©2003 By Julia and Tania
E-mail: ccs_fanz@juliaandtania.com
Cardcaptor Sakura: The Attractive Power
Episode 8

Delighting this warm morning was Sakura’s melodic hum, its soothing sound flowing through her bedroom, complimenting the calm setting.

        Morning had barely started—in fact—it was only 6:40am and her bed was already made; the duvet covers neatly laid, smooth and straight, pillow perfectly parallel to the headboard. To the left was Sakura’s school bag, sitting tidily on her study desk, ready for a strenuous seven-to-eight-hour carrying task of her high school books. Behind that, the window that usually stayed closed at this time of the morning was opened, letting the little wind there was waft in. Sakura’s room had quite the peaceful atmosphere today.

        It seemed it was also quite peaceful down at the humble residence of Kero. In the third drawer of Sakura’s study desk, it stayed closed as the occupant laid quietly in slumber. But soon that quietness was interrupted when a few scuffs and gentle thumps were heard from inside. Apparently, Kero had decided to wake up.

        The compartment pushed open as the little yellow lion appeared through the opening before taking a seat on the wooden edge of the drawer.

        “Good morning,” Kero’s voice drawn out and barely audible.

        Hearing, but not seeing Sakura, he searched around the room, following a happy tune he heard Sakura hum, having not spotted her at the bed.

        He wasn’t sure how long since this became his standard greeting for the morning, but it had been going on for quite a while. He supposed he didn’t mind this really. It was certainly better than the old routine—oh the shrieking ‘hoe’ that she regularly screamed; his mind jarring in response was something he could do without. This was definitely something he could get used to.

        Of course, it would be quite the contrary if his mistress had an unpleasant singing voice. So, luckily for him, Sakura didn’t have such a thing, or he’d probably have to move to Tomoyo’s for a while.

        “You’re up early again,” he stated, spotting Sakura at the mirror brushing her hair.

        She turned around, enthusiasm in her tone as she replied. “Ohayou (Good morning), Kero-chan!”

        “You’re up early again…” Kero’s mind was looping, not wanting to function properly yet, his consciousness momentarily suspended in the land of the nod.

        Sakura giggled at the sleepy heap before her. “Hai. Sorry, Kero-chan, did I wake you with my tune?”

        “Kind of…” Kero replied, his words slurred. He rubbed his eyes, clearing his vision from the blurred images. “You’re dressed already. When did you get up this time?”

        “About ten minutes ago,” she replied, a sense of pride apparent in her tone.

        Finally awake, Kero flew over to Sakura, taking a seat on the desk top. For the few seconds he sat there watching her slowly brush those locks of hair framing her face, he had lost count of the times she had brushed them. Maybe it was the lack of concentration this morning, but spending that long on the same bits of hair was much too long; a couple passes would’ve sufficed.

        “Have you been brushing your hair all that time?”

        The criticism in his tone was clear. Sakura turned her attention away from the mirror to face Kero, replying with nothing short of neutrality, unaffected by it. “No.” But the truth was she pretty much had. Kero just didn’t need to know that fact; he wouldn’t understand anyway. She turned back to the mirror again, smoothing off the already neatly groomed hair of hers.

        “Oh,” he said, dismissing it simply.

        Sakura was finally satisfied with the way it looked, having ran her brush through her hair several more times. She reached for the red jewellery box on her left sent by Meiling, picking out a simple caramel hair clip before securing a section of her hair on the right with it.

        “That field trip to the nursery with your science teacher is today isn’t it?” Kero asked, recalling a brief mention about it a short while back.

        “Hai, we’ll be learning how to plant today.”

        “Where is this place, again?”

        Sakura pursed her lips, trying to think of the location whilst she fiddled with the position of her hair clip; it just didn’t look right. Then she looked overhead as if the answer was written in mid air, “Umm… I think Okuda-sensei said it was in the countryside…”

        Kero nodded casually. “I was thinking of accompanying you,” his expression suddenly serious.

        “Do you think this looks okay?” Sakura asked absentmindedly, still looking at the mirror. She turned to him after an approval from herself, waiting for his response.

        Kero raised an eyebrow then it levelled as he took a moment to study her appearance. “I suppose it’s okay. Why are you spending so much time on your hair anyway?”

        Sakura held back a laugh of embarrassment, waving her hands. “No reason! So, anyway…” dismissing it quickly. She stood up to move away from the mirror, heading for her school bag then continued, “why were you thinking of coming along, Kero-chan?”

        Curious, but not enough to pursue the answer to his previous question, he returned to the topic he had started. “I want to be there just in case the aura appears again.”

        She briefly halted her actions. “I think it’ll be okay, Kero-chan,” her tone said with confidence. “Besides, Syaoran-kun’s there, oh and Sato-kun too. I’ll be alright.”

        “I know.” Kero’s arms crossed, brow vexed, adding emphasis to support his suggestion. “I’m worried about this aura. Whoever this aura belongs to has a mysterious way of doing things, not to mention, upped the anti recently.”

        Sakura nodded. If it had not been eclipsed by her preoccupation with a certain someone, she too would be spending a lot of her time worrying about it, thinking about it, just as Kero was. The intentions of the aura were still unclear to her, but something in her latest encounter frightened her; the event was definitely an omen of things to come.

        “Well, you can come, but Kero-chan must promise to stay hidden.” Kero nodded firmly. “And…” Sakura glared at Kero, “don’t wind up Syaoran-kun.”

        “I’ll try,” he said dismissively, his answer not as ensuring as the previous. “But it won’t be my fault if that Li Kid’s sensitive.” Sakura frowned at the retort; Kero shrugged with a smug smile.

        Sakura sighed then her tone lifted back to cheer. “Okay, I’m going to head downstairs for breakfast. I’ll come back up later to get you,” she informed before grabbing the stick of lip balm beside her mirror, slipping it into her right pocket of her skirt.

        “Hai. Don’t forget about my breakfast, Sakura.”

        “I’ll try,” imitating Kero’s previous smug tone.

        “Sakura?!” he called in distress, but the door had already slammed shut.

        “Sakura… Sakura...”

        Sakura’s face bent low as she prepared to throw her voice as accurate as she could to the voice heard in her mind, careful concentration presented in her expression. “…Sakura.”

        She giggled. Not quite what she had in mind. Her voice came out nowhere near the voice of Syaoran. It was naturally high pitched, and no matter what she did, she was not going to bring through that soothing, huskiness that was Syaoran’s voice.

        Shrugging it off internally, she continued in her way down the sidewalk on her roller-blades. At least in her mind she could summon his voice without trouble—then again, she needn’t try too hard; there was Syaoran, the real thing.

        She grinned stupidly at the thought.

        It seemed her mind revolved around him a lot these days; Sakura just couldn’t stop Syaoran from taking up most of her thoughts, nor could she stop the feelings. Since her confession, they had been growing ever the more intense within her as she passed each day without him, escalating whilst she waited for an opportunity to express them. Like pressure held inside a bottle of carbonated water, her emotions could only be stored, trapped for the moment until the cap was released.

        Syaoran being away shook that bottle greatly; pressure continuing to build as her emotions continued to pile up in layers. The room was becoming tighter and more cramped, uncertain how much more she could take. But when he came back, at long last everything was able to be released, allowing all of it to freely flow and disperse.

        Till this day she still couldn’t believe he was back by her side. The first time he came back, she had been deprived of the chance to spend time with him. But now that Syaoran was here, everything was beyond anything she could have ever dreamed of; the feeling was indescribably pleasant, knowing that her most important person loved her just as much as she loved him, and she could experience it with him.

        As Sakura continued to skate along, appreciation shown for her surroundings this bright morning, the fly of her school bag’s zipper seemingly unzipped itself. Kero appeared through the mouth of the bag, curiosity apparent on his visage.

        “Sakura, what are you doing?” Kero asked judgementally with an eyebrow raised.

        “Hoe?” She looked left then looked right, searching for the person the voice belonged to. She looked behind her. “Oh Kero-chan!” Sakura suppressed a laugh of embarrassment at the thought of revealing her behaviour.

        “Who else? Did you forget I was in here?”

        Her roller-blades slowed to a glide, finger scratching her head. “Actually… Yeah.”

        Kero frowned in annoyance. How could she forget the great Cereberus? Then his expression reverted to his previous. “So why were you calling your own name?”

        “Umm… I was…” The next part came out extremely quiet and vague, “trying to… Syaoran-kun…” She was unsure why, but she felt embarrassment as a blush appeared on her cheeks. She wanted no more of this. She smiled sheepishly at Kero. “Umm… N-no reason!”

        Kero stretched his body as far as he could towards Sakura’s face without exiting the bag, his body veered left then right in a smooth, scrutinising motion, “What’s wrong with you? Why is your face turning red?”

        It flushed deeper in that hue; she could have sworn that Kero was deliberately doing this. “It’s not red,” Sakura replied defensively. “You better head back inside before someone sees you.”

        Hesitant for a second, but eventually he agreed. “Alright…” A scrutinising Kero slowly descended back inside, inch by inch, still examining her odd display until he returned within the confines of the backpack.

        Sakura relaxed, breathing a sigh of relief. Being constantly questioned about her ‘strange’ behaviours, having to live in the same room with an inquisitive being that was ignorant to the entire idea of love was quite exhausting sometimes. Although, on occasions, Sakura did wonder if Kero knew more than he let out; he did seem to respond rather well to soap operas that he always denied ever watching or liking.

        Lifting herself back up, vigilant eyes were kept ahead. They were in search for the engagingly tall young male; the one with unruly hair that complimented his look so handsomely; the one that had eyes that sparked like fireworks when she gazed into them; and the one with the husky voice that she had been trying to imitate not too long ago.

        Her eyes caught onto the back of a figure in the distance. Sakura held her breath as her mind identified the person at light-speed: his frame, his height, his characteristic poise, and that distinctive feeling she felt when he was around—it was him.

        “Syaoran-kun!” Sakura shouted in glee; he turned around, regarding her fondly.

        The corners of her lips extending further, she hastened to catch up, roller-blading towards him as fast as the excitement rose in her. She reached him then passed him.

        Bearing an expression of confusion to why she had skated such a distance beyond him, Syaoran watched her, tracking her. He arched around as she circled him like a majestic bird in the sky, her movements graceful as she came around. Seeing her slow, nearing the end of her journey, Syaoran stopped to face the direction he had been walking, letting Sakura reveal her final actions.

        Sakura made her way back towards him, releasing a delighted giggle as she sensed Syaoran’s continual focus on her. Swinging around just a couple of metres behind, she decelerated to T-stop on the left of Syaoran.

        Slipping her arm through his side, Sakura linked hers with his before hugging it. “Ohayou,” she said softly, enjoying the feel of resting on his shoulder.

        Syaoran smiled at her playfulness. “Sakura: ohayou.”

        She smiled, widening further: there’s that voice!

        “How did you sleep?” he asked softly.

        “Well—I slept well.”

        “That’s good.”

        She lifted her head, releasing the embrace slightly around his arm. “Did Syaoran-kun sleep well also?”

        He nodded, “Yes.”

        All of a sudden, interrupting the two, a moan came from Sakura’s bag. Kero popped out to situate himself between Sakura and Syaoran. On his head, an area swelled and pulsated. From the size of it, it looked very much like a painful bump.

        Kero swayed in midair, cupping the right side of his head. “Ouch! All those things…”

        “Cereberus?” Syaoran called in surprise.

        “Kero-chan wanted to come along to the field trip as well,” Sakura explained over the quiet moans heard from the dazed lion.

        Both Sakura and Syaoran watched, expressing a small amount of sympathy towards him. As small as the bruise that was on his head, they could imagine how painful it must have been. Kero was, after all, confined to a small area with books, stationery, and other school supplies sliding back and forth, to and fro, and knocking into him. They waited, allowing Kero—who was wincing at the pain as he rubbed his bruise gently, hissing when he placed too much pressure—some time to recover.

        “Sakura, why so many turns?” he whined, finding the pain subside to a more tolerable level.

        “I’m sorry Kero-chan!” Sakura apologised.

        He whimpered a few times before he accepted her apology, still rubbing. “Daijoubu (It’s okay)…”

        Removing his attention from the bruise, Kero caught onto his immediate surroundings. Sakura was standing with her hands clasped around one of the kid’s arms, and Syaoran, obviously was on the other side. A neutral expression displayed at first as he turned to look at Sakura then at Syaoran. Subsequently it changed as a wisecrack entered his mind.

        Kero’s nose began to scrunch, lips bent downwards as the narrowing of the eyes followed soon after. “Hmph.” This was the best he could do for Sakura, remembering her telling him not to wind up the kid.

        “What?” Syaoran said, articulating the word slowly and clearly in annoyance.

        He turned his head away from him. “Nothing… Just don’t know why some people do certain things for certain people,” he replied before retreating to the backpack, the sound of a zip heard a short moment later.

        Syaoran arched an eyebrow in confusion as he watched the zip draw together: it sounded like an insult—didn’t it? Dismissing it, he shrugged it off internally before making a start for school again as Sakura followed, apparently baffled by Kero’s comment also.

        “Anyway, has Syaoran-kun finished everything at the apartment?” Sakura asked, recovering from the situation of the former.

        He shook his head once. “Iie (No). I’ve got a couple more things to do.”

        Sakura pursed her lips, eyebrows slanted downwards in sympathy. “It must be hard to live in an apartment all by yourself, Syaoran-kun.”

        “Hai, it’s burdensome, but once I have settled in, I think it’ll be okay.”

        “So, you haven’t finished, Syaoran-kun?” she asked rhetorically, inclining her head to one side. “Because… if you need any help, I can come over to Syaoran-kun’s after school today. Do you need me to help you with anything, Syaoran-kun?”

        Syaoran smiled upon the offer. “I have some furniture Mother has organised for me that arrived yesterday. I haven’t had time to move it yet. I’d like some help with that, if you’re free,” he said.

        Sakura beamed at the response, pivoting sharply to stop, hands clasped behind her back as she straightened. “Yes, I’m free!”

        “Great. Arigatou (Thanks).”

        Pleased at the outcome of their conversation, she sustained the wide grin as she idly glided along the footpath, matching Syaoran’s pace.

        She was excited. Sure it was only moving furniture with Syaoran-kun, far from something to be so excited about. If she had told her friends about this, they’d probably look at her oddly. Happy about moving furniture?—Sakura’s got to be kidding.

        But it was no joke. She was looking forward to it—really looking forward to it. It didn’t matter what she was doing (moving furniture, raking leaves, washing the dishes, whatever) she would still enjoy it, as long as it was with Syaoran.

        Turning her head to her right, she scrolled her eyes upwards to watch him. Her mind began to flood with thoughts of this evening’s prospects, imagining how it would unfold—rather, how she hoped it would. Hopefully, there would be some time afterwards to sit down and enjoy each other’s company.

        As she kept her gaze on him, Syaoran continued to stare ahead. Syaoran hadn’t sensed her, and it didn’t look like he was going to any time soon. His expression, it was concentrated for some reason, eyes relatively fixed towards the ground. Sakura wondered what had caused him to become so preoccupied—what was on his mind?

        Just as she was about to ask, Syaoran turned in her direction. Sakura jerked back slightly, “Hoe,” as did Syaoran, startled by the gaze she had set on him.

        Relaxing finally, Sakura smiled. Her gaze remained on him, having sensed a reason for the turn.

        “Ah... Sakura,” he began, “do you want to stay for dinner?”

        Eyes wide and mouth agape, Sakura nodded with zest. “Arigatou, Syaoran-kun! I’ll help you cook too.” Syaoran nodded, contented smile present.

        Sakura’s evening just gotten better. It looked like she just gotten what she had hoped for.

        The school bus hissed to a halt upon arrival at the location of the nursery. Parked at the visitor’s car park, students filed out with clipboard and pen in hand upon the door’s release, relieved to be out in the open air after the long trip to the countryside.

        Merrily hopping off the bus following a few students was Sakura. She took a large intake of the fresh air before exhaling heavily. “That was such a long trip.”

        “Yeah, it definitely was long. My legs were beginning to fall asleep,” Yoshiro quipped, chuckling as he took a place behind Sakura and Tomoyo.

        Sakura stretched, extending her arms high into the air, enjoying the sensation that came with it, feeling the stress and aches in her body recede. Syaoran, who stood not too far behind her, inclined backwards, making sure to avoid her arms before coming around to stand next to her.

        Yoshiro, feeling the strain also, hung his head backwards for a couple of seconds to relieve the tensed muscles of his neck and shoulders before returning upright. “This place looks huge!” he observed.

        Several metres ahead of them stood two large green painted buildings. The larger of the two, on the right, had a few characters on a white sign: Education Centre, while the other one was designated as the nursery’s Office and Reception. Each building were surrounded by an arrangement of vibrant flowers and shrubbery, obviously selected and planted, adding greater visitor hospitality. Lining the perimeter of the estate were more greenery and—what looked like—a long glasshouse followed by a couple more that could just be seen behind the two main buildings.

        But what caught Sakura’s eyes were not the beautiful plants and structures but the man-made pond that situated a few metres to the right of the buildings. Situated in the pond were visitors of another sort—ducks.

        “They’re so cute!” exclaimed Sakura. Without waiting for her friends to catch on to what had caused her to become so excited, she briskly made her way towards the pond.

        Syaoran’s head craned over the top of Sakura’s, looking in the direction she had headed off to. Just as he motioned to follow, an acute sound alerted his ears. His eyes peered downwards. Ascertaining the sound to be his pen making contact with the gravel below, he bent over to pick it up, but was stopped midway through his actions when he saw another hand reaching for it.

        Upon Sakura’s arrival, one of the female ducks immediately welcomed her, trailed by several light-coloured ducklings. Sakura smiled and chuckled at their cuteness and the way they all hovered around her. She tried to reach over to touch one of them, but they all retreated slightly before coming forth once they had realised it was safe to do so again.

        “Oh they are cute,” Tomoyo said, having caught up with her friend.

        Yoshiro crouched beside Sakura. “Hai.” He observed the duck’s behaviour further. “Hmm… They think you have something for them to eat.”

        To that comment, Sakura search her surroundings for some food, maybe a piece of bread or something. Given that this place wasn’t exactly a lunch area, and that the surrounding area was virtually perfect in its appearance, it was unlikely she’d find a stray piece of bread lying around.

        Sakura pursed her lips. “I can’t find anything to give to them.” She leveraged her elbows on her thighs, half of her head sunk into her cupped hands, continuing to watch the ducks apologetically. The ducks continued to hover around, still waiting eagerly for the food that was never going to come; they hadn’t understood the human expression bearing bad news.

        “Oh, Sakura-chan, Touya had mentioned your class was coming here today,” a familiar voice called to her suddenly.

        Taking her attention away from the ducks for a moment, she was met by a person with black shoes and an apron. She scrolled up further to find, “Yukito-san!” Excitedly, she stood up. “Yeah, but how come you’re here, Yukito-san?”

        “Touya said he was coming here to help out, so I thought I’d join him. It sounded like fun.”

        “Oh, I see.”

        Yukito turned to Tomoyo and Yoshiro. “How are Tomoyo-san and Sato-kun?”

        “Good, thanks,” the both replied.

        Yukito nodded, pleased. He turned back to Sakura, changing his expression to a more concerned one. “You looked sad before, Sakura-chan,” he recalled.

        “Oh, it’s nothing—it was just the ducks…” She turned around to look at them. They were still there, but had swum slightly to the left, directing their attention to Yoshiro now. “I was trying to find something to feed them, but I didn’t have anything.”

        Without responding, Yukito immediately delved into the pouch at the front of his apron that Sakura hadn’t noticed until now. He pulled out a perfectly rounded, delectably white steamed-bun. “Here you go, Sakura-chan.”

        “Hoe? Isn’t that your lunch, Yukito-san?”

        “Don’t worry, I have many, many more in here,” he said, patting a big bulge which she also hadn’t noticed. A crooked smile appeared on Sakura’s lips as she looked at the area with astonishment. How many of those had he managed to cram in there?

        “A-arigatou (Thanks),” she said, taking the bun from his hand before heading over to the pond again. She tore it in half and gave a bit to Yoshiro. “Sato-kun: hai (here).”

        “Oh, thanks, Kinomoto-san.”

        “Tomoyo-chan: would you like to feed the ducks too?”

        “No thanks, Sakura-chan.” Suddenly out of nowhere, Tomoyo pulled out her video camera. “I’ll watch! I’ll film cute Sakura-chan feeding some cute ducks!” Sakura expressed another crooked smile, just speechless.

        “So Sakura-chan,” Yukito began as he watched her feed the ducks, “how is Sakura-chan and Li-kun doing these days?”

        At the mention of Syaoran’s name, Sakura smiled widely. “Great! I’m going over to Syaoran-kun’s after school to help him move some furniture.”

        “Oh is that so.”

        “Hai!” she replied. “Oh, can Yukito-san tell Onii-chan that I’ll be having dinner at Syaoran-kun’s?”

        Yukito smiled. “No problem, Sakura-chan.” He then looked around the area, searching. “Where is Li-kun today?”

        “Hoe?” Sakura was surprised to why she hadn’t noticed his absence. She supposed it was because she had become so accustomed to thinking that he was back in Hong Kong, and for that strange moment, she had forgotten.

        Sakura searched for him in the nearby area. “Oh there’s Li-kun,” she heard Yukito announce. She looked to Yukito then followed his gaze.

        Standing before Syaoran was her cheerleading vice captain, Miyamae Sayuri and her friends. The two were chatting—at least, Sayuri was doing most of the talking while Syaoran listened. Her friends were onlookers, occasionally turning to the person beside them as they whispered to each other.

        “So you’re from Hong Kong, Li-kun?” Sayuri asked him, despite the fact she knew the answer to it.

        “Uh (Yes).”

        Syaoran was quite taken by the whole entire situation. He had been asked so many questions by her (and sometimes her friends), questions he hadn’t a clue to why she was asking; they were so random. They seemed to have no direction, no real point. His impatience was getting to him, but he didn’t let it show as he stayed attentive.

        “What are you into? What do you like doing… umm… what sports do you like playing?” Sayuri continued. Her hands had moved to clasp behind her back, her shoulders casually swishing back and forth.

        “Ah… I like soccer.”

        Another wave of whispers from Sayuri’s friends spread through the group, delight in their tones.

        “Oh then you should tryout for the school soccer team this winter. I’ll cheer for you, Li-kun.”

        Both his eyebrows twitched once. This girl was peculiar. It wasn’t just the questions, but it was her entire presentation that puzzled him. Why was she moving like that? Then there were the friends, her critique panel. Miyamae’s behaviour, her friends’ behaviour, they were all so odd.

        Casually, he nodded. “Thanks for picking up my pen.” Syaoran then left the group without further exchange.

        “Hmm… Li-kun is brief,” a friend said, forefinger and thumb on chin. Then she pointed a finger in the air, “but he’s definitely cute!”

        “Isn’t he?!” agreed another.

        “Hai—right Sayuri-chan?” said another.

        Still standing by the pond, Sakura watched Syaoran. She could feel something develop at the pit of her stomach—a knot maybe. But at the sight of him, it never formed as she waved to him with energy, gesturing him over. He held up a modest form of a wave, hand briefly in the air in acknowledgement before it went back by his side.

        “Was there a problem back there, Li-kun?” Tomoyo asked upon his arrival—her tone uneasy to define.

        “No.” Tomoyo’s neutral eyes stared at him—or were they? “I just dropped my pen.”

        “Ohayou, Li-kun,” Yukito greeted. Syaoran turned to the voice, bowing. Yukito looked into the distance, reading the actions of their teachers. “It looks like your teachers are ready for you, so I’ll see all of you later, okay?”

        “Hai!” Sakura said as the rest nodded.

        Just as Yukito had predicted, a call of, “Students: gather around so we can make a start!” was heard from their science teacher, Okuda-sensei.

        “Hai!” chorused the students, converging into Okuda-sensei’s position.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

        For as long as anyone could remember, Chiharu and Takashi were always together. But nearly just as often, was Chiharu at Takashi’s throat.

        Takashi loved his stories; there was no doubt about that. He seemed to enjoy entertaining his audience with them and getting the reactions he got. But Chiharu, having been around him since they were young children, knew they were false, and could not stand him duping his quite naïve audience. Mihara Chiharu was the defender of all things true.

        But now that his audience was older, they were wiser. She didn’t need to intervene as much, yet she continued. Maybe she believed it was her job to save the large crowds that he gathered from his stories—or that she believed it was expected for her to do so, but this was high school after all. Many threats lay within high school life.

        Observing from a distance, Sakura watched the very common spectacle of Takashi being dragged away at the collar by Chiharu, away from a group of classmates surrounding a makeshift supply area set up especially for today’s visitors.

        “Don’t worry girls and boys—“

        “Don’t worry my foot!” Chiharu interjected Takashi. It always surprised her how much they paid attention to: “Lies,” she bellowed in rage, “They’re all lies!”

        The male part of the crowd watched stupefied, while the girls giggled, entertained by him. Takashi had a smile plastered on his lips, not at all troubled by the whole situation as he continued:

        “I’ll tell you the rest of it another time! Remind me to finish it off later!” then laughed like a crazed maniac, holding out a container of soil—the subject of his story.

        “No you will not! And no they won’t!” Chiharu sighed loudly, an eye twitching in frustration. “Next time, I’ll get the potting mix.”

        “Hoeeeee,” Sakura expressed from her position. She turned her attention back to Tomoyo, Syaoran, and Yoshiro who were busy in their task of potting containers.

        “Here you are, Sakura-chan.” Tomoyo handed the second of four pots then waited for her teammates to finish with the next one.

        Syaoran and Yoshiro had the jobs of scooping and filling up the pots; Tomoyo had the job of leveling it out; and Sakura had the task of creating a deep hole in the soil for the cutting.

        “Hai!”

        Sakura took hold of the pot, placing it in front of her. Pulling out her special gardening tool for today, her index finger, she carefully pierced through the soil—as not to put Syaoran, Yoshiro, and Tomoyo’s work in vain by spilling the soil over the side.

        Two more times did the containers come her way and two more times did she pierce her finger through the soil.

        “Great! We’re finished,” Sakura expressed, cleaning her moist hands from the dirt with a hand cloth supplied to them.

        “Yep!” Yoshiro acknowledged. He then placed his garden spade on the soil left over in the polystyrene tray he had been scooping from, before taking his gardening gloves off. Yoshiro then rubbed his hands against each other, ridding the granules of soil that had seeped through. Without giving any thought, he wiped his hands on his school trousers.

        Noticing this, Tomoyo quickly offered Yoshiro the cloth in her possession. “Sato-kun, you’ll get your uniform dirty. Use this cloth.”

        He looked up to see the cloth in front of him. He shrugged, “Don’t worry, Daidouji-san, you use it.”

        “Are you sure?”

        “Hai, my hands are clean now.” Tomoyo nodded, hesitantly withdrawing the cloth. “Anyway, now all we need are the cuttings—shall I get it then?” Yoshiro proposed.

        Sakura stood up from her seated position, beating Yoshiro to it, smiling. “I’ll go get it, Sato-kun.”

        “I’ll come help too, Sakura-chan.” Tomoyo stood up also, following her friend.

        “Oh okay, thanks,” Yoshiro said. “Then I’ll stay to clean up.”

        “Arigatou.” She turned to Syaoran who was already amidst cleaning. “Syaoran-kun, do you think you can look after my bag?” Sakura grabbed the bag from behind, carefully handing it over to him. Syaoran nodded, taking the bag into his possession. Her eyes then fixed onto his—a hidden message being sent in the gaze. “Oh, and can Syaoran-kun check that my pen’s in there?”

        “Uh,” understanding the concealed request.

        “We’ll be right back, Syaoran-kun, Sato-kun.”

        “Hai,” the two more or less replied with.

        Carrying out the request, Syaoran turned side-on to Yoshiro, making sure the bag was not in Yoshiro’s line of vision. He began to unzip Sakura’s bag. It was mighty quiet in there; Syaoran wondered if anything was actually wrong. Maybe he’s asleep, he reasoned.

        He inclined his head forward as he separated the walls of the bag when, to his shocking surprise, jaws of horror came snap-snapping at his fingers. Immediately, Syaoran jerked backwards in rapid speed, falling onto his backside.

        Kuso (Shit)!

        His rather loud outburst stunned nearby students as they turned to the commotion (one of the groups being Miyamae Sayuri’s) staring wide-eyed. What had reduced the usually, collected Li Syaoran to the floor?

        “Li-kun: something wrong?” Yoshiro asked, his reaction conforming to the surrounding students.

        Syaoran got back up, recomposing himself. “It’s nothing.”

        Yoshiro raised an eyebrow before shrugging it off. “Oh okay. So is Kinomoto-san’s pen in there?” he thought to ask.

        For a minute there, Syaoran had forgotten what he was talking about then remembering, he replied, “Yeah.”

        Yeah. That ‘pen’ was definitely there!

        Syaoran tended to the bag once more, this time with more caution—now that he knew what kind of mood Kero was in. When he moved to the opening again, he was met with a smug Kero, standing akimbo, proud of his feat. Syaoran glared at him; Kero glared back.

        “Stupid stuffed animal,” Syaoran spat through clenched teeth, fire in his eyes. What an annoying thing he was.

        “Did you say something, Li-kun?” Yoshiro turned to face Syaoran who seemingly hadn’t registered his question as he saw him stay glued to the bag.

        Hurt by the name calling, Kero jetted towards the surface. But he never made it as Syaoran, just as speedy, zipped the bag closed, causing Kero to ram into the top. The bag lurched upwards, but Syaoran’s reflexes pinned it back down to the ground.

        A very small, smug smile formed on Syaoran’s lips, seeing the hump shake violently before stopping then starting again, attempting to break through to him. After a few more shakes, the hump gave up and withdrew. Guess he won that round.

        “It was nothing,” finally replying to Yoshiro, Syaoran said again.

        Yoshiro frowned in confusion, again having to accept the answer as-was. “Oh okay.”

        Silence took over as the two male students casually cleaned up, sweeping things here and there, fiddling with a few tools, anything to pass the time.

        “I’ll just line these up over here,” Yoshiro voiced his actions, not talking to anyone in particular. He neatly set the four containers between the two.

        Syaoran, nevertheless, acknowledged it with a nod, “Uh.”

        Once they were left with nothing to do—surrounding area as immaculate as possible and as organised as it could be—Syaoran and Yoshiro sat, waiting for the girls to return.

        Silence returned for another visit.

        Finding conversation to be lacking at the moment, Yoshiro sat looking into the distance at some trees and a few dome-shaped structures that the tour guides had informed were the ones that housed plants in production. His attention switched to his classmates as they finished their task before he lost interest in that and decided to stare at the ground beneath him.

        It wasn’t that it was awkward at the moment, sitting next to him—Yoshiro didn’t feel that at all. He just thought to let the silence settle; and by the look of Syaoran’s body language, he didn’t seem to be too concerned about it either.

        Since befriending Syaoran—although it had only been a short time—he noticed one thing that rang through clearly: he wasn’t a person to embrace small talk. Rarely had he seen him participate in that form of conversation.

        Whenever he, Sakura, and Tomoyo talked about trivial, insignificant topics, Yoshiro noticed he usually stood in the background, just listening; and occasionally would he contribute to the conversation. He seemed to be the reserved type. So maybe it was as simple as the preference of silence over conversation.

        Continuing to wait, Yoshiro turned his head to his left, in the direction of the supply area. It looked like Sakura and Tomoyo had already gathered the watering can, but they had yet to obtain the cuttings as they stood in behind a short line.

        “Sato,” Syaoran called all of a sudden. Yoshiro turned around to face Syaoran seated in a casual position (an elbow supported by his elevated right leg; the other leg horizontal on the ground), staring at the scenery ahead of him. A student walked by; he waited until the student was out of hearing range before he continued again. “Sakura has been telling me that you have been helping her a lot with the aura.”

        Yoshiro stifled a laugh. “Is that what Kinomoto-san told you?”

        Syaoran nodded, “Uh.”

        “Well, she gives me too much credit,” he answered neutrally, slight curl to the lips. “My magic isn’t strong enough to have helped Kinomoto-san too much.”

        “What is your magic?”

        “My magic consists of elemental and defensive magic,” he enlightened.

        Syaoran turned to face Yoshiro with serious eyes. “Had you known the aura was here when you came to Tomoeda?”

        “Iie (No). I only felt it recently,” Yoshiro answered his question then added, “I never knew that so much magic existed until I came to Tomoeda to study.” His tone was of one that still conveyed disbelief. Syaoran nodded once and spoke no further, turning back to the scenery ahead of him.

        Yes. Yoshiro had stumbled upon ‘Magic Central’. All the supernatural phenomena that his mother had told him once existed centuries ago, did exist in this present time; all of that happened (and was happening) right here in this small, peaceful town of Tomoeda. Furthermore, he had managed to meet two people who, not only were like him, but were also a part of the renowned dynasty of Clow.

        “I hear you’re a descendant of Clow Reed,” Yoshiro inquired, carrying on the conversation that Syaoran had discontinued.

        Syaoran’s eyes moved to the corner briefly, directing them towards Yoshiro, replying, “Yes,” before returning to its original position.

        “Then your magic is like Kinomoto-san’s,” he deduced with a smile.

        “Not really. Sakura’s magic is her own.”

        Yoshiro nodded a couple of times, the smile straightening in comprehension. “Oh hai, hai (true, true). Everyone’s magic is unique.”

        The conversation between the two dried once more. With the many people Yoshiro had come across, Syaoran had to be the most challenging person to sustain one that was decent. But it was all good: go with the flow, he thought.

        “So, how long have you known Kinomoto-san?” Yoshiro asked casually.

        “Three years.”

        “That’s quite a long time.”

        “Uh.”

        Yoshiro’s posture suddenly perked upon spotting the girl’s return with a watering can, a tray of cuttings, and what looked like some labels. Sakura and Tomoyo waved to him and Syaoran. “Hmm, the girls are back.”

        “Syaoran-kun, Sato-kun, sorry for taking so long!” Sakura said as she placed the gear next to the prepared containers.

        “Arigatou (Thanks),” Syaoran said as the girls crouched in front of them.

        “Thanks Kinomoto-san, Daidouji-san.” Yoshiro took hold of one of the cuttings, as did the rest of the group. He then turned to Syaoran. “We can finally do some planting, Li-kun.”

        “Uh.”

        “Wow!”

        A forest of green foliage surrounded the winding trail Sakura walked along. Every direction she turned, she was overwhelmed with green: green shrubs, green ferns… green trees—this part of the nursery was positively green, coming in practically every shade of the vibrant colour.

        The trip coming closer to its conclusion, the students were given the opportunity to spend the rest of the remaining time here to freely roam around the vast nursery. Sakura’s group had already visited a couple of flower and their rock gardens before deciding they would give this place a visit.

        “Yes. It has a lot less flowers, but this garden of trees and shrubs is still very charming,” Tomoyo said, seeing it with a photographer’s eye.

        “Hai,” nodded Sakura.

        Tomoyo leaned into her. “So, you’re going over to Li-kun’s…”

        “Hai, Syaoran-kun needed some help with furniture.”

        “Oh, is that what Sakura-chan calls it.” Sakura turned to Tomoyo, brows furrowed. What did she mean by that? What else would it be? “Are you sure it’s not…” She paused, attempting to add effect, “…Sakura-chan’s first date with Li-kun?” Tomoyo grinned widely.

        “Hoeeee?!” Sakura’s scream was loud enough to scare a bird off its perch. Those two words definitely didn’t rest too well on her. She was not mentally prepared for one—as much as she liked the sound of it. Besides, a date wasn’t supposed to involve moving furniture.

        Yoshiro and Syaoran, who had been walking behind the two, stopped in alarm. “Sakura, is everything alright?” Syaoran asked in concern.

        Tomoyo smiled mischievously. “Yes, there’s not a problem at all. Sakura-chan just told me that Li-kun and Sakura-chan were going on their first date.”

        Syaoran’s eyes widened, his heart skipping a beat at the words. He turned to Sakura, wondering if that was what this evening was to her.

        “N-n-no Tomoyo-chan, y-you got it wrong.” Sakura’s speech stuttered—afraid she had laid something upon Syaoran that he didn’t want put on him. She shook her head. “I didn’t mean that. I’m just helping Syaoran-kun with his apartment. It’s not a date.”

        Upon that, Tomoyo stared at Sakura then at Syaoran, attempting to persuade the two to change the status of the evening. Finding that neither had the courage to change it to a date, an expression of disappointment displayed, body slumping. “Oh really?” she asked. Sakura shook her head, followed by Syaoran.

        “Let’s have a little fun…”

        Sakura’s head bolted upwards as her senses simultaneously alerted her: the aura was near. Within every fibre in her body, she could feel the sensation flow through. The familiar but undesirable sensation had rocked her out of the relaxed atmosphere to ready for—what could be— the perilous one to come.

        “The aura: it’s here.” Syaoran’s eyes fixed towards the skies, attempting to isolate its position. “I can’t grasp it.”

        “Hai…” Sakura’s voice was faint.

        “Sato-kun?” Tomoyo quietly called, careful not to disturb this moment of concentration.

        An inanimate Yoshiro stood beside her. His eyes had closed, head dipped towards the ground for the same reason. He hadn’t replied to her, apparently struggling to sense what her other two friends were able to as she saw his eyebrows twitch.

        “I’m not getting it; I’m still trying to sense it,” he replied many seconds later through his deep focus.

        Sakura couldn’t feel it again. She didn’t know what to think of it: had it disappeared, or was it waiting in the shadows to make another appearance?

        Then, making a dramatic entrance, the aura reappeared with great strength, causing Sakura and Syaoran to snap their heads to the right. Even Yoshiro had sensed it this time. Split seconds later, a violent gust of wind tore across the vicinity, the low sound of its howl filled with menace.

        The wind continued to pick up, and it seemed it had no intention of dying down; it was getting stronger and stronger. The sky darkened as it became overcast. Droplets of rain started to fall, soon increasing to spits. Twigs, leaves, bark, soil—a stir-fry of debris was already spiraling wildly in mid-air. Not too much longer would the four, too, be added to the mixture.

        Yoshiro was using all his strength to keep Tomoyo by his side, pulling hard at her wrist as the wind played tug-of-war with him. Several times he felt her edge away from him, his grasp weakening, but it only made him persist further.

        “Tomoyo-chan, Sato-kun!” Sakura screamed in concern, not worried that she was beginning to lose to the strong winds.

        Syaoran, who had been blown back quite a distance from Sakura, had finally regained his ground as he took a few more struggling, yet firm and balanced steps towards her.

        “Sakura: hurry! Hold onto me,” he commanded from behind, his strong voice drowning in the intensity of the howl.

        “Hai!”

        Keeping as low as possible, knees bent, Syaoran drew her into him. Achieving a firm hold of each other, Sakura and Syaoran boldly strode towards the position of their friends, hunched together against the incoming debris that unkindly collided into their faces. An eruption of lightning followed by crackling thunder pealed through the air, jolting their ear drums.

        “Ahhh!” Sakura screamed in reaction. “Keep going, Sakura,” she heard Syaoran say. That’s right, she remembered: he was next to her. Sakura nodded.

        Slowly, but eventually making it, they met up with their two friends, all grouping together into a tight huddle.

        “Tomoyo-chan, Sato-kun: are you okay?” Sakura asked. Both of them nodded, head still down. “It’s the aura—it’s behind the winds,” she informed.

        “What do we do?” Vapor was spat out as Yoshiro spoke, streams of water running down his face. “How do we stop it?”

        “Shield should protect us for the moment,” Syaoran suggested—he, too, receiving the same treatment from the storm.

        Sakura agreed. Immediately, she reached into her collar for the Star key then began the familiar incantation: “Oh Key with the power of the stars: show me your true form. I, Sakura, command you under our contract: Release!”

        The key transformed, and just as she grabbed her sealing staff with one hand, she found herself peel away from the group, the strong winds continuing in its fury. Losing balance, an involuntary cry escaped her.

        Yoshiro reflexively grabbed onto the arm holding the sealing staff. “I got you, Kinomoto-san,” he assured.

        “Arigatou, Sato-kun.” A few heavy pants ensued. “The winds are so strong; I can’t keep my balance.”

        “Daijoubu (It’s alright).” Syaoran’s arm lingered behind Sakura’s lower back, waiting for Yoshiro to take hold of it. “Sato.” Yoshiro nodded comprehendingly, gripping onto his wrist. They tightened the circle around both Sakura and Tomoyo. “We’ll hold onto you while you summon Shield.”

        She nodded. She turned around to face outwards as Syaoran and Yoshiro’s arms further tightened around her waist, while their other arms pulled in Tomoyo. Finally having two free arms, Sakura gripped onto the sealing staff with steady hands. She called upon:

        “Shield!”

        Shield went into effect, erecting shelter for the four, relieving them of the savage activities outside it. Having the situation neutralised—at least on the inside anyway—everyone began to relax; allowed to breathe easy for a while.

        “Is everyone alright?” Syaoran asked, getting up from his hunched position. Everyone nodded. He took a glance beyond their safe haven before returning his attention to the group, about to say something, but was interrupted.

        “I sense the aura, what’s happening?” Kero popped out of Sakura’s bag to hover between Sakura and Syaoran.

        “Kero-chan!” Sakura looked to Yoshiro whose eyes were broad, staring at Kero with astonishment. She began the introductions. “Oh… umm… Sato-kun, this is Cereberus, one of the guardians of the cards.”

        Yoshiro’s expression loosened to appear pensive. “I remember hearing about them. So this is Cereberus.” He moved in to closer examine the little yellow being; Kero straightened in his scrutiny. “Wow, you really do exist!”

        The guardian beast placed a hand at his waist, a curl to the lips. “At least this kid knows greatness when he sees it. Unlike…” He shot Syaoran a glare, “this brat over here.” Syaoran snarled at his remark.

        “Kero-chan...” Sakura was tired of holding back Kero’s need to infuriate Syaoran.

        Suddenly screams were heard in the distance: calls of distress.

        Sakura spun her head over her shoulders in answer to the shrieking cries. There, she found two girls at a bend, several metres ahead. They were her classmates, crawling desperately to safety.

        “Miyamae-chan. Hanari-san! “ Sakura shouted to them.

        A jerk of their heads told her that they had heard, but they were unable to respond as they contended with the wind, rain, and debris; fatigue was clearly visible in their movements. Sakura could feel that, at any moment now, they would succumb to the magnitude of it all, unable to endure it anymore.

        She had to help them. On instinct, Sakura ran out into the turbulent conditions, leaving Kero struggling to hold onto her bag before jumping back in.

        “Sakura-chan!” Tomoyo shouted in concern.

        “Sakura: matte (wait)!” Syaoran followed—tone urgent. When she didn’t respond, he ran out of the protection of Shield, in pursuit of her.

        “Daidouji-san and I will head back and get some help,” Yoshiro shouted to Syaoran.

        “Uh,” he acknowledged, already a distance from them.

        Immediately, Yoshiro summoned his arc, preparing to erect his own shield, hand stamping onto the markings of his arc.

        The elements continued to pound at Sakura as she drove through it. The rain was heavier now and it stung as it slid past her cold flesh. A burning sensation was also beginning to settle in her tired legs—all of this taxing on her body.

        She pushed on further; harder.

        Another round of lightning and thunder cracked and rumbled from the skies above.

        “Miyamae-chan, Hanari-san: are you alright?” Sakura had reached them.

        “Kinomoto-san,” Sayuri acknowledged before nodding. “Why is it so stormy all of a sudden?!” She was out of breath and out of energy. Sakura helped them up before she hunched over and lent them support as she joined them, offering them her strength.

        “Let’s go.”

        Sakura looked up to see Syaoran had come to help them, applying additional strength on the left. She stole a brief moment away from the chaos to smile, “Arigatou, Syaoran-kun,” before determination took over her facial cast.

        Preparing themselves, they ducked down low, arms shielding their eyes. Step by weary step, they resisted against the forces and the water-saturated clothes that weighed them down.

        Then suddenly, dampening their efforts, a strong gust of wind hammered into them, beating the four to veer off course into the sodden earth of the garden on the left. Dirty water spluttered onto the hem of Syaoran’s high school trousers, his shoe sinking into the muddy sludge below as he landed in a puddle of water and soil.

        Hmm… he’ll probably have to throw away that pair of socks.

        Syaoran ignored the squishy, sucking feeling. Pulling his foot out, he thrust the group back on course, pushing against the shoulder of Sayuri.

        They made steady ground for a short time before Syaoran went into another puddle of dirty water once more. And like he had the previous time, he defied the thrash of the wind to return the group to the stony trail they had been following.

        “I can’t… go on… anymore…” Sayuri’s friend, Hanari Ami, expressed—her voice weak.

        Everyone turned to look at her, all panting immensely. They were soaked to their skins, their hair pasted to their faces, and was numbed to the bones—everyone was tired; they all felt they couldn’t go on, but they needed to. They couldn’t stop now.

        But Hanari-san looked so tired, extremely tired. Sakura looked at the sky then to her staff: should she use magic? While she had been out here, she had been thinking: she could try using a combination of Firey and Windy to break up the clouds, even off the air temperature—maybe the storm would subside somewhat. Or, maybe use her Storm to go up against this aura’s storm…

        Sakura directed a glance towards Syaoran who had seen her actions. He shook his head, predicting Yoshiro and Tomoyo would come back with someone anytime soon. They had to ride it out.

        All support from the three who were still able to walk, moved in to help Hanari Ami, dragging her along.

        “Let’s go, right, Hanari-san?” Sakura encouraged with her weak smile. Slowly, she nodded, calling upon all her strength to carry on.

        Again, they were on the move, resolute in their steps once more. Then, without warning, the storm stopped. Everything died to a dead halt, sunlight breaking through as the clouds receded.

        “Hoe?” Sakura watched the sudden change of events in disbelief. “It stopped,” she said. But relief did not set in yet as she searched for the aura, standing still, looking towards the sky again. “It’s gone.”

        The aura was nowhere nearby.

        “Uh, it’s not there anymore,” Syaoran concurred.

        “What’s not there?” Sayuri asked the two, confused to what they had been referring to.

        Sakura put the aura aside to return to her two classmates, bearing a look of concern. “Oh, Miyamae-chan, Hanari-san, are you guys okay?”

        Sending down a bit of moisture to her dry throat, she swallowed uncomfortably. “Hai. Thank you Kinomoto-san.” A hesitation seemed to have existed before she slowly turned to her left, head inclined upwards. “Li-kun… Thank you also.” Her intonation was uneven and timid—a tone easily interpreted as something other than tiredness; her eyes had become fixed.

        Leaving Sayuri, Sakura moved to lay focus on her friend. “What about you, Hanari-san?”

        “Yeah, are you okay, Ami-chan?” Sayuri followed.

        “Hai.” She looked to Sakura and Syaoran. “Thank you so much. I’m so glad the storm stopped.”

        A patch of silence entered—quite a welcoming one really. Energy had been exhausted to its very last ounces in their bodies. They were physically tired, and this moment of calm was what they had prayed for; just some time to gather some strength and catch their breaths.

        “Sakura-chan, Li-kun—are you both okay?!”

        “Kinomoto-san, Li-kun!”

        Tomoyo and Yoshiro had returned with Yukito who followed closely behind, holding a first-aid kit which swung back and forth as he ran. They were all in raincoats as they carried a couple of reflective blankets between them.

        “Are you all okay?” Yukito asked, approaching the group of worn-out students. Wearily they nodded. “You all appear to be fine. No cuts or bruises?”

        “Iie (No), just a little tired,” Sakura replied.

        “Then, let’s head inside and get warm, okay?” They nodded.

        Yukito motioned for the blanket Yoshiro had been holding then wrapped it around Sayuri and her friend. Tomoyo did the same, spreading out the one in her possession. Yoshiro moved to grab one end as they both wrapped it around their friends.

        “Sakura-chan, you’re soaked,” Tomoyo observed, looking at the limp clothes that clung to her body, and hair and chin that dripped with water. “We definitely need to get you and Li-kun inside before you both catch a cold.”

        “Hai,” Sakura replied. Both Tomoyo and Yoshiro moved to the front of her and Syaoran to close the blanket around them. “Arigatou Tomoyo-chan, Sato-kun.”

        Syaoran expressed gratitude with a nod, watching Tomoyo fuss over the insulation factor, pulling bits here and there. Then his mind unexpectedly wondered off to the aura again, staring off to the clear blue skies that displayed above him. His brows lowered as lines began to form, his expression looking uneasy.

        “Syaoran-kun?” Breaking away from his thoughts, he turned to face the voice belonging to Sakura. “What is it?” she asked.

        He stood still for a moment, returning his gaze to the sky briefly. “The aura…”

        She inclined her head to one side, a hint of curiosity to hear what he had found—if at all. “Yeah…?” Her voice came out soft and encouraging.

        Again, Syaoran took a while to reply. He shook his head. “It’s nothing. I thought I had something, but… Never mind. Let’s head back inside.” Accepting his answer, Sakura nodded.

        Finally setting off for shelter, the group made their way down the muddy winding trail, leaving behind everything. A disarray of fallen trees, snapped branches, mud, confetti of leaves, twigs, and whatnots were left behind—all left to dry out in the warm rays of the sun that had returned to beam onto them. By the sight of it all, it looked like it was yet another bravo performance by the ever elusive magician.

To be continued in episode 9: “Sakura's Unmoving Engagement”.