Chapter 3: Losing you At the Wrong Time
The two watched as Tomoyo left them to attend her choral practice. It was obvious that she had found out about Kaho, but it seemed to them that she knew more than they had. "I'll kill him," Li growled. "How could he do this to her? I told him to leave her alone." "Eriol told us it was all an accident. We shouldn't blame him or anyone else," Sakura said. Then they remained silent as they walked home. "I've got an idea!" she brightened up. Li nearly jumped out of his skin at the girl's sudden change of expression. "Well whatever it is, I'm sure I don't want to be in it," Li said. He was sensing that her idea wasn't really an idea. More of a plot to destroy the world. Sakura pouted. "But you haven't heard what I've got to say!" "Then I don't want to hear it." She ignored him. "Why don't we use the Time and Return card?" If Li was shocked, then that wasn't what showed on his face. It was more of mortification and dread upon impending doom. "The Time and Return card? You mean you're going to send Eriol back to London and change everything before it happens?" She nodded. "But it's not just going to be me. The two of us are going to be in this. I can't just use all of my powers. I need your share so that I won't be drained too much." Li groaned. He knew he should've left immediately before he heard more of the crazy girl's plans. But then again, if Sakura did it all by herself, he'd be in more anxiety when she suddenly absented from school because of major energy drain. And that's the one thing he doesn't want to happen to Sakura. "Fine, I'll go. But that doesn't mean I'm in to your plans. I'm just worried about what might happen to you if I didn't." Sakura gave him a huge bear hug.
They knew Eriol would be passing the Tsukimine Shrine on his way home. Sakura nodded to Li. After they had worked everything out last night, they were sure it would work. All they had to do is get his attention.
That Saturday afternoon, Eriol decided to go visit Kaho and ask her if they could work things out faster. So that he didn't have to hurt Tomoyo any more. He suddenly winced at the memory of the other day. Tomoyo's sweet face was awash with tears. How he longed to hold them again and ask her if, she could forgive him. But he knew Tomoyo would run away again if she knew he was nearby. And it hurt him so much too see her flee away from him, not understanding what she saw. Eriol climbed up the long set of stairs that led to the temple. His legs were becoming very weary but his mind wasn't aware of it. He kept walking up. As he neared the top, he heard sounds of a broom being dragged along the ground. Kaho's there, he thought. Good, maybe we could finish the business once and for all. He caught sight of a blue dress moving about as he stood at the entrance. He wasn't sure if he knew who it was because it was standing far away. He cleared his throat. "Excuse me."
The broom dropped as its holder stopped. A shocked face of Tomoyo Daidouji greeted Eriol.
"Yes?" Tomoyo asked. What's he doing here? The answer immediately hit her. "Are you here to see Kaho?"
Eriol could visibly see that she tensed up. He didn't know that Tomoyo volunteered to do some temple chores. But he saw an opportunity. "No. I came to see you."
She swallowed a lump in her throat. "Excuse me? I think I you said, me?" "You heard me correctly. I came to see you. And I hope you won't run away again before I finish explaining myself." Tomoyo was still baffled. How did he know that she came here? Kaho couldn't have told him, did she? "How did you know I was here?" He wasn't going to allow her questions delay him again. "It doesn't matter." He started walking towards her, before she could think of getting away. Tomoyo knew he was serious about this. She started to feel afraid when his piercing gaze held her in place. She quickly mustered strength and picked up the broom. And swatted him with full force before running off into the forest. Eriol staggered sideways. He didn't see that one coming. When he focused back on her, all he saw was a figure running away. He was quite irked at being tricked. But nevertheless, he went after her in full speed.
Tomoyo heard footsteps behind her. He was quickly catching up, and she panicked. She quickly turned left into a darker grove of trees and hid behind a big tree. Eriol's steps faded past her and it went off straight- ahead, completely missing her. She sighed. How long would she keep on doing this? Why can't she face him and hear him out to end this problem? Why was she so weak? She could've just stayed there and listened. Then he'd go away and never bother her. But why couldn't she bear the thought of losing him forever? Did she still love him? A tear unconsciously fell down on the ground. She was walking aimlessly around the forest, not knowing that danger lurked nearby. An impending threat to her life and destiny was about to come when she stumbled upon an old stone carving on the forest floor.
Meanwhile, Sakura and Li had been successful in having the cherry tree to use. Kaho wasn't in sight but they were sure they weren't going to bother anything. Now the only thing that was bothering Li was, "Where's Eriol? I'm sure he was around here when we saw him." Sakura quickly thought this over and came upon a quick solution. "Maybe if we concentrate hard enough on his image, maybe we can use that as a substitute instead of having him here in person. After all, he's not going to like the idea of being sent back by force." Li understood her alternative plan. They couldn't wait forever for Eriol, so they would just have to go ahead without him. After all, they could fully focus on him to make the plan work. "Then let's do it. But remember Sakura, concentrate only on his profile, don't get distracted by anything or everything would go wrong." Sakura nodded called out her wand while Li summoned his sword. "Time and Return, send back Eriol to the past in a blur!" They concentrated hard on Eriol's profile as the spell began to work.
Tomoyo decided to rest on the elevated carving for it seemed harmless. It was big, stretching out in a huge circle with intricate marks decorating the weathered surface. "But why does it look familiar?" But she ignored it and sat down on its edge. Then she instantly felt the trees rustle violently as a fierce wind blew around her. She quickly scrambled to the center and hugged her knees together. "What's happening?" she stuttered as the bright red sky turned gray. When the winds turned into gales, the carving lighted up, causing her to scream loudly for help. Eriol suddenly felt the two Card Captors' magic working on the cherry tree. What were they doing? He suddenly heard a high-pitched scream coming somewhere to his left. "Tomoyo!"
Sakura and Li were at the peak of their powers when they heard a faint shriek somewhere from the forest. Immediately, a crystal clear image of Tomoyo instinctively flashed through their minds. But they went on, instantly forgetting the plea. And making the biggest mistake that ruined their plan.
She kept screaming as the stone moved on its own accord. But she couldn't move due to fright and confusion. "Someone help me!" Eriol immediately appeared, and saw Tomoyo seated helplessly on the center of a lighted surface. He looked around and tried to recognize the thing for what it was. "Tomoyo, get away from there!" "I can't!" she called back. "I'm scared." Eriol tried climbing up the rock form but it started to spin, causing him to fall off. Tomoyo saw what happened and rushed to help him. But because the rock was spinning, now faster than before, she couldn't make it to Eriol's direction. The boy stood up, and tried leaping into the circle to rescue Tomoyo. He succeeded. "Tomoyo!" She turned, and a smile lighted up her face. She quickly ran across the sculpture towards his protective arms.
Eriol sped towards her. But as soon as their fingertips touched, a brilliant white light appeared behind Tomoyo and swallowed her whole. Then the spinning stopped. The winds died down. The sky returned to its now dark sky. Dead silence filled the air. Eriol looked at the empty space in front of him. Tomoyo was nowhere in sight. He looked around, searching the whole place for a sign of movement. Nothing.
The two watched as Tomoyo left them to attend her choral practice. It was obvious that she had found out about Kaho, but it seemed to them that she knew more than they had. "I'll kill him," Li growled. "How could he do this to her? I told him to leave her alone." "Eriol told us it was all an accident. We shouldn't blame him or anyone else," Sakura said. Then they remained silent as they walked home. "I've got an idea!" she brightened up. Li nearly jumped out of his skin at the girl's sudden change of expression. "Well whatever it is, I'm sure I don't want to be in it," Li said. He was sensing that her idea wasn't really an idea. More of a plot to destroy the world. Sakura pouted. "But you haven't heard what I've got to say!" "Then I don't want to hear it." She ignored him. "Why don't we use the Time and Return card?" If Li was shocked, then that wasn't what showed on his face. It was more of mortification and dread upon impending doom. "The Time and Return card? You mean you're going to send Eriol back to London and change everything before it happens?" She nodded. "But it's not just going to be me. The two of us are going to be in this. I can't just use all of my powers. I need your share so that I won't be drained too much." Li groaned. He knew he should've left immediately before he heard more of the crazy girl's plans. But then again, if Sakura did it all by herself, he'd be in more anxiety when she suddenly absented from school because of major energy drain. And that's the one thing he doesn't want to happen to Sakura. "Fine, I'll go. But that doesn't mean I'm in to your plans. I'm just worried about what might happen to you if I didn't." Sakura gave him a huge bear hug.
They knew Eriol would be passing the Tsukimine Shrine on his way home. Sakura nodded to Li. After they had worked everything out last night, they were sure it would work. All they had to do is get his attention.
That Saturday afternoon, Eriol decided to go visit Kaho and ask her if they could work things out faster. So that he didn't have to hurt Tomoyo any more. He suddenly winced at the memory of the other day. Tomoyo's sweet face was awash with tears. How he longed to hold them again and ask her if, she could forgive him. But he knew Tomoyo would run away again if she knew he was nearby. And it hurt him so much too see her flee away from him, not understanding what she saw. Eriol climbed up the long set of stairs that led to the temple. His legs were becoming very weary but his mind wasn't aware of it. He kept walking up. As he neared the top, he heard sounds of a broom being dragged along the ground. Kaho's there, he thought. Good, maybe we could finish the business once and for all. He caught sight of a blue dress moving about as he stood at the entrance. He wasn't sure if he knew who it was because it was standing far away. He cleared his throat. "Excuse me."
The broom dropped as its holder stopped. A shocked face of Tomoyo Daidouji greeted Eriol.
"Yes?" Tomoyo asked. What's he doing here? The answer immediately hit her. "Are you here to see Kaho?"
Eriol could visibly see that she tensed up. He didn't know that Tomoyo volunteered to do some temple chores. But he saw an opportunity. "No. I came to see you."
She swallowed a lump in her throat. "Excuse me? I think I you said, me?" "You heard me correctly. I came to see you. And I hope you won't run away again before I finish explaining myself." Tomoyo was still baffled. How did he know that she came here? Kaho couldn't have told him, did she? "How did you know I was here?" He wasn't going to allow her questions delay him again. "It doesn't matter." He started walking towards her, before she could think of getting away. Tomoyo knew he was serious about this. She started to feel afraid when his piercing gaze held her in place. She quickly mustered strength and picked up the broom. And swatted him with full force before running off into the forest. Eriol staggered sideways. He didn't see that one coming. When he focused back on her, all he saw was a figure running away. He was quite irked at being tricked. But nevertheless, he went after her in full speed.
Tomoyo heard footsteps behind her. He was quickly catching up, and she panicked. She quickly turned left into a darker grove of trees and hid behind a big tree. Eriol's steps faded past her and it went off straight- ahead, completely missing her. She sighed. How long would she keep on doing this? Why can't she face him and hear him out to end this problem? Why was she so weak? She could've just stayed there and listened. Then he'd go away and never bother her. But why couldn't she bear the thought of losing him forever? Did she still love him? A tear unconsciously fell down on the ground. She was walking aimlessly around the forest, not knowing that danger lurked nearby. An impending threat to her life and destiny was about to come when she stumbled upon an old stone carving on the forest floor.
Meanwhile, Sakura and Li had been successful in having the cherry tree to use. Kaho wasn't in sight but they were sure they weren't going to bother anything. Now the only thing that was bothering Li was, "Where's Eriol? I'm sure he was around here when we saw him." Sakura quickly thought this over and came upon a quick solution. "Maybe if we concentrate hard enough on his image, maybe we can use that as a substitute instead of having him here in person. After all, he's not going to like the idea of being sent back by force." Li understood her alternative plan. They couldn't wait forever for Eriol, so they would just have to go ahead without him. After all, they could fully focus on him to make the plan work. "Then let's do it. But remember Sakura, concentrate only on his profile, don't get distracted by anything or everything would go wrong." Sakura nodded called out her wand while Li summoned his sword. "Time and Return, send back Eriol to the past in a blur!" They concentrated hard on Eriol's profile as the spell began to work.
Tomoyo decided to rest on the elevated carving for it seemed harmless. It was big, stretching out in a huge circle with intricate marks decorating the weathered surface. "But why does it look familiar?" But she ignored it and sat down on its edge. Then she instantly felt the trees rustle violently as a fierce wind blew around her. She quickly scrambled to the center and hugged her knees together. "What's happening?" she stuttered as the bright red sky turned gray. When the winds turned into gales, the carving lighted up, causing her to scream loudly for help. Eriol suddenly felt the two Card Captors' magic working on the cherry tree. What were they doing? He suddenly heard a high-pitched scream coming somewhere to his left. "Tomoyo!"
Sakura and Li were at the peak of their powers when they heard a faint shriek somewhere from the forest. Immediately, a crystal clear image of Tomoyo instinctively flashed through their minds. But they went on, instantly forgetting the plea. And making the biggest mistake that ruined their plan.
She kept screaming as the stone moved on its own accord. But she couldn't move due to fright and confusion. "Someone help me!" Eriol immediately appeared, and saw Tomoyo seated helplessly on the center of a lighted surface. He looked around and tried to recognize the thing for what it was. "Tomoyo, get away from there!" "I can't!" she called back. "I'm scared." Eriol tried climbing up the rock form but it started to spin, causing him to fall off. Tomoyo saw what happened and rushed to help him. But because the rock was spinning, now faster than before, she couldn't make it to Eriol's direction. The boy stood up, and tried leaping into the circle to rescue Tomoyo. He succeeded. "Tomoyo!" She turned, and a smile lighted up her face. She quickly ran across the sculpture towards his protective arms.
Eriol sped towards her. But as soon as their fingertips touched, a brilliant white light appeared behind Tomoyo and swallowed her whole. Then the spinning stopped. The winds died down. The sky returned to its now dark sky. Dead silence filled the air. Eriol looked at the empty space in front of him. Tomoyo was nowhere in sight. He looked around, searching the whole place for a sign of movement. Nothing.