Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura, Cardcaptors or any of the Cardcaptor Sakura or Cardcaptors characters. All of these were created by CLAMP, who I will love eternally for bringing them to me!
BUT: This story is my own invention, so anyone who copies will be severely punished! GOT IT!
Key: Narration Thinking "Talking" "SHOUTING" "whispering"
(a/n: author's note)
Sakura Avalon : Sakura Kinomoto
Li Showron : Syaoran Li
Madison Taylor : Tomoyo Daidouji
Meilin Rae : Meiling Li
Tori Avalon : Touya Kinomoto
Julian Star : Yukito Tsukishiro
Chelsea : Chiharu Mihara
Nikki : Naoko Yanagisawa
Rita : Rika Sasaki
Zachary : Takashi Yamazaki
(a/n: I had to change the names of Li's sisters in this first part, but I plan to correct it later! And I'm not Japanese, so I'm not even going to try those names.)
Chapter 1 : Tension
"Hey Tori!" Sakura ran and hugged her older brother as he entered the already full sitting room.
"Hey, get off me twerp!" Tori pulled his sister away from him. Then he saw the sitting room and froze. Already in the room was their father, Li's mother, Li's sisters, who for once weren't trying to hug him, Madison, Eli, Li, Sakura, Zachary, Chelsea, Rita and Nikki.
" Whoa, full house tonight, huh!" Julian managed to get out as he poked his head round the doorway.
"Yeah…" Was all Tori could manage, with beads of sweat dripping down the back of his head.
" Room for five more? Well, three humans and a couple of stuffed animals?" Came Ruby's voice as she ran to hook on to Tori's arm, earning glares from all of Li's sisters.
" We are not stuffed animals!" Kero and Spinner chased in the door after her.
" Ok, fine, room for three and a half people?" Ruby corrected herself, much to the annoyance of Kero and Spinner.
" Three and a half?" Eli asked with an amused smile.
" Well, they're hardly worth half each, are they?" Ruby replied with a twinkle, causing Tori to look at her affectionately for no more than a second, thinking no one had noticed. But someone had.
" Of course…" Li muttered sarcastically, earning a few suppressed giggles from various people around the room.
" Shut up, brat!" Tori was, of course, the first one on his case.
Why is he getting all touchy for? I always wind him up and he never seemed to care before…Is it the fact that he hates me or that he really does love Ruby? Why do I doubt it's got anything to do with Ruby at all?
" I am not a brat!" Li began to get redder and redder, and Sakura couldn't help smiling.
Aww, Li looks so kawaii when he gets all red. Sakura sighed as someone else caught her eye.
Why's Madison always staring into space recently. She seems like she's been avoiding me…Eli seems to know what's going on, why don't I? Maybe she doesn't wanna be my best friend anymore? Maybe she's busy with her boyfriend now.She turned her attention back to Li and Tori.
I'd better sort this out.
" Whatever, brat!" Li and Tori exchanged glares.
Ha! Excellent! He looks like his face is gonna explode. I only had to call him a brat. He's so easy to wind up! But before he could say anything to make Li's veins burst…
" Tori, Amanda Worbet's on the phone for you." Sakura smiled innocently, as if she didn't know what she'd just done.
" WHAT!" Ruby's eyes gleamed and burned with fire.
Sakura knew Ruby would do this…aww, Ruby's gonna kill me. Who's Amanda Worbet?
" Amanda Worbet is on the phone for my boyfriend? TORI! Are you cheating on me?" Her eyes burned right through his skull.
" No, I've never even spoken to her!"
Great, she's making a scene. Bet that Chinese brat's smiling like crazy, getting his girlfriend to stick up for him. Pathetic. Why does my sister have to date him? Why do I even care if Ruby's mad? I don't, I just…she's making a scene, that's all it is.
"Oh, Tori, it was all a mistake. She just wanted to borrow my baton for cheerleading tomorrow, but Chelsea's got it! I keep forgetting there's a high school cheer squad now!" Everyone relaxed and let out little laughs at that point.
I am going to kill Sakura!
"Oh, ok then!" Ruby squeezed in between Eli and Sakura on the sofa, causing them to both suck in their breath, and Li to sigh with relief.
Ok, so now we're all squashed with five people on the sofa, but at least Sakura and Eli aren't sitting right next to each other anymore! God, why am I so jealous of Eli still? He's going out with Madison now, and Sakura and I have been going out for weeks, and he doesn't even like her! God, I've gotta remember to try and be nice to him now!
Madison was the only one in the room to notice the little twitch on Li's lips, and she couldn't help but shudder at the thought of it.
"You cold hun?" Eli whispered as he felt her shudder, but something in the way he said it that made her think he knew that just lately, Li had really been getting on her nerves. She didn't reply, and just placed her head on his shoulders. She didn't even know why, but at soon as it all happened, she learned to hate him…
THREE WEEKS AGO
Sakura and Li were off fighting the yang card, and I was so scared I was never going to see them again. Sakura promised me they would return safely in the outfits I made them, and I knew she would try her hardest, but this was stronger than anything they'd ever had to face…
As if I needed more to worry about, that big black bubble swallowed me whole, and I was trying to scream, but I couldn't. What really freaked me out was when I looked around, Meilin was already gone, and no one was left. I just kept thinking, that's it. I was Sakura and Li's last lifeline. Now they'd have to do it. No second chances.
And the next thing that happened was I banged my head on the cold, hard floor, and I opened my eyes to see Meilin glaring back at me.
"They did it! We're back! Wakey wakey! Get up Madison! We're alive, and everything's coming back!" She was screaming so loudly, I thought I was dreaming!
"Where are they?" I remember asking her. I was so dizzy. I saw Kero, Julian and Tori sitting behind us.
"I love you!" Came Sakura's scream from the old clock tower. Tori's face just got redder and redder, and we all burst out laughing. And that's where it began.
PRESENT DAY
So why is he suddenly annoying me? He makes Sakura happy, so why can't I be happy for them?
"MADISON!" Sakura was practically screaming in her ear.
"Oh, I'm sorry Sakura, I was just…um…I" Madison blushed as she realised everyone's eyes were on her, and Sakura had actually gotten up from where she was sitting to get her attention.
"You've been really preoccupied lately, you sure you're ok hunny?" Sakura's emerald eyes sparkled with concern, and Madison could have kicked herself for putting her best friend through all this.
Oh my God, my best friend's worried about me and all I can do is hate the love of her life. How would I feel if she hated Eli?
"I'm fine, just a bit tired." She tried to raise a smile, but it ended up looking fake, and everyone knew it.
I need to talk to someone. I need to learn to like Li, and there's one person I can talk to who's an expert in that area. Meilin. But how do I say it? What if she gets mad at me? What if she tells him?
"Meilin, can I talk to you outside for a second?"
I'll have to take the risk. For my best friend. For Li. Yuck, I really hate him! Meilin won't blab. Will she?
"Hmm…wonder what that's gonna be about?" Eli murmured cryptically, causing a glare from Madison.
"Ok, now I'm scared…" Meilin laughed.
Meilin will help, she's not completely smitten with Li anymore, she might not care that I don't like him right now…They were out in the hall.
"What's up?" Meilin gave one of her smiles that she'd only just started using lately.
She's only started using her smile since she came back from Hong Kong. Since she got free. Free from Li. Why can't I do that?
"I was just wondering, if maybe you could…umm…give me some advice? But…you have to…umm…promise to not…umm…get mad, ok?" Madison finally managed to get out her sentence.
Well, she doesn't look like she's in a bad mood. Maybe we'll be ok…
"I promise I won't get mad."
Unless you make me, Madison Taylor. You've been acting funny all week. Now I guess I get to find out why?
"Well, I know you and Li have known each other a while, and it's just that lately I don't really think I'm getting on with him…well, I've kind of been hating him…"
Oh God, she really looks mad...
"What? Are you gonna put Sakura off my cousin? Why can't you let them be happy? They're meant to be!" Meilin was shouting now.
Ah! What if they hear her? How am I gonna explain that to Sakura?
"No! Shh, Meilin, I wasn't saying that, I just thought maybe you could help me figure out why, I mean, well, WHY?"
Oh god, this is so hard…
"Are you jealous?"
Ha! Jealous! Jealous of what?
"What do you mean jealous?"
Oh my god, she's secretly in love with Li, and she really hates Sakura! Ha! Madison Taylor, you're busted!
"Of Li!"
"WHAT! No way! I just hate him right now; I don't like him or anything! Eww!"
JEALOUS? Of my best friend's boyfriend? That's so gross!
"Whatever, I'm not gonna stand around and trash talk my cousin with you, ok?" Meilin went to walk into the sitting room, but Madison's arm blocked her.
"You're not gonna tell anyone, are you? Meilin?" Meilin just pushed Madison's arm out of the way and continued walking.
Stupid bitch! How can she tell me she hates my cousin? I have to tell Li. She might try something. Eww, what if she's really in love with him? That's so gross.
They both re entered the sitting room, and received several strange looks.
"Wow, this is awkward…" Zachary muttered.
Oh dear god, what did they hear? Do they all think I'm secretly in love with Li? Oh my god!
"What?" Meilin demanded, as Chelsea throttled Zachary.
"It's true, you could cut the atmosphere in here with a knife. I thought you two were friends, and I never knew you had it in you!" Siefa said, directing the last comment at Madison.
Oh shit!
"We all knew Meilin had a mouth on her, I mean, just growing up with her as my cousin gave me a permanent headache, but you're so quiet Madison!" Fanren said matter of factly, earning a nod from each of her sisters.
Shit, shit, shit!
"Excuse me?" Madison said, trying to stay calm.
"We heard you both arguing." Eli said, and she placed her head on his shoulder, preparing for the worst.
"Don't worry; they didn't hear what you were saying." Eli whispered in her ear, and as she looked around, no one seemed to have noticed.
"Are you two ok? Why were you arguing?" Li said so innocently, as he wrapped his arm around Sakura. It made Madison want to laugh. There they were, yelling about him, and he had no idea. He was just so oblivious.
They don't know anything about it! Time for damage control…
"Um, we were just having a heated debate, weren't we, Meilin?"
"If that's what you want to pretend happened, Madison, then sure."
Skank! How can she just pretend that it's all ok? Should I tell everyone that she hates him? Or should I just tell Li and Sakura?
"But personally, I think everyone should know that you hate Li." Meilin grabbed a copy of 'Hello' and began to flick through as everyone else turned to look at Madison.
She hates me?