Chapter 4: Truth

XOXO

"And… Ta-daa!" Rika exclaimed, clapping her hands delightedly. "Wah… Sakura-chan! You look so beautiful!"

Sakura swiveled around in her chair, eager to see her reflection in the mirror. She barely recognized the girl staring back at her.

Rika was grinning at her reaction. "Brian won't know what hit him." She complimented.

A smile slowly spread on Sakura's face. "Thank you Rika-chan!"

"Anything for you, Sakura-chan."

Sakura was about to reply when the doorbell rang.

"Right on time!" Rika squealed out. "It must be Brian!"

XOXO

Syaoran was wringing his hands nervously. He heard the sound of an organ began to play in the background.

Dum dum da-dum. Dum dum da-dum.

Swallowing in a breath, he took one final glance at himself in the mirror. Looking handsome in his tuxedo, he brushed off some imaginary dirt on his shirt.

His Best Man, Keiji, clapped him on the back.

"This is it, man." Keiji told him. "No turning back now."

XOXO

"Tomoyo-chan! What are you doing this weekend?" Stephanie asked her eagerly, and the other girls surrounding them began to nod enthusiastically.

"Going to the salon." Tomoyo replied as casually as possible, seemingly unaffected by the stares.

"But your hair's already so pretty!" A girl gushed.

"---and perfect!" Another complimented.

"You don't need to get it cut! It's already flawless!" Someone else flattered.

"Girls, girls…" Stephanie butted in. "She's not going to get her hair cut, she's going to get it curled." She stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Everyone who's anyone knows that curls are so in."

Tomoyo didn't say anything. Originally she was going to the salon to get her hair straightened, but now she wasn't so sure.

XOXO

Suddenly, a shrill alarm went off.

"Oh no!" Eriol's mother exclaimed, running to the unattended oven. Hurriedly opening it, a billow of smoke streamed out.

Coughing wildly, she took out the lasagna and laid it on the table. The top was completely blackened.

As soon as Eriol and his dad took a look at it, they burst into laughter. Eriol's mother looked at it, dejectedly.

"I guess we'll have to go out for dinner. Who wants Indian?" Eriol's father suggested, smiling down warmly at his wife and child.

Eriol abruptly stopped laughing upon realization.

XOXO

Sakura and Brian were both leaning against the railing of the bridge.

With the moonlight, the stars, the gentle breeze that occasionally drifted by and Brian's arm casually draped around her waist, everything was perfect.

Sakura sighed dreamily, leaning her head against Brian's shoulder.

She looked down at the surface of the lake that lay beneath them. Once again, the girl that looked back was barely recognized. This, for some reason bothered her, but she brushed the feeling away.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" Brian said, in that husky voice of his.

Sakura looked into his sparkling blue eyes. He was smiling gently, and two cute dimples could be seen. Sakura just smiled back.

His grip, slightly tightening around her, Brian commented "I feel like we are in our own little world."

Sakura closed her eyes, savoring this feeling.

"Couldn't you just stay in this world forever?"

Sakura's eyes shot open. Although the words were said so lightly, deep down Sakura knew they were underlined with a more important message.

Slightly panicked, she once again found herself glancing down at her reflection. The girl she saw wasn't recognized…

Because it wasn't her.

"…No."

And suddenly a white flash of light appeared, so bright that Sakura was forced to close her eyes. When she opened them again, her surroundings had changed entirely. She was in an unfamiliar old house.

Sitting up warily, she rubbed her eyes, her hands brushing against something next to her on the floor. Looking down at the object, she let out a small scream.

It was Athena! With her raven hair, spread out all around her, and her eyes closed peacefully. Beside her, was Edmund, who's hands were still gripped around his sword, and beside him was Nathaniel, who was curled up slightly into a ball.

XOXO

Syaoran was still wringing his hands uneasily, even at the alter.

He could see Mischa, desperately trying to catch his eye, her own welt up with tears. And yet he couldn't bring himself to look at her.

The priest was droning on about something, but all Syaoran could hear was the pounding of his heart.

Da-dum. Da-dum.

'Hey,' He observed. 'My heartbeat sounds like the wedding march.'

…His mind was spinning out of control.

"Do you, Mischa Williams, take Syaoran Li, to be your lawfully wedded husband, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

Mischa took a deep breath.

"I do." She whispered, smiling at Syaoran. Syaoran just stared blankly back.

"Do you, Syaoran Li…"

'Do I?.' He asked himself, in a daze.

"…take Mischa Williams…"

'Do I really want to spend the rest of my life with her?'

"…to be your lawfully wedded wife…"

'DIE with her?'

"…for better or for worse…"

'Of course I do. I love her.'

"…for richer or for poorer…"

'But do I love her that much?'

"…in sickness and in health…"

'Do I?'

"…till death do you part?"

'DO I?'

"I do--n't!" He blurted out.

A blinding flash of light appeared. Syaoran squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them, he found himself staring at a cracked ceiling.

Hearing a small shuffling noise a few feet away, he swiftly leapt to his feet and raised his sword, preparing to strike…

Until he saw it was only that Esmeralda chick, who had uttered a small shriek at his sudden attack.

He let his arm fall loosely by his side. "Sorry." He murmured, his words barely audible.

Sakura put a hand over her racing heart. She had been wondering what to do about her current situation for about five minutes when Edmund awoke.

"What's going on?" Syaoran asked, breaking her out of her thoughts.

"I have no idea."

XOXO

Tomoyo was tapping her foot impatiently against the marble floor. She had been waiting for almost fifteen minutes for her hair appointment.

Suddenly a "Daidouji Tomoyo" was heard. Getting to her feet gracefully, she smoothed out any crinkles in her skirt and followed the lady who called out her name.

The lady led her to the place where you get your hair washed. Sitting back comfortably in her chair, she closed her eyes in hope of getting peace.

The lady asked Tomoyo politely "Hot or cold?" Referring to the temperature of the water.

"Cold." Tomoyo automatically replied.

While she looked like she was at ease on the outside, on the inside Tomoyo's mind was in a turmoil.

'Curly or straight? Straight or curly?'

It wasn't supposed to be such a hard decision. It wasn't a big deal, right? But in the life of Tomoyo, in the mercilessness of highschool, and in the brusqueness of the social ladder, everything was a life changing decision.

'If I choose curly, then it is guaranteed a thumbs up… oh but, I really wanted it straightened!'

Before she knew it, her hair was washed and they led her to a chair set in front of a mirror.

A man wearing a tight black shirt strolled over, rolling a trolley that contained everything from hairspray to scissors.

He fingered Tomoyo's long, slightly damp, raven locks.

"Oh honey, we are gonna make you look so gorgeous." He gushed.

Tomoyo gave him a half-hearted smile in return.

"So what'll it be? Curly or straight?" Her hairstylist asked, holding up both a hair straightener and a curling iron. "Everyone is going for curls right now, but I think that having it straight will shape your face better."

He continued rambling on about how Rachael Bilson was currently wearing it curly which was why curls were the 'in' thing, but Tomoyo was barely listening.

She bit her lip, winding her hair around a finger.

'Curly or straight?'

On an impulsive decision, she blurted out "Straight!"

And everything went white.

XOXO

Eriol was still shocked as he realized the importance of this day.

For it wasn't just any day. It was the day. The day when his whole life changed. The day when everything he loved was cruelly snatched away from him.

All the events –the burnt lasagna, the suggested Indian- it was happening all over again. And Eriol knew what was going to happen next. His father would ask…

"Eriol, how about it? You coming with us?" His father said, exactly as Eriol predicted.

Last time, Eriol had reluctantly replied 'No', for he had an important exam coming up the next day which he had to study for. His parents had agreed to buy him back some food, and left by themselves.

And that was when it happened. The accident.

On the way home, Eriol's parents had collided with another car, and the results were disastrous. Both his parents were killed, while the driver of the other car survived, although was not left without injuries.

Eriol cursed the unfairness of life.

"Eriol?" His father's voice broke into his memories. "Are you coming with us?" He asked again.

Eriol stared up at him. If he went with them, he might be able to prevent it, but who knows what might happen to himself in the process? But there was no way that he could just let them walk away, knowing what the results were.

"Sure."

XOXO

Now Sakura, Syaoran and Tomoyo were all awake, discussing what could have possibly happened.

"The last thing I remember was getting sucked into this house. Then everything went black." Tomoyo was saying.

"Same here." Syaoran replied. Sakura nodded along.

"Well, what did you dream about?" Tomoyo asked the two of them.

For some reason, Tomoyo noted, Esmeralda went a bright red before looking down at her feet while Edmund just turned away.

"Ummh…" Sakura was hesitant to reply.

"Well…?" Tomoyo asked keenly.

"I was… errr… at school." Sakura revealed.

"Oh! Same here! Maybe we all dreamt about our schools." Tomoyo suggested. "Were you at school, Edmund?"

"None of your goddamn business!" Syaoran snapped at her.

"Jeez… It was just a question." Tomoyo muttered under her breath.

Syaoran ignored her comment. "Does it even really matter? We're out right? That's what's important. I don't get why this house was so feared in the first place."

"Actually," Tomoyo corrected "not all of us are out. What about Nathaniel over here? Why hasn't he woken up yet like the rest of us?"

They all turned to look at Nathaniel who was still curled up in a ball.

XOXO

"Ohhh… I feel like I just ate a cow." Eriol's dad groaned, rubbing his stomach.

"That's because you did. You just had steak, honey." Eriol's mother replied, grinning. "And a lot of it too."

"Well, that's because Eriol barely ate anything! So I had to finish everything!"

"Eriol, sweetie, you have been awfully quiet this evening. Is everything alright?" His mother asked him kindly.

Eriol snapped out of his daze. "Oh… hmmm? Right, errr… yeah. Everything's fine." He muttered, looking down at his feet.

'Oh right, except for the fact that all of us may possibly die in the next few minutes!' He added in his mind.

He grabbed his mother's arm, pulling her to a halt.

"It's such a nice night tonight. Why don't we just walk home?" Eriol suggested eagerly.

Eriol's mum shot him a perplexed look. "What are you talking about? It's freezing right now. The house is like, two miles away. And besides, we can't just leave the car."

"Please? Just trust me when I say that it'll all be better for us if we just walk home!" Eriol exclaimed.

Eriol's mother and father exchanged baffled looks. "Eriol, don't be ridiculous. We are not walking home, alright?"

"No! It's not alright!" Eriol shouted, panicking. "Please! Can we just walk home? Is that too much to ask for!?"

Eriol's parents were now starting to look worried.

"Eriol, what has gotten into you today?" Eriol's mother asked, concerned.

"I just…" Eriol took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "I just think that walking is a better mode of transportation. It provides us with exercise, it doesn't pollute the air and most importantly, less accidents are likely to happen on foot."

His parents just looked at him as if he had sprouted another head.

"Eriol, we are going by car. End of story." Eriol's father told him sternly.

"Yes honey. You can walk home by foot, if you like." His mother added, jokingly.

His dad unlocked the car and just as he was opening the door, Eriol's hand shot out and slammed it close again.

"I can't let you get into this car." Eriol said stubbornly. "Something bad is going to happen!" He warned them.

"Like what?" Eriol's mother asked him, her voice unusually high pitched. Eriol could tell that his parents were starting to doubt his sanity.

"Like a car accident." Eriol replied, without pausing.

His parents just stared at him for a moment. "Well, we'll take our chances." His dad finally replied, gently pushing Eriol out of the way.

"Bu---but... but---" Eriol spluttered, not knowing how else to stop them.

Both his parents entered the car, but Eriol remained frozen on the pavement.

Tears rose in his eyes, he had just gotten them back… there was no way he could just lose them again.

"Please…" He pleaded softly, but his words died with the wind.

"Eriol, are you getting in or not?" His mother asked him, the concerned glint still alighting her eyes.

His mind was in a turmoil. He knew he couldn't stop them. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he wanted to, he knew -he just knew- he couldn't stop them.

Now it was a matter of whether or not he wanted to go down with them.

But deep down, he knew that wasn't what he wanted. And he knew that his parents wouldn't want it for him either. They didn't bring him into this world only to have him leave it so early.

So with a heavy heart, and unshed tears blurring his eyes, he replied "No."

And that was when he saw the light.

XOXO

Eriol pried his eyes open to see three faces staring back down at him.

He vaguely recognized them to be Esmeralda, Edmund and Athena.

"Finally." Syaoran drawled. "Took you long enough."

"You mean… it was all a dream?" Eriol whispered.

"We don't know." Tomoyo replied simply.

"Now that the lazy git is awake, can we get the hell out of this house?" Syaoran snarled. "We're supposed to be looking for those feather-thingies."

"And you will soon receive one." A new voice spoke out.

The four companions all whipped their heads around towards the source of the voice.

Syaoran's grip on his sword tightened.

Out of the shadows walked in a person they hadn't expected. It was the leader of the people who had first spoken to them inside their minds. With her flowing blonde hair swept behind her, and her sapphire eyes, sharp and piercing, the companions wondered whether she had been there all along.

"Congratulations." She said, her voice soft and cold. "You have passed the test."

"Test?" Syaoran voiced the other companion's thoughts.

"Like I have said before, we value truth above everything else. I was testing your sense in truth. It is hardest to see the line that separates reality from fantasy when it comes to our desires. Because some people choose to see what they want to see, instead of seeing what is real. So you were each put into a world that showed your greatest desires. May it be love or popularity. The only way to escape from this dream world, was to overcome your desire." The leader explained. "Each one of you succeeded. Therefore, you must be rewarded."

She clapped her hands three times, and out of nowhere, a glowing bubble appeared.

The companions gasped in awe.

As the glowing faded slightly, they could see that inside of the bubble, a feather was suspended. Black markings were engraved into the pure white feather.

"This feather represents Truth." The leader told them.

The bubble was hovering, in the middle of the four companions. Suddenly it glided towards Tomoyo, who stepped back slightly in shock. The feather continued towards her and slowly sunk into her chest. Tomoyo seemed to shine for just a moment, before everything returned to normal.

Everyone was silent for a moment, trying to process what had happened.

"The feather has chosen." The leader broke the silence. "May it be because Athena possesses truth, or because she needs truth in her life."

Everyone's gazes turned to her expectantly, but Tomoyo just looked back at them blankly. Though deep inside she knew which one it was.

"You have also gained a new power. If you in fact possess truth already, then your new power will be based on your game character. If you need truth –meaning you don't already have it- then this power will be based on your real-life character."

Tomoyo nodded in response.

"I will now leave you four to yourselves." The leader said. "Cerberus will guide you to your next destination." With that, she fell back into the shadows and seemed to disappear.

The four companions were left in silence.

"…Wow." Sakura eventually said.

Sakura, Eriol and Syaoran all turned to look at Tomoyo once again.

Tomoyo grew hot under their questioning gazes, and murmured "I need to go to the toilet." Before scurrying out of the room – and away from their pointed looks- and into new parts of the house.

Quickly finding a bathroom, she went in and closed the door behind her.

Walking towards the sink, which had a small, elegant mirror hanging in front, she splashed her face with cold water. Thinking back to her dream, she realized with a sinking heart that none of it was real.

Stephanie's smirking face sprang into her mind -with her cherry coloured hair and her cold, calculating blue eyes- and she realized that there was no 'nice' Stephanie. It wasn't possible.

Wiping her face with a towel that lay next to the sink, she glanced up at the mirror… and let out a gasp.

For what she saw in her reflection was not her… it was Stephanie!

Quickly, she grabbed a bunch of her hair and brought it up to her eyes, only to find with horror that it was ginger.

"Oh my god." She muttered aloud.

Touching her face here and there, she tried to place what was going on. How on earth did she come to look like Stephanie, when all she did was think about her...

Suddenly a voice sprang into her mind.

You have also gained a new power. If you in fact possess truth already, then your new power will be based on your game character. If you need truth –meaning you don't already have it- then this power will be based on your real-life character.

Testing out her theory, Tomoyo squeezed her eyes shut and thought hard about her mum. Her mum had short brown hair with chocolate coloured eyes. Opening her eyes, she saw herself staring back at her mother!

This was her new power! To be able to change her appearance as she pleased…

To be a shape-shifter.

If you need truth –meaning you don't already have it- then this power will be based on your real-life character.

A shape-shifter had many different faces, never sticking with just one. Which was exactly how Tomoyo felt, hiding behind so many masks.

So many, that she had almost forgotten which mask was the real her.

Forgotten which was the true her.

Forgotten the Truth.

XOXO

Authors Note: My god, I had no idea where to end it. So sorry for not updating in so long, but half the reason why is because my internet crashed for a couple weeks, and the other half is because I am the laziest person ever to have walked the planet! Hehe. Sorry about that.

Hope you liked this chapter! I repeated everything about the feathers and the powers you would gain cuz I realize that Kero's explanation was a little confusing so I hope you understood everything now! It took up a lot of my imagination –especially Tomoyo's… sorry if that came out a little weird- to come up with this chapter so please REVIEW! I love reviews! They keep me going!

And the feather and bubble's appearance is based on the one from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, incase no one got that. If you haven't yet seen and/or read TRC then I suggest you do so! Especially for SxS fans out there!

XOXO