Sakura let out a roar of a yawn as she sat up in her bed. Her hand 
absent-mindedly stroked where Shaoran had slept just two days ago. It had 
been rather nice to sleep with him. The warmth and comfort he gave her was 
simply wonderful.

Kinomoto then frowned as her mind proceeded to go over the events of 
yesterday. It had been rather embarrassing seeing her friends' reactions to 
Tomoyo's videos of her transforming the Clow Cards. Even she could tell her 
childhood friends had become uneasy in her presence. If it wasn't for the 
fact that at least Naoko would've written down about her being a magical 
girl, she might've used Erase to remove her friends' memory of the battle 
with the dragon and of Tomoyo's videos.

Sakura grimaced at the thought of the dragon battle. The Moon Gate had been 
part of Tomoeda for many, many years. Now it was nothing but ash. At least 
the dragon golem had been taken care of, sealed under the ground at 
Tsukimiri shrine thanks to her using the Earthy card on it yesterday. The 
dragon's heart was now a decoration for her father's library in the 
basement.

"Sakura...." Kero-chan floated in front of the half-asleep girl. "Time isn't 
going to freeze for you by itself."

"EEP!" Sakura dashed out of bed and got ready for the day. Like most 
students, she didn't particularly like school but she REALLY wanted to be 
there on time today as Shaoran would be there.

-----------------------

Do you believe in magic in a young girl's heart
How the music can free her whenever it starts
And it's magic if the music can move ya
And don't just hold tight that it never can lose ya

Your feet start tapping
And you can't seem to find
If it's surely real
Or just a state of mind

If you believe in magic
Just close those big eyes
And think of all the wonderful thoughts that arise
And maybe if you dream it just right
Your toes will be over the treetops tonight
And you'll be flying up and there you can see
Of the magic is in you and the magic is in me

If you believe in magic
Come along with me
We'll dance until morning
So it's just you and me
And maybe if the music is right
I'll meet you tomorrow so late at night
And we'll go dancing baby
There you'll see
That the magic is in the music and the music is in me

Believe in the magic of a young girl's soul
Believe in the magic of the rock and roll
Believe in the magic that can set you free ohhhh!!!!
Dream on dream on dream on -talking 'bout magic
Dream on everybody -do you believe in magic?
Dream on dream on dream on - do you believe believer?
Dream on everybody -ohh!! talkin 'bout magic
Dream on dream on dream on -do you believe in magic?
Dream on everybody - do you believe believer?

If you believe like I believe you will see is true


Card Captors Sakura: Shadow of the Dragon

Chapter 2: Return to Abnormal Days



Opening song: Do You Believe In Magic by Lovin' Spoonful.


Author's Warnings:

In accordance to movie system rating this series would be rated PG-13, and 
as for television would rate TV M for mature audience, but would be viewable 
with no edits save for some incidents of vulgar language. Due to subjective 
nature of the ratings, for FFnet this series has been labeled with R rating 
for those who have poor views of some of the subject matter contained 
within.

This series contains:
Adult situations.
Sexual situations withOUT detailed description of sex nor the naked human 
body.
Brief moments of violence, some cases involving people getting severely 
injured and possibly death.
Occasional use of vulgar language.
Japanese humor: which include bathroom jokes, panty fetish and shocking 
situations.
Depictions of criminal activity committed by fictional characters.
References of homosexuality.

This series will be played as Card Captor Sakura meets Kare Kano/His and Her 
Circumstances. It will not tiptoe around and make light of situations 
contained within the original canon, including inappropriate relations 
between teacher and student. As such this series will likely contain a 
darker feel to it than the anime of which this series is primarily based on. 
It will not ignore the light and fluffiness, either-- but will try to blend 
and balance both.

Only a few items from the manga that do not contradict anime canon will be 
used, otherwise this will be strictly written in accordance to the animated 
series.

-----------------------

Tomoyo hummed to herself as she prepared for the school day. Walking out to 
the back patio to have breakfast in the warm spring weather, she was 
surprised to note her mother was still home. "Good morning, Mother."

"Good morning, Tomoyo-chan," the elegant woman in a business suit replied. 
"I heard you had all your friends over to watch some videos."

Tomoyo nodded. "It was fun showing off some of my work."

Her mother raised an eyebrow. "Which videos did you show them?"

"My two master pieces starring Sakura-chan," Tomoyo answered.

Her mother pouted. "If only I had the time to watch them." She then glared 
at her watch. "But as always, business calls. Have a nice day at school, and 
tell Sakura-chan I said, 'Hi!'"

"I will. Goodbye, Mother." Tomoyo waved.

The teenage girl then sighed as a maid brought out her breakfast. She 
started picking at it. Yesterday, Naoko's curiosity caused the girl to ask 
that with a home like this, why she wasn't a spoiled brat. And she had 
replied because she knew there were some things she could never have. Things 
that she'd give up all her wealth for. She didn't tell Naoko what it was she 
truly wanted.

Tomoyo had a chance to talk to her friends about their discovery of Sakura's 
magic. She had made it a point that each of them harbored secrets that they 
didn't want anyone to know. True, Sakura's secret was amazing, but was 
possibly no less Earth shattering than what they kept silent about in their 
own lives.

There were a few secrets that Tomoyo held that she hoped would never come to 
light. That while she wanted to get to know her father, the reason she 
couldn't was because he had run off with the pool-boy when she was just a 
baby. Her entire existence was based on a sham marriage. Her mother needed 
to marry someone to inherit the family fortune and take over the business, 
while her father was a homosexual who wanted to hide his gender preference 
from his own rich parents. There had been no love between her parents and it 
was merely a matter of duty that led to her birth.

Tomoyo didn't doubt her mother's love for her, but to meet her father and 
get to know him was one of her three greatest wishes. The second was a lot 
more possible, but still unlikely. That her mother could spend more time 
with her. However, the job of being one of the highest ranked businesswoman 
in Japan left little time for family. Her third wish was something she knew 
would never come to pass, and would not speak it for fear of discovery of 
another of her highly guarded secrets.

-----------------------

Chiharu stretched as she awoke tangled up in bed sheets. Groggily she pulled 
herself free and shuffled her way over to the dresser. She scowled at the 
dust that had gathered on the model planes on top of it, as she had planned 
to clean the room over the weekend. However, the videos of Sakura had proved 
to be a more pressing matter.

Clean clothes in hand, the girl made her way towards the bathing room, her 
thoughts still on the weekend. Though they were more focused on Tomoyo's 
words at the end of it. It was true that they each held secrets, but how 
could anything compare with Sakura being a witch?

Chiharu frowned as her own secrets may not be as grand, but could actually 
be more of an emotional burden. Part of her secret wouldn't really be much 
of a surprise considering the classroom nickname she had picked up, but the 
reasons why wasn't something she wanted to discuss with anyone who wasn't 
family.

"Good morning, Chiharu-chan," greeted a black-haired woman, who was folding 
towels in the laundry/changing room attached to the house's traditional 
Japanese bathing room.

"Good morning, Mother," the girl replied.

"You'd best hurry with your bath. It's getting late. Breakfast will be ready 
when you get out," the woman informed.

Chiharu bowed respectfully. "Thank you."

The girl stripped off her few pieces of clothes before entering the bathing 
room and set to the task of cleaning herself, her mind not really on what 
she was doing.

As much as Chiharu's mother had tried to shield the girl from the family's 
troubles so she could maintain her education as long as possible, life had 
become incredibly hard for her. Any time she was offered a free moment, she 
grasped it without hesitation. But her free moments were becoming rarer and 
more difficult to find.

After exiting the bath, Chiharu began to dry herself off. She gazed at the 
mirror, wondering how Sakura could remain so innocent and carefree after all 
the girl had been through. She certainly didn't feel innocent, with the 
image of a young woman staring back at her.

Then again, Sakura barely remembered her own mother, let alone the woman's 
death, while Chiharu's father was wasting away into nothing from cancer. 
Kinomoto was merely Li's girlfriend... not his... wife.

Chiharu rested her forehead against the mirror. Her father had weeks to live 
now, months at worst. She hated thinking like that, but the once strong man 
was dying by centimeters. His existence was now one of pain. Which was why 
she was rarely at her family's home. Despite the fact the house belonged to 
her, it was easier for her to be here, at the Yamazaki household with 
Takashi, her husband. Here she didn't feel so helpless watching someone she 
loved die. She felt more like an orphan whose parents hadn't died yet.

In a way it was kind of funny that her classroom nickname of 'Yamazaki-chan' 
wasn't truly a nickname. She had legally become Yamazaki Chiharu a year ago, 
which the school was more than eager to agree to keep it a secret. Concerns 
with the family inheritance because of her father's illness had pushed her 
mother to arrange her wedding to her longtime love. She had only just turned 
thirteen when her engagement was announced and she had noticed that while 
she had been regarded as Takashi's girlfriend since kindergarten, she had 
started to develop romantic interest in other boys. She had wondered if he 
was too much like a brother to be her lover. But her choice in the matter 
was taken from her. While she had learned to be his wife, there were times 
she felt rather odd. That her marriage was more duty than love. Yet, there 
wasn't much choice if her future was to be secured after the death of her 
family.

The teenage girl fought the urge to cry. While it was her father that was 
dying, she feared for her mother as well. With her dowry transferred to 
Takashi's name through her legal marriage, there wasn't much left of her 
birth family's estate. She was worried that once her father died, her mother 
would quickly join him through her own hands.

"Not that I mind the scenery, but perhaps you should hurry up and get 
ready," her teenage husband joked.

"Not funny, Takashi." Chiharu pitched her damp towel at him, before she 
finally started to get dressed. "Any problems with delivering papers?"

"Nope." Takashi pulled the towel from his face and tossed it into the dirty 
clothes hamper. "I'll get our school bags together. Meet you for breakfast."

Chiharu smiled as he left. "Thank you, Dear."

-----------------------

Shaoran awoke with a start to the sound of rather loud clanging. He blearily 
looked over and took a moment to register that his visage wasn't blurry, but 
that he had the bottom of a soup ladle shoved in front of his face.

"Don't you dare go back to sleep again, Shaoran," Meilin growled. "You were 
supposed to be up a half-hour ago."

"Couldn't sleep well," Shaoran retorted groggily.

"Not my fault you stayed up watching those perverted Japanese shows," Meilin 
shot back.

"Wasn't tired then." The boy scratched himself.

Meilin hit him with the frying pan she had held in her other hand. "Don't do 
THAT in front of ME. And that's jetlag, you idiot. Hong Kong is hours 
different. You KNOW you have to adjust your sleep schedule."

"I know." Shaoran finally pulled free of the bed, clad in a loose muscle 
T-shirt and boxers that were almost falling off.

"Don't forget part of the reason we're here is to prove we can handle living 
by ourselves. You don't have Wei to help you out this time." Meilin's mood 
darkened. While the boy may think of her as a sister, she wouldn't mind the 
implied incest. They were distant enough cousins that their family relations 
didn't matter. And seeing her first love in a state of being 
less-than-fully-clothed plunged her mind down to the level of perversions 
she had only seen on the local late-night television.

"Yes, yes," Shaoran groused, finally at least somewhat awake.

"Now you better hurry up," Meilin ordered. "I doubt you want to be standing 
in the hallway for being late when you can sit near Sakura again."

Meilin clenched the cooking implements tightly as Shaoran bolted out of the 
room inspired with that last bit of motivation. She then sighed. She guessed 
this was what it would me like to be his wife, without the perks. To know 
what he was like completely unguarded and relaxed. Something that Kinomoto 
had yet to experience.

-----------------------

Naoko hummed to herself as she prepared a bowl of cereal for herself. She 
was unmindful of the milk as it splashed her while she poured it. It was why 
she only wore her underclothes. She was a first-class klutz, and had long 
given up trying to not make a mess. It wasn't like anyone would see her like 
this. Both her parents were office workers that went to their jobs before 
she woke up and usually didn't get home until after she went to bed. The 
only time she got to see her parents was on Sunday, after they had slept in 
half-the-day.

The bespectacled girl had been living more-or-less by herself since her 
grandmother died when she was little. She did the best she could to not use 
much of the house to limit the amount of chores she had to do. If she didn't 
dirty it, she didn't have to clean it. That left a lot of time for the girl 
to be alone doing nothing, which reading books had filled before.

Naoko smirked thinking about her one major secret. It was kind of like 
Rika's secret boyfriend, being one that would be dangerous to talk about 
openly. Though her secret didn't include possible jail time for anyone, just 
the potential to get her expelled from school.

Like most grade schools in Japan, in order to have a job she would need a 
worker's permit. Unfortunately, the academies in Tomoeda only gave permits 
to senior high school students and children working for their family's 
business. However, she was neither, and yet she had a little job with no 
permission from the school to have it. The job was just too good for her to 
pass it up.

After wiping up spilled cereal and milk, Naoko allowed herself to bring a 
magazine to her table. She opened it carefully to the latest installment of 
the increasingly popular 'Bloody Sword Detective' by Konagi Noa, a tale of a 
detective in a fantasy world who dealt with crimes of magic. Her eyes 
scanned every line making sure no errors had appeared. After all, Noa was 
her penname and she had written this story.

Naoko smirked a little as the chapter had a startling discovery not unlike 
her own surprise of learning that one of her friends was an uberly powerful 
magical girl. While she had been nervous around Sakura yesterday, it had 
more to do with what the girl could do, not what she would do. She was more 
concerned of getting her mind wiped than the girl nuking Tomoeda off the 
map. And she could tell Kinomoto had been tempted remove the memories of 
magic. Thankfully her mind was still intact and she couldn't wait to talk to 
Sakura and her boyfriend about magic. It would be great having actual 
knowledge of magic to add realism to her story.

-----------------------

The young gym teacher at Tomoeda Elementary whistled a cheerful tune as he 
entered the wooded section of the local park. He soon came upon a secluded 
grove where a young teen sat, lost in thought. He approached her, calling 
out her name, but got no response. Only when he waved his hand in front of 
her face did he get a reaction.

Rika blinked and then blushed. "Oh, sorry, Yoshiyuki. I was lost in 
thought."

"I could tell." Terada then smirked. "It's not very appropriate for a 
student to call me by my personal name."

"And what's so 'appropriate' about our relationship?" Rika leaned forward, 
her lips landing on to his. The contact was all too brief but still 
reassuring to the young girl as she was the one to decide the duration. She 
sighed as she pulled away. "I can't wait until we can end our secret."

Terada nodded and lost himself in thoughts he would rather not dwell on, so 
he changed topics. "What was it that you were thinking about before I got 
here?"

Rika frowned. "I found out a secret that's been kept from me for years."

Terada raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Rika paused trying to think of what to say. "It's kind of like our secret. 
If it became public, the trouble that would result could end lives."

Terada rubbed his chin. "This concerns Kinomoto Sakura, doesn't it?"

Rika's eyes widened. "You know!?"

"I don't know what her problem is, just that she's troubled." Terada sighed. 
"I can guess it started when she was in fourth grade. She started acting up 
at odd times. Then there was vandalism which, while there was no proof, 
evidence suggested she was involved. If I had to guess, Tsukishiro-san took 
advantage of her crush."

Rika looked at Terada with an odd expression before she broke into a fit of 
laughter. "I guess that is how a teacher would look at it. Though 
Tsukishiro-san could NEVER hurt Sakura-chan. And he especially wouldn't do 
it THAT way. He's the lover of Sakura-chan's brother."

Terada blinked at the girl's reaction and then laughed. "So THAT's why those 
two never had girlfriends in Senior High." He then frowned for more reasons 
than his next question. "But why did Kinomoto act up then?"

Rika frowned. The truth was something that needed to be kept secret by as 
few people as possible. But this was her fiance and she didn't want to keep 
secrets from him. Besides, if he talked, Tomoyo-chan could easily get 
revenge by giving the police proof of her relationship to the teacher, 
sending Yoshiyuki to jail for the rest of his life for 'sexually abusing' 
her. She closed her eyes. "Sakura-chan is a witch. Those 'acts of vandalism' 
was her magical training, which she had no control over when and where they 
had happened."

Terada blankly looked at the girl. "Rika... that sounds completely 
unbelievable."

"I know it's hard to believe. But I was at the Moon Gate when it was 
destroyed. A dragon, Yoshiyuki, a DRAGON burned it with its breath. Then I 
spent all weekend at Tomoyo-chan's house watching videos of Sakura-chan 
learning her magic." The girl hugged herself. "There were times I was right 
in the middle of it. I nearly killed Sakura when one of her spell cards 
possessed me. Later I nearly drown when Hiragizawa-kun flooded the water 
park. All that magic happened around me and I had been clueless."

Terada hugged his ex-student. "It's okay, Rika. If you say it's true, I 
believe you." He then frowned as his watch chimed. "I have to hurry to 
school."

Rika nodded. "I'll see you later. And thank you." She watched him run off. 
She would wait a little longer before taking a different path to the junior 
high school.

-----------------------

Shaoran tapped his pencil on the desk as English class began. He wondered 
what his homeroom teacher's problem was. From the moment he stepped into the 
classroom to be introduced, he felt like he was some lab specimen under the 
microscope. If it wasn't for the fact Sakura was also closely observed, he 
would've questioned if the guy was prejudiced. At least now he had a 
different teacher to deal with.

"Ah, Li Shaoran," the blond-haired American-born teacher called out, getting 
the name from the new class list. "Translate 'kerei wa kerei.'"

The Chinese boy blinked. "Um, 'beautiful is beautiful...?' That's not right, 
is it?"

A few of his classmates giggled.

"A good observation. If a translation doesn't sound like it makes sense, 
chances are it's not correct," the teacher advised. "For example, the phrase 
I asked you to translate relies on the two standard meanings for 'kerei.' 
One, as you said, is beautiful. What is the other meaning?" the teacher 
pressed.

Shaoran scratched his head nervously. "I don't know, sir."

"Okay, how about you, Li Meilin? Can you translate it correctly?" the 
teacher asked.

Meilin stood up proud and proper. "Beautiful is clean."

"Very good, Li Meilin, that is technically correct. 'Clean is beautiful,' 
would be more accurate, but getting into why would be for much higher levels 
of English understanding." The teacher began to pace around the front of the 
room, always looking at his students as he moved. "There's a reason why I 
asked our transfer students to translate that phrase. They are both already 
fluent in Chinese and Japanese, meaning they have the basic understandings 
of what works and doesn't work in translating from one language into 
another. And the first rule of fluent understanding is 'if the translation 
doesn't make sense, it's probably incorrect.' Though there will be times 
with English that the correct translation won't make sense, but more than 
ninety percent of the time it will. The exceptions you won't have to deal 
with, for the most part, until you're in senior high or college."

Shaoran sighed as the teacher continued the animated discussion over the 
process of bridging understandings of two languages. Something he suspected 
was over the head of a few of his classmates. The American was no longer 
saying anything he didn't already know. Which left his mind wandering, 
wishing that Meilin's term earlier that morning of 'near Sakura' wasn't 
nearly as subjective. His seat was two rows over and one seat up from his 
girlfriend. While she could see him out of the corner of her eye, he would 
likely get in trouble if he tried to look at her. In fact, with Daidouji, 
Meilin, and Yamazaki's girlfriend all seated behind him in the back of the 
classroom-- he felt rather disconcerted. He knew from his sisters there was 
nothing worse than having girls upset at you, and having a firing squad at 
his back would be no picnic if he ever got into an argument with Sakura for 
whatever reason. Not that he expected to ever get into one, but experiencing 
the backwash from his sisters' love lives taught him to expect it to happen 
at some point, and for possibly the stupidest reasons imaginable.

----------------------- 

The classroom eagerly anticipated the ringing of the bell, calling the end 
to another boring class and the start of lunch. The class quickly thinned 
out as many students followed the teacher out of the room to either eat 
outside or with friends in other classrooms.

Sakura and her friends hadn't decided on their personal plans for lunch, 
though there was little doubt Kinomoto wanted to monopolize Shaoran's time 
much as Meilin had during elementary school.

"Did you get that DVD?" a boy questioned.

"Sure did," was the reply from another boy who looked ready to drool. "She's 
beyond cute! And that transformation scene to magic girl left VERY little to 
the imagination."

"Did you know the first recorded appearance of a magical girl was in ancient 
Egypt?" Takashi piped in, interrupting his two classmates. Before they could 
do more than nod, he continued, "From there, magical girls spread throughout 
the world. In Europe they became known as witches. While most performed acts 
of good, there were a few powerful ones who committed serious acts of evil 
that cast all witches into a bad light."

Chiharu began to glare at her secret husband, while the others listened in 
on the boy's tale.

"The fear those evil witches generated spread throughout Europe. The people, 
or should I say men, got so afraid of being victims of witchcraft, they 
started putting any girl to death they believed to have cast any spell. The 
hysteria was so bad that entire towns killed every single woman from elderly 
to infant." Takashi grinned at his audience.

Sakura began to shake, clutching onto Shaoran.

Chiharu noticed her friend's reaction. "Sakura-chan, how can you STILL 
believe his wild lies?!"

Meilin looked over. "Actually, everything he said IS true. The persecution 
of witchcraft in medieval Europe WAS that bad."

Shaoran was starting to lose all feeling in his left hand as Sakura's death 
grip on his arm tightened.

Chiharu blinked. "It's TRUE?! But why would he...." The girl's glare took an 
unhealthy gaze.

Takashi continued on, "...with the genocide of witchcraft. Magic users had 
to go underground to pract-URK!!"

Chiharu pulled her husband out of the room by his collar and dragged him 
down the hall. An occurrence that had happened frequently enough that not 
even teachers made comment. She tossed the boy into the cleaning supply room 
and slammed the door behind her. Students steered clear of the room for want 
of avoiding the irate 'typhoon Yamazaki-chan' as another lovers' spat 
exploded.

Before her husband could say a word, Chiharu snarled out, "You know, don't 
you?! That's why you went into that awful story. In front of Sakura-chan, no 
less! How can you be so mean to her?!"

Takashi looked at his wife with a blank expression.

"You scared the piss out of her, Takashi! She's now afraid that she's going 
to be lynched, all because of your damned true story." Chiharu rubbed her 
temples, sensing a serious headache coming on. "Gah! How many other of your 
wild stories were actually true?!"

Takashi blinked slowly. "What do you mean it's true? I got the story from 
Hiragizawa-kun. Why would it upset Kinomoto?"

Chiharu stared blankly at the boy. "You... you didn't know?! But I 
thought... oh..."

"Stuck you foot in it, didn't you?" Meilin commented at the now open door. 
"Figures Hiragizawa would play that kind of joke."

"Care to clue me in?" Takashi questioned.

Chiharu fidgeted. She didn't want to break Sakura's confidence, but she 
didn't want to lie to her husband, either.

"May as well tell him." Meilin shrugged. "Doubt you'd want to keep this a 
secret from him. Besides, if he did blab it, who would believe HIM?"

Takashi faked a pout as if he was insulted, but knew very well that his 
reputation as the boy-who-cried-wolf was well deserved.

Chiharu sighed. "Hiragizawa is a warlock, a magic-user. That story you said 
is true. And Sakura-chan was freaked out by it because she is a witch."

"This isn't some kind of joke you're playing on me, right?" Takashi asked.

"Why would I play a prank like this and how would we know what story you 
were going to pull out of your ass?" Meilin countered.

"Kinomoto is really a witch?" Takashi asked.

Meilin nodded. "Probably the strongest one on the planet. But don't let 
Shaoran hear that. He hopes to catch up to her someday."

Takashi stood there, letting what he had been told sink in. His shoulders 
began to shake before he literally fell down laughing. "Hiragizawa outdid me 
again! I wonder how many of the stories he sent me are true! To tell the 
truth and yet not be believed!"

Chiharu glared as he started rolling on the dirty and soap-skuzzy floor in 
his laughing fit. "I'm not washing your uniform."

Meilin glanced over. "And how much of 'Yamazaki-chan' is a nickname?"

Chiharu merely folded her arms and said nothing.

----------------------- 

Fujitaka tried to keep a positive outlook on all things. Even on the 
simplest of chores, like doing the laundry. Though there were things that 
tested him. Coming home to find out his daughter had nearly been 
disemboweled by a dragon had certainly tested his resolve. He really wished 
she could've had a normal life. As much as he would like to protect her, how 
could he protect her from herself? Taking away her means of doing magic 
would only open her to those who would do her harm, like the person 
responsible for the dragon attack.

There was perhaps one thing that unnerved him more. His little girl was 
growing up. The fairly decent sized bra he pulled from the hamper was 
evidence enough for that. That Sakura already had a seriously boyfriend 
would be unnerving enough if his son's assessment of the relationship was 
that he would be a grandfather sooner rather than later. And when Touya made 
a prediction, he was usually correct.

Fujitaka was starting to understand Nadeshiko's grandfather's desire of 
protection. Everything possible had been done to deter Nadeshiko from 
marrying him, but because she went against her family's wish and married him 
at the tender age of sixteen, she had been all but disowned. The house and 
trust funds for Touya and Sakura were all they got from her family. 
Considering that Nadeshiko had previously been the heiress that was to 
inherit the multi-trillion yen corporation that her cousin, Sonomi, now 
controlled, the loss of family status was immense. Yet, neither Nadeshiko 
nor himself had cared for her grandfather's business, but the love they had 
shared. He had no regrets in marrying Nadeshiko when she was young, 
especially as her life had proven to be so short. And she professed to hold 
no regrets even though she had been expelled from senior high school for 
getting pregnant, despite her existing marriage.

It was because of the pain Nadeshiko felt at her grandfather's disapproval 
that Fujitaka had vowed to not interfere with his children's love lives. And 
his children were certainly testing that vow. Sakura was setting herself up 
for the possibility of being expelled from junior high for getting pregnant. 
While Touya had lost his virginity in junior high to his then math teacher, 
Mizuki Kaho, and was now in a loving homosexual relationship with a guy who 
wasn't even human. While he could cry statutory rape against Mizuki, he 
would be damn near a hypocrite. Sure he had married Nadeshiko first, but 
their courtship, itself, was an inappropriate teacher-student relationship.

"I'm home!" Sakura called out.

Fujitaka had finished filling the washer and turned it on before going to 
greet his daughter. "Welcome home. How was school today?"

"Great!" Sakura smiled. "Got to see Shaoran-kun and talked to my friends." 
She then pouted. "Chiharu-chan kind of blew my secret to Yamazaki-kun, but 
we don't think that's too much of a problem. He likes to tell tall tales all 
the time, so no one is likely to believe him if he did tell anyone."

"That's nice... I guess," Fujitaka replied a little uncertainly.

"Sakura!" Kero-chan cried out, having overheard his mistress. "You're going 
to have to be more careful! The more people who know, the more likely people 
will learn of your powers."

"There isn't much chance anyone else will find out," Sakura protested. 
"Besides Dad, Touya, my friends and Yamazaki-kun, the only other people who 
know of my powers are members of Shaoran's family, you and Yukito-san."

"Be sure to keep it that way." Kero-chan nodded curtly. "If there's one 
thing I learned from watching television, is that people are scared of 
things they don't understand or is more powerful than them."

Sakura pouted. "Don't remind me. Yamazaki-kun found out after Chiharu-chan 
thought he was clueing us in that he knew about me when he told a true story 
about witch hunts going so out of control in medieval Europe that entire 
towns put all the females in them to death."

"Now, Sakura, I wouldn't be concerned about that in this day and age," 
Fujitaka told her in an assuring tone. "I like to think people have moved 
beyond such things." The college professor couldn't help but think of the 
worse case scenarios that could happen. His family being run out of Tomoeda 
by fearful neighbors, or the government learning of Sakura's powers and 
abducting her to try and running her through inhuman tests to learn her 
secrets were very real possibilities. But killing Sakura, all her friends 
and family, along with any other girl in Tomoeda wasn't likely to happen.

"Um, Dad...?" Sakura fidgeted nervously.

"Yes, Sakura?" Fujitaka questioned.

"Would it be all right if I go over to visit Shaoran-kun and Meilin-chan?" 
Sakura asked. "They haven't completely finished unpacking yet, and I wanted 
to help them. I'd probably eat dinner there, too."

Fujitaka smiled softly. "Of course you can go, Sakura. Have fun." That 
certainly made dinner easier. Though he may as well make some for the little 
card guardian as well so he wouldn't eat alone.

"Thanks, Dad." Sakura bolted off to her room to get changed out of her 
school uniform before heading off to her boyfriend's new apartment.

Fujitaka sighed. Sakura still seemed so innocent, yet he had to question how 
much remained.

----------------------- 

Yoshiyuki sighed as he sat upon a park bench. He was still unsure what to 
make of Rika's story of Kinomoto being a witch. It sounded completely 
unbelievable. He wondered if her story was a lie. Something she had come up 
with in an attempt to push him away. Considering his relationship with the 
girl, the attempt to sever ties with him would indicate their relationship 
had gone too far for the girl.

The teacher had never been fully comfortable about his feelings for the 
young student. He had almost become obsessed with going over anything he 
could find on the effects of sexual abuse. Rika had previously shown zero 
evidence. A student that was being abused would become increasingly absent 
from school and try to avoid her abuser, yet Rika's school attendance was 
near perfect and she went out of her way to spend time with him. If he 
started a student group, she would become a member without him ever asking 
her to join. Someone who suffered from sexual abuse would become withdrawn 
and remove themselves from friendships, while Rika was still actively part 
of her friends' activities.

Yoshiyuki wished he could say that Rika not showing signs of being abused 
was because he had never done anything sexual with her, but that would be a 
lie. She was a vaginal virgin, but was rather experienced in other ways of 
sex. However, it had always been Rika who initiated anything. He had tried 
to hold off on doing anything sexual with her, but had so far only been able 
to keep her from going all the way with him. He didn't want to hurt the girl 
by going too far, even though she assured him she was ready. It certainly 
didn't help his conscience that if the police were to ever find out about 
his relationship to Rika and the number of times he had done stuff with her, 
he could spend the rest of his life in jail for multiple counts of sexual 
abuse.

The teacher wished he had someone to talk to. The only other person who knew 
of his relationship with Rika had been Mizuki Kaho. Though he still couldn't 
figure out how she knew it. It had helped him to know that Mizuki had been 
involved with a student herself, a student she claimed fully consented and 
loved her at the time. Yoshiyuki, being one of the newer teachers at Tomoeda 
Elementary Academy, hadn't taught the woman's student lover, Kinomoto Touya, 
as the boy had already moved on to junior before his teaching career had 
begun at the elementary school. As such, he didn't know the boy well enough 
to trust her assurance of her past relationship.

Thinking of the devil, Yoshiyuki watched as Touya walked past with Yukito, 
whom Rika had said that those two were lovers. The angry demeanor and the 
apparent switch of sexual preference made the teacher wonder just how 
willing the Kinomoto boy had been with Mizuki. If only he could ask the 
questions that were on his mind. After the pair disappeared down the curved 
park path, Yoshiyuki thoughts returned to his dilemma.

"You wanted to ask something?"

Yoshiyuki jumped. Surprise was etched into his face as he now stared at 
Touya sitting next to him on the backrest of the bench.

Touya glared. "I know you want to ask me something. If you were thinking any 
harder about it, I'd have heard it."

"How?" was all the teacher could think to ask.

Touya relaxed a little and sighed. "I assume by now Sasaki has told you 
about Sakura. She's not the only one in my family."

"You mean about Kinomoto-chan being a witch?" Yoshiyuki questioned 
uncertainly.

Touya nodded curtly. "Yes. I may not know any spells, but I'm able see 
things other people can't. Remember when you first saw me?"

Yoshiyuki paused in thought. "I think it was shortly after I started 
teaching at Tomoeda. I only remember because you looked at me with such... 
well, hatred. It was disturbing."

"Remember who you were helping in your gym class at the time?" Touya 
pressed.

Yoshiyuki shook his head. "I can't recall."

"You were helping Sasaki," Touya answered bluntly. "I didn't like what I was 
seeing then. I KNEW that the two of you would become too close. I was afraid 
Sakura would also get your 'attention.'"

Yoshiyuki blinked. "Rika would only have been in second grade. It wasn't 
until the end of third grade that she started to crush on me. Fourth grade 
when...."

"The line was crossed," Touya finished. "I'm not saying I approve, but I can 
see how deep your relationship with Sasaki is. In a year you'll have a very 
hard time of things."

"How do you know all this?" Yoshiyuki questioned.

"As I said, I see things other people can't," Touya repeated. "What I see 
between you and Sasaki is a bond of love. And while I can't predict the 
future, I can make educated guesses. My mother was practically disowned when 
she married her teacher, and was later expelled from high school because she 
was going to give birth to me. I doubt you're going to have it any easier 
than my parents did."

"How did you develop this... sight?" Yoshiyuki questioned.

Touya shrugged. "I was born with it. I could see ghosts and spirits all the 
time. I had a really hard time accepting my mother was dead, until she 
explained to me so was no longer alive."

"Does it ever bother you that you see things like that?" Yoshiyuki 
questioned with the tenderness of a caring teacher.

"At times. Mostly when I see things I don't want to. Like when I first met 
Li Shaoran and just KNEW that he would marry my sister." Touya shook his 
head. "I had a taste of what it was like to be without my sight. It was like 
losing a limb. I couldn't do everything I could before. Now Sakura feeds me 
some of her magical power so I have my second sight back."

Yoshiyuki paused in thought.

"I better get going before Yuki decides to make too much food. He still 
forgets he doesn't need to eat as much anymore," Touya told himself more 
than the teacher. "If you really want to talk to someone about your 
relationship with Sasaki, my Dad certainly knows what you're going through." 
He got up and hopped off the bench.

"Oh, Kinomoto-kun, just one more question? Do you regret what happened 
between you and Mizuki-san?" Yoshiyuki questioned.

Touya looked up to the sky. "Nah. She could've done better when she broke up 
with me, but we did love each other. Besides, it helped me be a better 
partner for Yuki. We don't nearly have as much trouble as I did with her. 
And she didn't 'turn me gay.' I love Yuki for who he is. It doesn't matter 
to me he's a guy or even that he's not human. He's simply my Yuki."

"Okay...," Yoshiyuki trailed off, confusion still thick in his words. "Thank 
you, Kinomoto-kun. I appreciate the talk."

"No prob." Touya waved as he began to walk away. "Just try to help cover for 
Sakura if trouble occurs. Some magic-user is out to get her, and she needs 
all the help she can get."

Yoshiyuki nodded. "I'll try." The teacher then shook his head, not quite 
believing all that he had been told. At least now he could accept that what 
Rika had told him earlier was what she believed was true. It was now a 
question of whether or not they were being deceived.

----------------------- 

Tomoyo's head rested on her arms as she slept sitting at her video editing 
desk despite the noise of digital footage being played on continuous loop on 
the monitor next to her.

Sonomi crept quietly into the room, smiling softly at her slumbering 
daughter. She then stared at what was on the screen. A dragon was sinking 
its claws into Sakura's side. "Oh, my...." She quickly turned the monitor 
off, not wanting to see any more.

The mother decided to work on the task at hand, getting her daughter to bed. 
She eased the young girl to sit back in the chair and proceeded to wheel it 
and its occupant out of the private room and down to Tomoyo's bedroom. With 
the aid of a few maids that were waiting for them, the young girl was 
carefully placed into her bed.

The helpers quickly left and Sonomi tenderly brushed Tomoyo's hair out of 
her face. "Goodnight, beloved daughter." Slowly she walked out of the room.

Tomoyo's skills with a camera were certainly on par with professionals. 
Tonight had not been the first time Sonomi had found her daughter asleep in 
her editing room. The footage the mother had seen previously were of flights 
of fancy and magic. This was the only time she saw someone get seriously 
hurt in them.

Sonomi took a step towards her own bedroom, but then turned around and went 
straight to Tomoyo's editing room.

----------------------- 

Sometimes in our lives we all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there's always tomorrow

Sakura sat at her desk, hair frazzled, as she looked over her geometry 
textbook. Tomoyo peered over her shoulder and pointed out the cause of the 
girl's confusion.

Lean on me, when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
'Til I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on

Naoko prepared herself for a gym exercise with her friends cheering for her 
in the background.

Please swallow your pride
If I have things you need to borrow
For no one can fill those of your needs
That you don't let show

Touya slept under a tree, resting his head against Yukito who looked 
guiltily at his small lunch of a sandwich and a drink.

Lean on me, when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
'Til I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on

Chiharu looked upset at the charred cake before her, yet Yamazaki still 
reached to try a piece of it.

If there is a load you have to bear
That you can't carry
I'm right up the road
I'll share your load
If you just call me

Sakura waffled as she carried a large stack of papers down the hall, and 
nearly fell. She was saved by Meilin catching her and steadying the papers.

So just call on me brother, when you need a hand
We all need somebody to lean on
I just might have a problem that you'd understand
We all need somebody to lean on

Shaoran and Sakura dressed for a night on the town walk off in the distance 
leaving Tomoyo and Meilin watching them go with forlorn looks. The Chinese 
girl's hand placed comfortingly on Tomoyo's shoulder. Yukito likewise has 
his hand on Touya's shoulder, who was scowling at the departing couple.

Lean on me when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
Till I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on

Upon the stage were Sakura, Tomoyo and Rika acting in a play, while their 
families and friends sat in the audience, watching them.

Lean on me...

Sakura peacefully slept, resting her head against the true form of Cerberus, 
who was also asleep.


Author's Notes:

Why didn't I describe action with the opening theme? Too afraid of being 
overly literal with it. 'Your toes will be over the treetops tonight' can be 
done by Sakura. I'll leave it to your imagination of a Sakura and Shaoran 
focused action following the song.

I have received questions on whether or not Eriol will make an appearance in 
this series. I may have him visit later in the series for a couple chapters, 
but for now he's happily in England being a willing 'victim' of statutory 
rape there with Mizuki-sensei. He is not behind or connected to the threat 
Sakura faces in any way, shape or form. If you had hopes for Eriol/Tomoyo 
pairing, definitely not going to happen when neither of them were truly 
interested in the other in any way beyond friendship, and both were solidly 
shown to have different love interests.

The comment of Terada 'crossing the line' is not referring to sexual 
activity, but the teacher returning Rika-chan's feelings and beginning a 
relationship.

To clarify something in regards to age of consent in Japan. Even when the 
nation's age of consent was 'anyone who wasn't a child,' or to put it more 
bluntly 'if there's grass on the field, play ball,' people in positions of 
authority could still face sexual abuse and statutory rape charges for 
relations with someone under the age of eighteen. Today the age of consent 
is set at thirteen with conditions that makes it more sixteen to eighteen. 
Marriage can override the age of consent, but a girl has to be sixteen to 
get legally married without consent of her parents. At a younger age, 
marriage is possible with approval of parents.

Next in Chapter 3: Sakura and Emerging Rivals
Competition is in the air. Whether it's a rival in love, obsessiveness, or 
physical ability, no one wants to lose-- especially not Sakura's lurking 
foe.




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