Disclaimer: You know the drill by now, I've done this since 2008.
Also, some scenes will differ from the anime, to show the new love direction.
"I...Love you Sakura-chan." A gentle smiled plastered on Tomoyo's face as she said this truth out loud.
"I love Tomoyo-chan too." Sakura mirrored Tomoyo's expression and began to walk to the meeting grounds of the athletic festival.
Tomoyo stood still for a moment and whispered, "Your feelings and my feelings are different."
At the sound of Tomoyo's voice, Sakura turned around, "Did you say something Tomoyo-chan?"
Tomoyo hesitated for a bit, but a phrase she had heard from her beloved Sakura popped into her mind, "Everything is gonna be alright." So she mustered her courage and walked up to Sakura's side, took her hand, brought that hand to her lips and kissed it.
Sakura's face exploded into an array of red hues and her voice didn't work, she just kept stammering incoherently. So Tomoyo spoke up again, "The way I feel about Sakura-chan, is the same way Sakura-chan feels about Tsukishiro-san." She smiled sweetly as if nothing dramatic had happened, "Well then Sakura-chan, let's go meet up with our family." And she gently led Sakura by the hand.
When she got ready for bed that night, Sakura could not sleep, her mind filled with memories of Tomoyo. No matter which way she turned, she could not find rest, mulling over what Tomoyo had said. it made her uncomfortable, she couldn't explain why.
She was disturbed by her thoughts by a call from the girl occupying her mind, "Good Evening, Sakura-chan."
"T-Tomoyo-chan!" Sakura stuttered and mentally swore at her hesitation.
"..." There was a brief pause on the other end, "Tomorrow, Do you want to come to my house? There is something mysterious happening, and I think it might be something like a Clow Card…"
"I-I'm not sure..." A clump in her throat prevented Sakura from speaking normally.
"..." Tomoyo audibly gulped, "Sakura-chan... About today... It is true that I love you in a romantic way, but I will never force you to do anything, I know you love Tsukishiro-san, and I really do want you to get together with him and be happy. just knowing you're happy, makes me happy. so I don't expect you to ever reciprocate my feelings…"
Sakura clenched the phone as hard as she could, it was all she could do to not shout her reply, "You say that you'd never try anything? and that you're contend with being on the sidelines, but that's... That's too sad Tomoyo-chan."
"...I've already made peace with my decision for decades to come, Sakura-chan." A tiny sniffle could be heard over the phone, "The only one with the power to change that, is you Sakura-chan... and I'll never force you to make that decision."
"But That's..." A pit in her stomach was freezing over, she took a few breaths, "I...I can't return your feelings Tomoyo-chan, I'm sorry..." Her mental strength exhausted, Sakura began to shed tears.
"Do not be Sakura-chan...I'm the one who is sorry to make you cry." Tomoyo tried her best to soothe Sakura over the phone, and eventually Sakura calmed down enough for Tomoyo to speak again, "Please come over tomorrow, Sakura-chan. It's very important to both me and my mom."
"Of course Tomoyo-chan... I'll be there." And with those words she ended the phone call and flung herself on her bed.
When Sakura arrived at the manor the following day, and she laid eyes on Tomoyo, she felt that same pit of ice in her stomach again, "How could she keep smiling like that?" Of course Sonomi was overjoyed by her dear Nadeshiko's daughter's visit, and took up all of the time reminiscing, so they had to cut it close when it finally came time to investigate the mysterious box.
It took a while to figure out, but Sakura successfully captured THE SHIELD card, and when they looked inside, she saw a bouquet of sakura flowers.
Sonomi had finished her phone call and came to check up on the girls, "Tomoyo... Oh you got it open?"
"Yes, it seems a spring was stuck inside of it."
Sonomi took up the bouquet and held it tenderly, "This was your mother's wedding bouquet, she said that if she ever had a girl, she would name her Sakura..." She directed the gaze at Sakura, "You're her little Cherry Blossom."
The vast depth of her mother's love for her, almost overwhelmed her, until Sonomi spoke again, "That's it! Won't you stay for dinner!? What do you want?"
She left for the kitchen immediately, Sonomi rambling about Nadeshiko's cuteness on the way.
"I'll be right there, Sonomi-san." Sakura stayed behind for a little while, and scooted closer to Tomoyo, "What is your treasure, Tomoyo-chan?
Holding up a little packet, Tomoyo held it dearly, "This is the eraser you gave me, when we first met Sakura-chan. This was the first gift you've ever given me, and that's why it's precious to me..."
"But such a thin-" When Sakura was about to protest over such a small and insignificant thing, she got interrupted.
"Sure the thing itself isn't much, but the act behind it has monumental value to me." Tomoyo put her prized possession down in the box again, "Well, shall we go help mother make dinner for us?" Plastered on her face, was the smile that Sakura had taken as genuine for granted, but now was given a much deeper meaning of sorrow.
The rest of the evening was pleasant, with good food and good company, but every once in awhile, Sakura would cast fugitive glances at Tomoyo, failing completely at being subtle about it, as she was greeted with a smile each time.
Summer rolled around, and the school went on a field trip to the beach, but Sakura felt no change in her uneasiness, neither for better or worse. Every time she caught Tomoyo looking at her, it sent shivers up her spine, in fact, those shivers seemed to grow stronger every day. She shook her head, they were at the beach, she should enjoy herself.
After getting her wits about her, Sakura approached some of her friends that were getting ready for some volleyball, "Can I join?" With those simple words, a spot was made for her.
They took a few rounds, and it was delightfully liberating to only focus on the game at hand and not on other things. But eventually it came to an end, after catching her breath, Chiharu spoke up, "It sure is hot today, I'm going to get some ice cream, anyone wanna come with me?"
Rika was the first to rise, "Oh yes, ice cream, seems like a wonderful idea, Naoko-chan you want anything?"
Tomoyo and a few other girls rose, "Sakura-chan, I'll buy you one, what do you want?"
"Hmm..." Crossing her arms in contemplation, Sakura thought, "I'll have what you're hav... uh, I mean, I'll leave it to you." She looked away, her cheeks slightly flushed.
With almost all of the girls leaving for ice cream, Naoko and Sakura sat on the beach, looking out at the ocean and Lee swimming by, "He sure is fast, Sakura-chan... But I bet he'd still be no match for you."
Sakura just stared emptily out ahead of her, her thoughts elsewhere, "Hmm? Yeah, sure..." After gathering a little courage, Sakura turned to her friend, "Hey, Naoko-chan, what would you do if someone confessed to you?"
"Ooooh~ Is this you telling me something, Sakura-chan?" Naoko's eyes glinted and a wicked smile appeared on her face.
"W-wha? Nononono, I'm not confessing to you Naoko-chan?! Not that you aren't pret- AH... I-I mean..." She faltered slightly under Naoko's smirking glance, "Someone recently confessed their love for me, and I just don't know how to answer their feelings."
"How do you feel about them, apart from the romantic aspect?" Naoko tried to break the things apart, to better understand exactly where Sakura was stuck.
"Well... She is very dear to my heart, like a sister, confidant and best friend all rolled up into one." Sakura put two fingers together and fidgeted uncomfortably.
The smile that crossed Naoko's lips changed from wicked to estatic, "A girl?! Ahh, such a pure form of love." She caught herself squeeing and returned to normal, "ahem...So~ Tomoyo-chan, is in love with you? guess all of her antics makes sense when put into perspective."
Hearing that name on Naoko's lips, Sakura panicked, "T-Tomoyo-chan?! I never sa-"
"You were being stupidly obvious when describing her Sakura-chan, I couldn't miss it, even in a fog." Naoko put a hand on Sakura's shoulder, "Okay, look. I have a test for you. imagine you kissing Tomoyo-chan."
A crimson flare erupted on Sakura's face at the very mention of it, "I, uh, wha?"
"Would you find it gross to kiss her?" Naoko directed a very piercing glare at Sakura.
"...No..." Sakura fidgeted slightly again, "It'd be embarrassing, but I wouldn't be opposed to the idea..."
"Of course not, Tomoyo-chan is very beautiful, she is quite the catch, why I wouldn't mind trying my luck.." When Naoko said those words, Sakura tensed ever so slightly, and Naoko had specifically said those words to study Sakura.
Spying the other girls returning in the distance, Naoko smirked, "Now for the other half of the experiment, Sakura-chan." Sakura looked at her again, and Naoko leaned in and whispered "How would you react if Tomoyo put the moves on you and kissed you? would you reject her?"
The words that came out of Sakura's mouth weren't cohesive enough to be understood, as her imagination ran wild of an assertive Tomoyo, and she didn't notice when the others drew nearer, it was only when a cold popsicle touched her neck that she reacted.
She turned around and backed away simultaneously while yelping, to look at her assaulter, it turned out to be a giggling Tomoyo with an ice cream in her hand, and it was then that Sakura saw her in a new light, with the sunset starting behind Tomoyo and brought out the best in all of her features, Sakura could only stare in awe, at how mesmerising she looked right then and there.
It took a few tries for Tomoyo to communicate with Sakura and hand her the popsicle, but she knew how Sakura looked at her in that moment, and her heart, beat like crazy, she honestly couldn't believe it, must be a trick of the light.
After a full day of activities, the students of Tomoeda were getting ready for bed, in one of the girls' rooms, one bespectacled girl had a wicked glint in her eye, for tonight was the night…
"So girls... Have you heard the legend of the cave nearby?"
"Naoko-chan seems to be very enthusiastic." Chiharu knew where this was going, so she might as well make it go faster.
Naoko's smile widened, "Long ago, there were grade school kids about our age who had outdoor classes here... The first day, they had fun swimming in the ocean and pulling on the fishing nets. But the next they had a test of courage..."
"Oh my, it resembles our schedule..." Tomoyo interjected, she stole a glance at Sakura who covered her ears, after all, a scared Sakura was cute too.
Naoko continued her story, "Apparently They did it at the cave in the rocks over there. Deep inside that cave, is a small spring. There's a bridge and that bridge leads to a small shrine in the middle of the spring... For the Test of Courage, two students make for one team... Enter the cave and leave a lit candle at the little shrine... But as they went on, one group left, but... No matter how long they waited, they never came back... So the teachers and the other students, who got worried... Went inside to look for them, and there!"
It startled all of the girls when the door suddenly creaked open... It was just the teacher coming to check up on them.
Sakura's scream was so loud that it baffled the poor teacher, "Kinomoto-kun, are you okay?"
"H-huh... Teacher?" She allowed herself to relax for a moment, "You really surprised us…
"Sorry, sorry. Let me guess? Ghost stories?" He giggled a little, telling ghost stories were part of his childhood too, it brought some nostalgia to him, the girls nodded, "Well, it's past lights out, so get to bed everyone." He looked at them all in turn, before finally settling on Rika's face, "Good night everyone."
"Good night teacher."
it took roughly fifteen minutes before everyone had fallen asleep... everyone, but Sakura... she stared up at the bunk bed above her, unable to find respite, "What do I do... I'm too scared to sleep..." She got out of her bed and stood before Tomoyo's bed, with the heiress sleeping soundly in it, "I'm sure Tomoyo-chan wouldn't mind letting me sleep..." The moment her mind began thinking of that, her cheeks flared up and she turned her back to the bed, "That kind of thinking is scary in its own way..." She shook her head, "I need some fresh air to help cool me down..."
She sat outside on the sandy beach for an hour, trying to calm her nerves, she realized that it wouldn't work, so she went back inside. her night was spent sleepless...
Another day was spent in youthful joy, but as the night came closer, and the test of courage loomed larger, Sakura got increasingly nervous.
She gathered up with the rest of her classmates, and got handed a small candle, "For this test of courage, you must place this candle at a small shrine inside the cave, and then leave the way you came in." The teacher explained, to Sakura it was unnervingly similar to the story from last night…
Tomoyo scooted closer to Sakura and gently embraced her hand, "Don't worry, Sakura-chan." It didn't exactly help Sakura's nerves, but it did distract her from the horror.
Sakura almost didn't hear the teacher saying it was their turn over the sound of her own heartbeat thundering in her ears. But when Tomoyo started moving slowly, she followed suit.
The cave was somber and silent, dreadful silence, and after walking for 5 minutes without encountering anything, Tomoyo said in a small voice, "That's odd... We should have encountered someone returning by now..."
The two continue in silence for a little while until they encounter a bridge, the moment they stepped on it, Tomoyo let out a small cry, "Sakura-chan!" At the sound of the voice, Sakura turned her head and saw Tomoyo all see-through…
"Tomoyo-chan...?" Then bits of pieces of the now see-through Tomoyo becan vanishing completely, "Oh no, no, no, NOOOO! Don't you leave me Tomoyo-chan!" But as the last of the words left her lips, Tomoyo was vanished and the candle she held fell onto the wooden bridge and started a fire."
After escaping the fire, Sakura looked out over the water, slumped on her knees and hands and began sobbing loudly, "No... This can't... I... I never got to tell you..."
"Crying won't bring her back, nor will it help you." Hearing his voice, Sakura snapped her head backwards and looked at her rival, "It's not a ghost, extend your senses, you should be able to feel it..."
Sakura dried her eyes ever so slowly, "You're right, if I have time to cry, I have time to act." She closed her eyes, and focused for a minute, "I feel it in the shrine over there."
"It's the Erase Card, undoing reality on its whim." His face was grim, "If we use too much magic, it'll erase us as well... You wouldn't by chance have the Float Card?
"I do..." She picked the card from her backpack and cast it on both of them. They floated carefully closer to the shrine, when suddenly Shaoran also began to get see-through, "Ngh." Sakura freaked out again, but he told her again, "Crying doesn't help, keep going and capture it... doing so should undo all of it."
Those words gave Sakura hope, hope that Tomoyo was not lost forever, and that she might still save her, so when they got close, Shaoran attracted its attention so that Sakura could move in for the capture, it was, necessary with teamwork if they needed to survive this after all.
A successful capture, and the card chose Sakura, but she fell silent, and then offered the card to him, "Li-kun, if it hadn't been for you, I would have crumbled, therefore this card should be yours..." She handed him the card.
But he refused it, "The card chose you, now let's leave."
"OH! Right!" She quickly got out the float again and moved them back across the water.
The next day, everyone sat around in a circle, lamenting the fact that, they didn't remember the test of courage, "I was really looking forward to it... but I don't remember a thing." Naoko sighed deeply.
But in their midst sat Sakura was an almost silly grin, "But Naoko-chan, doesn't the fact that none of you remember it, prove that something occult took place? It is weird after all..."
Naoko raised her fist in the sky, "OH! Now that you mention it, It's super occult! ...Though it's disappointing that it's the memory of it that's supernatural..."
The other giggled at her antics, but Sakura just sat there, content, she took one glance at Tomoyo, then closed her eyes leaned back and gently placed a hand over Tomoyo's in silent contentment, "Right now is not the right time to say those words, but I'll find time soon."