Death Card's first attack. The second after their merging to defeat the Death Card during a second battle. And now almost losing her to hypothermia.

Never again.

This time she would rest and recover completely without worrying about a card. And then he would finally tell her how much he truly loved her. Syaoran gazed down at the lithe form sleeping in complete trust in his arms and smiled. Sakura was his destiny. There had been a reason he had wanted to come so to Japan so badly. He had first believed it was to capture the Clow Cards. But now he knew. The force pushing him here was to find the half that completed him. To find her. His lips lightly touched her brow in a loving embrace.

There was no reason to keep waiting. His destiny was now at hand.

To Be Continued in "Dimensions II - Test of Evil"...