[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

23 January, 2001

Card Captors

"Dimensions II - Test of Evil"

By : The MOUSE……………………&helli p;.

"... I am here to finally bring you home."

When Li Lerae spoke those words, Sakura's world stopped spinning with a jarring lurch. He was leaving for his homeland. She had lost him for good now. If his Clan's elders had their way he would never be allowed to return. Never again would she hear his strong and gentle voice. Never again would she feel his aura reaching out to hers to blend and intertwine. Her chance to be with him was gone. It felt like a fist had closed around her heart and was slowly squeezing the life from her. Her breath locked painfully in her throat and she swallowed hard to rid herself of it. But it remained where it was, blocking her voice and mocking her every attempt made to speak.

Syaoran spoke the words for her. "Bring… bring me home?"

"Hai." Lerae smiled, pleased, oblivious to the look of devastation on the four teens' faces.

"Wh-- When?" he thought to ask.

"As soon as both you and Meilin can get packed. Both the elders and I feel you have been away for far too long. You need to be where you belong. Since Meilin was not your choice for a future bride, the elders have selected four lovely young women from our Clan from whom you can choose. One even shows the signs of possessing faint magic. Is it not wonderful?"

Sakura heard Syaoran inhale sharply, as if in pain, at the very moment she felt her heart shatter. She turned and headed for the door, stopping momentarily to turn to Tomoyo. "This is a family matter, Tomoyo." she began in defeat. "We're not welcome anymore. Plus, it's getting late. We should go home now." and she walked away.

"Sakura!" the warrior called after her as she disappeared around the corner.

Tomoyo made a move to follow her friend, but Syaoran stopped her with a pleading glance. She relented, sitting back down on the couch. He then glared at his Okaa-san.

"You have no idea what you just did." he near growled. "You and I need to have a long chat." Then he took off after Sakura, leaving his Okaa-san to stare after him in bewilderment.

"What did I do?" she questioned no one in particular.

Meilin shook her head sadly. "Li-san, you have no idea what happened these last ten weeks, do you?"

"None what so ever."

"They both went through a lot." Tomoyo continued patiently. "The things they endured are beyond anything any of us will ever experience. And it helped them discover a few things about themselves."

"I do not understand." Lerae admitted.

Kero sighed. "The Legend of the Two. Clow's prophecy. What did it say?"

She thought a moment to recollect her memories. "The Legend of the Two: If ever there be two to hunt for the cards of magic, let them be male and female. Let them feel animosity, let them feel jealousy, let them feel compassion, and let them feel love." She blinked suddenly in realization. "By Kami-sama! What have I done?"

* * *

Sakura was just nearing the door to retrieve her winter coat and boots when Syaoran reached her. He gently gripped her shoulder to restrain her from leaving. If she left now he knew he would never see her again. Sakura shuddered slightly under his hand, a heaving sigh escaping her lips. She refused to turn to face him. It would hurt too much to look into his sunrise colored eyes knowing she was losing him. Try as she might she couldn't bring herself to pull away from his hand. The feel of his aura surrounding her was just too comforting, no matter the pain she felt at her mind reminding her that she would never feel this again after he left.

"Sakura, onegai, stay. Don't ever feel like you're not welcome here. I'll talk to her." he told her gently.

"What will talking to her change? The elders of your Clan have spoken. You're going back to Hong Kong."

His heart tightened painfully at the tremor he heard in her voice. She was trying to put up a brave front, but failing miserably. He could feel her pain at the news his Okaa-san had sprung on them. He knew Sakura loved him, Tomoyo had said as much. She had no reason to lie about her best friend's feelings. He held her shoulder a little tighter.

"Home is where the heart is. Sounds cliché, I know, but I believe that saying. I don't want to leave Tomeda District. My home is right here because this is the place where my heart made its roots."

She closed her eyes tight against the new wave of deep pain mounting within her, pressing her forehead to the door to steady herself. "That… that girl…?" she could barely choke out.

Syaoran blinked at what he heard. The half-truth he had admitted to all those weeks ago had returned. He had never believed she would believe it so completely to the point where it ate at her heart. He mentally kicked himself. This had no doubt been the reason she hadn't let herself become any closer to him. And baka he was had only confused her more by often forgetting he had told her he loved a girl but not telling her who it was. A thought suddenly occurred to him on how to allay her pain and worries and how to finally tell her how he felt about the teen sorceress. A slight grin touched his lips at this thought.

"Hai, that girl. She alone is the one and only reason, above all others, that makes me want to stay."

Tears burned Sakura's eyes at the smile she heard in his voice. "She… must really be special then."

"Incredibly special." he readily agreed.

"I… I hope to get to meet her someday." she managed over a constricting throat.

"You already have. In fact, you see her every day."

Her heart was on the verge of shattering yet again at this revelation. The girl he loved was someone she knew. Who did she know that he also knew and that she saw every day? The only one who fit those criteria was Daidouji Tomoyo. A flash of sudden anger rose like bile in her throat.

Tomoyo and Syaoran?

Together?

How could her best friend do this to her? Tomoyo knew how much she loved the warrior/sorcerer. The thought of him with someone else was almost enough to kill the young sorceress, but for him to be with her best friend…

I thought Tomoyo was my friend, she came close to sobbing in anger.

The warrior felt her anger, her confusion and her sorrow as clearly as he had heard her thought. He blinked in surprise. The day's events made so much sense now. They had shared pain when Allan had nearly crushed Sakura's wrist. He had the bruise on his own wrist to prove it. They had heard each other's thoughts. The strange looks she had given him each time he thought something and her voice echoing in his mind attested to it. Somehow they were now linked. This was a wonderful gift they had been granted. He couldn't think of anyone else that he would have wanted to be so close to.

He chuckled lightly, amused that Sakura could think he would be romantically interested in Tomoyo. She was a good friend, but he couldn't bring himself to think of her as anymore than that.

"It's not Tomoyo." he voiced, pointing out the fact that he knew her thoughts.

Sakura froze in surprise. How did he know? Syaoran's strong and gentle hands carefully turned her away from the door to face him. Still she refused to meet his tawny eyes, satisfied with staring idly at his chest. If she had to lie to him it would be easier to do so if she didn't have to look at his eyes. Unbidden tears rolled down her cheeks. Feather light fingers brushed the liquid crystals from the silk of her skin.

"Do you want me to introduce you to the woman who captured my heart so completely?" he asked. He winced slightly at his own words. The question he had asked her sounded so corny.

She could only nod, her throat now tied into a painful knot, still partly confused at how he had known what she had been thinking only a moment ago. Silently she also wondered how it was possible for him to be so tender and so cruel at the same time. He turned her by a quarter turn, until she faced one of the walls, and tilted her face up ever so cautiously, his fingers barely touching her chin. Sakura kept her eyes closed. No doubt he was going to show her a picture of the mystery girl. If she knew her she could easily match up the face with a name. Steeling herself, she took a bracing breath and opened her eyes…

… only to find herself staring in a mirror.

The Mistress of the Cards blinked, utter shock and surprise appearing on her face and reflected back at her through the mirror. Syaoran couldn't help but smile at how adorable she was when she was confused like this. She looked so innocent and helpless, so endearing. Her green eyes snapped from the mirror, to him, and back in rapid succession before she finally took a confused step back from the mirror.

This has to be some sort of a joke, she thought in self-explanation.

He cocked his head to one side at her thought. "Why would I joke about this?"

A strangled gasp escaped her throat. "You… you really can hear me!"

The warrior gave her a warm, patient smile and simply nodded, carefully focusing his mind. Just like you can hear my thoughts, My Love.

She blinked quickly in sheer wonder from the sound of his voice echoing in her mind, a blush tinting her cheeks from what he had referred to her as. It was so much more that she had ever dared to hope. And they could hear each other's thoughts… "When… did you find this out?"

"Just now."

Incredulity was written on her face. "How is this possible?"

He shrugged ever so slightly. "Maybe it's because of what we are, because we're the Card Captors. Maybe because we're soul mates."

Spring green met a golden sunrise as Sakura cocked her head to one side, a small grin adorning her lips. "Is that all we are? Just Card Captors? Just soul mates?"

Syaoran smiled in return. She was taking all this a whole lot better than he had expected. Subconsciously he had believed she would be reticent to the idea that they could easily read each other's thoughts as if they had been spoken words, that they could feel each other's feelings, be they pleasant or painful. Gentle fingers tucked a stray lock of her auburn hair away from her face and she shivered pleasantly. His heart pounded hard and fast at knowing she was now his.

"Maybe more than that now." he answered her softly.

Her grin became slightly playful. "More than friends?"

A near chuckle escaped his throat as he wrapped his arms around her narrow waist, pulling her closer to him. "Maybe."

Sakura giggled softly as she pressed her cheek to his shoulder, gently nestling her face close to the side of his neck. "A lot of maybes there." she sighed, laying her hands flat against his chest.

She felt ever so comfortable wrapped in his arms. His strength and warmth were as close yet as she had come to emulating the feeling of having joined with his soul. Syaoran held her as close as he dared, content to just stroke her hair and caress her back, a pleasant frisson coursing through him at the sensation of her breath on his skin. The goddess he was holding needed to be worshipped and he was beyond honored to have been chosen to be her most devout worshipper.

"Well, there is one thing that will never have a maybe attached to it. Not now, not ever."

"What's that?" she queried in a blissful mumble.

The sorcerer affectionately nuzzled his sorceress's ear. "Aishiteru." he whispered sincerely.

A thrilled shiver raced up her spine from his admission and she gasped silently. He loved her. He really loved her. Her most secret wish and desire was now real. Even if it was cruel of the Fates to have granted her his heart at the moment he had to leave her, she was satisfied to know that he felt the same for her as she did for him. Completely independent of her control her hands slipped inside his open blazer, silently marveling at the feel of his hard chest and muscles through the thin shirt, sliding her hands around his torso and up his back to keep his heartbeat near her own. Being so close to him just felt so right, so comforting.

"Aishiteru." she whispered in return.

His body trembled ever so slightly, his strong arms crushing her closer. "I've waited five long years to hear that from you." he breathed into her hair.

Sakura had to smile. "Never let anyone tell you you're not patient."

Syaoran chuckled. "More like a sucker for punishment. It was such torture. Five years of watching guy after guy ask you out, of wanting to hold you night and day but not being able to, of being close to you but never knowing…"

"And now you have to leave." she sighed morosely.

"I don't want to leave." He cupped her face between warm hands and dotingly wiped the remains of her tears away. "More than anything I want to stay."

She gripped his wrists. "It just isn't fair. Why now?"

"I wish I had an answer to give you, Sakura, but I don't."

She shook her head in negative with a forgiving smile. "It's okay. I can't expect you to have all the answers. But… maybe if you did talk to your Okaa-san…"

"I might be able to convince her. If not, I'll renounce my Clan to be able to stay with you."

Sakura quickly covered his mouth with her hand. "No, don't do that! They need you too. They need your guidance and everything you've learned over the years." She dropped her hand away, wincing from a tightening in her heart at her next thought and saw him mimic the expression, having felt the pain as well. "I… I'll learn to wait… as long as it takes until you come back to me." she told him softly in earnest conviction.

Even when a second away from you seems like an eternity to me, he thought, losing himself in the depth of her eyes.

"I know." she smiled, trailing her fingers down his smooth cheek.

He blinked, then smirked. "I'm going to have to be careful what I think around you."

She, too, smirked. "Why? Do you have secrets?"

Syaoran chuckled lightly. "None I want to keep from you, my Cherry Blossom." to which she smiled brightly.

"Kawaii!" a gleeful voice cried out from the other end of the corridor from the couple.

The magic using pair turned quickly, startled by the familiar outburst. There stood Daidouji Tomoyo, a wide grin plastered on her face as her ever-present video camera recorded every tender moment happening between the duo before her. The soccer player groaned to the ceiling in annoyance while the sorceress rested her forehead against his chest in weary fatigue. Their private moment had been destroyed before they could see where it would lead. It was plainly obvious that their friend was wholly obsessed with capturing every moment, every tiny detail of their lives on tape.

"Tomoyo…" Sakura whimpered softly.

"Don't mind me." the videographer grinned happily. "Just continue as if I wasn't here."

"Kind of hard with a camera staring you in the face." Syaoran gave her a suffering frown. "How long have you been there?"

Tomoyo continued to grin broadly, still taping. "Only long enough to capture the most kawaii couple in the Universe admitting their love for each other on tape."

He sighed up at the ceiling with a pleading expression. "Buddha, help us…" he bemoaned.

"Now all I need is to capture your first kiss…"

Sakura's bright green eyes flashed in warning to her best friend. "That'll be on our own terms, Tomoyo."

"Okay, okay… Just tell me before it happens so I can set up okay?"

"You can't plan spontaneity." the teen warrior grumbled, reluctantly letting his Card Mistress slip out of his arms. "Tell me you didn't follow us just to tape."

"I didn't follow you just to tape." she grinned. "We managed to answer a lot of your Okaa-san's questions about what happened in the last two months, Li. She probably still has a lot of questions left to ask of you. And she invited Sakura and I to spend the night here."

Syaoran's tawny eyes went wide. "Nani?!"

"She invited us to stay the night." she repeated matter-of-factly.

"Otou-san and 'Nii-chan would never allow it." Sakura reasoned to her friend.

She hooked a thumb to the living room. "If you don't believe me go check for yourselves. Li-san is talking to them right now. She did the same to my Okaa-san a few minutes ago."

Sakura blinked. "How did she get my number?"

"Meilin gave it to her."

The Mistress of the Cards frowned in clear irritation and took off in the direction of the living room. Tomoyo and Syaoran were half a step behind her. Sakura had a horrifying mental image of Touya and Lerae yelling at each other over the phone while her Otou-san waited patiently for a break in their conversation to have his turn to speak. A shouting match would only serve to further strain the delicate relationships the sorceress shared with both families. On one side was her biological family, to whom she owed life and whom she loved. On the other was Syaoran whom she loved with all her might. She couldn't be forced to choose if things got ugly. But, upon entering the living room, she was quite surprised to find Lerae carrying on a calm and seemingly civilized conversation over the phone.

Well, I'll be… Not at all what I expected, the sorceress thought in surprise.

Syaoran heard the thought and came up behind his beloved partner with a smile, tenderly taking hold of her shoulders. "Okaa-san is probably ignoring Touya all together and is just talking to your Otou-san." he whispered near her ear.

"That would explain why she's so calm." she agreed, goose bumps traveling along her skin from his warm breath against her ear. "Touya would have had her climbing the curtains by now."

The young warrior chuckled low. I'd pay good money to see that. He heard her laugh softly in her mind in response. He then turned to his Cousin now standing not far away from them. "Meilin, what did you three tell Okaa-san to insist that Sakura and Tomoyo should stay the night?"

"Nothing, honest." the ruby-eyed Chinese teen assured. "She just doesn't want them going out at night in the blizzard."

The Card Captors blinked. ""Blizzard?"" they queried in unison.

Li Meilin Rae smirked at the Card Mistress and her Cousin, balling her hands on her hips. "All that magic and you can't feel a simple storm?"

Syaoran frowned. "As it is we can only feel magic."

"And a snow storm is hardly magical." Sakura completed for him as she moved to the sliding door to the balcony.

Her spring-colored eyes were greeted by a vast, blinding sea of white snow, swirling and billowing from the strong gusts of wind. Anything beyond the balcony railing, such as neighboring buildings and the streets below, were now completely invisible to the naked eye. As she watched the storm she felt rather than saw Syaoran approach her and stand at her side. He whistled low in awe at the sight of winter's raw fury.

"And here I thought the fuzz ball had exaggerated about all this." he breathed in astonishment.

"The Snow Card has nothing on this." his partner agreed.

"It's definite, then." he suddenly stated decisively. "I'm not letting you walk home in this mess."

She grinned at him playfully. "No complaints here."

Syaoran chuckled. "You might. I still have to figure out the sleeping arrangements. That and I seriously doubt you thought about packing and bringing your PJs with you."

Sakura smiled in confidence. "All true, but I did think to bring the Clow Cards."

"And?"

"And I have the Create Card. I can use it to help us out if we should have a problem."

"As in…?"

"Lack of space, supplying both Tomoyo and I with sleep wear… That sort of stuff."

The future leader of the Li Clan smiled almost proudly and wrapped his arms around his beloved partner's shoulders to hold her close, her back to his chest. "Beautiful and brilliant." he breathed.

She smiled. "Except in Math." she quipped and he laughed.

* * *

Sakura sat bolt upright with a strangled gasp of fear as she woke, her eyes darting about the room while she struggled to remember where she was. This was not her room. The tones here were masculine and very Spartan. A desk, a chair, a bed. That's all there was. She then looked down at the bed sheets and sighed in growing relief, her memory returning. The sheets were various shades of green. The scent of spice, sandalwood and autumn leaves permeated the room, the sheets and the pillow, soothing the remainder of her dream-induced fear. She was in Syaoran's room, in his bed. Kero slept on a plush pillow at the foot of the bed, still snoring softly.

Sakura remembered what had happened after Lerae had gotten off the phone with the Card Captor's Otou-san. The Clan matriarch had been a gracious hostess in her Son's home, but the conversations had always shifted away from any topic relating to Mummaro's Gate. It had frustrated the young sorceress. She knew the Li Clan was secretive and possessive of the knowledge they held, but she needed to know about this particular secret. She was involved. Throughout supper Lerae had sported a proud glint in her eyes as she watched her Son and Sakura interact. To Sakura, the look had told her the matriarch had been planning something. Something involving both Card Captors. Each time she spoke there had been a veiled comment with a double meaning or some innuendo alluding to something going on between the two magic users. Each comment caused a blush before being vehemently denied.

After the sumptuous meal Syaoran had prepared, Lerae had gone about dividing up the beds for everyone. Tomoyo and Meilin had agreed to share a room and Lerae had gotten the guestroom. This had left only Syaoran's room and two people. The Card Mistress and Lerae had done their best to hide their disappointment when the warrior had given up his room to Sakura, opting for the comfort of the living room couch instead. The young sorceress wouldn't have minded to share with him, but it was better this way after all. Their relationship had started on a new path and they had to take it slow.

The Card Mistress's mind then returned to the reason why she had awakened so suddenly from such a deep sleep. It had been the vision about Mummaro's Gate again. This time it had been more complete. There was a lot more details she hadn't noticed before. Did this mean the moment was drawing nearer?

In this version of the vision she had seen a glowing woman huddled at the base of one of the massive pillars.

The Life Card?

How was the Life Card involved in all this?

She had heard the rattle of chains not far off to the side, sounding as if someone was being restrained. She had caught a glimpse of this prisoner in the reflection the knife blade had cast as it headed for her heart. It was only a split second, but in that split second she had seen a pair of fear filled gold eyes crying out to her. She knew those eyes.

Syaoran?

Two Syaorans, one killing her, the other captive?

Sakura shook her head free of the vision, dismissing the idea of two Syaorans. Her partner, her beloved Little Wolf was unique in the Universe. It was impossible for there to be two of him.

"Ahhhh… pudding… more pudding…" Kero sighed suddenly in his sleep, a goofy grin plastered on his tiny face.

She chuckled softly at the still sleeping Guardian Beast of the Seal. Then she sighed a smile. He had the right idea. She slid back under the plush, warm covers, settling back in her warm spot with a shiver. She mentally growled at herself for having let Tomoyo talk her into using the Create Card to make her the thin, pink silk slip she presently wore to bed. It was winter after all. She should have asked for some flannel pyjamas. But, in the end, the look she had received from Syaoran seeing her wear it had made this torture worth her while. Their newfound bond allowed her to feel his struggle for restraint when he saw her. The memory of his expression was enough to send warm shivers throughout her body, but the burning passion she felt him hold back made her burn.

She smiled blissfully while sleep returned to her and she cast her mind out in search of more pleasant dreams with her beloved Little Wolf.

* * *

Still towel drying his unruly brown hair, Li Syaoran walked out of the boys' locker room. Soccer practice had just ended and he was left pleasantly exhausted from the experience. Soccer was one of the few sports he truly enjoyed. It had all the elements essential to the well being and upkeep of the warrior's competitive psyche. There was an ample amount of strategy and planning involved, grueling amounts of running and sprinting, and constant tests of one's agility and prowess. Definitely a warrior's sport. It had both physical and mental conditioning required by a fighter. From the adjacent gymnasium he could hear a loud, pounding techno beat intermixed with the occasional whistles and catcalls. One didn't have to be a genius to know what was going on in there.

Cheerleader practice.

It always brought out a number of the more hormone driven males of the school's population. Syaoran shifted his backpack on his shoulder as he stared at the open gym door. He was in possession of an item that needed to be returned. He could give it back to her when she had finished practicing. A slight smirk touched the corner of his mouth from a thought. Like he would pass up a chance to see her in the new cheerleading uniform she had been given for the new semester. She was just so impossibly adorable in a uniform. That decided him and he walked through the door. The music was even louder in the gym due to the echo. Twenty or so lithe teenage girls moved in perfect synchrony to the loud beat hammering from the speakers, all wearing green and gold two piece uniforms that showed off their flat and firm mid-drifts. Multicolored pompoms flared, girls performed back flips and cartwheels. But only one girl caught his eye out of all of them. The brightest star of them all with a smile that could illuminate the whole Universe: Kinomoto Sakura.

"Hey! Li!"

The warrior/sorcerer turned to the sound of his name, carrying just over the music, and saw Daidouji Tomoyo and his Cousin, Li Meilin Rae, sitting on the lower benches of the massive bleachers waving to him. He willing sat with them.

"Are they almost done?" he asked the two girls.

"They're just finishing up now." Meilin answered. "Would you believe by the looks on their faces that this is the sixth time they've run through the routine?"

"Sixth?"

"That we know of." Tomoyo clarified, her video camera never leaving the squad. "We came in just in the middle of one a while back. This is just something to watch until we have to go to our next exam."

Syaoran looked at her skeptically. "Right. I'm sure this has nothing to do with the fact you swore to immortalize Sakura's whole life on tape, ne?"

She pouted a small smile. "Am I that predictable?"

""Hai."" the Cousins answered in unison.

Tomoyo mock frowned, never taking her camera off the cheerleaders. Then, after a moment, "Li, did you ever manage to find more information on Mummaro's Gate?"

He sighed. "Unfortunately, hai, I did."

"What do you mean, unfortunately?"

"I mean all the scrolls and histories I need are still in Hong Kong. If I want them, I have to go home and if I go home, the elders will never allow me to come back."

"Can't Wei send them here?" Meilin thought to ask.

"I already thought of that and he says no. The scrolls don't directly belong to our Clan so the owners are under no obligation to hand them over. They won't let them out of the country, no matter whom they're for."

She sighed in defeat. "Any more bad news?"

"Hai." he muttered.

She blinked. "Nani?"

"Okaa-san has given us until the end of the exams. Then, you and I go home."

There was a long silence between the three. "Does Sakura know yet?" Tomoyo asked carefully.

He shook his head sadly. "No, not yet. It'll break her heart and I don't want to hurt her this way. I promised…" He abruptly sighed. "I made too many promises to keep."

"Which promise do you keep?" the teen videographer stated in understanding.

"I want to keep those I made to her, but what of the ones I made to my family?"

"The woes of honor and duty, Li. Never enough room for love."

A determined look entered his wolf-like eyes. "I'll make room."

* * *

From his hiding place beneath the collapsible bleachers, Higato Allan watched and listened to the conversation between the three friends. He didn't understand a thing about this gate they spoke of. Why was it so important to them? The Daidouji girl had sounded almost afraid to speak the name of it aloud. And why all the gaki's intensive research on it? Those thoughts were shoved aside when the gaki spoke the words Allan had so hoped to hear.

Li Syaoran was being forced to go back to Hong Kong.

The joy!

Now there would be no more competition for who was the school's best athlete and, best of all, this left Kinomoto Sakura open and unprotected from Allan's advances. With the gaki gone he now had the opportunity to woo the lovely cheerleader with his impeccable charm and wit uninterrupted. The basketball star and team captain chose his prizes carefully from year to year, choosing only the most exceptional of girls, and for his senior year the girl of his choosing had to be extra special. A prized trophy. There were other girls who were certainly more lovely than the spirited cheerleader, but she had a certain innocent appeal, a quality about her he couldn't quite place but that he found alluring in the strongest of ways. Allan wanted her and what he wanted he usually got.

The blaring music finally stopped and the squad of girls dispersed, some retrieving their items from where they had been left at various places on the floor while others headed for the girls' locker room. Sakura instead headed straight for her friends sitting on the bleachers, a bright smile on her lips.

Allan allowed himself a grin. Soon, that smile and those lips will be mine.

* * *

Completely tired yet, at the same time, amazingly exhilarated Sakura jogged over to her friends waiting for her. Syaoran and Meilin clapped in over exaggerated praise, asking for encores and offering bravos, while Tomoyo filmed them all with a broad grin. The Card Mistress gave a theatrical bow and grabbed the towel away from Syaoran to dab away the perspiration that had formed along her throat and brow. She noted how his dark honey eyes seemed to drink in her appearance in her new squad uniform. She had been unsure whether or not she would like these new two pieces, but his obvious appreciation finally convinced her.

Anymore and you'll be drooling, my Little Wolf, she thought, focusing her mind on his as she draped the towel around her neck.

He looked up at her with a surprised blink. She smiled at her boyfriend in a playfully knowing way to which he blushed and smiled shyly in return.

Meilin chuckled at them. "About time you two got together."

The warrior turned to his relative with a frown. "If I'm not mistaken you were the one who wouldn't let it happen."

She seemed to think about this for a short moment, then grinned sheepishly. "Oh yeah, gomen about that."

His frown remained. "Don't you have an exam that's about to start?" he pointed out.

Both Tomoyo and Meilin blinked as they looked down at their watches, then shrieked in an emotion akin to terror. Each grabbing their bags and books they raced out of the school's gym complex to their classes. The teen warrior/sorcerer blinked in surprise at how fast they moved while Sakura laughed.

* * *

Allan loved the sound of her laughter. It was always so crystalline and pure, never faked, and it was addictive to all those within earshot. She was very special indeed. He frowned at the fact that her two other friends had run off though. This left the lovely Sakura and the gaki Li alone together. It was bad enough Li's Cousin had alluded to them being together now.

No.

He couldn't allow that to happen.

She was his girl, not the gaki's.

From under the bleachers Allan saw the object of his obsession sit close to his bane's side. "Syaoran, that was evil!" she accused playfully. "You knew all along their exam was about to start."

Allan frowned. She still used his real name.

"Hey, not my fault they lost track of the time." Li answered. He then turned to give her a soft, lopsided grin. "Mind you, if they were guys, I could forgive them in understanding."

Higato's frown deepened when Sakura leaned in towards Li with a playful smirk.

"Oh?" she questioned in complete innocence. "And why is that?"

The hidden basketball captain near growled when Li leaned in towards the cheerleader, smiling sweetly.

"Because they were watching you." Li told her softly.

"Sweet talker." she giggled with a slight blush.

"Better than being called evil." Then, as if abruptly remembering something, he reached for something in his backpack. "By the way, I… um… I have something here t-that… uh… t-that belongs t-to you."

Allan couldn't understand why the soccer player looked so nervous all of a sudden, his face turning a very interesting shade of red as he pulled out a carefully wrapped package from his bag. He saw Li's hands trembling as he held the item in question.

"You… um… left kind of… f-fast this morning and… uh… l-left… um… t-this."

Li's face became redder and redder with each word he struggled to stutter. Sakura's delicate hands rested on the blushing teen's hands in a gentle and reassuring gesture and help steady his shaking. Higato felt his blood begin to boil from the tender move on her part.

"What is this?" the auburn haired teen questioned carefully.

Allan saw Li take a deep breath to calm himself.

"It's… It's your slip." the Chinese teen finally stated.

Sakura gasped in surprise as the hidden watcher began to fume in near uncontrollable rage. How did the gaki get his hands on such a personal item of hers? And why had the cheerleader brought it to his place to begin with? Had she spent the night?

"Oh, Syaoran, gomen. Li-san didn't find it, did she?" the jade-eyed beauty near whispered.

"No, I was lucky there. I found it."

"Where was it?"

"In my bed, where you left it." the soccer player answered casually.

Higato Allan's world turned red in sheer rage. She had spent the night with the gaki! That cut it. He stormed out from under the collapsible bleachers and charged straight for the unsuspecting Chinese teen. He would make him pay dearly for stealing Sakura away from him.

* * *

The male Card Captor heard the sound of rushing feet and saw the look of fear on his partner's face warning him of the arriving danger. He let his instincts take over. A subtle sensation in his mind told him to duck. He obeyed the feeling, the punch aimed for the back of his head barely missing. Syaoran quickly leapt to his feet and whirled around to face his opponent, instinctively standing in a battle ready stance in front of Sakura. He frowned in annoyance when he saw who it was that was attacking him.

"You?" He stood up straight and scowled at his opponent, carefully circling his foe to place some distance between the impending attack and his beloved Mistress of the Cards. "I thought you knew better than this, Higato."

Higato Allan didn't answer, merely rushed him again. Sakura held back her gasp of concern for her soul mate, not wanting to accidentally distract him. For his part Syaoran just sidestepped out of the way of the lunge.

"You have no claim on her, gaki!" Allan shouted as he struggled to regain his balance.

"My, my. In a jealous rage, are we?" the warrior taunted.

He lunged again. "She's mine!" he raged.

He stopped just short of his competition for the cheerleader's affection and began to throw out numerous powerful punches and kicks in a vain attempt to hit his target. Roundhouse kicks, left hooks, right hooks, uppercuts, spin kicks… None made contact. With a peacefully placid expression the warrior/sorcerer simply dodged and sidestepped every blow with the greatest of ease. A tiny grin tugged at the corners of his lips. Realizing her boyfriend was in no danger what so ever from the enraged basketball player, Sakura settled herself more comfortably on the bleachers to wait out the fight, crossing her legs primly, her chin resting in her hand.

She abruptly giggled. "All I'm missing is the popcorn." she quipped.

Syaoran heard her and grinned as he easily avoided a spin kick aimed for his chest. Then, dodging a punch, "Wasn't I supposed to teach you how to fight?"

She watched him avoid another number of punches as she thought back for a second. "Hai, you were."

He jumped out of the way of a kick aimed at his ankles. "Well then, let's just use this as a learning opportunity." and he ducked a high kick. "Higato may just learn something too." He dodged yet another punch. "Take notes, I'll be asking questions later."

The young sorceress giggled as she pretended to write on an invisible pad of paper on her knee. She knew she probably shouldn't laugh, but Higato Allan was so woefully outmatched it was ridiculous to watch him keep trying to land a blow on the young warrior.

"Ready." she called to Syaoran.

Her soul mate jumped a few steps back to give himself some maneuvering room, both young men circling each other like Alpha Males vying for weaknesses.

"Lesson one, Sakura." he began. "Don't fight unless your opponent doesn't give you any other choice. Just like Higato is doing here. Poor boy is so incensed right now that all he has on his mind is to beat me to a bloody pulp." This caused Sakura to giggle.

Allan charged straight for his rival with a frustrated war cry. No one was allowed to make fun of him or take him so flippantly. Syaoran sidestepped out of the way at the last possible second, slapping his attacker in the back to add to the lunge's momentum. Allan landed in an awkward sprawl on the hard gym floor.

"Try to avoid the blows as best you can." her partner continued. "Retaliation is the last resort in a fight."

"What if I can't avoid the blows?" Sakura questioned, watching a furious captain of the basketball team pick himself off the floor.

"Then you block."

"How?"

"Slap the blows away from you." he answered as Allan, once again, rushed him.

"Slap?"

"Watch."

Higato threw a punch when he was near enough.

Syaoran pushed its trajectory off with the flat of his hand. "Slap."

Another punch, another similar block.

"Slap."

A kick now, blocked in a similar fashion as the punches.

"And slap."

Higato punched and kicked again and again, but the teen warrior easily slapped them all away like the previous ones.

"The trick is not to stop the momentum his using." Syaoran continued. "Use it to your advantage. By just diverting slightly off course you're throwing him off balance by a few degrees. Often that's all you need to win a fight."

Higato growled in a frenzy of rage. "Shut up and fight me!" he shouted and attacked his foe yet again.

"That's another thing. Never let your emotions get in the way. Be cool, be calculating."

He easily sidestepped out of the way again, his back now to Sakura. Allan panted hard, beginning to feel his exhaustion from all his failed attempts to put the hurt on his rival. Playing basketball had given him endurance, but not enough for this sort of thing. He looked up at his foe and was surprised to see he wasn't even breathing hard. Not even a droplet of sweat had beaded on his skin. Behind Syaoran he could see Sakura sitting almost prim and proper, watching the fight like an avid student watching a favorite teacher.

"So, how do you defeat an opponent who just won't quit?" she asked her teacher.

He turned his back to Higato to face her. "If you do have to hit him the object is to take him down with the least amount of blows possible. By this time the opponent is usually so tired he ends up making mistakes. One blow usually does it."

"One blow? How?"

His rage rising again for the reason that both teens were taking this fight no more seriously than a simple conversation, Higato Allan charged at his foe's back with a furious war cry. He would make him oh so very sorry for turning his back to him when the battle was far from over. He was just getting his second wind. Instead of turning in shocked surprise, the teen soccer player merely shifted his weight over to his right foot and brought his left fist up and back hard to smash into Allan's face. The force of the impact caused the self-absorbed basketball captain to flip over backwards and land flat on his stomach unceremoniously. Syaoran stayed in a battle-ready stance for a moment more, waiting for any retaliation of any kind. Then he shrugged casually as he straightened when none was forth coming.

"Preferably, like that." he answered his girlfriend's previous question.

She blinked a few times in awe. "Very impressive." she praised.

He shrugged again. "That's what happens when you stop momentum cold."

She smirked. "You sound like a Physics professor."

He couldn't help but chuckle. "Shows you what exam I had today." Allan groaned from his prone position on the ground, catching the duo's attention suddenly. Syaoran gave his side a slight nudge with his foot. "Mister Perfection here will wake up with one very sore nose and a very wounded pride." He then grinned slyly at the Card Mistress. "Meanwhile, what do you say I treat the most beautiful Cherry Blossom in the Universe to a hot fudge sundae."

She giggled. "She might get jealous if I tag along."

He frowned slightly, grinning at her quip. "Now why would I think of any other girl except you?"

She giggled and blushed, taking his offered hands to let him help her stand. "The battle didn't affect you more than that, ne?"

"Should it have had?"

She pretended to mull the answer over in her mind, grinning playfully. "No." she finally answered. Then, as they walked towards the girls' locker room, "Think he'll leave me alone now?"

"Not likely." he sighed. He then wrapped an arm around her bare, slender waist to keep her close to his side. "But now it might make him reconsider trying something if he thinks you can defend yourself."

"Ah, so there was more than one reason for all this." she accused slyly, giving his ribs a gentle poke.

He chuckled softly. "Guilty as charged. Now go get changed. Sundaes wait for no one."

She mock saluted with an impish grin. "Hai, sir." and she dashed into the locker room.

The future leader of the Li Clan took the opportunity of her departure to cast a quick glare at Allan just now struggling to pick himself off the gym floor. He walked over to the injured teen and frowned down at him.

"This is your last warning, Higato." he near growled as the teen looked up at him, a thin trickle of blood seeping from his nose. "Leave Sakura alone or learn to play basketball from a wheelchair."

* * *

Li Lerae gazed serenely at the drab and unassuming gray walls of the Tomeda District High School. Her amber eyes seemed to memorize the placement of every painted brick, every door, and every window before she entered the vast schoolyard. Very few students milled about in the crisp winter snow and brisk air, either relaxing before or after an exam. She barely glanced at them as she headed straight for the building's main entrance.

She was on a mission.

That morning, slightly after the Card Mistress had left the apartment, Lerae had sat down with her Son to receive some answers to some very important questions she had. The first had been when he had planned to tell his Okaa-san about the jade-eyed teen being the Card Mistress when his letters only alluded to someone by the name of Kinomoto. His response: possibly after the last card had been captured. Her next question had been why he had shown his friends, one of whom possessed no magic what so ever, the scroll about Mummaro's Gate. His answer had not been what she had expected. He had shown the scroll because of the Card Mistress. The girl had a vision of impending danger and it had involved the gate. Her Son had also added that he would do anything within his power and beyond to protect the young sorceress. That statement of pure devotion answered Lerae's next questions about the innocent looking girl.

Xiao Lang was in love with the lithe Mistress of the Cards.

And, from what Lerae had heard from the Guardian Beast of the Seal and both teen's friend, Tomoyo, the feeling was completely mutual. Lerae had then asked her Son if he wanted to go home to Hong Kong. His answer caught her by surprise, but helped her decide on her next course of action. His words still echoed in her mind.

"I am home, Ma-Ma."

The plan Lerae had in mind would make Xiao Lang's transition back to Hong Kong so much easier, and possibly result in the strengthening of the Li Clan's magic.

Her sharp eyes caught movement at the school building's main entrance. Looking up from her thoughts she noticed two laughing teens, wrapped warmly in each other's arms, walking out of the door. Lerae blinked in surprise. That her Son was holding the Card Mistress was no surprise to her. Clow's prophecy had stated that if there were ever two Card Captors that they would end up being in love. She had accepted this. But that he was openly and genuinely laughing was something wholly unexpected. Xiao Lang never laughed, hadn't since he began his training all those years ago. It was what had marked the Li men, the impassable stone face. The innocent looking sorceress was indeed someone special to have had such an effect on her once stoic Son.

The laughing teens abruptly seemed to sense the matriarch's presence. They stiffened in slight alarm, having felt the eddies of magic in the air around them, and turned to face the stately woman walking towards them. Lerae watched them pull apart, Xiao Lang's hand gripping the Cherry Blossom's hand firmly in his own in reassurance, and perhaps protection as well.

"Ma-Ma? What are you doing here?" he confronted.

Lerae smiled placatingly. "I am here to conclude a part of some business I must attend to."

"What business?"

"I must speak with your professors about transferring you back to Hong Kong."

She saw her Son cast a quick and worried glance to the girl standing at his side. The matriarch's eye twitched ever so subtly in understanding. He had not yet told the young sorceress that he was leaving at the end of the week to return to his homeland.

Her smile softened in reassurance. "You have not yet told her." she confirmed.

He hesitated. "I… I was going to, Ma-Ma, at the malt shop."

The Card Mistress looked confused. "Tell me what? Syaoran, what's going on?"

Lerae stood back in silence, letting her Son handle this explanation. She watched as Xiao Lang took both of the girl's hands, cradling them carefully as he struggled with words that didn't seem to want to escape his throat. Finally, he sighed.

"Okaa-san set a date for me to go back by." he began slowly. "By late this Friday night I'll be on a plane to Hong Kong."

Li Lerae saw the hot tears appear in the girl's bright jade eyes at the news. They said nothing more, only stared at their joined hands as if realizing that their time within the next three days would be precious. Lerae could almost feel the very tangible pain radiating from their hearts. The enigmatic smile she sported remained as she laid a gentle and motherly hand on the teen sorceress's slender shoulder.

"But he will not leave here alone." she stated and handed her an envelope. "This is for you, young one."

More than mildly confused, the teen opened the white envelope with trembling hands. The matriarch's smile broadened as she watched the girl's spring green eyes widen at the sight of the contents. It was a plane ticket. Her lips almost whispered the words written on it in astonishment.

"T-Tokyo Air, flight two eighty three… Friday at nine fifty PM… destination:… H-Hong Kong… passenger:…" She gasped and stared at Lerae in dumb shock.

The matriarch nodded a pleased grin. "Passenger: Kinomoto Sakura."

To Be Continued…