Disclaimer: I don't own CCS

ChiChi's Note: Hello everyone So this is later than I wanted it to be… again. I wanted to put it up on my birthday (feb 15th) but I got ridiculously sick on that day and wasn't able to get out of bed until Saturday. So yes. I apologize again. I'll try to get another chapter up by the end of the month. Enjoy.

Head up for the azn-speaking impared: 'wo ai ni' means 'I love you'

Profits et pertes

The party was magnificent. Laughter filled the great hall and couples waltzed across the dance floor with grace. It was to be admitted that the Hiiragizawa mansion did in fact have the most wonderful hall for soirées of any occasion. The hall was large enough to fit a ship within it and had a ceiling that reached high up into the heavens. The architect made the room purposely for social gatherings. The room echoed the sounds of the instruments being played and carried out the sound throughout the entire house, but not one sound would escape the house. Balconies lined three walls of the room leaving to other wall, made of glass windows and doors, to be lined with two red velvet curtains that were pushed to the side when people were present.

The Daidouji family remained on the right side of the room and the Hiiragizawa family stayed on the left; all others stayed in between. Eriol entered the room and smirked upon seeing the separation of people in the room. His eyes quickly found Syaoran and he went to him. Meilin was already deep in conversation with him, but Syaoran uninterestedly stared out into the crowds scanning it for anyone who seemed interesting. "Good evening cousin," Eriol greeted as he approached the couple. He took hold of Meilin's hand and placed a kiss on it, "And good evening to you Meilin. I do hope you're having fun."

Syaoran smirked at him before returning his attention to the dancers on the floor. "Eriol! I haven't seen you in so long!" Meilin exclaimed, "The party is wonderful. Isn't it Syaoran?"

Syaoran squinted his eyes looking far off pensively; "It would be better if we were celebrating something else."

He laughed a bit then settled his eyes on one of his sisters. Feimei was dancing with her fiancé. He was Chinese and apart of a prestigious clan back in China. He never really liked her fiancé but forced himself to be nice to him for his sister. Even though all his sisters annoyed him, he also loved them. Feimei's fiancé glanced over at him and smiled, giving him a wave. Syaoran rolled his eyes, but nodded in response. Feimei gave him a loving stare and cuddled in his arms. Syaoran shifted uncomfortably. She was the next sister to be wed. Naturally, all five siblings would have been wed by the age of fourteen, but the elders forbid it. They wanted all five of them to have solid marriages that could never waver, and also took a long time approving of those who married into the family. In his case, they wanted to make sure that the friendship between him and Meilin could last for a long time. The elders are all secretly sadists. He suddenly realized that the couple was no longer in his path of vision. Instead, his eyes laid upon a girl in a white dress with it cut just enough to reveal a pink material beneath it. A ribbon wrapped around her waist and a lace collar was attached around her neck. Behind her back, he could see a soft yellow object. He stared in awe at her beautiful Japanese features. She had a perfect skin, shining jade eyes, and short auburn hair, which he found exhilarating seeing that not many girls had short hair. He looked over at her two companions. He recognized them right away as Touya Kinomoto and Yukito Tsukishiro. He looked back at the girl, I forgot her name…what was it again? I should know this. Isn't she Tomoyo Daidouji's cousin? "Syaoran? Syaoran?!" Meilin shouted.

Syaoran snapped out of his trance and looked down at Meilin with a small smile, "Uh, what is it Meilin?"

She pouted, "Why do you look so interested in the Kinomoto family?"

Eriol's eyebrows rose at the question. A large grin appeared on his face as he noted that Sakura Kinomoto was with them. Oh? My my Syaoran, is Meilin so boring that you must gawk at your own enemy to relieve yourself? Syaoran blushed and gave a nervous laugh, "Heh I was just forgot who that girl was and it was bugging me, that's all."

Meilin's jealous eyes shot towards Sakura, but then became relieved remembering that Syaoran would never like anyone who was related to a Daidouji in any way. She laughed, "Oh, I know her. She's the only daughter of the Kinomoto family, um… Sakura. She's weird. She always has that dumb stuffed animal with her and she actually talks to it. Creepy, huh?"

Syaoran was about to reply, but Eriol interrupted, "On the contrary Meilin, it's quite extraordinary to see. It shows a sense of naivety and innocence. It's rather intriguing, don't you agree Syaoran?"

Syaoran gave a curious look, and Eriol simply replied with a knowing look. Syaoran gulped and looked at the ground, "Um, sure. Ah, Meilin, would you like to dance?"

Meilin's eyes widened, "But you never dance at parties."

He sighed, walking towards the dance floor slowly, knocking Eriol off balance purposely at the same time, "I know, but I've come to realize that a change wouldn't be so bad."

Tomoyo walked down the halls in silence with another girl. They were going to the hall, but did not talk to each other. It was an awkward silence between the two; she was a maid for the Li clan after all. Tomoyo knew her already; she had seen her before at parties that the Li clan attended. There was a small memory she had of her that made her feel like skipping merrily to the hall rather than walking. It was only a year ago when she found out.

Tomoyo walked down the hall of the Hiiragizawa mansion, once again late for another one of their parties. One of the daughters from the Li clan rushed past her, "Chaoxiang?"

She had no idea which sister it was, they all looked so similar. They all seemed to have dark brown hair and they all generally looked alike. She turned the corner and was out of sight. She heard the sound of the door ahead of her creaking open. Quickly, she hid behind a table by the wall and watched as Feimei's fiancé walked out followed by their servant. He muttered something in Chinese then sighed. He looked over at the servant and laughed, running his hand through his hair. The maid blushed and laughed as well. They continued with their conversation for another minute and the maid finally took a step away from him and bowed her head. She went to walk down the hall after Feimei, but Chaoxiang grabbed her holding her tightly to him. She suddenly heard something come out of his mouth that she recognized from hearing others from the Li clan say it. He lowered his head to her ear and closed his eyes, "Wo ai ni."

Feimei's fiancé, Chaoxiang, loved the girl who was walking beside her. Finally they reached the twin doors to the hall. The girl reached for the doorknob, but Tomoyo put a hand on the door, denying her access. The girl gave her a confused look and opened her mouth to complain, but Tomoyo gave her brightest and friendliest smile, which would make anyone stop anything out of shock. "What would you say…" she started in a calm voice, "If I told you that I knew of a way to make Chaoxiang only yours?"

Eriol walked along the walls of the hall, his gaze locked on Tomoyo Daidouji who was standing on the other side of the room. Occasionally she would begin to search the crowd, have eye contact with him and quickly bring her attention to Sakura who seemed be asking Tomoyo a lot of questions. They were both looking at Meilin and Syaoran dancing on the floor. Tomoyo seemed very uncomfortable while speaking to her cousin; she kept giving her worried stares then would occasionally bite her lip while looking at the couple. After a while her gaze would start to go into the crowds and she would spot him. A small smile began to appear on his face as she began to make it a habit. He slowly motioned towards the doors to the balcony and finally tore his eyes off of her. A small laugh escaped his lips before he went outside. The people close to the door fell silent at the rare sound of his laughter in public.

Tomoyo watched as Eriol slipped out of the room and almost felt compelled to go after him. There was something about the look he was giving her that made her intrigued. "So he's engaged to Meilin Li?" Sakura asked, sounding a bit disappointed.

Tomoyo placed her hands on her hips, "Sakura, you shouldn't even be looking at another boy, let alone your enemy."

"I… I'm not Tomoyo," Sakura giggled, "I'm very happy with Yukito, why would I like someone else?"

Tomoyo gave Sakura an unimpressed look. She opened her mouth to say something, but she finally noticed Feimei and her fiancé leave the dance floor. She prayed that the maid wouldn't chicken out from her plan. She decided to use a little technique with ultimatums. She always found them so twisted when they used it in war. Unfortunately, her plan had a 66.67 percent chance of failing, but it seemed like a risk she was going to have to take. The maid stood a few feet away from Chaoxiang, eyeing him nervously. She looked across the crowd, seeming uncertain. Tomoyo sighed; her chances were looking unpromising. She smiled at her and encouraged her with a nod. The maid nodded and then tapped Chaoxiang on the shoulder. He turned to her with a smile, and she bowed her head. As planned, Tomoyo watched as the maid asked him to go to a more private place to talk. They retreated to the balcony without raising suspicion from Feimei.

Eriol leaned against the railing on the far side of the rather large balcony, in the edge where the light from the hall did not touch. His eyes relaxed in the darker light and his head began to clear. These parties always gave him headaches. He heard two voices close by. They were speaking in Chinese. He looked over and saw Feimei's fiancé with their maid. He was not fluent in Chinese, but he knew enough to understand it. He rested his head on the railing and listened to them.

"What is it?" Chaoxiang asked.

"Chaoxiang… I can't do this anymore," the maid replied unhappily.

Eriol furrowed his brow, do what anymore? He moved closer to listen, but just enough not to be seen. Chaoxiang looked unhappy and the maid had a determined look on her face. "I'm going to resign tonight," the maid announced to him, "This is better for both of us. If you stay with Miss Feimei, then I shall assume that you do not love me anymore and I will be free to find another. If you do love me, you will go after me… and be with me… only me."

"Wh-what?" Chaoxiang sounded distressed; "You can't do that to me! I have obligations to fulfill. If I don't do it, then my parents will disown me. I love you, but I just…"

The maid's head sunk low and her eyes remained glued to the ground. Chaoxiang took her in his arms and held her close, "I'm sorry, I wish I was never born into my family, so that I could marry you and have a family and life with you."

Eriol's mouth fell open. It seemed impossible. Chaoxiang seemed like an excellent choice for Feimei. He always showed affection towards her and was always happy around her, but this was the first time Eriol had seen him look at someone with so much want. He felt almost supportive of Chaoxiang's misdeed. The maid pushed him away from her, "No! You already seem to have made up your mind, just let me leave this whole thing. Don't hurt me even more than you already have."

She stormed into the hall again, and was quickly followed by him. Eriol's heart began to beat faster as he followed the two as well, with interest. He stopped at a distance from them and listened in on what was happening. "Miss Feimei, I apologize for the inconvenience, but I fear I can no longer serve you or your family," the maid bowed her head.

"Oh no," Feimei said sadly, "Whatever for?"

The maid looked over at Chaoxiang, "Um, personal reasons. I apologize again. I shall go gather my things and leave for China tonight."

Feimei nodded uncertainly, "I shall call you a carriage in that case."

"Thank you," she said bowing her head lower this time. She left without another word. There was silence for a moment. Feimei looked slightly upset, but didn't say anything about it. Eriol sighed, just another maid lost. How sad, throwing away such a good life for love. She could have been well taken care of, and even next to the man she loved for the rest of her life, but she just had to be greedy. Marriage isn't such a big deal is it? His thoughts were interrupted by Feimei's shouts. He looked up and saw Chaoxiang running to the maid. His eyebrows rose in surprise and he grabbed her and spun her around. "Don't leave me," he cried and held her tightly to him, as if he were never going to let go of her again.

Tears flowed from both their eyes as they comforted each other in the warm embrace. Loud chatter burst throughout the room about the two showing affection for each other like that in public. All eyes turned to Feimei, who was staring at the two in disgust. Feimei began crying, her face red with humiliation. She ran out of the hall, leaving the rest of the Li clan distressed over the situation. Syaoran looked furious, but only went to follow his sister. He stopped where Eriol was and turned his head slightly to him, "He'll pay for breaking my sister's heart."

With that he stormed off, followed by Meilin. "It's sad how love can destroy a family like that," a soft voice came from beside him.

He jumped at the sound and looked over at the Daidouji heiress who had made her way beside him in some ghostly manner. Eriol looked at the couple again and nodded, "So this is the effect of true love I suppose."

"I couldn't imagine throwing away a family's reputation, just for what will probably only last a night."

Eriol smiled noting that the musicians were still playing, even though they were causing such a ruckus. He held out his hand to Tomoyo, "I can."

She giggled and took his hand. He spun her around and began to dance with her. Slowly, he could hear the voices in the room settling down. They were now being replaced with gasps of either shock or horror. "You know how to calm a crowd well Eriol," she laughed noticing it as well.

"What can I say," Eriol said proudly, "I have the qualities of a leader."

Tomoyo laughed and rolled her eyes, "Is egotism one of them?"

Eriol didn't answer. He felt like saying another word would ruin the happy air around them. An unfamiliar feeling pulsed through his veins as they danced. He felt like his heart was being released after being constricted for a long time. A small smile forced its way onto his lips against his will. She smiled back at him as well as they danced, pulling herself closer to him. He immediately stared past her at a space on the ground behind her. As soon as he managed to escape the distraction that was her beauty, his mind began to think again. I must stay focused. If I just stay calm, she won't suspect anything from me. I suppose that she's already suspicious of me, I can't encourage that thought. He looked up confidently looking around at the room filled with familiar faces. He caught sight of the Kinomoto father smiling at the sight of them dancing. Sonomi Daidouji stood beside him fuming. She slapped her fan against his arm and said something quietly but apparently furiously to him. As they moved along the floor, he began to see things in the Kinomoto family that he had never noticed before. Only now, facing them, he realized some flaws in the somewhat neutral family. The friendship between the leaders of the Daidouji and the Kinomoto families wasn't as friendly as he had believed it to be. Though Fujitaka Kinomoto smiled and tried to stay on Sonomi Daidouji's good side, he obviously failed in accomplishing the task.

He caught sight of the younger three Kinomoto standing near the dance floor talking. Sakura Kinomoto looked distressed. Her gaze fell to the floor frantically searching for something, but… her fiancé did not seem concerned. He occasionally turned his head and leaned down looking curious as to what she was doing, and sometimes he would say something to her, but his focus seemed more fixed on her older brother. Touya looked somewhat annoyed by the attention that Yukito was giving Sakura and he would also say something to her that would anger her, but he'd usually return her comment with a smirking reply. What was going on with that family?

The music ceased and the two stopped dancing. Her took hold of her hand and kissed it one more time, "You are a wonderful dancer Miss Tomoyo."

She smiled, "As are you," her eyes travelled to their grandmothers and she laughed, "They look impressed my dearest acquaintance."

Eriol straightened up and sighed, "Ah, still an acquaintance then?"

She gave him an unimpressed look, "Do you honestly think you can convince me that you're intentions are purely platonic after one dance? You must do more than that to gain my trust. How am I to believe that you are not trying to seduce me? Do you have any proof?"

Eriol rolled his eyes, "You're not easy to win over, are you? I apologize but you are very mistaken."

Her eyebrows rose, then she grinned, "Is that so? Very well Eriol, prove me wrong."

She smirked and walked off to her side of the room with the other Daidoujis. She joined Sakura who seemed still distressed, "Tomoyo, I lost Kero! I can't find her!"

Tomoyo made a surprised sound and joined in the search to find the stuffed animal. She turned around and searched the floor but saw nothing. She looked up and saw Eriol walking back to his family's side. Unconcerned, she kept searching amongst the many feet on the other side. Suddenly, silence struck the side on which the Hiiragizawa family occupied. Eriol stopped dead in his tracks. Everyone looked on in fear as they all cleared the way for two tall figures walking towards him with prestige. The man and woman approached him. Tomoyo's heart skipped a beat as she saw Eriol's mother gliding towards him beside who she supposed was his father. She rarely saw him at gatherings so she just assumed that he wasn't anyone of interest, but it appeared that she was wrong. Eriol took a step back from them which made Tomoyo's eyebrows arch in surprise. Sakura noticed her expression and touched her arm to gain her attention, "What's wrong Tomoyo?"

She was silent for another minute as she observed the scene. Eriol's head was ducked down avoiding eye contact with them. His father stopped a few steps away but his mother continued on. There was small distance between them once she stopped. Eriol's body tensed up. She could not see his face, but she could tell that Eriol was…. "He's scared," she whispered.

From behind the veil Tomoyo could sense his mother's eyes on her. She then looked down at her son and cupped his cheek in a loving manner. She raised his chin to hold his gaze to where her face was hidden and she tilted her head in what appeared to be a comforting way. She brought her left hand up and removed her silk black glove revealing a pale hand beneath it with only a ring with a shining diamond on. Everyone from his family looked uncomfortable with the situation. Tomoyo saw nothing wrong, but she knew there was definitely something happening. His mother placed two long fingers around her ring and twisted it so that it would face the other way. Eriol shook his head, but as soon as he did, there was a resounding smack that echoed throughout the room. Eriol dropped to the ground gripping at his face. No one went to help him. Tomoyo wanted to go to him and see if he was all right but she restrained herself, knowing that it would only cause more problems. His mother spun around and left the room with black trails of material flowing behind her. Eriol's father glared at him and also left. There was a moment of silence amongst the hall and they all watched as Eriol stood up, eyes still on the ground. His hairline covered his face, but people to his left gasped in horror for something else could not be hidden by the amounts of stray hairs in his face. He withdrew his hand from his cheek and revealed to the room blood dripping from his hand. He laughed mockingly at the sight of it, which made his family stare on in wonder of the boy. A maid rushed to his side holding a cloth. He wiped the blood off his hand then off his face. His head rose, uncovering the rest of his face. No tears left his eyes; those warm eyes that would welcome anyone who spoke to him for the first time. He threw the cloth to the ground and pushed his hair from his eyes. Tomoyo finally was able to see his face. She gasped as she caught sight of the cut that ran across his cheek, and his cold, hateful eyes that warded everyone away from him. A smirk played across his features at the look of total shock on the faces of everyone in the room. Without another word, he strode out of the hall, and the whole room burst out into gossip the moment he was out of sight.

With all the commotion, Tomoyo managed to slip out of the hall unnoticed. She ran down the hallway in search of Eriol and she heard voices coming around the corner. There were only two voices: Eriol's and his father's. "I am very disappointed in you my son," his father snarled.

Eriol laughed, "You cannot be serious father. All I did was dance with Tomoyo."

There was a small pause. "What is wrong with you?" his father said in a low hissing voice, "Dancing with her only shows some queer hope for peace and I refuse to allow it coming from you. I have spent too long working to build our empire and I will not let it fall because of a weak point in my own son. You will cease this ridiculous obsession with peace and most of all you will stop using such an informal way of addressing your enemy. Who did you say that girl was again?"

"Tomoyo," Eriol replied dully.

She tilted her head to the side, growing interested in their conversation. She drew near to the corner and peered around it to see the two standing a bit down the hallway. His father looked furious and brought up his giant hand to swat Eriol on the back of his head. "My apologies father, Miss Tomoyo," he corrected.

His father nodded and paced around, "Yes… that does sound familiar. Where have I heard this name before?"

"Well sir, she does live with the head of the Daidouji household," Eriol started, "Maybe grandmother mentioned her to-"

"Silence boy, it wasn't that," his father stopped pacing and gave his son a stern look, "Foolish boy. Why do you refuse to give up those damned books? If only you would stop, and then I could rest easy knowing that my son's head is not filled with these foolish thoughts."

"I'm sorry father, I will try my best to avoid them when I study," Eriol stared at the ground, "I shall think of an alternative way to learning without them tonight. Will you be here tomorrow morning?"

His father nodded, "Very well Eriol, as long as it keeps you away from the little witch of a girl."

Tomoyo frowned, how cruel. He knows nothing about me. He turned to leave down the hall, but Eriol took a brave step forward, "If I am to stop speaking about her in an informal way, you should stop speaking of her in such a demeaning way."

"Why should I?" his father said over his shoulder, "What is she to you?"

Tomoyo straightened up at the question, anxious to hear his reply. Eriol leaned against the wall, giving her a much better view of the cut that had been torn mercilessly into his left cheek, and stared down at the ground with an unhappy expression, "Acquaintances… nothing more."

His father made what sounded like a mix of approval but the desire to make Eriol stop talking. He then left leaving Eriol alone in the hallway. "Bastard," he muttered and pushed himself off the wall using his shoulder.

He walked slowly down the hall as well but was stopped when he felt a pair of arms wrap around him with a weak force, "Eriol, I'm sorry. It's my fault, I shouldn't have accepted to dance with you. Your parents wouldn't be furious with you if I didn't."

Eriol chuckled softly and patted her back softly, "Why are you apologizing? It's just my parents. Who cares what they think?"

Tomoyo pulled away from him and gave him an incredulous look, "But you got hurt? How could I not apo-"

Eriol smiled at her, "It was worth it."

It took a moment for the information to register in her brain. Eriol was willing to be embarrassed in front of everyone and have that cut on his face…for me? She blushed, feeling quite happy about her sudden realization. "Oh…" she giggled and took Eriol by the hand, "Let's go take a walk shall we?"

She began pulling him along with her as she tried to remember which way led outside, maybe…we can be just friends. She began talking about things that had been happening while he was gone and Eriol just walked by her side saying nothing and just listening. Just within moments, he was able to get closer to her and he was unable to comprehend it, but… it's a good thing I heard her footsteps around the corner.

A smirk appeared on his face, unnoticed by the happy girl beside him.

Next chapter: No Name