Chapter 4
"I hope Sakura-san is alright," Tomoyo said, concerned. "And I do hope that my cameras weren't damaged."
Duo looked strangely at the girl. "Tomoyo, please calm down. By the time this party is over, they'll be back in one piece to tell us that they had an adventure of their lives."
"Duo's right, Tomoyo," Quatre said, observing an empty table. "Maybe we should all sit down over there. We haven't had any rest, trying to tell those people why the place is a mess."
Lilka nodded in agreement, eyes drooping. "I wish I knew that this was going to happen. That way I could have brought a sleeping bag."
"Now, now," Heero said, "we can't be sleeping in a party. People will notice and question the circumstance."
Lilka yawned. "Whatever."
Duo also yawned. "Now that you mention it, I'm pretty tired myself. I need some rest."
"Why didn't you say so?" Tomoyo said, "My trailer is at the back. You guys can pick a cozy sleeping bag and drag it outside where you guys can rest. It would be easier that way. Besides, I'll just stay here and wait for Sakura-san, Tsukishiro-san, Kero-chan, and Syaoran-kun to return. Will that be alright?"
Duo and Lilka looked at the girl and their jaws dropped. "You're prepared for everything, aren't you? I thought you only brought the costumes and camera, not your whole house," Duo commented.
"I didn't bring my whole house," Tomoyo answered calmly, "I brought whatever I needed for camping, that's all. Extras were reserved for Sakura-san and Syaoran-kun. They usually went with me everywhere."
Lilka chuckled. "Well, as long as I can take a little bit of shut-eye around here, then I'll be a new person."
Heero and Quatre shook their heads. "I think I'll stay with you, Tomoyo. We wouldn't want you to have any trouble handling the people when Sakura and the others show up," Quatre said.
"I'll stay, too," Heero added.
Tomoyo smiled. "You guys are very kind to say so. Are you sure you don't need a sleeping bag? I have two more in the trailer, if you decide to rest."
The two pilots shook their heads again. As the three settled into silence, Duo and Lilka came hurrying back in. Lilka pulled Tomoyo off the seat. "They're back!"
"Where?" Tomoyo asked, excited.
Duo took the gundam pilots' sleeves and pulled them up. "The portal opened up outside! Hurry! They're coming out!"
Tomoyo hurriedly ran outside to meet her best friend and she saw Quistis come out, unruffled. The blonde smiled at Tomoyo and made room for the others to walk in. Yue came next, surprising everyone except Tomoyo and Quistis. He looked at Tomoyo and nodded. "Is everything taken care of here?" he asked.
"Yes, Mr. Tsukishiro," Tomoyo answered, not troubled by the change of appearance. "Some of the people in the party decided to leave, and now only some of them are left."
Yue looked at Kero-chan. "I guess we won't have to worry about stopping time and turning it back, then. Everything seems to be alright." With that, Yue turned back into Yukito.
"Where is Sakura-san and Syaoran-kun?" Tomoyo asked, worried that they didn't make it.
Quistis pointed at the portal. "Those two cooked us lunch as well as dinner, so they're cleaning up and changing. Don't worry, they're coming soon."
Syaoran came out, carrying his costume with him and handing them to Tomoyo. Tomoyo looked at the digital camera and saw that it worked and was used. She rejoiced and thanked Syaoran for video-taping Sakura and their adventure. The Card Mistress then came out, uncomfortable in the clothes given to her from Balamb.
Tomoyo exclaimed at the new clothes Sakura wore. "They are so cute on you! I have to videotape this!" she fumbled in her trailer (which was right next to the portal) and found her regular video camera. The camera whirred and started taping Sakura.
Sakura blushed and handed Tomoyo her costume. "I kind of turned the camera off after the mission, because the battery was running out, and there was nothing left to videotape anyway."
"That's alright, Sakura-san," Tomoyo said, already happy to videotape her friend right there. "As long as I have you and Syaoran-kun in these cameras, then I'll be happy. Today is a very special day!"
Heero and Duo shook their heads, disbelieving the fact that Tomoyo has been cheerful through it all. Sakura forced a laugh and pushed Li to laugh along with her. Syoaran, not understanding what was happening, blinked and turned to go home.
"You're right, Syaoran-kun," Tomoyo said, looking at the sorcerer. "We all should go home and rest a bit. I wouldn't want you adventurers to be all tired and weak. I'll give you guys a ride in my trailer."
Duo grinned and jumped in the driver seat. "At your service, ladies and gentlemen, I'll be your driver for tonight."
"Oh, dear," Lilka said, concerned. "Do you think it's safe to let him drive? I know I would rather walk than trust him to take me home."
Quatre laughed. "Come on, Lilka. Give Duo a chance, he can drive. After all, he wouldn't be a gundam pilot if he couldn't handle machinery."
Duo made a face. "Are you guys going to come in or not? I'm not that patient."
Tomoyo opened the door to her trailer and led everyone inside. She then decided to sit next to the driver's seat and everyone was settled. Duo drove everyone home in a matter of minutes (driving like a madman who was being chased by the police). When done, he dropped Tomoyo off with her trailer and he walked the way home with Quatre and Heero.
"Why didn't you drop us off here instead of us having to walk?" Heero complained. "Tomoyo could have driven to her own house, you know."
Duo shrugged. "I'm trying to be nice to the lady, Heero. Calm down. Anyway, she did do twice as much work as we did when having to explain the situation to the people in the party."
"Duo's right," Quatre agreed. "She needed a little rest from it all."
At that moment, Tomoyo opened up her room and the huge television that adorned the area. She popped the tape from Syaoran's camera in the VCR and watched the adventure in the Millennium Puzzle. She smiled and took up her sewing kit. It seems to be another night to spend her wonderful time making another costume for Sakura.
Meanwhile, two shadowed figures stood behind the tree. One of them revealed to be Thom. He turned to his partner. "You think they'll toughen up for what's to come? The gods don't want weaklings."
"Don't ask me, Thom," his partner mused. "It is your job to teach them, isn't it? All I do is sit and watch until the time comes. So, you're on your own for a while."
Purple eyes glared at the figure. "I figured that's what you'd say. You know, even if you're dead, you still think you're hot stuff, huh?"
"So do you," was the reply.
"Don't make me angry."
"And what will you do about it, O Great Sorcerer? Kill me? I'm already dead!"
Another voice boomed, making the two figures jump. "Enough, you two! I don't need two sorcerers having an altercation right now! Didn't Athena already tell you what you were supposed to be doing?"
Thom nodded, "Yeah…she said to make more portals and such for adventures."
"THEN GO DO IT!" the voice yelled out, making the two figures run out from behind the tree and disappear into the night.
****
The Card Mistress sighed as she lay down on her bed. Kero-chan was already asleep, but she couldn't get any sleepy. She suddenly remembered what Lilka's sister had told her. Quickly, Sakura dialed the phone number to Lilka's house. Lilka answered.
"Lilka?" Sakura asked. "Great, I have to tell you something. It's about the adventure we had."
The young sorceress perked up from her sleepiness and sat up on her bed at the other side of the phone. "What about the adventure?"
Sakura paused. "Well, it had something to do about a Millennium Puzzle…"
"A Millennium Puzzle?" Lilka asked, her attention now fully awakened. "Did my sister talk to you? If she did, what did she say?"
Sakura explained everything that went on and what has happened to her sister. The Card Mistress felt Lilka relax on the other line. "My sister is in Sielje? Wonderful! I'll go and see her as soon as possible. I'm sure she'll be happy to see me."
"I'm sure she will, Lilka," Sakura said, reassuring her friend. "I'm sure she will."
