Two or three minutes passed,
But to everyone it felt like ages...
...
As all remnants of the chaos energy disappeared from Eriol's body,
And all the forcefully taken souls were finally able to leave it...
...
Flying back towards their' own bodies...
...
...
As Eriol opened his eyes he found Sakura standing before him,
She was unusually quiet with her head lowered and eyes downcast...
...
He wondered why she was acting like this,
As if she was feeling guilty for something...
...
Why would she be...?
"...I think that Sakura-san feels guilty about what happened to the Hope card...", He heard Clow suddenly say in a sad voice, "...That's why she is so quiet and can't look you in the eyes..."
...
Which explained it...
...
Knowing Sakura-san...
...
She would hate herself for not being strong enough,
And feeling like she indirectly killed the Hope card...
...
Even though it wasn't her fault at all...
...
-...It's okay, Sakura-san. You did all you could. -Eriol said with a serene smile on his face, as he lifted her chin up before letting go. -Thank you for stopping me...
He added as he looked at everyone around him,
As his expression shifted to that of sadness and remorse...
...
*He didn't want to make them even sadder that they already were,
They already suffered enough through this whole situation...
...
But his magic was gone now,
And being a magically sustained reincarnation...
...
Meant that he didn't have much time left...
...
He already started to feel weak,
And had trouble keeping his eyes open...
...
"...You know as well as I do, that there was no other way...", Clow sadly said, before sighing deeply, "...To think that I will hurt them all again..."
...
He knew,
But still...
...
They won't...
...
Take it well...
...
At all...
...
...
Some more...
...
Than...
...
Others...
-...Eriol-kun…? -Sakura asked in worry, noticing that he suddenly became very quiet and distracted. Was it her imagination, or did he also seem like he was getting weaker...? -...Is everything alright...?
Suddenly "Audiomachine - The second hand ticks" started playing,
Which made everyone pause in foreboding...
...
Why was there music playing again...?
...
And why was it a sad one this time...?
-...I...I am...Sorry...-Eriol managed to sadly say, as his eyes started to close and he started to weakly fall down. -...Every...One...
He fell to the ground with a thud,
And soon went completely still...
...
To everyone's shock and horror...
-ERIOL-KUN! -Sakura frantically yelled in worry, as she dropped to his side and started shaking him. -ERIOL-KUN! WAKE UP, ERIOL-KUN!
There were a few seconds of silence,
As Sakura started checking him over...
...
Until her eyes suddenly widened in horror...
-...E-Eriol-kun is...H-he is...N-not breathing...-Sakura weakly shuttered, as her whole body started to shake and she started crying again. -...E-Eriol-kun is...D-dead...!
Seconds after the words left Sakura's lips,
Yue rushed to her left side in a blur of motion...
...
He dropped by Eriol's body,
And started to frantically look it over...
...
Searching for any,
However small,
Sights of life...
…
Sakura also heard Ruby Moon crying on her right,
Desperately yelling for her master to wake up...
...
The others soon joined them,
Worryingly surrounding Eriol's body,
While the cards hovered around them in concern...
...
It took a few more seconds until Yue paused,
As he was quietly holding Eriol' right hand...
-...H-he is still alive...T-thought barely...-Yue gravely said with a shaky voice, as he clutched Eriol's right hand harder. -...C-Clow's presence is weak...-He quietly added, while trying to hold back tears. He didn't want to believe it...No...N-not again...-...A-and fading fast...
There were a few seconds of silence,
As everyone we stunned by what they just heard...
-...I-I thought that the "chaos energy" was gone...-Sakura finally shuttered, not quite believing what she was seeing and hearing. -...I-I thought that everything is going to be alright now...-She admitted, more and more confused and scared by the second. -...S-so why...W-why is Eriol-kun…D-dying...?
-That's because he is a magically sustained reincarnation. -A familiar voice was suddenly heard behind them, surprising everyone since they were either too distracted(Yue and Ruby Moon) or too low on magic(Everyone else) to feel her magical presence. -...Just like I am.
-...S-Shui-san...? Y-you are okay now...? -Sakura said in shock, surprised to see her here. -...A-and what do you mean by a "magically sustained reincarnation"...? -She asked in confusion, looking between Shui and the unresponsive Eriol. -...W-what does it have to do with Eriol-kun…?
-...Eriol told you that to make the "chaos energy" disappear you have do deplete his magic, right...? -Shui thoughtfully said while looking at the guardians, before sighing heavily. And they didn't even think about questioning him...-...He conveniently "forgot" to mention that his own magic is what's keeping him alive...-She added in a grave voice, as she was looking at Eriol's unmoving body. -...And now that it's gone, he is gradually starting to disappear...
Everyone's eyes widened in shock at her explanation,
While Yue's eyes widened in realization...
...
So that's why, at the time,
He felt as if there was something horribly wrong...
-...S-so when we got rid of the chaos energy...E-Eriol-kun's magic was...? -Sakura realized in horror, as she felt herself unable to stop crying. -...A-and now he is going...T-to disappear because of that...?
She couldn't believe it...
...
Eriol-kun knew about it,
He knew that he would die if his magic was gone...
...
Yet he asked her to get rid of it,
So that the "chaos energy" would be gone...
...
He asked her to indirectly kill him...!
...
...
"Let's celebrate the New Year when all of this is over"
…
And he also lied to her...!
...
He said that the he would be okay if the "chaos energy" was gone!
...
H-HE LIED TO ALL OF THEM!
-IF YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS, WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US FROM THE VERY BEGGINING?! -Kereberos suddenly yelled in rage, as he transformed into his lion form and almost pounced on Shui. -I KNEW IT! I KNEW THAT YOU COULDN'T BE TRUSTED!
There were a few seconds of silence,
As Shui looked at him in apparent shock...
...
Which soon turned to rage...
-DO YOU THINK THAT I DIDN'T TELL YOU ON PURPOSE?! I WAS REINCARNATED ONLY A FEW DAYS AGO! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW DISORIENTED I WAS?! -Shui yelled back, mad at the apparent accusation. HOW DARE HE THINK THAT SHE WANTED THIS TO HAPPEN! DIDN'T HE KNOW THAT SHE WAS STILL IN LOVE WITH CLOW REED?! -...THEN THE WHOLE "CHAOS ENERGY" SITUATION WAS GOING ON AND WE WERE SOON ATTACKED BY THOSE CHAOS MONSTERS! -She saw how shocked Kereberos became, but she was too mad to care! -ONLY WHEN I FELT MYSELF WEAKEN WHEN BLOCKING THE TITAN MONSTER'S ATTACK DID I REALIZE WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MAGICALLY SUSTAINED REINCARNATION! -Now everyone were shocked by her outburst…-...BUT, BY THEN IT WAS ALREADY TOO LATE FOR ME TO TELL YOU ANYTHING, SINCE I FEEL UNCONSCIOUS SOON AFTER! -She suddenly started to cry. -I-I COULD ONLY ENTER THAT IDIOT'S "MIND" AND YELL AT HIM FOR BEING SUCH A STUPID FOOL AND MAKING EVERYONE WORRY!
That shocked everyone into silence,
As the only sounds were those of crying...
-...E-Eriol-kun...E-Eriol-kun is dying...-Sakura mumbled in anguish, as she was crying heavily now. -...A-and I can't share my magic with him...B-because I don't have much of it myself...R-right now...I-I...
She started to hate herself...
...
During this whole "chaos energy" situation,
She couldn't save innocent people from dying in pain...
...
Syoran-kun lost his right hand saving her,
From an attack she was too unobservant to notice...
...
The Hope card sacrificed herself,
Because she wasn't strong enough to stop the "chaos energy"...
...
And now she couldn't save Eriol-kun from dying,
Even thought she was the one who indirectly...!
-H-hoe...? -Sakura wondered aloud, as she suddenly saw the Light card hovering right before her face. -...W-what is it...?
She asked the card in confusion...
...
In reply the card floated from her to Eriol's body,
And stayed floating above it...
-...Y-you know how to help Eriol-kun…? -Sakura asked in hope, as she stopped crying for the moment. -...Y-you know how we can save him...? -The card floated up and down in confirmation. -...T-then, let's do it, Light! -She determinately said, before pausing as she noticed the concerned looks sent her way. -...I-I am going to be fine...-She reassured everyone as she readied her star wand, thought she also noticed that no one really tried to stop her. -...R-right now, I...I have to help Eriol-kun…! -She determinately said, as the Light card floated up to her. She had to do it, because she may not have another chance...! -...Help me save Eriol-kun, Light!
She yelled while activating the card,
Which turned into a beautiful woman...
...
She reassuringly smiled at Sakura,
Before turning into light and entering Eriol's body...
...
Disappearing inside of it soon afterwards...
-...I hope that everything...Will turn out alright...-Sakura weakly said, Syoran catching her before she could drop to the ground. -...Thank you...Syoran-kun...