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Silence

By: Yuuna Miyako

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Flashback:The next morning, Eriol found he was all bandaged up, walking down the hospital hallway with Nakuru next to him. He got a room for himself in the hospital for temporary stay. He felt trapped now; hopeless…he knew his music is gone. His music is on rest, forever. His escape is gone—now all he had is silence.

Disclaimers: I don't own the CCS characters or Silence's plotline. I absolutely worship Clamp and Silence's staff for making it possible.

Pairings: Eriol and Tomoyo. Other supporting pairs: Touya & Tomoyo, Eriol & Sakura, Sakura & Syaoran, Eriol & Meiling, Yukito & Sakura.

Authoress Notes: Thank you, thank you all for the reviews! Emerald – Thanks! Er, I would rather not spoil the story though, but please do keep reading on. –winks- / mangalvr – Well, the site was you tube. For some unknown reason it didn't pop up when I posted the last update. / Everyone: Your reviews are very helpful! Domo arigatou! Okay, let's see. I'll try my best to update 'Silence'. I was doing a chapter plan for the story and discovered that Memory Arc itself will already have ten to eleven parts! Wow, I know that's a lot. .

And do please enjoy Memory Arc part 3. DON'T YOU EVER FORGET TO LEAVE A REVIEW. Unusually, it speeds my writing process.

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Memory Arc 3: Losing Magic

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What will happen if a magician…

A young lilac haired beauty deeply slept in one of Tomoeda Central Hospital's rooms, her eyes closed as the sunlight from the nearby window shone in her porcelain like skin. The room was plain white and was fully air conditioned. The white cotton swathed bed that is currently occupied by the sleeping countenance was located in the far left edge of the room. A side drawer with a flower vase and a chair stood next to the bed. There are two more chairs that were in the room for additional visitors.

After a few minutes pass by, a man with a doctor's coat enters the room. A silver name plate with the name 'Dr. Yoshiyuki Tereda' engraved on it was attached to his coat. He carried a clipboard with him as he neared his current patient 'Tomoyo Daidoji'. Dr. Tereda is one of the young doctors that worked in Tomoeda Central Hospital. He received a message that the young girl's mother came rushing in the hospital when she got of from work and is headed to the room right now.

Then moments later a knock came from the door and was opened by one of the nurses revealing a short, dark haired woman with an anxious expression clearly pasted on her face. Next to her was a golden haired business like man, and the adolescent boy that rushed the young girl to the hospital earlier. Now he has a cast in his arm and already medicated.

"Tomoyo—oh, my baby," The woman ran towards the angelic faced girl who was still fast asleep. The woman, who is most likely Mrs. Daidoji, caressed her daughters face before she looked at Dr. Tereda.

"Doctor…is my daughter okay?"

The doctor nodded as he motioned the woman to take a seat on one of the visitor's chairs, "Please take a seat, and there are some matters I need to talk to you about."

Sonomi Daidoji hesitated to leave her daughters side but then took a seat. The golden haired man, Fujukata Kinemoto, stood next to her as Dr. Tereda shuffled through the papers clipped on his board, still searching for the results of the earlier physical examinations he did.

"Mrs. Daidoji-san, your daughter, Daidoji-chan is currently in a very good and very stable condition—"

Tomoyo Daidoji shuffled a little under her bed covers, being stirred up by the voices she hears over her dream, but she shook the voices off and just continued dreaming. The adolescent with an arm cast noticed her movement so he slowly neared her bed. He took a seat on the bedside chair and held one of her fragile hands.

"Hey Toto." He whispered, "This is Touya. Wake up soon or I'll pour hot water on you." He warned, wondering if the sleeping girl really heard him. He bent down and then laid his chin on her bed as he stared at Tomoyo's serene face. Then after a few seconds, Tomoyo started to stir more. That voice…Touya-kun…?

Slowly, young Tomoyo Daidoji opened her eyes, as she looked at Touya Kinemoto ever so drowsily. Touya's expression brightened up as he saw her finally conscious after all the commotion this morning.

"You okay?"

Tomoyo nodded slowly, she opened her mouth to say yes but no sound came out. She could feel the sudden panic that rushed through her. Touya raised an eyebrow in suspicion when he noticed her sudden uneasiness, but Tomoyo didn't want him to worry about her anymore. Maybe it's because of a medication; she concluded and absentmindedly assured herself. So quickly, she closed her mouth and just smiled. Touya in the other hand, frowned, "I'm really sorry letting you get into this huge mess. It's my entirely my fault—"

"The impact of the car accident frightened your daughter greatly that she won't be able to talk for a while. But there is a huge percentage that she'll be mute for the rest of her life too." Dr. Tereda informed the two adults rather loudly. Silence filled the room and the atmosphere began to tense up exactly when Dr. Tereda ended his statement. In response, Sonomi gasped while Fujikata squeezed her shoulder in comfort.

Touya's eyes widened when he heard the news, dropping Tomoyo's hand and quickly stood up, catching the attention of the grown-ups.

"What?!" Touya finally broke the silence as he tried to calm himself down, "You're lying—this is all just a joke, right? There is no way Tomoyo can be mute, no way. She's going to sing you know? Damn it. Tell me…oh god…" His voice faded away slowly as he balled his hands into fists.

Dr. Tereda shook his head sadly, "We doctors don't joke about these things. I'm afraid that I'm telling the truth."

Tomoyo blinked twice as she sat down her bed. She noticed the sudden tension around them. She was fine, really. And there is really no way she could be mute. She opened her mouth to speak, wanting to assure everyone with a smile that she was okay. But no matter how hard she tried, no sound came out.

She froze.

Touya in the other hand watched her expression as she tried to talk. Both of their eyes met slowly, and when it did, regret and remorse rushed through him. Then slowly, a lone tear escaped from Tomoyo's amethyst colored eyes, slowly rolling down her cheek. The doctor wasn't lying. She didn't want to lie to herself any longer, it was simple—she lost her voice.

That sight alone made Touya hate himself more and more. He can't help but turn around in regret. It was his fault. It was him and his dumb idea. Now Tomoyo can't sing at all, not a single note.

Tomoyo's heart quickened when Touya turned his back on her. She felt him let out the feeling of regret. That's when she quickly mopped her tear away and realized when she cried, she made him feel worst. She knew he'll start blaming himself for all that happened.

But it wasn't really his fault. She didn't want Touya to blame himself.

So Tomoyo reached out to tug on Touya's shirt to catch his attention and let him face her again. But before she did, Touya stomped out the room, slamming the door.

"Touya!" Fujikata exclaimed as he ran after his son.

With all her might, Tomoyo tried her best to push herself off the bed so she could run after Touya herself. But Sonomi quickly ran towards her and stopped her. Sonomi sympathetically smiled at her daughter as she gave her a comforting look, "Tomoyo, don't you worry about Touya, your Fujikata-oji will talk to him."

Then that very moment, Tomoyo let out tears that she tried to stop a couple of minutes ago. The tears flowed mercilessly down her cheeks as she buried her head in her mother's chest. Sonomi quickly wrapped her arms around her daughter as she patted her back in reassurance. She could feel Tomoyo shiver and sniffle in her arms. Sonomi then closed her eyes shut as she thought of something to say.

"Tomoyo…It's okay." Her mother's soothing voice filled her hearing, "As long you're alive and well, I'm content." Sonomi planted a kiss on Tomoyo's silky hair, "Just rest up and recover…okay?" Tomoyo nodded under her mothers embrace.

"Don't worry," Dr. Tereda spoke out, "I'll do my very best to help you out."

Sonomi gave him a thankful smile, "Thank you."

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After a couple of yards of running, Touya and Fujikata Kinemoto found themselves silently sitting on one of the outdoor benches in the hospital. They've been sitting there for quite sometime already, and still not one of them mentioned a word. The sky slowly got dimmer and dimmer as each minute ticked by, but not one of them moved.

"Damn it's my fault…I hate myself…" Touya muttered, breaking the silence.

As calm as ever, his father sighed as he faced his son, "Your aunt Sonomi only has Tomoyo. If Tomoyo will be a mute for the rest of your life, to repay her, you need to promise me that you'll take care of her for the rest of her life."

"I will. I swear, I will. But…I don't think I could face her right now." Touya said slowly, clamping his hands together.

"I know you blame yourself for this happening to her, but it's not entirely your fault." Fujikata patted his son on his back, "And if you blame yourself to much, you'll make Tomoyo feel bad too. You know how Tomoyo is."

"Yeah I know…"

"Anyways, I should leave you for awhile. Just think it through, okay?" Fujikata stood up as he patted his son in his back, "I'll check on your aunt."

Touya nodded as Fujikata smiled at him before he started walking away. Touya watched him as he slowly disappeared from his view. Exactly when Fujikata was completely gone, Touya took a deep breath as he closed his eyes. Silently he vowed to himself that he'll forever take care of the silent plum blossom.

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The next morning, Tomoyo found herself asleep in the bed once more, by herself. She tried her best to recall what happed yesterday and quickly remembered. She remembered crying so hard on her mother's arms—it looks like she fell asleep after that. It was still quite early in the morning, but Dr. Tereda didn't fail to come in and check up on her. Exactly when he entered the room, Tomoyo sat up the bed.

"Daidoji-chan, here's your medicine," Dr. Tereda smiled as he handed her a glass of water and a couple of pills. Tomoyo remembered that she can't speak anymore, so she smiled at him thankfully and gave him a slight bow. She quickly took the medication.

"Your mother came here thirty minutes ago to check on you," Dr. Tereda continued speaking, "She came to drop a bento box for both lunch and dinner. Then she went to work. She told me to say to you she'll visit as soon as she can."

Tomoyo nodded to tell him that she understood. Dr. Tereda smiled as he handed her a small notepad and a mechanical pencil, "It looks like you need to write in order for you to communicate. Daidoji-chan, I'll come back soon to check on you. A nurse will come soon to drop you some breakfast."

Tomoyo nodded again in response as Dr. Tereda stepped out the room. As Tomoyo sat on her bed, she can't believe that for the rest of her life, she'll be probably be mute. She won't be able to speak and sing. She quickly jumped out her bed as she found herself running and running until she reached the hospital's rooftop. She closed her eyes tight as she took a deep breath.

She'll try her best to yell—if she can't hear herself, definitely she's now mute.

So with all courage, she opened her mouth to yell. When it didn't work the first time, she tried and tried again, hoping that her voice will come back to her…hoping that she could once more sing to her mom and to her love ones.

…hoping that she could spread magic once again…

But still nothing happened. Sadly, Tomoyo then stopped on trying, as she looked around her surroundings. Her lilac hair danced with the wind and the birds sang their usual morning song. But she can't help but to feel so lonely inside. So alone. So helpless. So powerless.

Then she can't help remember what Touya said to her in the bus in the accident yesterday. She was a magician of great potential. But now…

She felt like a magician whose magic is stripped away from her before she could even use it.

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Dr. Tereda encouraged her to take walks outside the huge courtyard of the hospital. The hospital court yard was really relaxing, mostly if you just take a simple stroll around and breathe fresh air. So after eating breakfast that morning, Tomoyo decided to do the very same thing he recommended. She walked alright, and while walking, she found an interesting secret place. It was an old abandoned bomb shelter. It was located far away from the hospital building, and was properly hidden by trees. There was a small, narrow, existing path that led to the area. Due to curiosity, Tomoyo entered the shelter. It was old alright, and in the wall in the way back, a loose brick caught her attention.

Slowly she approached the brick and slowly pulled the brick out. When she did, the empty space urged her to write a note and somehow just stick the note in. So with the notepad she got from Dr. Tereda (she carried it around with her in case she needed to communicate with people around her), she scribbled a note tore it off and stuck it inside, not knowing what's really going to happen. But she promised herself that she'll wait, until someone, maybe another magician could find this magical hiding place and one day read the letter.

She'll wait—no matter what it takes…so she'll never ever feel sad and lonely again.

…loses all his or her magic?