The New Cards
Blizzard and Ice: Chapter Five
By: Sakura
In the midst of the falling snow, Sakura danced around merrily. Passing by, Chi Yuen chuckled at the scene. Hearing him, Sakura halted to a stop, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. Sweeping snow off a ledge, Chi Yuen sat down on it, smiling at her. "Don't let my presence stop your fun," he said. He cocked his head. "Why are you dancing out here, anyway?"
Sakura indicated to the snow all around her. "Isn't it so beautiful?" she asked. "Every little flake has a swirl of designs. It's just been such a long time since we've had so much snow in Tomoeda."
"The snow is nice," answered Chi Yuen. "But if we don't get going, we'll both be late for school." Sakura nodded and they both ran toward school. At school, Sakura hurried into the classroom and sat down at her desk. It was the last day of classes, before their holiday break. Everyone was in the holiday spirit and plans were being made for the vacation. When Mr. Terada walked in, all plans were put on hold as students scrambled to their desks. Sakura noticed that both Syaoran and Di Shang were away and she wondered why. At that moment, as Mr. Terada began taking attendance, a girl walked in. She had long purple hair and a soft expression gracing her face. She also had a big smile, holding a small video camera in her hand.
Sakura's eyes lit up as she recognized her friend. "Class," said Mr. Terada, calling their attention. "This is Daidouji Tomoyo. She will be joining our class just for today. Please present a warm welcome to her." The class nodded. Mr. Terada indicated for Tomoyo to take the seat behind Sakura, and as soon as she was settled, the class began, for Mr. Terada never wasted any time for lessons.
~*~*~*~*~*~
During their lunch period, Sakura threw Tomoyo a big bear hug. "Careful, Sakura," Tomoyo chided gently. "This camera breaks easily."
Sakura smiled brightly. "You haven't changed at all!" she said. "I've missed seeing you so much! Letters and phone calls are okay up to a point, but they aren't the real thing."
Laughing, Tomoyo asked, "So how many cards do you have? Let me see them." As Sakura was about to take her cards out, the others joined them, each giving Tomoyo a hug.
"It's great to see you," said Chiharu. "But how come you're here?"
"My school let's out a day before yours," answered Tomoyo. "So I thought I'd come and visit all my friends." Looking into her bag, she whipped out a few cards. "Which reminds me; I'm going to have a Christmas party on the twenty-fourth, so here are the invitations." She passed them out to everyone.
Sakura opened the card and after skimming through it, said, "You went all out for this, didn't you, Tomoyo?"
Tomoyo literally beamed. "You don't know how far I went." She walked over to Chi Yuen and handed him an invitation also. Chi Yuen, who had been standing aloof, took it questioningly. Tomoyo smiled brightly. "Any friend of Sakura is a friend of mine. I hope you'll come." Chi Yuen nodded.
"I'll be there," he told her.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sakura was walking out of the school after classes, looking at Tomoyo's invitation. On the cover was a Christmas tree, decorated with strangely familiar looking ornaments. As she was about to examine it, Tomoyo caught up with her. "You're going to Syaoran's aren't you, Sakura?" she asked her friend.
"Huh?" said Sakura, realizing for the first time Tomoyo was there. She turned red. "Err…yeah. I just want to see why he and Di Shang didn't come to school."
"I hope they didn't go back to Hong Kong," said Tomoyo. Sakura glanced at her sharply, which Tomoyo pretended not to notice. "I really would like to meet Di Shang, and see Syaoran again." She cocked her head and watched Sakura. "Has he changed a bit?" Sakura shook her head, though rather indecisively. Tomoyo laughed. "I guess we can't expect much, huh?"
When they reached their destination, Sakura lightly knocked on Syaoran's apartment's door. A muffled crash could be heard and some murmurs behind the door. A moment later, the door opened, revealing Di Shang. His face lit up. "Sakura! What are you doing here?"
"I just came to see why you and Syaoran weren't at school today," she said. "Is something wrong?"
Di Shang laughed. "Syaoran has a cold and didn't feel like going to school today, so I kept him company." He opened the door wider. "Would you like to come in?" Seeing Tomoyo, he added, "And your friend, too?"
Before Sakura could answer, Tomoyo pushed her in, saying, "We'd love to!" Sakura began to protest, but she was already in. Di Shang closed the door and turned to face them. Both girls were gawking at the state of the room. Di Shang grinned and sweatdropped.
"Don't mind the mess," he said. "With Syaoran sick, things don't get picked up."
"Could we see him?" asked Sakura.
Shaking his head, Di Shang gave a negative reply. "I'd advise you not to, unless you want to catch a cold, too." Sakura nodded, slightly downhearted.
"Well, then tell Syaoran we stopped by," said Tomoyo. She held out her hand to Di Shang and he accepted it. "Hi, I'm Daidouji Tomoyo," she said, shaking his. "Nice to meet you."
Di Shang smiled. "I'm Li Di Shang. My pleasure."
Tomoyo beamed. "I've heard a lot of great things about you, Di Shang. Here," she said, handing him two invitations. "This is for you and Syaoran." Turning to Sakura, she added, "Come on, Sakura, Let's get going." Sakura waved goodbye to Di Shang and left with Tomoyo.
Syaoran was standing by his bedroom door, the door slightly ajar. Di Shang walked in, pushing the door open, and Syaoran stumbled backward with surprise. Di Shang eyed his cousin lying in a heap on the ground, tangled with his bed sheets, then tossed him the card. Syaoran caught it and opened it. When he finished reading, he looked up and saw Di Shang leaving the room. Turning, Di Shang said, "Go back to bed. You need your rest. How do you expect to battle in your condition?"
"I'm fine!" retorted Syaoran, but he ended with a sneezing fit. Di Shang left the room, closing the door behind him. Syaoran looked back at the card. "A Christmas party, huh?" He closed it and put it away. "I'm definitely going. A cold can't stop m-ah…ah…ah-choo!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
The Christmas spirit is in the air. That night, Tomoyo's home sparkled like a gem. Everything was decorated; the porch, the windows, the roof, even the trees outside. Walking on the walkway leading up to Tomoyo's house, Sakura pulled her coat around her even tighter. Not being able to withstand the freezing cold atmosphere any longer, she ran the rest of the way and in seconds, reached the front door. Shivering in her dress, she rang the doorbell. The door opened and Sakura walked in, awed at the décor. To her right stood a tall tree, towering over, beautifully adorned. There were bright colourful lights, strings of beads, bells, and other ornaments that looked familiar to her. She walked up to the tree to take a closer look. She realized that several of the ornaments looked like the top part of her star wand, wings and all. Others looked like her former staff, the one with the head of a bird. Oddly still were the ornaments that were in the shapes of Kero and Spinel Sun's heads.
"Do you like them?" Tomoyo walked into the foyer, joining her friend's side.
Sakura nodded. "They're beautiful," she answered. "Did you make them?"
Tomoyo smiled. "I did." She took one of the Kero ornaments off the branch and giggled. "Isn't it cute?" she asked, holding it up. "It looks just like him when he's eating!" Sakura suppressed a laugh and instead, smiled brightly. "Come on," said Tomoyo. "Let's go join the others. You're the last one here." Leaving her coat in the closet, Sakura and Tomoyo went to join the other guests, but Sakura didn't go without putting her presents under the big tree first. There was no one else at Tomoyo's that time of night; save for the guests Tomoyo invited.
One requirement that Tomoyo had made on her invitation was that she was having a black-tie party, meaning, everyone had to come dressed in their best. The group present wasn't a large one; nine in all: Tomoyo, Sakura, Rika, Naoko, Chiharu, Takashi, Syaoran, Di Shang, and Chi Yuen. All four guys wore black tuxedos, while the girls wore something completely different from each other. Rika wore a simple long-sleeved azure-hued dress that tinted her short brown hair and she also had gloves that reached her elbows, to match. Naoko wore a light peach dress, with sleeves touching her elbows, and her hair clipped back out of her sight's way, for she was without her glasses. Chiharu's hair was parted into pigtails, as usual, held up with turquoise bows, and she wore a matching dress that came up to her knees. Tomoyo was dressed in a pastel green dress that nearly touched the ground, with her hair swept back in a high ponytail, but wisps of hair escaped the ponytail and framed her face. A video camera was held in her right hand. She beamed at her guests, taking shots when they weren't looking.
Sakura's dress was both simple and elegant. The dress she wore was rosy pink in colour with short sleeves and a long full skirt, decorated with little golden stars. The dress wrapped around her waist, outlining her waist before tapering out. The hem swept the floor as she walked. This dress was another one of Tomoyo's long list of self-made creations. Her hair, though the style was the same, was decorated with pink and white ribbons. Her star key hung around her neck, looking like nothing more than a simple pendant. Her cheeks were light pink from the cold. Unlike the other girls, Sakura didn't wear high-heeled shoes. Instead, she wore comfortable flats that matched her dress, a star on the front and back. Short gloves covered her hands, also decorated with little stars.
Syaoran nearly reeled back when he Sakura. She was so beautiful, so captivating. When she looked at him with her bright emerald-green eyes and smiled, his breath was stolen away. She had the face of an angel…
Noticing that Syaoran was gaping, Di Shang elbowed his cousin lightly in the ribs. "Beautiful, isn't she?" he commented innocently. Syaoran nodded, his eyes not leaving Sakura. Then he realized what Di Shang had said and his ears burned. He scowled at him.
"She looks nice, just like everyone else," he said defensively. "I just wasn't paying attention to what you were saying. It's not like I like her or anything."
Di Shang nodded with a grin and Syaoran left him with a huff. "Who are you trying to convince, Syaoran?" thought Di Shang. "Me…or yourself?"
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sakura was really happy that night. She was enjoying herself immensely, surrounded by all her close friends. Chi Yuen had even become a close friend now. Just a few minutes before, Tomoyo had pounced on Di Shang as soon as she had the opportunity and dragged him away from the others for a moment, so she could ask him about Jiao Wan and the new cards. The rest of the group was settled in her large living room. Takashi sat in one corner with everyone and he was exclaiming why Christmas day had earned its name. Sakura was sitting on the opposite end of the room so she couldn't hear what his story was. But she did see Chiharu grip Takashi's ear and yell at him about something. Chi Yuen was sitting with Sakura and they were chatting. Sakura had asked Chi Yuen about his home, which he explained simply, until she persuaded him to elaborate, which he then obliged to do. Occasionally, though, Syaoran would look over at their direction, a look of anger and jealousy on his face.
When Sakura had questioned where Chi Yuen was from, he told her he came from Xiamen, in the province of Fujian. When she asked where that is, he said it was in southern China, north-east of Hong Kong. Surprised, Sakura told him she had thought he was from northern China but Chi Yuen cleared that up by telling her he was living Tianjin, in the north, temporarily with his father. But he had been forced to move away from his father for personal reasons. After mentioning the latter, Chi Yuen suddenly seemed downcast. Sakura watched him with sympathetic eyes and told him that she was sure everything would work out fine. Smiling wanly, Chi Yuen said he hoped so.
Suddenly, the lights in the room - and the entire house - went out. After attempting to turn the lights back on with the switch, Takashi suggested that maybe this was the doing of a ghost. Silence followed his comment and all could hear the wind howling outside. Sakura shivered at the thought. Syaoran had moved to Sakura's side and gazed at her reassuringly. Sakura smiled softly at him. Whenever he was near her, she always felt safe and protected from any danger.
After a few moments, Tomoyo returned with Di Shang. "It must be a power outage," she stated. "It's stopped snowing so I'll be right back. I have to go see how the problem can be fixed outside." The others nodded and Tomoyo left. Sakura hurried after her friend, keeping her company, and still a little worried about ghosts. They both slipped into their coats and walked outside. Though it no longer snowed, the wind was still freezing cold. Tomoyo was heading toward the side wall of the great house. Attached to the side was a little tiny shed, one that held the power box, the source of all the lights. Unlocking the door, she entered the room. Sakura was about to follow, but the wind slammed the door shut. Tomoyo whirled around and tried to open the door, but it was locked tight. Sakura's gloved hands, clenched into fists, banged on the door, but it wouldn't budge. The winds swirling around her grew colder and fiercer.
"I'll get you out of there!" screamed Sakura over the wind, hoping she could be heard. No matter how hard she hit the door, nothing worked. Suddenly, shivers crawled down her spine, and Sakura turned around, only to be pushed into the wall by a strong, icy blast. She hit it hard and dropped to her knees. Looking up, she saw two figures. "Not more Jiao Cards," she whispered to herself. Taking out her star key, she transformed it to a wand and stood up, holding her ground. One of the figures appeared to be made entirely of ice, its short hair nothing more than slick and sharp icicles. The other didn't look unlike the Snow Card at all. She had long flowing hair and also long white robes. When she lifted her hand, a flurry of snow shot toward the Card Mistress.
Sakura quickly rolled out of the way, thanking Tomoyo in her mind for making her a dress suited for mobility. As she was about to move out of reach of the two cards, an icy orb flew right by her and hit the side of the house, a wall of ice being the end result, blocking her route of escape. Trying to leave the opposite direction, the same thing happened and looking around, Sakura realized she was pinned by the cards. There was no way to go. On both sides of her were walls of ice; behind her stood Tomoyo's home; and the two cards were before her.
As they advanced slowly, Sakura backed away until she touched the wall of the house. Swiftly pulling out a card, she cried out, "Firey! Release!" The Firey Card's visible form appeared. "Firey! Use your flames to decrease the Jiao Cards' energy!" The flames on The Firey grew and it flew aggressively at the two cards. The Sakura Card couldn't get anywhere near the Jiao Cards for the latter both combined their power and shot an orb of energy at The Firey, an orb, combined with ice and snow, that was more powerful than The Firey could withstand. The card hit the ground and changed back into its original form.
Sakura's eyes widened. "If Firey couldn't defeat them," she thought. "What card can?" Looking past the wall of ice to her right, Sakura was thankful that Tomoyo and the shed were outside of the Jiao Cards attack range, meaning her friend wouldn't get hurt. As the Card Mistress prepared to pull out another card, the icy Jiao Card shot another orb, this one smaller than the ones before, and made of an odd liquidy substance. This caught Sakura around the midsection and the liquid expanded. It forced her into the wall and pinned her against it, turning into ice. She struggled to free herself from the ice, but to no avail. Her staff, though still in her hand, was frozen as well. Looking up, she saw the second Jiao Card making it snow, shaking strong blizzards out of her robes. She ducked her head down, trying to avoid the icy cold sensation on her face. Sakura shivered, her coat useless now. She felt her energy slipping away as she closed her eyes and gave herself up to the frigid darkness.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"You know," said Chiharu, looking out the window. "They've both been gone for an awfully long time." She turned and faced the others. "I'm getting worried about them." Everyone, except Tomoyo and Sakura, had huddled into a little group for not only had the lights gone, but the heat, too.
"The lights aren't back yet," replied Takashi. "And neither is the heat, so they're probably still working on it. It's a good thing it isn't snowing still." As soon as he finished his sentence, a fierce blizzard of snow suddenly came into view. He sweatdropped. "Uh," he said. "Forget what I just said." Turning he saw Syaoran and Di Shang leaving the room. "Where do you think you're going?" asked Takashi.
"We're going to see if Sakura and Tomoyo are okay," answered Di Shang. Syaoran had already left.
"Let us come, too," said Naoko.
Di Shang shook his head. "Don't," he said. "It's too dangerous. Leave it to us." He gave them all a stern warning look. "And don't let me catch any of you outside." He turned and hurried after Syaoran.
~*~*~*~*~*~
The second Syaoran stepped outside, a Jiao Card attacked him. This one threw gales of wind and snow at him, causing him to temporarily lose his direction. Di Shang immediately joined him after he left the building. When Di Shang was about to speak, Syaoran cut him off, shouting over the wind. "Get Sakura!" he yelled. "Her energy is diminishing fast! There has to be two cards attacking at the same time!"
Di Shang nodded in agreement. "You're fighting the Blizzard Card right now, Syaoran!" he shouted in return. "Be careful! This card can pull out snow storms out of its sleeve at any time!" Running through the thick snow, and away from his cousin, Di Shang found himself at the side of Tomoyo's home, where he saw a small shed and huge walls of ice. "Those ice blocks aren't natural. It has to be the Ice Card," he concluded. Squinting to see, Di Shang spotted the Jiao Card, but his eyes widened when he saw Sakura. A slab of ice pinned her firmly to the wall, her staff frozen in the slab as well. She wasn't moving at all. Her head was hunched forward, her hair hanging limply, framing her face. The rosiness in her cheeks had long since vanished. If she stayed out there any longer, she could freeze to death.
Taking out a charm and drawing the sword he had brought along to the party, Di Shang cried, "Element: Fire!" The flame attacked the Ice Card, distracting it from its current prey. He knew that if he tried to rescue Sakura, the Jiao Card would merely attack him from behind. The only way out was to seal the card. Di Shang pondered momentarily what else he could do, but in no time, The Ice turned and attacked him. Shards of ice swept by him, slicing the sleeves and pants of his tuxedo and piercing his skin underneath. Tiny drops of blood splattered on the white snow. Ignoring the small cuts, Di Shang somersaulted under The Ice. Getting up, he now stood facing the side wall of the house. The Ice Card turned around and shot another volley of icicles. Di Shang ducked down and hit the ground. The icicles in turn flew and hit The Blizzard Card, knocking it to the ground and pinning it there. Syaoran, his own sword drawn, swiftly sealed the Blizzard Card. Enraged, The Ice began its attack on Syaoran, shooting more icicles at the Card Captor. Syaoran deftly dodged the attacks, drawing the card away from Sakura and Di Shang.
With the Ice Card further away, Di Shang ran to Sakura's side. Touching her cheeks with the back of his hand, he felt the severe chill in them and his hazel eyes filled with worry. Again, using a charm, he called upon the element of fire. The flame melted away the ice pinning Sakura, releasing her from her trap. Still unconscious, she fell, but was caught by Di Shang. After checking the Card Mistress' condition, he realized that she was perfectly fine except for one thing; she had no physical warmth. Well, it wasn't none at all, but she barely had any.
Di Shang had nothing with him at that moment that could warm her up, that is, besides one thing; himself. Without a second thought, he wrapped his arms around Sakura's unmoving form and held her near him. He also brushed off the snow and the ice sticking to her coat; they had been weighing it down and making it impossible to keep her warm earlier. He placed his warm cheek against her cold one. "Come on, Sakura," he whispered into her ear. "We need you. You can't leave us, especially at this time. We have to work together to defeat Kam Un and seal the remaining Jiao Cards. Do you hear me?" He received no answer from her at all.
Hearing a noise coming from the shed, Di Shang, with Sakura in his arms, ran toward it. Seeing Tomoyo through a window, he opened the door by simply cutting off the hinges with his sword. The door fell and hit the ground. Tomoyo, having been trapped up until that moment, ran out, happy to be out of captivity. Having seen the events that occurred through the window in the shed, Tomoyo presented a clean blanket she found in the shed and wrapped it around Sakura. Placing her inside the shed, Di Shang left Tomoyo to care for Sakura while he went to help Syaoran with the Ice Card. Tomoyo, though worried about Sakura, wished she had her video camera with her. It was so touching; the two knights in armour, fighting to save their princess. She sighed, eyes sparkling. It was just so romantic.
Moments after Di Shang had left, Sakura slowly came to, her cheeks warming back to a faint pink. Tomoyo smiled happily, relieved that her friend was okay. Sakura looked around. "How did I get in here?" she asked.
"Di Shang placed you here," replied Tomoyo.
"Di Shang? Where is he now?" Tomoyo pointed outside. Sakura looked out and saw both Syaoran and Di Shang, fighting the Ice Card. Getting up, she ran two steps before falling down. Tomoyo helped her up immediately.
"Be careful, Sakura," she said. "You were just frozen a few minutes ago." Sakura nodded. Using her wand, Sakura released the Fly Card. Wings sprouting from her back, she took flight and flew toward the battle area. Tomoyo stayed behind, watching, and wishing more than ever that she had her video camera. Reaching the other Card Captors, Sakura returned The Fly to its Card form. Both Di Shang and Syaoran appeared to be relieved that the Card Mistress was okay. Without pausing, the Ice Card continually delivered hails of icicles toward them. Syaoran and Di Shang used their swords to counteract the icicles while Sakura deflected them with her staff. The Ice constantly changed its direction of attack, from one Card Captor to the other. Now, it was focused on Di Shang. Taking a quick breather, Syaoran was by Sakura's side.
"Try using The Firey, Sakura," he said.
Sakura shook her head. "The Firey isn't strong enough. I tried it earlier and the Jiao Cards defeated it easily."
"Then use The Flame, instead," he replied.
"The Flame?" asked Sakura, a frightened look in her eyes. The Flame Card had been sealed just two weeks before and Sakura was hesitant to use it. After all, the Jiao Cards were malicious, unlike the Clow Cards. If she used them, they could backfire on her. "It's too dangerous," she said slowly. "It may be too powerful for any of us to control…"
Syaoran, unknown to him the reason why, was becoming exasperated. "We need that power!" he yelled, his tone implying annoyance at her. "Don't be a weakling! Just use that card!" Realizing he was shouting at her, though barely being heard over the howl of the wind, Syaoran looked away. "What's wrong with me?" he thought. The Ice chose that moment to turn on him and he leapt out of its path, further away from Sakura. Syaoran was rather thankful, because now he wouldn't have to face Sakura.
Sakura's eyes filled with hurt at Syaoran's harsh tone. He had never yelled at her like that before. Di Shang was at her side now, looking at her with concern. Sakura wiped away the tears in her eyes and looked up. "I'll show him what a weakling can do," she thought. Di Shang saw the look of determination in her eyes and smiled at her. Sakura took out the Flame Card and released it. "Flame Card!" she cried. "Weaken The Ice by engulfing it with your robes of fire!" The Flame Card took on its visible form in a blaze of fiery light. Encircling the Ice Card, the Jiao Card was forced to the ground, its icy robes turning liquidy, water raining as it struggled with The Flame. Unable to keep up anymore, The Ice collapsed on the ground, its energy spent. Di Shang went ahead and sealed the card before it could replenish its energy. Tired, Sakura sat on the ground, shoulders slightly hunched forward. Feeling a touch on her shoulder, Sakura looked up and saw Di Shang.
"Let's go back inside," he said. "It's much more comfortable in there than it is out here." He helped her to her feet. Sakura, legs giving way underneath her, was caught by Di Shang before she could fall again. "I guess it's safe to assume that using Jiao Cards takes a toll on your energy supply, too," he said. Sakura nodded. She looked over at Syaoran, who was standing aloof, avoiding her gaze. Her eyes clouded with sadness. Joining the trio of Card Captors, Tomoyo helped Di Shang and they both supported Sakura on their way inside.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Syaoran was sitting on the windowsill, his gaze focused outside. The weather was calm now without The Ice and The Blizzard creating storms. The electricity in Tomoyo's home had returned as mysteriously as it had left. Now, with the exception of Syaoran, everyone was gathered around the big Christmas tree, giving presents to each other.
Sakura slowly approached Syaoran. Without turning around, Syaoran asked harshly, "What do you want?" Undaunted, Sakura walked up and stood next to him. After a few moments passed, Syaoran turned and faced her, stormy amber eyes facing serene emerald ones. Sakura held out a little wrapped box to him. Syaoran's eyes softened and he accepted it, rather questioningly.
"This is for you," she said quietly. "Merry Christmas." She turned around and began to walk away.
Looking at the small box, then at her retreating back, Syaoran called to her, "Wait." Sakura stopped and turned around. Syaoran got off the windowsill and handed her a package, wrapped in an odd shape. Sakura accepted the package and thanked him. Hearing Tomoyo called her, she left him and joined her friend by the Christmas tree. Syaoran sat back down on the windowsill, looking at his gift. Curious about its contents, he unwrapped it. Taking off the lid, he found a small replica of a wolf. It had been made with delicate hands and examining the features, it had taken a very long time to make. On the wolf's left fore leg was Syaoran's name, in Chinese characters. Syaoran then remembered seeing Sakura painting the figure in art class a long time ago, at the beginning of the school year. Shifting his gaze to the Christmas tree, Syaoran watched Sakura, a soft expression on his face. He was hoping what he said earlier hadn't hurt her. Holding the little wolf close to his heart, Syaoran whispered, "Thank you, Sakura."
~*~*~*~*~*~
"It's snowing!"
Sakura swatted at her alarm clock before realizing it was Kero that had awakened her. "Don't remind me," she said, sitting up and yawning widely. "I've experienced enough ice and snow to last me a lifetime."
Kero's eyes watered comically. "I wish I could've been there," he said. "All that food and those goodies…" Sakura good-naturedly poked Kero.
"You forgot that I brought you back some food," she said. "Tomoyo knows how much you love her cooking." Kero brightened and flew out of the room, making a dash to the kitchen. "Wait!" cried Sakura. "Touya will see you!" Touya poked his head in through his sister's doorway.
"I'll see what?" he asked.
"Nothing!" she yelled in response. Touya shrugged and left her room. Sakura got up from her bed and looked out the window. Kero was right; it was snowing. But this time, it was a light fluffy snowfall. About to leave her room, Sakura looked at two of the items on her side table. One was a charm bracelet. So far, only one charm was on it; a gold replica of her star key. This had been a present to her by Di Shang. The other object was a model of a beautifully blooming Sakura tree. Looking so realistic, this model could have passed for a real Sakura tree with paper blossoms in place of petals. A note lay next to the tree that read, "I'm sorry. Please forgive me." It was unsigned, but Sakura knew it was from Syaoran. She smiled softly. "Of course I forgive you, Syaoran."
Downstairs, a door opened. "It's cold out there." There was a slight pause. "I'm back!" called someone. Recognizing the voice, Sakura flew out of her room and down the stairs, still in her pajamas, and reached the person before Touya.
"Dad!" she cried, giving her father a big hug.
Fujitaka smiled. "If this is the kind of reception I get when I'm away for long periods of time, I should go away more often," he said, hugging his daughter back.
Touya smiled. "Welcome back, dad," he said.
Sakura was burying her head in her father's arms. "We both missed you so much," she said. "No one could ask for a better Christmas present." Touya nodded in agreement.
"New York is nice," said Fujitaka, ruffling Sakura's hair affectionately. "But there's nothing better than being home for Christmas with my family."
Author's Note: I know, I know. It's more than a little late for a Christmas chapter, right? *shrugs* Oh well =). This chapter's not too cheesy/corny/silly is it? I sincerely hope not. Now here's a (very) short preview of what's to come without any spoilers; the main setting will change around the seventh or eighth chapter. I wonder where they'll all go? =) I already know, but you'll just have to wait and find out! (I don't give many hints, do I?) ^_^ Two major S + ? moments will be coming up soon! (You'll have to continue reading if you'd like to find out. ^_~)
*Sakura
~The Animé Archives Team
