A few days later…

England, 3.45pm, Reed Manor

"Master, master!" A dark blue ball of fur with wings flitted across the room and landed in Hiiragizawa Eriol's lap.

Eriol smiled down at him affectionately. "Calm down, Spinel. Now tell me what's going on."

"Well, you received an invitation in the mail and--" he started to say, but Nakuru was faster.

"Sakura-chan and Li-kun are getting married!" She bounded across the expensively-carpeted floor, tossed an envelope to Eriol, and without warning roughly scooped up Spinel and danced him around the room. "Yay! Suppi-chan! Isn't this fun?!"

It was a rhetorical question. Spinel couldn't answer it not because he wasn't supposed to, but because he was sick of being danced around and flung about in the air. Literally sick. A sickly green was beginning to show up on his usually-healthy midnight-blue coat. In fact, if this continued he was going to be sick in the worst was possible--

Bleah.

"Suppi-chan!" Nakuru cried in horror, putting him down on the floor. "My new dress!" she moaned. "Oh, Suppi, how could you…"

Spinel regained a sense of ground, his healthy colour coming back. "DON'T. CALL. ME. THAT. I'm Spinel Sun, for your information."

"Eriol-sama.." Nakuru turned to Eriol, pouting.

Eriol just smiled at her and Spinel, amused. "I would be glad to help, but no magic for two weeks, remember, Nakuru?"

"Please?" Nakuru could have kicked herself for thinking up her ever- brilliant no-magic-for-two-weeks campaign. It had worked wonderfully well, of course… until now.

Eriol shook his head ever so slightly. "I keep my promises. No magic. Go to the bathroom and clean yourself up, Nakuru. And Spinel, could you please help her."

His two creations obediently carried out his instructions, leaving Eriol by himself to think. He bent over his white-marble coffee table and picked up the cream-coloured envelope. A stamp from Japan was attached to it. He slid open the envelope and scanned the contents of the invitation.

Eriol smirked. "Matrimonial celebratioin, indeed!" he gave a short, barking laugh. He was happy for his friends, but couldn't help thinking of his broken engagement with his ex-fiancee, Mizuki Kaho. It had been a mutual agreement between them to break the engagement - the age gap between them had been too big and had caused many rifts - but Eriol wished that he had someone special to spend his time with, to lavish his abundant wealth on. Sighing, he turned back to the invitation. A slip of pink-coloured paper fluttered onto his lap. Eriol picked it up.

Ohayo Eriol-kun!

We really miss you here in Japan! It just isn't the same without you and Tomoyo-chan. Remember Naoko-chan, Rika-chan, Chiharu-chan and Yamazaki- kun? I've invited them to my wedding and they're all coming, so you have to come too to complete the group!

Besides, you're the best man, so you have to be there. Tomoyo-chan is going to be my maid-of-honour, so she's your partner in my wedding. Anyway, the details and the plane ticket are enclosed. Hope to see you there!



Sakura

Eriol shook the envelope upside-down, and sure enough, the details and the plane ticket to Japan fell out. Hmm… Daidouji-san was going to be his partner in the wedding, huh? The last time he'd seen her was in sixth grade, just before he'd moved to England. They'd written a little, but it was mainly "how's the weather" kind of topics. Then even these polite gestures stopped.

The last he heard, Daidouji-san had moved to Singapore right after high school graduation, and was now the vice-president of the highly-successful Daidouji Toy Company.

And he hadn't seen the rest of his friends for a long time, since Sakura and Syaoran had visited him in England a few years back. So. Now it was time he stopped reminiscing about the past. Seeing his old friends was enough.