Learning To Love and Learning From Love
A/N: Sheesh! Please tell me why the heck italics or bolding won't show up when I upload a new chapter? Please tell me!!! Anyways, thank you VERY MUCH
for all the reviews!!! I was so happy that I got 10 new ones! Oh and please, I beg you, PLEASE stop mentioning how late I post up chapters people. I know
myself, and I am a late person. I know that. People don't have to remind me. So, please don't mention my tardiness of posting in any reviews. Anyways, now
that's over with, someone mentioned that Touya falling instantly in love with an 11 year-old is totally confusing. *cough* *blush* Yeah... *sweatdrop* well,
hehe, yeah, this twisted mind of mine, hehe... I guess, you could say that Touya was just attracted somehow. Anyways, you'll notice that he doesn't seem to feel
as strong as Meiling does. Yeah, so thank you to everyone who reviewed:
SAKURA LOVER: Thanks for reviewing! Glad you liked the chapter!
kawaiiaznangel36: Hehe, a bit of suspense, ne? Lol, jk. You got the part about Eriol comforting Tomoyo is like when Syaoran comforted Sakura right. I hope
this chapter satisfies everyone ^_^ Thanks for reviewing!
Lil DragonLex: Yeah, I'm a very lazy person aren't I? *sweatdrop* Anyways, thanks for reviewing!
Silver-Cherry: Ooh, a very enthusiastic reviewer! It makes me feel good! I will continue! Thanks for the encouragement!
iii_sis: Yup, I'm the mastermind of weird triangles, I think. Lol, I will write more! Thanks for your constant reviews!
Orange-Kirei: I'm glad you like it! I will continue! Thanks for your review!
Jurei: I'm glad you think Touya/Meiling is interesting. I got so many people interested with the preview, I'm so amazed! Thanks for your constant reviews as well!
Daphne Li: I'm glad you're loving it! Makes me feel good again! Well, here's the next chappy! Thanks!
LiL DreameR: I'm sure my writing isn't Shakespeare compared to yours. I'm sure yours is even better. Glad you think it's kawaii! Thanks for reviewing!
ardicana: Lol, about the Touya falling in love thing, I guess you could call it attraction, although I have a pretty twisted mind. ^_^ Thanks for reviewing!
cherrytree: Well, here's the next chapter! I'm glad you like it so much! Thanks!
usal-lover888: Hehe, the preview got a lot of people! Thanks for your review!
Thank you all!!! Oh, and please read my best friend Mei-hua's fics!!! They're really good and she'd be happy if you reviewed ^_^ Her stories are masterpieces compared to mine. So go read them, please? And me and Mei-hua have an account together called "Mei-hua and Anime." Yeah, boring name, I know. Anyways, we're working on a fic where we rewrite the Star Card season into our own version. Yeah, anyways, please R+R and Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Yeah, you know that I don't own CCS, so shoo!
Chapter 8: Getting To Know You
"..." = Dialogue
'...' = Thoughts
(...) = A/N
-...- = Words that are supposed to be in italics
"Morning!" Sakura's cheerful voice was heard all around the classroom, despite all the noise the students were making. Syaoran tensed a bit at the sound of her
voice but he calmed himself down. 'It's just Kinomoto.' Syaoran thought to himself and tried not to look at Sakura. "Morning Tomoyo, Sakura." several girls said
to them.
"Syaoran, don't you think she's really obnoxious? I mean, she's here for only a day so far and she has friends already!" Fang-Fei complained, tugging on Syaoran's
arms. "Why does that make her obnoxious?" Syaoran grunted, trying to struggle out of Fang-Fei's grasp. "Morning, Meiling, Iowa!" Sakura said cheerfully as
usual. "Good morning, Sakura!" Meiling responded, smiling to her. Fang-Fei just grunted, sticking her nose in the air. Meiling secretly stuck her tongue out at
her. Tomoyo and Sakura giggled at Meiling's antics. "Meiling, that's not very nice." Sakura whispered, in between giggles. "Who gives a damn about her?"
Meiling asked. Tomoyo had to agree.
"Good morning, Syaoran." Tomoyo said, not enthusiastically, but softly and gently with a sweet smile directed to Syaoran and only -for- Syaoran. Of course, Syaoran was a -bit- too naive to notice any love signs that Tomoyo practically threw at him. Tomoyo was a bit glad for that. Of course Syaoran could or would never love her and for him to know that she loved him more than anything, she would -not- like that. First of all, he'll reject her. That would be painful, -very-painful. Second of all, he'll feel bad and will be in pain. She would -never- want to see him in pain, physical or emotional. Third of all, their friendship would be broken. It would be uncomfortable between them. She'd absolutely -hate- that.
"Good morning, Li!" Tomoyo heard Sakura say cheerfully to Syaoran. She felt a painful pang. She noted how Sakura only said "morning" to other people while
she said a "good morning" to -her- Syaoran. (A/N: It's true, cause in the CCS series, Sakura only seems to say "ohayo gozaimos" to Yukito and just plain
"ohayo" to others. Sorry for the interruption ^_^;)
Tomoyo shook her head. 'In your dreams, Tomoyo.' she thought to herself bitterly. Syaoran wasn't -hers-. He would -never- be -hers-. "G-Good morning,
K-Kinomoto." Tomoyo heard Syaoran stutter. She giggled to herself quietly. Syaoran's stutters were very cute. She loved the way he stuttered. She loved a lot
about him. He was her number one. She sighed sadly.
"What's wrong, Tomoyo?" Meiling asked, looking at Tomoyo worriedly. Tomoyo looked up to see Meiling staring at her in concern. "Oh, it's nothing Meiling."
Tomoyo said, a fake smile on her face. "Oh..." Meiling said hesitantly, looking at Tomoyo. "Ok, then Tomoyo." Meiling said and turned back to chatting with
Sakura.
"Good morning!" three voices said. Tomoyo, Meiling, and Sakura turned to find Chiharu, Rika, and Naoko standing there. "Morning!" the three girls said back.
"You're name's Sakura, right?" Chiharu asked, looking at Sakura. "Yeah." Sakura said with her bright smile. "And you're Chiharu, Rika, and Naoko?" Sakura
asked. It was a surprise for both Tomoyo and Meiling that such a dense girl would memorize names so fast. "Yup!" all three answered, smiling.
"Everyone, sit down in your seats." the voice of Mr. Terada said as he entered the room. As he came in, Tomoyo noticed a light hue of pink on Rika's cheek.
Tomoyo smiled a knowing one. It was a bit hard to get, but there were several clues to the fact that Rika was in love with their teacher Mr. Terada. She was
always doing things for him, blushing at the sight/mention of him, and Tomoyo was sure Mr. Terada loved her back.
All the students sat down in their seats and the teacher started marking the absent people. Sakura sat behind Syaoran, a bit uncomfortable. 'Hoe? Why do I feel
so tense?' Sakura thought to herself and she found herself unable to break her gaze from the back of Syaoran's head. There was something familiar about
Syaoran... something Sakura couldn't quite point out...
"Everyone, may I have your attention?" Mr. Terada said, a few heads turning to look at him. "An old student has returned." Mr. Terada added, getting almost
everyone's attention this time. In the back, Syaoran was scowling, Tomoyo was fuming, and Fang-Fei was yawning. "Welcome back Eriol Hiiragizawa." he said
as a boy with blue hair and glasses walked into the room.
Some girls gasped dreamily while some guys mumbled and grumbled, while another guy, namely Takashi Yamazaki, was smiling happily. Meiling blushed and
smiled dreamily and Eriol smiled back a mysterious smile to the class. "Of course, I'm sure you'd remember how class goes." Mr. Terada said and Eriol nodded,
frowning at the realization that the only seat was in the back of Tomoyo. "Hiiragizawa, sit in the back of Daidouji." Mr. Terada ordered, and Eriol stomped to
the back of the room, not a very pleasant smile on his face.
Eriol sat down behind Tomoyo, grunting as he did. "The feeling's not mutual." Tomoyo whispered to him, causing him to glare at her, despite the fact she
couldn't see it. "We will begin learning algebra." Mr. Terada announced. "Hoe?!" Sakura whispered loudly. People around her shot her a glance. Sakura didn't
notice. She was getting panicky. Sweat formed on her palms and her mind was freezing.
"Sakura, are you okay?" Tomoyo asked her in concern. Sakura nodded slowly. "Y-Yeah... I'm fine..." Sakura said quietly, not really knowing what she was
saying. Tomoyo looked at her for a second but then continued listening to the teacher. "All of use will be working on algebra papers with a partner who will be
the person behind you." Mr. Terada said to the class. (A/N: I know that doesn't make much sense but it'll work out even if there's an even number of people @_@)
Sakura and Syaoran tensed slightly. Since Sakura was the last person in the row, it would have to be so she and Syaoran would be togther. She gulped slightly,
her heart racing faster. She just hoped that Syaoran would be a math whiz considering the fact that Sakura's vision would blur slightly whenever she saw an
algebra problem. (A/N: Do orphans get educated? Well, let's say that Sakura and Touya did.)
Tomoyo and Eriol was not happy at all. Eriol was the last person in the row, as was Sakura, so it would turn out that he and Tomoyo would work on the algebra
together. "Dammit." Eriol said under his breath. Tomoyo snorted in reply. "If anybody needs help, just raise your hand and I'll help you." Mr. Terada said while
passing out papers. After all the papers were passed out and all the partner problems were fixed, he told them to begin.
Meiling looked back at Tomoyo and Eriol. 'Lucky Tomoyo...' Meiling thought but found it confusing that she wasn't as jealous as she should be. 'That's
strange...' Meiling thought, knowing that she should be a lot more jealous than this if she was actually in love with Eriol. "Hello!?" Fang-Fei said haughtily, and
Meiling looked to her cousin. "Took you long enough." Fang-Fei snorted and Meiling sighed. This was going to be a headache.
Syaoran turned around as Sakura suddenly started staring intently at Syaoran. Those eyes... Sakura had seen them before... she had never noticed Syaoran had
those eyes... those eyes... those eyes... her own eyes widened to the size of plates when she finally realized where she had seen them.
'HOE!!! Li looks like the guy in my dream.' Sakura thought, her face turning crimson. Syaoran looked at her in confusion. "Kinomoto, are you okay?" he asked
and he noticed the sharp emerald eyes. 'Hey... they look familiar... my... dream...?...!!!' Syaoran thought, blushing crimson as well. The two just turned crimson
and looked away to calm their rapidly beating hearts. 'What's wrong with me?' Syaoran wondered as he glanced at Sakura who was staring down at the ground.
'I-It's just nothing.' Syaoran concluded after a moment.
Little did they know that Tomoyo was staring at them with somber eyes. 'Wonder what's happening.' she thought although she had a pretty good idea. Sakura
couldn't be that dense. "Daidouji, care to start?" Eriol's mocking voice broke through Tomoyo's thoughts. Forgetting to put on a cold mask, Tomoyo turned to
look at Eriol with the sad eyes.
"Took you long-" Eriol began, but noticed how sad Tomoyo looked. "Daidouji... are you okay?" Eriol asked hesitantly. Tomoyo gasped slightly and her eyes
turned cold towards him. "Yeah, wonder why you're worrying." she said harshly, glaring at him. He glared back. "Forget I asked." he mumbled then started to
work on the papers. Tomoyo couldn't help but feel bad that she did that. But when did she ever care about -him-? She shot one more glance toward Sakura and
Syaoran, who was now explaining to Sakura how to solve it with tension in between them, and she turned back to work.
~*~
"Tomoyo?" Syaoran said, breaking the silence between them. The two were walking to Syaoran's house slowly. He had no idea why Tomoyo was giving off sad
and uncomfortable waves around him. "Well... what would you do if you were engaged to somebody... but you think you might have feelings for someone else?"
Syaoran suddenly asked. Tomoyo's heart broke more.
"It's Sakura, isn't it?" she asked, trying to sound happy. It worked for Syaoran. "N-No..." Syaoran said, obviously lying. "Well... I did dream about her..." he said
then trailed off. "...but that doesn't mean I like her." he said, uncertainty in her voice. "Syaoran." Tomoyo said and Syaoran looked up into Tomoyo's eyes.
"Syaoran, it's ok if you like someone else. Didn't Fang-Fei say that she'll break the engagement if you found someone you loved more?" Tomoyo asked and
Syaoran nodded slowly.
"But... I don't like Kinomoto." he said quietly, again uncertainty entering his voice. Tomoyo smiled the smile reserved for Syaoran. "I'm sure you'll know in a
while." Tomoyo said, a gentle smile on her face. Fortunately for Tomoyo, Syaoran missed the pain, the love, the wanting in her eyes. Syaoran smiled a genuine
smile to Tomoyo. "Thanks Tomoyo." Syaoran said and Tomoyo smiled back. "Anything for you Syaoran." she said, a hint of sadness in her voice.
This time Syaoran caught it but shook it off. The two continued down the path to the Li mansion, cherry blossoms floating to the ground. 'Anything for you...'
Tomoyo thought lovingly but sadly at the same time as she watched Syaoran slowly walk down the path, catching the blossoms in his hand and staring at them, confused.
'You'll soon know yourself, Little Wolf.' Tomoyo thought sadly as she acknowledged the fact that it'll never be her. He may have her heart, but his will never be
hers. But that was okay. 'As long as he's happy.' Tomoyo thought, but in her heart, she had a feeling that may not be enough.
~*~
"Ok, so people with magical lineage are able to use these paper elements?" Touya asked and Meiling nodded, avoiding Touya's gaze. "But you need to a magical
tool to help you summon those elements. I use a magic staff and Syaoran has a magic staff as well but he never uses these ofudas since has his cards." she
explained, somewhat proud that she didn't stutter one bit. (A/N: Are those little element things called ofudas?)
The two were outside and the sun was shining brightly down on them though a slight autumn chill was in the air. An autumn scent also hung in the air, a
sensation Meiling liked. They were right next to the garden in a field with semi-dead grass. Dead leaves were all around the field in small piles and more were
being added due to the constant falling of leaves from the trees.
"Here, I'll show you mine." Meiling continued, summoning up a staff. Her staff was about two feet in length and was generally simple. Rubies adorned the staff
and on top of the staff, a ruby-red star was on the top of the staff since it was where her power came from. She held up the staff carefully and she held an ofuda
in between her index and middle fingers. A focused look crossed her eyes and she threw the ofuda up into the air. She struck it with her staff while shouting
"Wind descend!" A powerful gust of wind blew from the little paper.
Touya gaped at the scene before him, amazed at the fact that such a tiny paper could work up such a powerful wind. Meiling put down her arms into a relaxed
position and couldn't help but smile at the shocked look on Touya's face. She handed him a sword she instantly summoned up. He looked at it, still a bit dazed at
the surprise. "I think you should have a magical sword as your magical tool..." Meiling pondered as she thought about it over, holding her hand up to her chin.
"... yes a sword." she handed it to him, their hands briefly touching for a second.
Electricity and fire coursed through their bodies for a second and the two stared at each other for three seconds. Touya coughed, breaking the silence and
Meiling's daze. "Oh, uh, yeah, you sh-should practice using the sword first, y-you know, to get used to using it." she explained, her face flushed, and her heart
beating rapidly. Touya nodded, trying to ignore his speeding heart. He walked outwards into the field and took a deep breath. He then started slashing the sword
outward, the sword slicing the air, performing it like he had seen Meiling and Syaoran use a sword a few times before. Meiling... she wouldn't leave his mind. He
had quite a bit of trouble at school, due to her, and he was not like it one bit.
Meiling watched Touya intensely, her eyes glued to him. Her heart was confused although she kept reminding herself that she shouldn't be. Eriol was slowly
fading from her mind and she didn't know why Touya attracted her so well. 'But I love Eriol, not Touya... I think?' Meiling thought, watching Touya practicing
with a sword. "So, care to go on with the training?" Touya asked, turning to Meiling, who blushed furiously at the sight of him. 'Or maybe I... do...?' Meiling
asked herself, getting lost into Touya's dark eyes.
No, it couldn't be. She couldn't be in love with Touya. It was unnatural, considering he was 7 years older than her. And anyways, Eriol was a nice guy, he was
perfect for Meiling's tastes... but why was her feelings getting stronger for Touya? "Hey... uh, kid..." Touya said, trying to get her attention. He knew perfectly
well that her name was Meiling, but he couldn't bring himself to call her by her name, considering that they weren't very close. "Y-Yes." Meiling answered
nervously, finally realizing that he had been talking to her. "Shouldn't we go on with the training?" Touya asked, confused and worried at her stranger behavior
around him.
"I-I think we should get to magic tomorrow." Meiling said suddenly. "You did a great job, and I think you'll be a great magician and warrior." she said, blushing
at what she just said. Touya felt flattered but uncomfortable at the same time. Meiling immediately turned towards the house and started walking quickly towards
it, her head down, trying to hide her scarlet face from the world. This couldn't be happening... it really couldn't be happening.
~*~
The autumn afternoon had turned into an autumn night as the stars littered the sky. The night sky was bright, as was the day, and the moon was full and shining down upon the Earth. Maybe the peaceful and happy shine wasn't very well meant for a certain girl, shedding tears on a park bench. It was Tomoyo Daidouji who was sitting out under the night, crying away. It hurt so much... she had nothing to do but cry.
Meanwhile, a boy her age of 11 was also walking through this certain park, glasses glinting off light given off by the moon and stars. Eriol Hiiragizawa just wanted a peaceful walk through the park, but then he heard muffed sobbing from a bench in the park. He couldn't help but get curious and walked over to the bench.
"Is somebody there?" he hesitantly asked and Tomoyo gasped, realizing who it was. "H-Hiiragizawa!? What are you doing here!?" she asked, surprised and was
putting a large amount of effort into trying not to show him that she had been crying. Even if it was night, to Tomoyo's disadvantage, the bright night lights in
the sky made seeing not very hard.
Eriol noticed tears running down Tomoyo's face. "Daidouji, what's wrong?" Eriol asked, trying to strain the worry out of his voice to no avail. Tomoyo tried to
stop the tears in vain. "I think Sakura's in love with Syaoran and Syaoran's in love with Sakura... and the worst part is... I think they're meant to be together..."
Tomoyo trailed off, tears freely flowing down her cheeks. Eriol hesitated at first but wrapped his arms around her slowly.
Tomoyo buried her face into his shoulder. "It's not fair! I love Syaoran so much, but I'll never deserve him! My heart hurts because of this whole thing and of
course I can't hate Sakura! She's like a sister to me and I've got to be strong for Syaoran..." Tomoyo trailed off sobbing silently after her last words. Eriol didn't
feel very comfortable in this current position, considering this was his enemy, but he shook away the feeling.
"Your happiness is his happiness...?" Eriol asked, the interrogation turning out more like a statement. Tomoyo nodded, still unable to say anything. They stayed
like that for a few moments, Eriol sitting on the bench, supporting Tomoyo in his arms. After a few minutes, he realized that Tomoyo had fallen asleep. 'Poor
Daidouji. All this emotional stress has gotten her tired.' he thought in pity as he looked at Tomoyo's face.
For the first time, Eriol noticed how pretty Tomoyo really was. She had long eyelashes which complemented her eyes well, open or closed. The features on her
face were all perfect in size and shape, going well together. Eriol forced himself to look the other way. 'Well, gotta get her home.' he thought and carefully
shifted her position so she was on his back in a piggy back ride.
He slowly walked towards her home, trying to convince himself that this event would have no effect on his and Tomoyo's relationship as enemies.
~*~
"Tomoyo!" Sonomi cried as she rushed to the door, picking up her child. "Thank you, Hiiragizawa, but where did you find her?" she asked, mixed emotions of
relief, wonder, and concern on her face. Eriol flushed, not knowing how to explain it. "Well, I found her asleep on a bench in the park and I decided to take her
home." he explained, trying to keep a sincere face. Fortunately, Sonomi didn't notice it. "Well, thank you Hiiragizawa!" she cried, extremely relieved to have
Tomoyo safe. "No problem Mrs. Daidouji." Eriol said weakly. He bowed to her and said a good-night. She responded back a good-night and Eriol was on his
way home.
"Nothing at all, this never took place tonight." he said to himself. Unfortunately, he was having trouble thinking in that manner.
A/N: Hehehehehe, I know that probably sucked as usual, but I enjoyed writing that chapter. Expect things to get fluffier. *evil cackle* You could tell that I got
that little Eriol and Tomoyo scene from episode 60 when Tomoyo comforts Meiling and also from episode 66 when Syaoran comforts Sakura. Anyways, please
review and please, -please- don't mention this being late. It's only been *counting* 12 days... hehe...? Oh and please tell me how to make the italics and bolding
to show up if you know, cause I can't make the stupid thing work. So, preview for next chapter:
*Preview*
-"A teddy bear?" Syaoran asked a bit skeptically, an eyebrow raising. "Yeah, a teddy bear!" Fang-Fei repeated, bouncing excitedly. "If you give one to
somebody, that's a sign that you love that person!" Fang-Fei said, even more excitedly. Unexpectedly and a little guiltily, Sakura came to Syaoran's mind...-
-"Eriol... I love you...?" Meiling said, the statement ended up more like a question. "I'm not quite so sure you love me Meiling." Eriol said, smiling
mischievously. "Then..." Meiling began, trailing off. "I'm sure that person will come to you." Eriol said, taking the whole thing a bit too well as if he had known
everything. This did not occur to Meiling, considering she was thinking of something else.-
-"About last night..." Tomoyo began but couldn't get the words right. "It never happened." Eriol said simply, regretting that he said that. Tomoyo nodded
slowly, although she wanted to say something else entirely different.-
*End Preview*
Please don't kill me for that! Hehe, so just hang on that for a bit. So please review and go easy on flames. 'Til next chapter! Ja ne!