Chapter 14

"I think something is wrong with me." Sakura said over the phone three days later.

"What do you mean? Are you alright?" Eriol asked with concern in his voice.

"I'm okay, but Yukito came over for dinner today and I, uh, I don't even know how to describe this. I could feel something between him and Touya. It's like," Sakura thought of how she could best describe what she felt, what she saw. "It's like I could see their feelings, which is super weird, right? I mean, feelings cannot be seen, but I could see it from the way they look at each other and… I don't know!" Sakura huffed in frustration.

There was silence on the other side. "I'm going over tomorrow morning."

"Okay, but do you think it's okay? Is it something that I need to worry about?" Sakura asked worriedly.

"It's nothing to worry about, Sakura. I know what's going on. You're fine. But it's a little too complicated to be explained over the phone." He assured her.

Sakura sighed in relief. "Okay then. I'll see you in the morning."

"What's going on with me then?" Sakura asked him the next morning. They were sitting together on the sofa.

"It's your Gift." Eriol said simply. "Or rather, the manifestation of your Gift."

"My Gift?" Sakura was surprised.

Eriol nodded. "Have you ever heard of something called an empath?"

Sakura shook her head, "No. What's that?"

"Essentially, an empath is someone who can feel other people's emotion, down to the last details. They could feel emotions and often took them as their own. Thus, they could get overwhelmed easily with other people's emotions. They could see emotions almost as if they're tangible."

Sakura's eyes widened. "That's… That's what I felt last night! I could see Touya and Yukito's feelings as if they're tangible! Am I an empath?"

"No, you're not. But you have something similar. Instead of all kinds of emotions, you can feel love and affection."

Sakura blinked. "Uh…?"

"The Gift of the heart can manifest itself in many different forms, Sakura. Yours happens to manifest in the form of love. Love itself has different types, couples, parents, siblings, friends, et cetera. Some people could feel what you felt last night, but it might not be as strongly. The reason yours is so strong is because your Gift is made stronger by your magic."

"So, I can 'see' love?" Sakura asked.

"In a way, yes." He nodded.

"That's… weird." Sakura said. "Are you sure it's not just a coincidence?"

"Saku, look at me." Eriol told her. Sakura looked at him and then she could see it; his love for her. It was in the way he looked at her, in his expression; it was in him. It was so intense, so passionate, and yet, so gentle. It was the best thing that she had ever experienced, and she doubted she would ever come across anything better than this.

"Sakura?" Now he looked alarmed.

Sakura blinked and realized that there were tears in her eyes. "Eriol, I… You…" She was at loss of words.

"What is your Gift telling you, Saku?" He asked her gently.

"That, that you love me very much." Sakura sniffled slightly.

"That's right." He said softly as he reached to wipe her tears. "That, I do."

"Will it always be like this?" Sakura asked him a few minutes later after she had calmed down.

"No. Over time, you'll be able to control it better. You'll also get used to it more. With time, it might also develop, and you might discover new things." Eriol said. "But it won't be like this with other people. You got slightly overwhelmed because your own emotions are reacting to mine."

Sakura nodded. "You never told me anything about Gifts before."

"No, I'm sorry. This is a large topic and I also wasn't sure how to approach this, given your own Gift and how it manifests itself."

"Does everyone have a Gift?" Sakura asked. She knew Touya had it too.

"No, not everyone has a Gift. Some have a few, others don't have any. There are many types of Gifts. Yours is the Gift of the heart, there's also the Gift of sight, that's Touya's Gift, the Gift of the mind, music, divination, healing, et cetera. Some of those Gifts also manifest in different forms. Like you, an empath has the Gift of the heart, but the Gift manifests itself in a different way than yours."

"What is your Gift?" Sakura asked curiously. Sakura remembered Kero said Clow, and essentially Eriol too, was extremely gifted.

"I have many, but my strongest Gift is the Gift of the mind. The Gifts of the mind and the heart are considered as the strongest and the most complicated Gifts. They have many different forms and expressions. When it's related to magic, like ours, it gets even more complicated because it usually becomes the purest form of our magic. It becomes the 'fuel', the basic ingredient of our magic."

"The purest… Clow mentioned it too. He said that the purest form of black magic is hatred." Sakura recalled.

"Yes. That's how you managed to help me." Eriol said. "Because the purest form of your magic is love. That's how you created The Love card. Black magic was fueled by hatred. Essentially, you… cleansed me."

"What is the purest form of your magic then?" She asked.

"Knowledge. The more knowledge I have, the stronger I get. That's why I keep on learning." Eriol told her. "Besides, logically, the more I know about magic, the better I am at it."

Sakura nodded. "I see… If I could sense love, does it mean that I can tell if someone is lying about love?"

"You can. Soon, you'll also learn how to recognize different kinds of love and its intensity. Unfortunately, it's not something that I can teach you. But your Gift will not lie to you, Sakura. Trust it." He paused. "There's also something that you need to know about your new card." Eriol continued. "Tell me, how did you create it?"

"Uh… I," Sakura blushed slightly. "I thought about you, about what we have, how happy we are, about my feelings for you. I thought about the things that we've been through together. I just let myself feel." She blushed more as she said it.

"So, you created it by using our memories." Eriol summarized.

"I suppose so." Sakura nodded.

"This new card, it's different from the others. Its strength and power come from your emotions, not your magical energy." Eriol said.

"So, when I want to use it, I just have to… think of you?" Sakura looked confused.

"Think of your emotions, Sakura. For me, for your family, for your friends, for everyone that you love and care about." Eriol smiled. "The stronger your feeling is, your love is, the stronger the card is."

"I understand." Sakura said. "You're right. This is a large topic and I think there are still a lot of it that I don't know."

"We'll talk more about it as we come across it." He told her. "Now, what do you say we bake a cake today?"

They checked the pantry to see if they needed to buy more ingredients, which they did, so, they left to get some ingredients.

"Oh, then maybe we can get lunch outside too." Sakura was alone at home today since both her Dad and her brother were working during the day. Touya worked all summer because he was saving up to get his own place.

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"Guys!" Tomoyo called her friends as she spotted them.

Sakura and the others stopped walking and waited for Tomoyo to join them.

"Sorry I'm late." Tomoyo apologized. Everyone was there, Sakura, Naoko, Rika, Chiharu, Yamazaki, and Eriol. They had all agreed to go to the summer festival together this year seeing that this was the first time that everyone could make it.

"It's okay, Tomoyo." Sakura smiled at her. "We just got here ourselves."

The group started walking. All of the girls were in yukata of various colours and patterns. Eriol was wearing a simple short-sleeved blue and white checkered shirt and jeans and Yamazaki was wearing a hooded vest over a T-shirt and jeans. Both guys were sporting a pair of sneakers on their feet.

They walk along the path, stopping by the various booths to play some games or buy some foods. In between the booths, Chiharu was busy separating Yamazaki from Eriol when they started to approach other festival goers with unsolicited facts.

At the end of the festival, they gathered around at the plaza to watch the fireworks.

"That was great!" Sakura said as Eriol walked her home.

"It was." He agreed. "And you look very cute."

Sakura blushed slightly. "Stop saying silly things…" She said shyly.

He chuckled. "I've been wanting to say that for years." He said, making her blush even more.

They reached her house. "I'll see you tomorrow." He said.

"See you tomorrow. Be careful walking home." Sakura told him.

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"Let's go!" Sakura said excitedly. She and her friends had just arrived at the newly renovated amusement park.

"It looks very nice!" Naoko commented as they looked around. The park had been undergoing a major renovation for the past couple of years and it was now back with new and improved rides.

"It sure is! What should we do first?" Chiharu asked. "Let's try the roller coaster."

They made their way to the roller coaster and joined the line. Not unexpectedly, Eriol and Yamazaki started talking about the history of roller coaster. Fifteen minutes later, they were seated securely in the cars. Sakura sat with Tomoyo and the attendant secured their seatbelts. "This is so exciting, isn't Sakura?" Tomoyo said to her friend.

Sakura nodded. Personally, Sakura didn't have any strong opinion about roller coaster. She didn't love it, but she didn't dislike it either. It was just a neutral experience. She glanced back and saw Eriol sits with Yamazaki. She wasn't sure how he'd do with roller coaster. Eriol said he had never ridden any before. Hopefully he'd be okay. Sakura would've preferred to sit with him, but Tomoyo had slid into the seat next to her instead.

After the ride, everyone got off and Sakura quickly checked on her boyfriend.

"What do you think of the roller coaster?" Sakura asked him as they walked towards the next ride.

"It was okay. I don't love it, but I don't hate it either." Eriol said. "Yamazaki doesn't like it though." They looked at Yamazaki, who was looking slightly pale.

Sakura smiled. "It's okay for me too. Not something that I'd get excited about, but not something that I would avoid."

They went for a few more rides and then went to the food court to have lunch.

"Hm…" Sakura looked at the overhead menu at one of the food stalls.

"Can't decide?" Eriol asked as he stood beside her.

"The hot dog looks nice, but the burger looks yummy too. What are you getting?" Sakura asked.

"The burger. I'm going to get a set meal with fries and soda." Eriol said. He was waiting for her to decide before placing an order.

"Hm, okay. I'll get the burger too, also with the set." Sakura finally decided.

"Two burgers with the set meals, please." Eriol told the person behind the counter. He took out his wallet and paid for their meals.

They stood there and waited for their orders. Once they got their orders, they took their trays and went in search of their friends. It looked like everyone was scattered as Tomoyo and Rika were sitting at one small table, and the others in another. Seeing an opportunity to have some alone time, Sakura and Eriol sat down at one of the tables at the corner.

"Yummy!" Sakura said as she took a bite of her burger.

Eriol smiled as he ate his own burger.

"It almost feels like a date, almost." Sakura told him.

"Close enough." He agreed with a smile. "At least we get to eat alone. I'll take whatever I can get."

"I think that as long as we don't hold hands or anything, nobody would suspect a thing, not even Tomoyo. They know we've been best friends for a while now." Sakura had done some little experiments to test out how far they could push things. It looked like nobody actually suspected anything, even when they were spending so much time alone together.

"Right, so no handholding, no hugging, no kissing." He smiled widely as Sakura blushed. "You better not blush either, Saku. Daidouji would get suspicious if you blush too much around your 'best friend'." He smirked and Sakura threw a fry at him.

"You're so mean." She scolded him lightly, still blushing slightly. "But yeah. I think as long as we don't do those things, we'll be okay."

They chatted as they ate and then afterwards, they rejoined their friends who had finished their lunch too.

They continued to walk around, trying out various rides, until they reached the haunted house.

"Let's do this!" Naoko said excitedly, too excitedly.

"Oh, this looks like fun!" Rika said.

"Uh…" Sakura looked at the darkened building. She didn't want to go in, but her friends seemed excited. If she opted to wait outside, she knew Eriol would've stayed with her. And he would be missing all the fun.

"I think I'm going to wait outsi…" Eriol started, knowing Sakura wouldn't want to go in, but his words were cut off by Sakura herself.

"Let's go." Sakura said. She didn't want him to miss all the fun because she was scared of some fake ghosts.

Eriol turned to her sharply. "Are you sure?" He asked, frowning. Even Tomoyo was looking at Sakura doubtfully.

"It's all fake, right? Just people dressing up in costumes." Sakura forced a smile on her face. "Nothing to be scared of."

"That's the spirit, Sakura! And yes, they're all fake. Like Halloween in America." Naoko said encouragingly.

Sakura nodded. "Let's go then." She put on her bravest face, although she was feeling terrified in the inside.

The group walked towards the entrance and joined the line. Since there were seven of them, they had to be divided into two groups. Sakura, Eriol, Tomoyo and Naoko were in one group and Rika, Chiharu and Yamazaki in another.

They reached the front of the line and the first group to go in was Sakura's group. They walked past the door and was enveloped in darkness. The room had some lighting effects that made it more eerie.

"Uh…" Sakura started to regret her decision. This looked scarier than she thought.

"It's okay, Sakura. It's just dark. Don't be scared." Tomoyo tried to assure her friend. They started walking. Suddenly, there was a skeleton jumping out from the side and Sakura thought she was going to have a heart attack. Her hand instinctively reached for Eriol's hand. She didn't care if Tomoyo or anyone else found out about them. She needed him.

Eriol caught her hand and held it in his own, secret be damned. He regretted not insisting that she wait outside and now, she was scared and they only just started.

They continued to walk and reached the next room. This room was darker than the previous one and Sakura could feel her heart pounding in her chest. They walked a few paces and then a scary looking creature jumped right in front of Sakura, making her scream and just like that, she panicked. She let go of Eriol's hand and ran off.

"Sakura!" Tomoyo called her friend, but then she saw Eriol taking off as well. Tomoyo wanted to run after them, but Naoko's voice stopped her.

"It's my fault." Naoko said. "I shouldn't have insisted."

Tomoyo was torn. On one hand, she wanted to make sure Sakura was okay, but on the other hand, she couldn't just leave her friend here alone in the dark. Finally, deciding that Eriol would go to Sakura, Tomoyo stayed with Naoko. As much as she disliked the guy, she had to admit that he was one of Sakura's friends and he seemed to care about her.

"It's okay, Naoko. Come on, let's just get to the end, okay?" Tomoyo said comfortingly.

Meanwhile, Sakura ran blindly along the path. Her one and only goal was to get out of this place, fast. After what seemed like forever, she finally reached the exit. Sakura burst out of the door, but she didn't stop running.

"Sakura!" She heard Eriol calling her and only then did she slow down. Sakura turned around and saw him running towards her. When he reached her, he pulled her into his arms at the same time that she reached for him. "You're okay… It's alright now. I'm here, it's alright." He told her soothingly.

Sakura hugged him tightly, burying her face in his shirt, seeking comfort from him.

"It's okay. You're okay…" He tried to calm her down.

After a minute, Sakura pulled back. "I know it was fake. I know. But it was dark and it was scary and…" She almost cried. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?" Eriol asked.

"Because, because I ruined it for you. It's your first trip to amusement park and I want you to have fun…" Sakura said quietly.

Eriol was shocked. "Dear god, Saku. Is that why you insisted on going inside?"

Sakura nodded meekly. "I didn't want you to miss the fun just because I'm scared of the dark and fake ghosts. But I ruined it anyway…"

Eriol placed his hands on her shoulders. "Look at me, please." He asked and waited until she looked at him. "If we're going to have fun, we're going to have fun together. How am I going to have fun if you're scared? I won't be having any fun if you're uncomfortable, Saku. If you're scared, we're not going to do it because your well-being is very important. So, please don't do that again, understand?"

Sakura nodded. "I understand."

"No more haunted houses or anything else that makes you uncomfortable." Eriol said firmly.

"Okay." Sakura said, smiling slightly, which he returned.

"Come on, let's sit down and we'll wait for the others." Eriol led her to the bench.

A few minutes later, Tomoyo and Naoko joined them.

"I'm so sorry, Sakura!" Naoko apologized to her.

"It's okay, Naoko. It's not your fault. I was the one who wanted to go in." Sakura assured her friend.

They waited for the rest of the group and once everyone was gathered together, they decided to call it a day seeing that it was almost 4pm. They walked towards the exit and went to the train station. They rode the train back to their station and then they went their separate ways.

Sakura and Eriol walked together towards her house. Fujitaka and Touya wouldn't be having dinner at home, so Eriol would join her for dinner. Ten minutes later, they reached her house and they started preparing for dinner.

"It wasn't all those things that scared me. It was how dark it was. It was so dark and I couldn't see anything and…" Sakura said as she stirred the soup.

"I understand." Eriol said gently. "It's okay to be scared, Saku. There's nothing wrong with that. Everyone is scared of something. That's human nature."

"You're not scared of anything." Sakura pointed out.

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Eriol asked.

"Well, you're you." Sakura said as she added some salt into the pot.

"That doesn't mean I'm not scared of anything." He said as he stirred the vegetables.

"Okay, so what are you scared of?" Sakura asked curiously.

"Losing you." He paused briefly. "If anything happens to you, if you get hurt, or worse, and there's nothing that I could do. That's what scares me the most because what's the point of being me if I can't protect the one person that matters to me the most?"

Sakura was speechless. That was unexpected.

Eriol was quiet for a few moments, but then he said, "You see, nobody is above fear, Saku, not even I. It's okay if you're scared of the dark or scary stories or anything else, just remember that you don't have to face it alone, that I'm going to be there with you, okay?"

Sakura looked at him and gave him a bright smile. "Okay."

He smiled back at her and they continued to cook dinner. But a few minutes later, after they were done, Sakura went to him and wrapped her arms around him. "Saku?"

"When you were hurt a few weeks ago, I was scared too. I was so scared that I was going to lose you." Sakura pulled back slightly to look at his face but she kept her arms around his waist. "I'm not as powerful as you are, but let's protect and take care of each other, okay? Because I can't lose you either."

Eriol looked at her and then he smiled and wrapped his arms around her. "Okay." He said simply as he kissed her hair. "I love you."

"Me too." She still couldn't say the words, but that was okay.

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The rest of the summer holiday went by quickly. Sakura and Eriol were happier than ever and they hung out practically everyday at each other's houses. Sometimes they went out to get ice cream or other. At this point, they had stopped caring too much about other people finding out, but since they only went between their houses, they didn't run into anyone that they knew.

"Aargh! My homework!" Sakura was panicking as she remembered that she hadn't done most of the homework and today was the last day of summer holiday.

"Why are you always like this?!" Kero scolded her.

"I did some of them, Kero, but not all of them. I'm glad I'm on track for the journal though, at least there's that, right?" Sakura opened her books and was relieved to see that she had done at least half of her summer homework.

"No! Geeze, Sakura… Seriously?!" Kero couldn't believe that his Mistress had not changed at all. She was going to high school next year! "No, I'm not going to help you with them now." Kero noticed the pleading look on Sakura's face. "Ask Eriol."

"He'll just scold me…" Sakura said. He had reminded her to do her homework, but every time she sat down at her desk, she ended up daydreaming about going on a date with him or just being outside.

"Can't say you don't deserve that." Kero said.

"Please, Kero? Pretty please? I'll buy you that cake that you like from the bakery." Sakura tried to bargain with her guardian.

Kero's eyes twitched. "The chocolate one?"

Sakura nodded her head repeatedly. "The chocolate one."

Kero looked conflicted for a while before he finally said with resignation. "Why do you always do this to me?"

"Thank you, Kero!" Sakura hugged her guardian.