*Author's note* This is set just after Sakura has captured the Sealed Card in the 2nd Movie, and Li's Mother has allowed him to return to Tomoeda to continue his studies.
DISCLAIMER: Unfortunately, I don't own any of the Cardcaptor Sakura characters or places, they all belong to CLAMP.
That morning in Tomoeda, the Sun had been shining ever so weakly, battling willfully with an impending storm, and by the afternoon, big, thick clouds, black with sinister promise, rolled in across the skies, and Tomoyo Daijouji studied them worriedly. "I hope we can get home quickly, those clouds look awful!" Sakura Kinomoto slipped her shoes on and joined Tomoyo at the doors. "Oh, great!" she groaned. "I wish I'd brought my skates then I would be home in no time!" Tomoyo looked over at her friend with a smile, knowing full well that Sakura had not brought her skates so she could drag out the walk home, if only to spend a little more time with Li Syaoran, who had the routinely duty of walking her home after school. Letting loose a giggle, she shook her head. "I wonder if Li would prefer it if you brought your skates?" she asked slyly. Instantly, Sakura looked away from her friend with an almighty blush spreading across her face.
Giggling again, Tomoyo suddenly noticed her Mother's company car pull up, where two bodyguards promptly exited the car in their usual smooth, efficient manner, and came up to the doors. Sakura knew the guards by now, if only by face. Today, it was the red head and one of the brunettes. "Miss Daijouji, your Mother sent us to collect you, she was concerned about the turn of the weather, there is a huge storm forecast for tonight." Tomoyo and Sakura exchanged anxious glances. "Maybe you and Li should hitch a lift with us, Sakura..." she suggested. "But Syaoran is still cleaning up, he has classroom duty today…" Sakura replied, looking anxiously back into the school corridor, with no sign yet of Syaoran. She turned back to her friend with a smile. "Don't worry, Tomoyo, Syaoran and I will be fine, we'll run, we're both pretty fast." Tomoyo looked hesitant, she didn't want her friend to catch a cold and get sick. "Are you sure? We could always wait awhile…!" Tomoyo suggested. Sakura shook her head, "No, you'd better get going, because driving in storms is not safe either, and if you wait around, it might get worse." Sakura replied with a smile. "Well, if you're sure you'll be alright…" Tomoyo began uncertainly, "We'll be fine!" Sakura smiled. Tomoyo still looked unsure, but she had a feeling her best friend wanted some time with her boyfriend away from school, and she wouldn't intrude. Not unless she had her camera, which she had forgotten to bring this morning. She mentally kicked herself and silently promised that she would never lose another cute Sakura moment ever again if she could help it.
After Sakura had seen Tomoyo drive off, she turned towards the corridor and started to head back for Syaoran when she saw him appear at the top of the staircase, and as ever, Sakura blushed. Syaoran noticed her straightaway, and smiled warmly at her. "Daijouji left?" he enquired. "Yeah, her Mother sent her a car, the weather seems to be taking a turn for the worst." Syaoran looked out of the window and nodded. "I noticed that…I think we'd better move our keisters, or we'll be stuck out in it!" He cleared the stairs in an instant and strode beside Sakura as they headed over to the lockers, and in double-time, Li Syaoran had gotten himself together faster than it would ever take Sakura. In no time at all, they had left the school grounds, and not five minutes into their journey, the heavens opened, with so much wrath, Sakura wondered what she had ever done wrong in a past life.
They had been running when they set off, but the rain was coming down so heavy, it was actually impairing their vision, and they made a conclusive decision to take shelter under the slide in Penguin Park. Taking her hand, Syaoran led Sakura under the slide, and once there, they sat side by side, holding hands, and silently watched the rain pelt the pavement mercilessly. After a little while, Sakura peeked at Syaoran's face, and saw that he was frowning and looked about a million miles away, as if the rain had taken him beyond dimensional limits. She started stroking the back of his hand with her thumb and he shook his head, dragging himself back to the here and now, and gave her a small smile.
"Yen for your thoughts?" she asked him softly. His smile wavered as he glanced back to the rain as if wary it would make a move if he took his eyes off of it for too long. Eventually, he smiled bigger, "It's nothing. I just don't find rain the most cheerful of weather." Sakura, however, wasn't good at reading undertones… "Why? I've always found it very relaxing, just sitting and watching it." Syaoran smiled sadly. "A lot of people do, yes, it does appear therapeutic…for some." He added quietly. "But not you..?" she prompted, "No," he replied softly, "Not me. It was raining hard like this the day my Father died." Sakura instantly regretted her curiosity. "I'm sorry, Syaoran, I didn't mean to push or anything…" she stammered.
Syaoran just smiled at her and gripped her hand tightly. "Its fine, Sakura, it happened a long time ago, but I just never forgot him." "How old were you? When he died?" she asked. "Almost four years old." He replied, "Oh. I didn't know you were quite that young…" "You knew already?" Syaoran never talked to anyone about his Father, only Meilin knew, and only because she was family. "Wei told Tomoyo and I. Remember that day we tried capturing the Move card? When Meilin showed up?" Syaoran chuckled, "Yeah, and we went for an unexpected dip…" "Well, Wei told us then. He only mentioned it because I asked if it was just you two living in the apartment." "Ahh, I see." Syaoran went quiet, looking back at the rain. "How did it happen, if you don't mind me asking?" "He got sick, and was ill for a while, so the doctor had already told us he might not make it. But he promised he wouldn't leave us until we had spent Christmas together one last time." He paused before continuing. "We all made an effort that year. It was the best, and worst, Christmas ever." He added. "He died two weeks later."
Sakura leaned against his shoulder and cuddled up to him, which he gladly accepted, since he'd started to shiver, and welcomed the human warmth. "What was he like? Your Father?" Sakura asked. Syaoran pondered, as if trying to remember. "I'm not too sure. You see, I was pretty young so I can only remember so much. I know he was very tall, although that might be me remembering him that way because I was small. He was very muscular; he was always training and honing his fighting skills." Sakura looked up at him, "Did your Father have magical lineage too?" She asked. "No, I don't think so, Clow Reed's blood is from my Mother's side, but I know he was a top notch fighter, Mother still has his old trophies from his Martial Arts contests. He was an exceptional swordsman, too. Coming from one of the oldest dynasties, he had a lot of experience and teachings."
"He sounds like a really cool guy." Sakura stated "I wish I could have met him." Syaoran nodded, "It is a shame, he would have liked you." He turned his head towards her, "Mother always told me that he liked people with guts, people who had the courage to stand out from the crowd, and people who were happy as long as the people around them were." Sakura blushed, "I'm not perfect, I have my bad points…" "That's true of anyone, Sakura. Take me, for example, my pros; I'm handy with a sword, I have magical ancestry, I'm a snappy fighter, I like to think I'm quite fearless…Oh, yes, and extremely handsome, too!" He added with a grin and a wink, making Sakura's heart flutter. "But my cons; I can come across as sulky, I don't make friends very easily either. Before I met you, I was selfish, very self-orientated. You helped to change that."
They fell silent, and simply stared out at the rain. Sakura drew a deep breath, and filled her nose with all of the delicious scents that rain can bring, fresh grass, hydrated flowers, and the clear, unmistakeable fresh cleanliness that can only come after rainfall. Her Mother and Father had always taught her that rain brought the good things, to feed plants and crops, to give humans and animals water to drink, in short, she was always taught that rain brought Life, for Syaoran, it was the opposite. The coming of the rain reminded him of Death, of losing someone he loved very much.
"It was spring when my Mother passed away." Sakura didn't realise that she'd said that out loud until he looked back at her with a sad smile and held her hand a little tighter. "What happened to your Mom?" he asked. "She got sick too, but she was getting a little better, then she relapsed. It was a shock, because everyone thought that she was recovering." Sakura paused for a moment. "I don't really remember her either, but I can sometimes feel her. Like she's watching over me and keeping me safe. Sometimes, I swear I can even see her. Like that time I had a fever. Remember? When we fought the Rain Card?" Syaoran nodded. He remembered, all right. Seeing Sakura flying around on that damned staff when she was supposed to be resting, he was worried sick! "I could feel her touching my head, like she was checking my temperature, soothing me."
Syaoran pulled Sakura closer and kissed her forehead. "They know that we love them, and as long as we remember them, they will always be with us." Sakura's eyes welled with tears. "But, I still miss her. I wish I could see her everyday and tell her everything that happens in my life. I don't even remember what her voice sounded like! I just want to hear her voice again, just one time." The tears that were threatening spilled over and slid down her cheeks. Syaoran had difficulty swallowing the lump in his throat that came from missing his father while the first tear slipped down his face. "I know, Sakura. I know."
Neither of them knew how long they sat there for, just holding each other, and letting their pain flow as brutally as the rain. After a while, the rain started to ease to a shower, and Syaoran lifted his head. "Sakura? Sweetheart?" he roused her from where she had slipped into a light sleep from the emotional drain. "Huh?" she mumbled. Syaoran smiled tenderly at her. "Come on, the rain has faded down, and we should be getting home, we've been here a while." Slowly, they crawled out from under the penguin slide and Syaoran helped her to her feet. "Come on, I'll walk you home."
After 10 minutes, they came to the end of the road and stood outside of Sakura's house, she turned to Syaoran, "Thank you for listening earlier, I really didn't mean to get so emotional." Syaoran stepped up and took her hand, placing a soft kiss to it. "It's not a problem, Sakura, never apologize for caring about someone, it's one of your finest qualities." Sakura blushed and stepped forward. "And you, Syaoran, Thank you for trusting me with your most poignant memory." She leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on his lips.
Touya Kinomoto walked over to the living room window, checking for any sign of Sakura for the umpteenth time. If she didn't turn up in the next hour, he was going to look for her! He glanced at the front porch and nearly had a fit when he saw her stood there, giving that Brat a kiss! A kiss! AND on the lips, no less! Touya balled his hands into fists and stomped through the lounge into the hallway, running into his dad, who was coming down the stairs. "Touya, what's wrong?" he asked calmly. "It- it's Sakura, she's home." He mumbled. His dad grinned. "I know. I saw her outside." He said coolly. "Did you see what she was doing outside? Kissing that little Baka!" Touya added disgusted.
Fujitaka shook his head and smiled. "Well, they are dating, Touya. They're young, and in love. It would be almost cruel to forbid them from having a goodnight kiss on the porch." He stepped off the staircase and walked into the lounge. "As long as that's all they're doing, I have no qualms." He added with a smile. Touya followed him in and sat on the edge of the sofa, where he could see his dad and the window simultaneously. "She's your only daughter. Don't you at least feel like grabbing a baseball bat and trying to keep the boys at bay as much as you can? I sure as hell do!" Touya emphasized his point by smacking his fist into his hand.
Fujitaka simply smiled. He walked over to the window, watching the young couple outside. "When your Mother and I started dating, there were a lot of people who opposed our relationship. I can't say I blame them, she was only sixteen, and I was a teacher. We loved each other, and I worshipped her, but others just didn't see it like that. We sure could have done with some understanding, because Love doesn't allow us to choose who we want to be with, Touya. Look at you and Yukito. All of the girls that would happily be with either of you in a heartbeat, yet Love had destined you both to be together."
Touya's anger eased at the mention of Yukito. "But, Sakura, she…she's my baby sister. Nobody can ever be good enough for her!" he mumbled. Fujitaka sat down next to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Touya, I approve of Li Syaoran. I can see that he really loves Sakura, because he has the same look with her as I had with Nadeshiko. I know he'd never do anything to hurt her. If anything he'd protect her just as much as you or I would. She's precious to him too." They both looked up as they heard the front door shut. "I know it would mean a lot to Sakura if you were to be less hostile towards Syaoran." He added quietly.
Sakura came into the room dreamily. "Hi Dad, Hi Touya." Fujitaka smiled broadly. "You're home a little late, Sakura..." Sakura glanced at the clock and was surprised to see that it was almost 6:30! "Oh my gosh! Sorry, Dad, I had no idea!" she rushed. "The rain got really heavy when Syaoran and I left school, so we had to take shelter in the park, and as soon as the rain died down, we left!" she explained hurriedly. "Its fine, Sakura, I knew the rain would have driven you inside somewhere." He got up and took her wet coat from her. "I see Syaoran walked you home…" he added subtly and Sakura blushed furiously. "Oh, yes…he...wanted to make sure I got home okay and, uh…he…uh…and, I, uh…" Touya got up off the sofa and made to walk past Sakura, ruffling her hair on his way past, being tender enough to draw her attention and stop her from stuttering. "Touya..?" she asked gently. Touya turned to her and smiled. "Maybe that Brat's not so bad, after all." He murmured.
~*The End*~
