Author's Note: Really, just more praise for those who reviewed. ~hugs~ Yes, men are so weak. ~snickers~ Glad you agree, L-chan. Kira, if this is really that un-put-downable, then I've done what I set out to do. Thank you! No more Touya-envy in this story for a while I'm afraid. I'm sorry, please forgive me! This is now taking a decidedly S+S turn...totally unexpected from me, I know. It's Peacewish and Silvermoon Maru's fault, even if they didn't review last chapter. ~laughs~ Oh, BabyBattleFaerie, you forgot to add "evil" to puppet master. I am the evil puppet master, and don't you forget it. Welcome on board, Askani Blue. You can stop hating me now. Though, you might just burn with a new hatred for me by the end of this chapter. I'm like that. This may not be my most popular story (Not Human is up to 84 reviews for only 9 chapters, and this only has 42 reviews for 12 chapters), but I really am rather proud of this one. I've certainly put more planning and plotting into this one than any other. ~grin~ Thank you, thank you all!
Silent Eyes
Beyond Love and Understanding
Sakura smiled at her best friend, trying to ignore the hollow feeling inside. "Well, I won't have to leave a note at least. I can just tell Dad where I'm going!"
Tomoyo looked nervous for some reason, but Sakura just ignored it. There wasn't anything to be nervous about. It was just her dad. With a burst of energy she really didn't feel she ran outside to her father's car to meet him. As soon as the engine was off she raced to meet him at his car door. He was smiling, but Sakura thought it looked like there was no life behind it. No real emotion. He had been like that for at least week, smiling and happy, but empty. Then again, so had Touya and Yukito and Yue. Their smiles were as fake as her own lately.
The emotions caught in her throat in a lump, but her smile didn't waver. What is wrong with me? I see emptiness in the smiles around me and not just my own now! I've become so fake that everything around me feels fake.
Sakura realized she couldn't take any more of seeing the same places and faces every day anymore. She had to leave for a while, she had to go with Tomoyo and get out of the house, with or without permission. If she was grounded for it later, it was worth it. She was going insane at home.
He was reaching for the handle to open the door when Sakura blurted out the words, "Tomoyo-chan invited me to supper tonight. I'm going. Bye!"
She didn't wait for his reaction, just moved toward the open door of the limousine waiting for them. Tomoyo waited by the door with Kero perched on her shoulder. As Sakura started walking over she heard her dad's car door open fully and Tomoyo and Kero tensed, then both shouted at the same time, "Sakura! RUN!"
She almost couldn't. She felt like her will was being drained from her, holding her back. Yet, a thrill of fear somehow penetrated as she looked at the faces of her best friends and a feeling like a great evil was about to catch her prompted her to fight her apathy and run. Was it a ghost that had already attacked her dad when her back was turned? That thought pushed her to top speed, tears streaming from her eyes and a small scream escaping her throat past the lump that still sat there.
Tomoyo dove into the car, helping to pull Sakura to safety and then closing the door quickly. As they pulled away Sakura turned to see her father, reaching for her with a look of inhuman rage. He still looked empty, hollow, but his face was also twisted as if with someone else's emotions. It wasn't her father out there, just his body.
Do I look like that? Am I still Sakura when other people look at me? What's going on?
"Tomoyo-chan! What's going on?"
The two girls hugged each other, weeping on each other's shoulders while Tomoyo slowly told her best friend everything she could.
~~~~~@~~~~~
Sonomi tapped nervously on the steering wheel as she saw the strange rental car in front of the gate. She frowned, wondering if it was possible that the enemy could have caught up with them so fast. A feeling came over her though that this was not a threat, but a boon. Syaoran gasped beside her, a look of surprise overcoming his face.
"It's my mother and sisters!"
Sonomi's frown deepened. "How would they know to come here?"
Syaoran just gave her a small, humorless smile. "My mother is the one who taught me magic. With her here we have a chance. A small one, but a chance."
Sonomi decided to just accept that for now, pulling up and punching the code to open the gate. The car containing Syaoran's family followed, then the limousine pulled in soon after with Tomoyo and Sakura. They all pulled up to the end of the drive in front of the door. As soon as Sonomi stopped Syaoran dove from the car and she assumed he was rushing to meet his family. Instead he ran to meet Sakura immediately, pulling her from the limousine and wrapping her in a hug that was so protective and possessive that Sonomi's heart felt a pang. It was something so tender and beautiful to see and Sonomi wished for a moment that she could feel that just for once in her life. Just for once....
So it was Sonomi who greeted Syaoran's family first. "Welcome to my home," she said with a bow to the stately woman who was staring at Sakura and Syaoran with an expression strangely like the one Sonomi had been wearing. "I am Daidouji Sonomi. I am pleased to meet you."
"I am Li Yelan, thank you for welcoming me." Her bow and her bearing were much more formal, speaking of tradition as well as high status. Sonomi smiled, happy to know that her cousin's daughter had found the love of someone who would be able to return the status she should have been born into. She knew it was a somewhat "shallow" thought to have according to so many, but Sonomi worried so much about those she loved...she just wanted Sakura to be taken care of the way Nadeshiko hadn't been.
Her dark thoughts broke off as Tomoyo, Sakura, and Syaoran walked over finally. Sonomi immediately gathered Tomoyo and Sakura into her arms, blinking back relieved tears to see them both safe. "Did you have any problems getting here?"
Tomoyo gave Sakura a quick glance before nodding. "Sakura's father arrived home just as we were leaving."
Sonomi cursed under her breath. "The enemy is sure to know that we're all here then. We won't be able to stay here long, I have no defenses against people who can use magic."
Li Yelan stood forward, smiling slightly. "My daughters will take care of defense. If we do too much traveling, Syaoran will not be able to teach me the spell we need."
Sonomi paused for a break of total amazement. "How do you know so much?"
She pierced Sonomi with an inscrutable gaze. "It was a lucky thing the spirit of Sakura's mother found me. She enlisted my aid first, then I allowed her to borrow from my energy to speak to you."
"Then I am in your debt," Sonomi admitted softly, bringing back the small smile to the sorceress's face.
~~~~~@~~~~~
Syaoran could not stop himself. He had to touch Sakura. He couldn't stop touching her, couldn't force himself to break that reassuring contact with her soft skin. She was here, she was as safe as he could make her. Not safe enough, but he was trying.
He caught his mother looking at him and his immediate reaction was to let go and stand up straight, but even that wasn't enough to pull him totally away from his Sakura.
With tear-filled eyes Sakura looked up at him, confusion the only real expression her face could support. He could feel the emptiness within her as if it was his own and he knew she had to suspect something was wrong with her by now. He wanted to just kiss away her fears and replace them with confidence, but he had a handful of empty hopes to hand her. No answers, nothing real, just wishes that there might be a way she could survive another two weeks.
"Syaoran, what's going on? I don't understand any of this. Why is your mother here? Why are we all at Tomoyo's house? Why did my dad chase us like that? Nothing makes sense anymore."
He held her close, inhaling her sweet scent and stroking her short, silky hair. "Korvath was not our true enemy, he was a puppet for someone else. Someone who wanted our trust before he took us down. I'm sorry, Sakura-chan. I'm so sorry."
"No," she cried into his shoulder. "No, this can't be happening. Everything was supposed to be okay. Korvath is dead and we escaped and everything was supposed to be okay after that." She was sobbing, and Syaoran could feel the dampness against his skin. "Instead everything is just getting worse and worse, and it just doesn't end. That's not the way it's supposed to be."
She lost strength too soon. The tears continued to fall, but her body slumped weakly against him, and he could feel the emptiness welling within her. In two weeks, maximum, the emptiness would be total. Unless he could find a miracle. "How do you feel, Sakura?"
"Tired. I'm so tired all the time now Syaoran. I don't understand why, but I just want to sleep all the time."
He noticed that everyone else was starting to move inside except Tomoyo who was standing nearby, helplessly. She looked as worried as Syaoran felt. "Why don't we go inside with everyone else. That way you can sit down Sakura."
Tomoyo nodded encouragingly, giving Syaoran a small smile. "The three of us could go to my room while everyone else talks...."
Syaoran shook his head. "No. I need to start filling my mother in on the spell immediately."
Tomoyo started looking, well, as stubborn as she really got while staying so sweet. "I will give your mother the book so she can start, but--" She broke off with a significant look at Sakura. "She needs answers Syaoran, and you're the one that needs to give them to her."
Syaoran could feel his heart breaking as Sakura mustered the strength to look into his eyes again. He could see love, trust, and absolute faith in him, but he could also see confusion, questioning, and pain under the layers of weariness. With a heavy sigh Syaoran surrendered the book to Tomoyo and slowly walked with his love to Tomoyo's room.
They sat next to each other on the couch, silently holding each other for a few minutes first. "Syaoran, I haven't felt this tired since I started converting the Clow Cards to my own. It's not getting any better though, it's just getting worse and worse. What's going to happen to me? Why is this happening? If you know, you need to tell me."
He frowned, caressing her face, losing himself in her eyes, trying to ignore the shadows that had grown there since the last time he had held her. "It's the spell that divided Yue and Yukito. They are not meant to be separate beings."
"That's why I'm so weak?"
"Yes. That's why I've been trying so hard to master the spell with Eriol to reverse it and bring them back together."
"Why isn't Eriol here then?"
Syaoran was silent, trying to figure out exactly what to tell her. "He was taken by the enemy." The words were simple, true, but left so much out.
"So, if your mother can't help you cast it, what happens? Will I get stronger eventually? I'll just be too weak to use my magic for a very long time until I get better? Right? Right? Answer me Syaoran! What's going to happen to me?"
It was as close as she could get to panic, and the feebleness of it ripped his heart in two. "Be brave. The spell has to work Sakura. It just has to work."
Tears prickled the corners of his own eyes as dawning realization of what he wasn't saying reached her eyes. "No," she whispered. "No, you're wrong. It will all be all right. It will absolutely be all right."
No matter how many times she chanted it neither of them could stop crying.