Disclaimer: The following fanfic will contain blatantly obvious references to Cardcaptor Sakura, it being a Cardcaptor Sakura fanfic. This is a non-profit story written for your enjoyment. Any references to any other series are also not my property.

Response to lightprincess14: I'm happy so long as people are reading, so thank you for reading and reviewing. And I'll cover a bit about the manga/anime later on. For now, the series is based on the Japanese subbed anime series. =]

Response to cheng: Thank you.

Note: It's still from Tomoyo's POV.

Don't Ask by Tomoyo Daidouji

By animefanrk2k

"This one looks good," Meilin-chan mused, eying a row of chocolate-covered fruit tarts. It's been one week since Eriol had come back to Tomoeda. Ever since he arrived, him, Meilin-chan, and myself have become an odd trio I guess. I don't know when it happened, but going to the Hiragizawa mansion in the afternoon had become our daily ritual where we would relax and chat over some snacks and homebrewed tea. Meilin-chan and I would purposely plan meetings with friends either earlier in the day or in the evenings for this. It surprised me that not only did this happen suddenly, but it felt almost natural to have tea at Eriol's home on a daily basis. Today, Meilin-chan and I were out buying some confectionery for the awaiting tea, though it was mostly Meilin-chan doing the buying. It was her idea to bring some sweets over, so I left her to decide what to buy.

"Excuse me, I'd like four of these to go!" Meilin-chan called out to one of the workers at this particular bakery while pointing at the chocolate-covered treat behind the glass counter.

The worker that came over to help was a young man that I'd guess was probably only a few years older than we are. He took a glance over Meilin-chan and apparently, he liked what he saw. "So what can I get you?" Cocky, arrogant, and you could tell from the smile on his face that he thought he was fooling everyone.

Of course, Meilin-chan couldn't care less about things like that. "I'd like four of these to go," she said, tapping on the glass in front of the fruit tarts she wanted, not even glancing at the worker.

"Uh, right away!" Pride somewhat hurt, I watched as the young man packed the four chocolate-covered fruit tarts carefully. He then placed them on the counter. "Your total is 700 yen."

As Meilin-chan counted out the coins and handed them over, the guy quite obviously tried to brush his hand with hers, probably in an attempt to make idle conversation over an apology. 'Player,' I thought. I almost snickered out loud though when Meilin-chan gave him a death glare that probably just chilled him to the bones. She dropped the coins in his hand and picked up the cakes. "Thanks," she said, an ominous smile on her face.

With that, we left the store and headed to Eriol's mansion for our sixth afternoon tea party.

Chapter 4: She Isn't Coming Back To Me

It was another afternoon at the Hiragizawa mansion. To my left sat Meilin-chan, sipping on today's lavender tea with a blissful smile. Spinel Sun, sitting across from me, was slowly working on the chocolate-covered fruit tart we had brought over. Though he protested the sweets at first, due to the fact he got drunk off of sugar, he had slowly learned to control his eating, so that he would only get mildly affected by the sugar and has come to enjoy the sweets we began bringing over. 'Like a fine brandy,' he said as a joke. Eriol sat to my right. We were situated in the den today. Since it was colder than usual outside, Eriol had a fire going, so we were pretty cozy in there. In all honesty, if I felt any more relaxed, I might actually say I enjoyed coming here on a daily basis and wouldn't mind continuing to do so all throughout the school year.

For now, we silently sipped at our tea and ate our sweets. A few of the days, we were a little louder like the first time we had arrived, but today, it felt like a good time to just enjoy ourselves peacefully. Speaking of that first time, I wondered if I should bring up the subject of Mizuki-sensei with Eriol in private. My thoughts briefly lingered to that moment and I mused if he would ever broach the subject on his own again.

However, that day would come another time, since Eriol suddenly stood up. Spinel Sun, Meilin-chan, and I all glanced at him. The three of us sent him quizzical glances, to which he replied, "It seems we have a visitor."

Sure enough, the bell to the house rang out loudly and Eriol made his way to the front door. We heard a few low voices before Eriol had come back to the den. He actually looked quite bewildered, a thing that amused me a lot more than I had thought it would. After all, making that flawless man confused was quite a feat. "Meilin-san, this guest is actually here to greet you."

Behind Eriol stood a young lady in a qipao, a Chinese-style long dress, who had long blue hair parted in the center and dark blue eyes. She flashed a brilliant smile and bowed to us before standing herself straight again, her hair falling into place once more. "Meilin-sama, it's a pleasure to be in your service again!"

Meilin-chan abruptly stood up from her chair in surprise. Spinel Sun and I looked to her. I gave her my best questioning smile. "Who is this?"

The twin-tailed girl gave a small sigh, as she looked for the right words for the situation. "Well, she's..."

The newcomer immediately took control instead. "I am sorry for my late introduction. I am Misa Mikiya, a person who has devoted myself life, body, and spirit, to Meilin-sama," she proudly pronounced.

The room went silent once more before Spinel Sun calmly put down his piece of fruit tart he was about to eat. "I remember someone once said that 'love is like a hurricane'."

I looked over to Meilin-chan. "It's okay, Meilin-chan. I am not one to judge other people's tastes in lovers. If there are a hundred people, there are a hundred ways to love."

"No, it's not like that!" Meilin-chan was blushing furiously. "She's just my bodyguard from Hong Kong!"

"Just? How can you be so cruel, Meilin-sama? After all we've been through..." Misa Mikiya pretended to tear up.

"You! Stop messing around," Meilin-chan said, pointing at said bodyguard.

After we all had settled down once more, Misa Mikiya gave her full introduction in earnest. "I am Misa Mikiya. I serve as Meilin-sama's personal attendant and bodyguard, though the 'bodyguard' part is in name only now." She smiled at Meilin-chan. "Meilin-sama is already strong enough that she doesn't require anything, but minimal assistance in combat."

I had suspected it over the years, but it seems like Meilin-chan really did become much stronger. She coughed lightly after Misa Mikiya finished her introduction. "Well, Misa, it's nice to see you and all, but what are you doing here?"

"Meilin-sama, I came here two days ago, but you never appeared at the apartment complex, so I grew worried and sought you out on my own." The Li Clan had purchased their own apartment complex here in Tomoeda. While I had no idea as to why they bought the entire building, I knew that it was the place that Li-kun and Meilin-chan were supposed to be staying when they were over here in Japan. Right now, Meilin-chan had become a temporary resident of my house.

"Oh, sorry about that. But... what was so urgent that you had to find me here?" I briefly wondered if it was strange that I had no idea how Misa Mikiya found Meilin-chan here in the first place. Perhaps, it was one of many things to be written off as a "mystery".

At Meilin-chan's question, Misa Mikiya immediately kneeled before her. "I have a class one priority, class two confidentiality message directly from Yelan Li-sama to be delivered to Representative of the Li Clan, Meilin Li-sama, as soon as possible." Yelan Li was Syaoran Li's mother and leader of the Li Clan back in Hong Kong.

"Class two confidentiality... okay, then you can relay it here. These are trusted friends of mine." Meilin-chan gave a small nod of approval to us and the three of us who were listening in also gave a small nod back to her.

Misa Mikiya didn't raise her head. "As you wish, Meilin-sama. These are the absolute orders from the Elders. Effective immediately, Meilin Li-sama is to continue her education here in Tomoeda, Japan at Seiju High School."

After the information was absorbed, we questioningly looked to Meilin-chan. It seemed that she also didn't know the reason. "Why, all of a sudden?"

Misa Mikiya continued when prompted by Meilin-chan. "Due to Meilin-sama's accomplishments in recent years as Representative of the Li Clan, the Elders have deemed Meilin-sama to be a threat to Syaoran Li-sama's succession to the household Li." Misa Mikiya finally looked up at Meilin-chan, a slightly sad expression on her face. "I am sorry, but you've really torn the family's opinions into two on who should succeed the Clan."

Apparently, Meilin-chan had become somewhat famous within her family. I had heard that she was attending meetings and such with her aunt, Yelan Li, but to think that she had actually won over influence within her family, I think it was quite the accomplishment. Meilin-chan sighed and scratched the back of her head. "Well, if it's those old geezers, I guess it can't be helped. They really worry about everything."

"There is one more thing, Meilin-sama," Misa said. We all looked to the bodyguard once more. "While this doesn't directly affect you, Meilin-sama, Yelan-sama insisted that I tell you this too." Misa paused for a moment and looked at each of us. She sighed to herself. "Effective immediately as well, both Syaoran Li-sama and Sakura Kinomoto-sama are to finish their current respective high school semesters in Hong Kong."

"What?!" Everyone was surprised at the sudden outburst and turned to the origin of it. Unfortunately, the origin was me. While I had listened calmly over the situation, I was anything but calm now. However, I took a deep breath and settled myself down. Rationality would be good. It could just be a mistake after all, right? "Sakura-chan is going to spend the next half year in Hong Kong? She has nothing to do with this, right?"

Misa Mikiya shook her head. "She has everything to do with this situation. They want to keep Meilin-sama away so that Syaoran-sama can rebuild his image and standing in the Li Clan. To do this, he needs the support of the sorceress who was able to transform the entirety of Clow Reed's magic into her own. She is a rarity in her own right, far more valuable than anything else that Syaoran-sama can show. His relationship with Sakura Kinomoto-sama is one of the few things that bolster his reputation within the Clan."

At this, I grew angry and stood from my chair. "This must be some kind of mistake! Sakura-chan isn't a commodity to be treated as 'rare' or 'valuable'. She isn't a tool, an ends to someone's means. What do you know about her?"

Misa looked straight at me. "It was Sakura-sama herself who said that she wanted to be by his side! Despite all of this, she was the one that insisted on staying behind."

At that comment, I couldn't say anything else. "Ha... ha... ha..." My empty laughter came out. Sakura-chan had made her choice a long time ago, so I thought that as long as I watched over her happiness that she would stay happy and that would become my happiness as well. However, as the years went by, I began to notice it. Even when I wasn't watching, she was happy. Even without me there anymore, she could be strong. Because, in the end, her most important person loved her back. So, she would be fine so long as Syaoran Li loved her. It was as simple as that and those words affirmed this fact once more. I had remained stagnant these past years while Sakura-chan had developed into an amazing and amazingly kind person, the kind of person that I would hold dear for the rest of my life.

"Tomoyo." Meilin-chan walked over to me.

The tears began to fall. This time, I really couldn't throw on a mask and pretend everything was okay. After all, Sakura-chan had admitted she would be fine without me, her best friend, by her side. She would be happy without me. However, I couldn't bear to be apart from Sakura-chan. She was my everything and to even be denied her face, her voice, her warmth... that was something I couldn't live without. "I know! I'll... I'll transfer to Hong Kong too. I can transfer schools and I'm sure mother has business relations around the world, so..."

Meilin-chan hugged me tightly. "Tomoyo," she whispered. Her voice was soothing, almost like my mother's voice was whenever she comforted me. I hugged her back and cried. The lap that I had lent to Meilin-chan so many years back was now returned with interest as I cried what I felt was a lifetime's worth of tears into Meilin-chan's shoulder.

When my eyes opened again, it was already dark. After my total breakdown from before, I had grown tired and must have fainted. Right now, I was still in the Hiragizawa mansion, but in a guest room. My clothing was changed into what appeared to be pajamas. I assumed that they were probably one of Ruby Moon's old sets.

As I sat up, a knock came from the door and Misa Mikiya walked in, a tray of food in her hand. Apparently, I had given her a dirty look because she chuckled and placed the tray of food on the nightstand next to the bed. "Please don't glare at me like that, Tomoyo-sama." I looked away from her and concentrated on the folds of the bed sheet I was under. We passed a few moments in silence, me sitting on the bed and her standing next to it. Finally, it was she who had broken the silence between us. "I am terribly sorry about before."

She bowed her head to me and I looked over at her. I thought for sure that she would simply say that she was just being the messenger and all of that. "Why?"

Misa raised her head and looked directly at me. She had an apologetic look on her face. "Meilin-sama admonished me. However, I would have come to apologize even without Meilin-sama's punishment." She kneeled down next to bed. I didn't realize it, but she was pretty tall. She could probably pass as a model without problems. "Tomoyo-sama, I was able to speak with Sakura-sama before I left to come to Tomoeda."

"Eh?"

"Yes, she was a very strange girl, to the point where I couldn't believe she was the sorceress of the former Clow Cards." I noticed that the smile on Misa's face was different from the few she had shown before. It seemed to speak of age and wisdom. "She was a girl with a big heart and strong will. Excuse me for saying this, but the Li Clan has many dark secrets about it. I was worried that they might use her like they used resources like me." Misa shook her head. "I'm sorry. Meilin-sama would scold me if I spoke of myself like that."

I got a clearer picture of the type of person Misa Mikiya was while she continued to speak to me. She was used by the Li Clan as a weapon, a tool, which upon failure could be discarded for a better tool. In that regard, she was no better than a "resource". However, upon meeting Meilin-chan, Meilin-chan had taught her about being your own person, about having pride in individuality, and to accept the fact that humans are beings capable of emotion.

"Oh, I'm sorry that I went about it in such a long way," Misa finally said about ten minutes down the line. "When I voiced my concerns to Sakura-sama that she may be used in such a way, she told me only these words: 'I'll definitely be all right'."

I couldn't help but smile at that. Indeed, those words were Sakura's magical spell in times of crisis. She told herself to the point where she now believed it that no matter what happens, she would be all right. In the end, she had just been the Sakura-chan she always was and Li-kun was in need of her so that he too could be strong to the Elders of the Li Clan. I sighed, admitting in my heart that perhaps I had overreacted a tad before. If Sakura-chan was need by her most important person, then I, as her best friend, had to understand and accept that. "Thank you," I whispered.

"Oh, not at all, Tomoyo-sama. I hope the food meets your tastes. Meilin-sama has already contacted your household, so they won't worry if you spend the night out." With that, the strange bodyguard left.

Still, I didn't have much of an appetite and now that I've calmed down, I really did feel quite tired. I laid back down in bed and went to sleep. It was a dreamless, dark sleep.

Author's Notes:

This chapter is a plot twist chapter, adding an element to help move the story on for successive chapters. In addition, this adds the inclusion of a character of my creation. I played around with potential Clan politics a lot and I hope I didn't offend anyone with the notion of people using other people as tools and whatnot. I know I painted the Li Clan's Elders in an unfavorable light here, but bear with it. There is good and bad in everything, after all.

Tomoyo became very emotional here, which makes sense because there is never a time where she spends any extended periods away from her beloved Sakura.

To address the issue of manga versus anime (Japanese) versus anime (English), this is based upon the Japanese anime version. Things of note are the inclusion of Meilin Li in the story, the fact that many of the existing relationships are only hinted at and not explicitly stated but DO exist, and details about the Li Clan such as Yelan Li, Syaoran's mother, and such. So if anything confuses you, feel free to ask. =]

As always, questions, comments, and criticisms are welcome.

Until next chapter,

animefanrk2k