Night Blooming

by Cross

It's a story centered on Kinomoto Touya and Mizuki Kaho. To find out more, read on.

Night Blooming

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters.  For those of you that support Touya and Yukito, pretend this is an alternate universe, which it is since it is totally different from the canon Card Captor Sakura.  I just happen to like Touya and Kaho together more than Touya and Yukito together, so please do not flame me because you do not think the same.  Kudos to the Tsukimine Shrine for the information about the torii and hopefully I have not embarrassed the Shrine's site owners by my translation of the definition of torii.

*Author's Notes: Japanese is a beautiful language, which is why I intended not to use it since I have no idea of the proper grammar and usage.  However, a few words sneaked in here and there, so I will try to define them in case anyone is curious.

Gaki = brat

Onii-chan = older brother

Itai = technically means "painful" but story-wise, taken to mean "ouch!"

Imouto-chan = younger sister

Torii = entrance to a shrine, which separates the sacred grounds from the unclean world by a distinctly-formed arch

-Suffixes-

-chan = a familiar person of the female gender

-kun = a boy or younger man

-san = "Mr." or "Mrs."

-sensei = teacher, doctor, master

            All these years, she had haunted my dreams.  Her beautiful fox-red hair that ranged from copper-toned to chestnut floated like a curtain and then disappeared into the mists.  Her eyes, which tended to turn red in certain lighting, were normally a warm golden brown.  They actually reminded me a little of the eyes of that gaki, except that hers were much nicer of course.  They were the type of eyes that you could drown in, like the poets are always writing about.  Her sweet, kind face smiled at me, sometimes laughing gently, sometimes weeping silently.  There was that way she held herself, a kind of grace that she wore casually, unknowingly.  Perhaps she knew and I was giving her too much credit for innocence.

            Certainly not all these memories were innocent.  There were other things I remembered, too.  There was the way her skin, though a very light shade that was never pale and never tanned in the blazing days of summer, yet blushed a delicate and fascinating pink when I held her body against my own.  There was the way her eyes would inevitably darken when she welcomed me into her arms.  There were a million and one details I would remember at length in my reverie.  A million and one memories lost to the annals of time.

            I have never really concentrated on anything besides schoolwork, making money to help support us, even though Father actually makes a very good salary, and helping to take care of Sakura.  Then, she came.  I am not saying she changed my life drastically. 

            All right, so maybe she did.  Maybe she was meant to.  Sometimes, I wonder how much of my life is just chance or is anything really left to chance at all?  I suspect that when Clow Reed made the Clow Cards as well as Yue and Keroberos, he did not make them by chance.  I mean, if he was just experimenting, why does Keroberos, or Kero-chan as my sister calls that stuffed animal, have a preference for sweet things?  Of course, he eats everything else in sight, too, and come to think of it, so does Yukito, but still, why sweet things?

            I have a suspicion that when Clow Reed made the cards, Yue, and Keroberos, he made them out of, most likely, loneliness and then maybe expecting to, maybe not, he loved them.  If he loved them, he would probably want them to be taken care of by somebody who loved them and for that reason, he planned for all to fall into the hands of Sakura for a very simple reason.           

            My sister is one of the most loving people on the planet if not in the entire universe.  Sure, she is afraid of ghosts and she can be stunningly oblivious, take the case of her and Tomoyo-chan for example, but she is very loving.  As far as I can see, she has never believed anyone could be bad.  We used to watch anime together when we were younger and later, when she learned how to read, I ended up reading manga with her, too.  I swear, for the life of me, I never understood how she could rationalize the behavior of the villains.

            We used to look at Sailor Moon, which is as one-dimensional as you can get in my opinion and yes, it was Sakura's choice; she thought that the idea of love and justice was cool and that Usagi was funny.  Despite all that, she insisted that this character, Beryl or something, was probably really nice on the inside and that people had probably been mean to her, like a big, mean brother.  Sakura can be very blunt when she wants to, even at that age.

            But I digress.  So, the reason that Clow Reed planned for Sakura to get the cards was not because she was the most powerful or the most able, although that changed later, but probably because he knew she would love them.  Well, she does.  She loves and does her best to take care of the Clow Cards and Kero-chan and well, thank heavens she does not have to take care of Yukito, but she has been very responsible about the whole affair.  In theory, Sakura is not at all mature but in reality, she is.  Of course, Clow Reed obviously knew that he would be there to keep an eye on her in one form and another.

            I am almost unnerved by how easily I am connecting dots that would otherwise seem far-fetched to me.  Sakura finds the cards with the help of Keroberos while I befriend Yukito, if not exactly in that order.  The reason Sakura becomes the Card Mistress, as well as Mistress to Yue and Keroberos, is because she loves so very easily and that will help her to take care of them.  However, while Keroberos and the Cards might figure this out and eventually return that affection, Yue has been devoted to Clow Reed ever since Clow created him, so naturally it is to be expected that that "stick in the mud", to quote a foreign phrase, will be stubborn in judging Sakura.  However, just like he solved Keroberos's problem by turning him from a fearsome guardian beast into a cute, garrulous stuffed animal, Clow neatly developed a situation where Yue is transformed into a ravenous human boy named Yukito, who will become friends with another human boy, who just happens to be the older brother of the girl that Clow has chosen to be his heir.  Now, this sounds really crazy even to me but I need to think this through or I will go insane.

            However, like most humans, this boy, the older brother that happens to be named Touya, is like most other humans.  He is a stubborn creature that for some strange reason does not like the idea of being used, even under the direction of fate.  So, Clow Reed sees a girl who will be born to a shrine in the town.  He decides that it would be fitting to have this girl with the fox-red hair and no sense of road direction fall in love with the boy named Touya.  Naturally, being a shrine maiden, she will understand the work of destiny and eventually leave Touya, effectively breaking the boy's heart.  Then along comes a new boy in Touya's school, one of the sweetest boys on God's green earth and is good at practically everything, especially archery, and is that a twist on Greek myths or just coincidence?

            So, Touya becomes friends with the boy, whose name is Yukito.  Now, the time comes when Sakura has collected all the cards with the help of her friends: a stuffed animal, a Chinese brat who does not deserve to be near Touya's sister, and a sweet little dark-haired girl, who happens to like videotaping Touya's sister and making clothes for her to wear.  Technically, Tomoyo-chan is related to us very distantly but that is not the focus right now.

            By the time Sakura overcomes Yue in the trial, Touya and Yukito have become really good friends.  Now, here is where all of Clow Reed's plans come into fruition.  Through Yue's knowledge of friendship and devotion and love to someone other than Clow Reed, he accepts Sakura, however reluctantly.  Sakura is now Card Mistress, and therefore Clow Reed's heir, Yue is becoming somewhat easier to deal with and the stuffed animal is happily pigging out whenever he can.

            It is true that there are quite a few more adventures after that while Sakura is changing the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards but let it be said that basically, things ended happily for all. 

Kaho, the shrine maiden, has returned from England and has continued teaching at Tomoeda Elementary but as a full-time teacher, rather than a substitute.  Hiiragizawa-kun also returned from England, having been shaken free from his own issues and personal geis as half of Clow Reed's incarnation and actually, he and Tomoyo are getting pretty close although their relationship is not as official as Sakura's and Li-kun's.  Yes, Sakura and the Chinese brat, who has shifted his goals from claiming the Clow Cards for the Li clan to being at Sakura's side whenever and wherever, are now dating whenever they can sneak out of Touya's sight and reach.  Besides keeping an eye on Hiiragizawa, Tomoyo still continues to videotape Sakura whenever she can while pursuing a career in fashion and music.  Kinomoto Fujitaka, the father of Sakura and Touya, is living his existence freely and calmly as the other half of Clow Reed's incarnation, and has formed some sort of truce with Daidouji Sonomi, the mother of Tomoyo-chan and cousin to Fujitaka's wife, Nadeshiko.  This means that Sonomi-san glares at him 999 times out of a thousand.  Akizuki-kun, a transvestite that is Eriol's complement to Yue, is chasing guys as usual and continues to enjoy glomping Touya on the head whenever she, technically a he, gets a chance.

            Sakura's friends at school are contented as well, if in the dark of how destiny spins its sticky threads.  Chiharu-chan is dating Yamazaki and hitting him on the head as usual when he starts telling his stories.  Naoko-chan is busy working on a supernatural thriller that she is hoping to publish in a few years.  Rika-chan is her usual sweet and capable self and is not currently attached to anyone.  She has a warm friendship with a former teacher, Terada-sensei, and can often be seen discussing current events and such with him.

            Oh yes, and Suppi-san is being quiet as usual, except when giving biting remarks about Kero-chan and Akizuki-kun and avoiding both whenever they start mentioning water or sweets.

            So basically, they all live happily ever after.  But there is one thing Clow Reed may or may not have anticipated.

            Touya is still in love with the shrine maiden, Kaho.

            There, I have said it and may I be damned for it, but I can no longer deny it.  I love Yukito.  He is the best friend I could ever want and he knows me and about me more than anyone else.  He probably always will and I would rather die than let anything happen to him.  But regardless of how I want us to always be friends, he is not the one that I want to spend the rest of my life with.

            I know everyone else thinks so.  Personally, I find their reaction a little insulting, as if it implies that just because a guy reacts differently towards one guy than any other guy, it means he's gay.  I have nothing against homosexuals but I do not view Yukito as a lover or a potential lover.

            As always, Yukito understands what I am thinking and as usual, since I have said nothing about the matter, neither does he.  Sooner or later, though, I will have to explain and the whole process is very painful but there is no easy solution and that is why I am sitting here on the gentle slope of this hill, trying to find an easy solution.

            I look down at the spring festival that is taking place so close and yet, so far.  I watch my sister, Tomoyo-chan, Hiiragizawa-kun, and that Chinese brat, who even now turns back every so often to glare at me, while playing at the different game booths.  I return the favor and continue to watch in amusement as Sakura screams at Li-kun, who is on the verge of strangling Hiiragizawa-kun with the silken belt that ties his yukata together.  Li-kun turns bright red and immediately drops the strip of cloth and tries to look innocent.  It does not work, though, judging by the fact that I can hear Sakura scolding him from up here, even as she reties the boy's belt around his waist as he holds her fan for her.

            Hiiragizawa-kun says something and laughs, upon which Tomoyo-chan hits him lightly over the head with her fan.  He pretends to wince and then hugs her until she was gasping for breath.  His action has produced some color in her normally pale cheeks and she looks rather cute as she smiles at him and shakes her head.

I look around for the rest of my family and smile as I see my father talking to Tomoyo-chan's mother, Sonomi-san.  It looks to me like she is baiting him but he is answering her good-naturedly, even smiling and laughing.  My father has an incredibly good sense of humor and he is even nice to that wolf-boy that stole Sakura away from us.

            Yuki would say I was exaggerating and in the throes of my sister complex.  Where is Yukito, anyway?  I scan the festival from my high position.

            Oh, there he is, talking to Akizuki-kun with Kero-chan yelling from his pocket at Suppi-chan, who looks like he is ready to leap off Akizuki-kun's fan.  It is lucky that the place they were standing in is rather secluded, since otherwise they would have caught some very strange looks from passers-by.

            I note with a small amount of surprise that he and Akizuki-kun happen to be holding hands.  After some thinking, I realize I feel rather indifferent to the whole business.  There is a slight pang as I think of the possibility of Yukito getting together with Akizuki-kun but it is tinged with a sense of relief.  But there is no reason for me to feel relieved.  I should just feel happy for my friend if he is getting to know his future partner.

            "Touya, shouldn't you be down there with him?" a warm, well-known voice asks from behind me.

            "Shouldn't you be down there with him?" I reply pointedly in parody.

            I hear the faintest hint of a sigh and immediately turn around, contrite.  However, the apology that was on my lips came out as an explosion of air that others might term a "gasp" as I saw what she was wearing.

            The yukata she wears is made of silk, an ivory shade that enhanced her cream-colored skin.  It is covered with designs of dragons, tigers, suns, stars, moons and clouds, all done in shimmering embroidery outlined with gold thread.  It would have looked very gaudy to me had I seen it in a store window but on her, it somehow seems appropriate.  I wonder that she did not sink under the weight of it, though.  The yukata is supposed to be a light robe worn for spring and summer festivals, like the one taking place below us, but this one looks like it would weigh a great deal.

            She smiles at me and laughs as she says, "It's not any heavier than yours, Touya."

            I smile and gesture at the robe as I say, "This?  Heavy?  Certainly not!"

            We both laugh because she knows that I really do think the robe is a little heavy.  It is made of dark green silk as well but has no designs on it and is so dark that even under the bright fluorescent lights in my home, my sister exclaimed that it looked so dark as to be black.

            My smile vanishes when I look at her, aware that my heart is beating in a manner that is almost painful.  This woman standing before me with her reddish-brown fox hair and kind, limpid eyes that changes from golden-brown to reddish-brown and something between the two every other second, she has arisen feelings in me no one else had, save perhaps Yukito, and then she broke my heart like no one else had.  As treasonous as this might sound, it was okay when my mother died because my father and I had each other and most of all, we had Sakura.  But when Kaho left like she did, even when Yukito came, Yukito, my closest friend, and the one who healed the ache in my heart left by Kaho's departure, somehow it felt worse.  Maybe it was because, unlike my mother, Kaho was not dead and there was still always the possibility that she might one day come back.

            "Yes, I am back, Touya," she says with a sad smile, as if reading my mind.  "But things cannot go back to the way they were."

            "But they are right," I answer quietly.

            "'They'?"

            "The wise.  They say that nothing worth living for comes easily."

            "They are indeed wise, " she replies.  " It is relatively easy to fall in love.  You meet someone one evening in front of an ancient tree and you feel like you know them from a long time ago and you would like to know more, much more, about them.

            "But to stay after all the excitement dies down, the 'adventures' are over, now that is a challenge indeed."

            "That's why people find it so much easier to make war than peace," I try to pun but my voice sounds hoarse even to my ears.

            "The leaves fall every autumn."

            "The roots remain deep in the earth.

            "The moon is beautiful tonight."  I glance at her, startled, and then realize she is talking about reality.  I look upwards and the moon is indeed beautiful, a wonderful golden color and so big it makes you feel like you could reach up and touch it.  Indeed, my hand if halfway up before I realize what I am doing and I quickly lower it, blushing.

            A feeling like silk brushes across my palm and then I realize it is not silk but her hand.

            "Do you think we will ever have a normal relationship?" I ask solemnly, knowing that the question is mundane and hoping she will eventually forgive me for asking.

            She turns to me and with a slow smile, asks in reply, "What is normal for you?"

            I want to say something more but it seems like anything said would ruin the moment, so I stand there silent.  I stand there in silence watching the moon and the festival, my hand clasped with the one person I would most want to share this night with.

*

            "That's all that happened?" Sakura asked, her voice sounding indignant for some reason.

            "That was all that happened," Tomoyo replied, ejecting the videotape from the VCR in resignation.

            "Well, I for one, never needed to see Touya getting all mushy, even if he really didn't," Syaoran declared.

            For once, Eriol nods agreement and says, "Isn't it ironic how the tables have turned?  Tomoyo videotapes Sakura-chan and now Sakura-chan videotapes her onii-chan."

            "Well, you will be disappointed then, Hiiragizawa-kun, because my videotaping career has officially ended," Sakura huffed, plopping down onto the couch next to Syaoran, who automatically extends his arm to encircle her shoulders.

            "I wasted twenty minutes adjusting the camera and then worried throughout the whole festival that onii-chan would move away from the hill and all he does is stand there and talk to Mizuki-sensei without hardly saying anything indicating romance!"

            "I will thoroughly reprove him for that tomorrow," Syaoran intones, his eyes going eerily blank until Sakura smacks him on the shoulder.

            "Itai!  What was that for?"

            "Onii-chan will complain even more than usual to me about what a rude boyfriend I have and why can't I find someone with better manners if you persist in annoying him."

            A big vein popped out on Syaoran's forehead as he exclaimed, "Me?  Annoy him?  Just who rings the doorbell every time you and I start to get comfortable?  Who manages to get himself invited whenever we pay a visit to Hong Kong?  Who proceeds to badmouth me in front of Daidouji-san so that she starts to glare at me instead of your father?  I ought to show him a thing or two about annoying people!"

            "Well, half of those times, I forgot to tell him I was going out," Sakura admitted.  "As for the other things, it is not onii-chan's fault that your sisters love to spoil him."

            "Besides, Li-kun, " Tomoyo added, " Mother would have a distinct chip on her shoulder for anyone who dated Sakura-chan."

            "Anyway, you have no right to be complaining, since I am the one who is unofficially dating Tomoyo," Eriol finished, smiling cheerfully.

            "Now just a second there, she never says a word about you," Syaoran began only to have Eriol cut him off.

            "You are never there, of course, when me and Tomoyo are alone or rather, trying to be alone."

            "Oh, give it a rest, you two will find a place anyway.  Aside from that, how do you know I haven't been videotaping you two?"

            "Given that you just admitted the very quality that would let us know you were watching us, I only have to add that if you had, by the grace of some being, actually managed to capture us on film, you would not have been able to resist gloating and therefore do I know that you have not been videotaping."

            "Hoe?" Sakura asked, confused.

            "Dear, I've warned you about getting long-winded in your explanations," Tomoyo said, giving Eriol a look.  "You'll never get to be a professor like Kinomoto-sensei if you do not be more careful in your explanations."

            "Who said I wanted to teach?" Eriol asked, looking uncharacteristically grumpy.  Tomoyo merely smiled at him and eventually, it was Eriol who pouted and gave up the staring contest.

            Sakura and Syaoran had found some other amusement during the contest but pulled away at Tomoyo's question.

            "So, Sakura-chan, are you going to do anything?"

            Sakura sat back and thought for a bit, much to Syaoran's disgruntlement, and then gave a smile that actually made Syaoran, as well as Eriol and Tomoyo, edge a little away from her.

            "Yes, I think I will," was her only reply.

            "Do you need any assistance?" Tomoyo asked, recovering quickly.  Eriol took the opportunity to slip his hand into hers and she unconsciously curled her fingers around his.

            "No, I think all I'll need is the Cards' help on this one," Sakura replied, back to her cheerful self.

            "All right," Tomoyo said calmly, smiling even as she jabbed Eriol in the ribs.

            "Itai!"

*

            Touya frowned as he rounded the block for the Tsukimine shrine yet again.  This was the third time that he had missed the shrine for some strange reason.

            He was feeling suspicious about the whole situation but decided to go around the block one more time when he saw the torii.  He sighed in relief and entered.

            He nearly fell over in amazement and had to blink several times to be sure this was not some sort of hallucination.  Instead of the tree and the shrine, he found himself surrounded by what appeared to be a forest in bloom.  There were thick trunks and thin saplings entwined with ivy all around, followed by a series of flowers that ranged from cherry blossoms, peach blossoms, pink blossoms, evening primroses, wisteria blossoms, etc.

            Frowning more deeply than before, he turned to go back and discovered he was totally surrounded by forest and flowers.  He sensed that there was something magical to do with this matter but since no apprehension accompanied that sensation, he decided to play along, hoping that an answer would reveal itself soon.

            After he had wandered around, admiring the beautiful petals and stalwart wood, he noticed a faint glow and wondered if it was a firefly.  He began to follow it, unaware that he was walking a path traced out for him by wood decorated florally.

            All he knew was that the trees and the blossoms thinned out to the point where he was standing bewildered at what was the entrance to the shrine once again.  The torii were there, the tree was straight in front of him and sitting at its foot was Kaho.  She looked up at him and he saw that she was smiling.

            "Touya," she greeted him, standing up and brushing off her skirt.  It was a simple black piece, with a slit up to her knee on the left side.  She was wearing a light blue cashmere sweater on top.  Despite her relatively simple attire, she looked as she always did to Touya: stunning.

            "Kaho," he greeted in reply, holding out his hand to her.  There was a moment of hesitation and then she placed her hand in his and he mentally breathed a sigh of relief.

            Silence reigned for a good minute.

            "We've been set up," he said simply.

            "Neither of us has any doubts as to the identity of who," she agreed.  "But they went to so much trouble after all.  There's Wood's handiwork involved…"

            "Glow led me here…"

            "Flowery surrounded us with these beautiful petals…"

            "And Maze corralled us in," Touya finished grimly.  "When I get my hands on Sakura, I'll-"

            "Are you saying you're unhappy by what's wrought?" Kaho interrupted, raising one eyebrow delicately.

            Touya looked like he had seen the fabled Medusa for one second but the comparison disintegrated as he stammered, "Well, I-but-I-you see-wait, this isn't working correctly."

            Taking a breath to calm himself, he stated, "I wanted to talk to you of my own volition not because of somebody else's ideas, especially not when that 'somebody' is my imouto-chan and her friends."

            Kaho laughed softly and he savored the sound as she said, "Well, if you put it that way, you have a very good reason.  If you, however, think of it as an opportunity that just happened…"

            Touya smiled wryly and said, "I can see why my sister loves you so much."

            Kaho shrugged and said, "Sakura-chan can very wise when she wants to be.  Sometimes I wonder just how much she knows but will not say because she does not want to hurt anyone, however indirectly."

            "You also have a knack for understanding people and for clairvoyance, " he shot back, his eyes narrowing slightly as he recalled their conversation before she left to study abroad.

            Kaho smiled gently and his resentment melted away; he could never stay angry with her, not even when he was younger and more impetuous.

            "Will you dance with me?" he asked suddenly, catching her by surprise.  So maybe he was still a bit impetuous.

            As if on cue, a lilting melody began to play in the distance.

            "With such an invitation, how can I refuse?" she asked rhetorically, a wry note entering her voice as well.

She placed her free hand in his and let him lead her in a waltz, her feet dancing so lightly on the hard-packed earth that it seemed like she would float away.  Slowly, everything faded away, except the connection between their hands and thus, their hearts.  His face and body drew closer and closer to hers when suddenly, he stopped and stepped back to deliver a sweeping bow.  She noted the music had stopped, as he stood up, a grin few ever saw written on his face.

"It seems our friends have decided to leave us in peace, " he murmured, gesturing slightly with his head.  She smiled herself as she saw that they were standing in the front of the shrine, with houses across the street and the sound of cars nearby.

"Come with me," Kaho said unexpectedly.  She was already walking away as she said that and he followed.  She led him past the side of the temple and behind it, through bushes and finally trees until, nearly stumbling over a tree root, he crossed into a small little glade surrounded by forest and silent except for the occasional chirp of some nocturnal insect.

"It's not half as beautiful as what the Card contrived," she admitted, "but-"

"It's beautiful, more than enough," he cut in, his arm encircling her waist.  "But I can tell you with all honesty, that nothing all the Cards or even Clow Reed himself could ever make would be as wonderful as you."

She chose not to reply to that, but merely drew him down onto the grass that was suddenly as soft as ostrich feathers and into the arms that he had once known and lost and found again.

Except for the murmurs and cries that followed, the night was silent and continued to withhold its secrets from all except those who it deigned worthy.

*

            From a distance, a dark-haired man with mysterious Asiatic eyes but an aristocratic Caucasian face adjusted his spectacles and let loose a sigh of relief that would never be heard by the lovers not too far from where he stood.  In fact, no one living would have heard that sigh.

            What a web, indeed, a gray-haired beauty said from behind him.  He glanced back at her and smiled.

            You did not exactly oppose this yourself, he reminded her.

            She pondered this and then said, that is true but you went about it in such a circuitous manner.

            Maybe they will forgive me for it one day, he concurred.  When they find out, of course.

            When they find out, she agreed.  They shook hands and smiled.

            Then she headed back to watch over the rest of her family while he stayed to watch the stars and drift into time, past, future or present, it was all the same to him.