Clow Tablets 4; England
Sharp eyes & Pungent Smells
On the plane Sonomi, Tomoyo and Sakura were sitting across the aisle from Meilin and Li-kun. In between the cousins was pungent, decrepit, old man. Li started to grumble about how he should of let Meilin have the window seat, he couldn't get any fresh air or see the angel in the heavens very well.
Tomoyo was telling Sakura about how she tested Syoaran-kun and sadly reported he didn't blush anymore. Realizing she was on a plane and still didn't know where they were headed she asked her friends.
Sakura replied by coughing out England. To the confused camera girl it sounded something like Kinkland, she hoped that wasn't a real place and Sakura wasn't getting sick.
"Would you please say it without coughing? I have no clue where Kinkland is."
Sakura and Meilin burst out laughing. Syoaran was getting tired of this routine, which had been going on all day. He finally turned to Tomoyo and yelled, "England!"
Stars appeared in her eyes as she sighed and looked out her window, no doubt picturing the clouds as something they weren't. There was a dreamy smile on her face. After a couple more dreamy sighs past her lips, Li-kun gave an exasperated sigh of his own. Maybe the Kinkland joke would have been better.
Sakura and Meilin started to giggle. The rest of the ride was uneventful; Tomoyo dreamed of England, (or something connected to that word) Syoaran and Sakura kept trying to get a glimpse of each other, Sonomi slept, and Meilin amused herself by watching her cousin and the card mistress gaze at one another other.
\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %
They arrived at Piccadilly Circus (or so it was called in Sakura's guide book) that afternoon. Syoaran started to grumble about how he hated the name, were all English things deceiving? He thought coming here was bad when he believed it was a real circus, now that he realized it was one of London's most fashionable shopping areas he wished he had stayed home.
Sakura could take care of herself, right? She did press that gun against the thug's head on her own. She was one of the world's most powerful magic users; she wasn't in danger at all. Ya right, Sakura seemed to attract danger like a fleece top attracts lint.
Tomoyo suddenly gasped and took off running down the street. Sakura and Syoaran looked at each other and ran after the fleeing camerawoman. A couple of blocks down the crowded street she flung herself into a stranger's arms. By the time Sakura and Li-kun caught up with her, she was kissing him.
Syoaran looked at the happy couple and back up to the shop Meilin and Sonomi were in. It was a little dot in the distance. How the heck had she spotted him?
A girl standing next to Eriol pealed Tomoyo off of him. She aimed a punch at Tomoyo's nose. Sakura stepped in and blocked her flying fist, while kicking the legs out from under her.
Sakura turned around and hugged Eriol. "Girlfriend?" she whispered.
"Unfortunately." He looked at Tomoyo, "But not anymore!"
The magical warrior and the reincarnated wizard shook hands in an apprehensive manner. The four of them started back from whence they begun.
Eriol looked up the street to see Meilin waving at them.
"You spotted me from way up there?" He asked while looking deep in to her eyes.
They reached Meilin and Sonomi, who weren't all that surprised they had found Eriol. Sonomi said she had some business to take care of. She suggested they go sightseeing.
Sakura grabbed the Li cousins and said she needed to get something from the hotel. They all agreed to meet later.
She yanked them into a public bathroom and made them change into clothing she just happened to have in her bag. Making sure they didn't take more than a minute she then shooed them out half dressed.
They were just in time to see Tomoyo and her prince climb in to a cab. Running up she quickly hauled an old lady out of another cab and set her gently on the sidewalk, jumping in she instructed the cab to follow the one ahead of them.
The Li's were looking at her as if she had lost it.
Sakura pulled a video camera out of her purse and rearranged her hair. Meilin put her hair into a ponytail, catching on to the plot.
The Li clan leader looked at them and sighed.
"Let me guess, this is your payback." He took the comb from Sakura and parted his hair to the side. The girls giggled over the 'englishfied' Li-kun.
The cab came to a stop in front of The Tower Of London. (Sakura's guidebook explained this as a place to keep the palace jewels.) Sakura and Meilin ran out, carefully following Eriol and Tomoyo while running the camera.
Li paid the cab driver and followed the girls. At the end of the tour Eriol and Tomoyo turned around and took one last look at the displays. The girls dove behind a nearby display while Syoaran engaged a woman in conversation.
*Still Filming*
They all headed to a nearby park. Sakura and Meilin ran out on Li-kun in the cab again. After walking around for half an hour he decided to give up. Taking a shortcut through the park he thought he heard someone call his name.
Stopping, he looked around, "Li!" the whisper was more urgent this time. He blinked and looked around. Sakura crawled out from behind some bushes and grabbed his jean leg. Getting his attention, and almost receiving a reaction kick, she indicated for him to follow her. They crawled through the shrubbery, and back to Meilin.
Looking in the direction of the running camera he saw the estranged couple snuggling under a tree. Eriol's hand was running up and down her ribcage. He bent down to capture her lips in a kiss.
"They've been at this for 30 minutes."
Eriol bent over a whispered something in her ear. They slowly got up and headed back to the Piccadilly Square.
Following at a safe distance the threesome decided it was time to make themselves known.
Sakura yelled out to them and ran up. She yanked her hair out of a bun. Meilin walked up minus her ponytail. Li, not use to dressing up, walked up to the group.
Tomoyo looked at him before giggling. Eriol took in his appearance.
"Li, I think you've been spending to much time with the English." Li reached up to his neatly parted hair and mussed it up. He scowled at them all, daring them to say something else to him.
After they left Eriol, who promised to pick them up later after he scouted the nearby forest for magic, they all assembled in Sakura's room. They ordered a nice big, expensive supper from room service and rested for a while. Soon Tomoyo started to cry. Sakura went over and tried to comfort the distressed photographer.
"What's wrong? I thought you were blissfully happy here in London. You have Eriol by your side and you had the whole afternoon with him."
"She's in withdrawal. She was on an Eriol high for hours." Syoaran muttered.
"I am happy. *sniff* It was such a magical day. It's just that when we leave England I may never see him again." She started to cry helplessly on Sakura's shoulder.
"That's one spell she's been cast under." Mr. Sensitivity mumbled to Meilin. In return she jabbed him with her elbow and told him to stop being a jackass.
Sakura glared at Syoaran and handed Tomoyo to him. He tried to comfort her but somehow he made her cry more. Next time he would remember not to swear about Eriol in front of her. Sakura brought back her purse.
"Tomoyo, see this tape? It's a video of your day together that the three of us made. Why don't you watch it after we leave England." Best friends could always calm the other down.
She wiped her nose on Li-kun's shirt and then went into the bathroom to splash some water on her face.
Syoaran looked down at his tear and snot stained shirt, quickly took it off, and tossed it in the trash. Donning the shirt he had been wearing previously that day he sat down and snuck a peek at his favorite object of affection.
Sakura gaped at his lean, well-sculptured chest. In seven years he sure had grown. She started to drool a bit until Meilin snapped her out of it.
"Are you going to stare at him all night?"
Sakura closed her mouth and tried desperately not to blush. "Syoaran-kun, that shirt was expensive. Are you just going to throw it out like trash?" The warrior grumbled something about not blaming a guy for trying as he fetched the hideous shirt out of the garbage.
"Nice save, I think he fell for it." Meilin whispered.
"I don't know what you are talking about."
\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %
Eriol picked them up at 12 o'clock stating that he had found a forest that radiated in magic. It took them an hour to reach it and the girls were snoozing by the time the car came to a halt.
They crept through the underbrush. Tomoyo remarked about how this must be how Blair Witch started.
"You know the stars were normal people just like us."
"Stop it Tomoyo." Sakura said.
"It doesn't matter, we're not exactly normal." Syoaran pointed out looking straight at Eriol.
"One of them had a camera, like me. They encountered horror beyond their wildest dreams."
"Stop it Tomoyo!" Meilin joined in with Sakura.
"One by one they disappeared."
"I know someone who will disappear!" Li retorted.
Tomoyo looked around, her eyes rested on where Eriol had been, seconds before. "Where did Eriol go? Where is he?"
She shrieked as arms snaked around her waist.
"Miss me already?" He whispered in her ear.
Sakura and Meilin sighed in envy while Mr. Sensitivity snorted in disgust. They continued going towards the magic. It seemed to be drawing Sakura into its aura.
A squirrel skittered across her path. She watched it weave its way through the trees. Taking another step she tripped over a fallen tree.
Jumping up she punched Syoaran in the stomach. "You were suppose to stop me from falling. You did in my dream."
"Well i thought you would avoid the tree since you already knew it was there."
Sighing she said, "Well at least we know we're in the right place."
Coming to a clearing they spotted the tablet in the middle. Around it was a meadow of wild flowers. The tablet seemed to be bathed in golden light.
Tentatively stepping over the flowers, Sakura made her way to the center. She picked up the tablet and looked up. She paused in shock then ran right through the flowers she had taken such great pains not to step on.
She whizzed past her friends, yelling skunk! They took off with the skunk lumbering lazily behind them. In their haste they ran in the wrong direction. Creeping back they gave the skunk wide berth. It seemed to still be on their tail, waddling slowly behind them.
Meilin tripped over a log and crashed into Syoaran, who lost his balance and knocked over Sakura. Sakura fell in to a rotten tree. It held her weight for a second; Syoaran leaned over and gave her his hand to help her up. Seconds later the tree fell a few feet beside the skunk.
\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %
"Are you sure this is enough tomato juice?"
"I bought out the whole convenience store. The guy at the cash laughed so hard he gave them to me for half price. He said it's been a long time since he had this much entertainment on a Wednesday."
"Where are we going to get cleaned off? We can't go to the hotel because Sonomi may see us."
"We'll go to my house." A couple minutes later they pulled up Eriol's long driveway. His manor was completely in shadows. He kicked them out of his car then ran into the dark night.
Dragging a large blob of plastic through the trees, he set it up in his vast backyard. It took the distinct shape of a child's wading pool as he started to fill it with tomato juice. Li-kun walked over to help.
"No, Man! Stay Back! I had to drive in a car with you! The close proximity is killing me." Syoaran scowled and walked away.
Tomoyo stayed in the background, laughing her head off. She was still filming. Luckily Eriol and her were father away from the skunk and didn't get sprayed. Eriol had bought her a new tape in the convenience store so she wouldn't have to tape over the previous one.
"Where did you get the wading pool? I didn't know you had any brothers or sister." Syoaran muttered that it was probably his secret kid's.
It belongs to the neighbors; I borrowed it out of their shed. I think I'll dump the juice all over their lawn to get back at them for the water balloons they hurled at me last year. That will teach those little spoiled brats to mess with me." He started to laugh diabolically. They all looked at him as if to say 'so this is where the real Eriol went.'
"Oh sorry. I guess your smell is getting to me. I've said it for years and I'll say it again; you guys stink."
He put the last of the tomato juice into the kiddie pool and pushed Syoaran in. He then went into his house and grabbed some clean clothes for the trio. One by one they took a bath and changed. They arrived back at the hotel in time to sleep for two hours.
Sakura had another vision that night/morning. She was in a graveyard, looking at a tombstone wrote in French. The dream didn't go into detail because she was only asleep for two hours.
Li gently shook her awake. He showed her the tablet and said it was the Focus.
"Focus on the task ahead
It's hard walking among the dead
Vie tout la monde, who is alive
For this quest you must strive
Any clue what it means?"
"If I could focus this early in the morning I would say it means France." She rubbed her eyes and grumbled about getting no sleep.
"Sakura," he said as he sat down on the edge of the bed next to her. "You know this is the only time we are able to talk without interruption. I know you need your sleep."
He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. Despite himself he found he was smiling. Sakura beamed back at him.
"No Syoaran-kun, it's ok, I don't mind waking up at 6:30 in the morning to speak to you. What are you doing up at this time anyway?"
He shrugged. He couldn't very well tell her he was watching her sleep for two hours.
\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %\/\/\/ %
I'm done this chapter… did anyone notice that this kinda looks like syoa-kun, \/\/\/ not that any of you care. Watch for chapter 3, and my new story, which should be coming out soon.
It anyone likes Gundam Wing I have some fanfics of them too. A new one with them should be coming out soon too.
Please read and review, the reading of course is more important, but the reviews are welcome.
All disclaimers apply.
