Maple's Wisdom: Hey everyone! WAAAAAIIIIII!!!!!!!!!! *teary eyed* I've never ever gotten so many reviews for 1 story before! 14! Wai! (2nd place is 13 reviews for 8 chapters) Thank you soooo much for reviewing! ^_^

L-chan: Really? I was worried I had overdone it. I was *really* tempted to give you Eriol's side of it, or maybe Tomoyo, but I'll save that for later. It was a *very* poor-Meiling chapter, and it's going to get less angsty about now. It's OK about you being impatient! I know I sorta don't talk as much about Touya as the rest of the characters-but the T+Tness starts this chapter, when Eriol dumps Tomoyo! Umm, heh, that WASN'T a blatant spoiler....*shifty eyed*

Okami: I can assure you the card is NOT George. The card's name starts with N. Wait a sec...*reads through last chappies* I didn't write about the guy in the monkey suit named George! It does sound like something I would write, though....especially the one named George. George is an AWESOME name! ^_^

Aore: Oooh, new to M+E? *gets all excited* WAI! See, I just made the pairing up when I was bored with S+S E+T, then I started to really like it and find a couple other M+E stories too! Yeah, Meiling is super-depressed, but in this chapter, she's less depressed (but VERY guilt-ridden) Okie, well, the T+T starts here!

Maple's Disclaimer: Since I don't know how to buy stocks for CCS (Umm....wait...you have to be at least 18?!?!? &#^@*!!!) I'll have to wait before I can buy over 1/2 of them and buy out CLAMP! So, I don't own CCS.

OK...This starts in Eriol's POV because...well....it's the best POV at this point in the story. Kay?

)Eriol's POV(

I ran my fingers through my hair. Even with Kaho, my life had never been so nerve-wracking. I didn't want to hurt Tomoyo...she was so earnest and caring, and one of my best friends. It just had to be done, because I didn't love her. I haven't been this confused since I broke consciousness, knowing nothing of the world. Thank Kami for Kaho, who taught me everything about the world today. I learned never to lose my cool, and I never have, so how come I am now, over some girl?

Because she's not just some girl, I thought. She's a living goddess. Li Meiling Rae. I love her. She's the reason why I have to kill Tomoyo's heart. I smiled at Tomoyo, trying to seem normal.

"It's nice to see you again, Tomoyo-san." I said, surprising myself.

"The same to you, Eriol-kun." she said, radiating with infatuation. She held my hands tightly, her voice shaking a little "I-I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time now. I love you, more than I ever loved anyone before."

"I know that you think so, Tomoyo.." I whispered. "But it is unfair for both of us to continue this charade. I love you, too, Tomoyo. But only as a friend. Because..I love another. And there are so many people out there, and in here, that will gladly give you their hearts forever, if only you do the same."

"I give you my heart, Eriol Hiiragizawa. Will you give me yours?" Tomoyo asked, shaking.

"No, Tomoyo, I can't. I've already given it away, it's no longer mine to give. If you give me your heart, Tomoyo, all you will receive back is pain. Please, for the both of us, don't."

"But I love you." whispered Tomoyo, a single tear making its way down her face.

"But I don't love you. I'm sorry, Tomoyo." I said softly, wiping her tear away gently.

"How can this be happening?" she asked me, "We understand each other so well. I was sure you'd feel like I do. I put so much faith in you, Eriol. But you--you don't care." Tomoyo ran to her tent and pulled the zipper closed. I heard the click of a padlock. She was locking herself in. I ran my fingers through my hair again, wondering if I had done the right thing.

*

)Meiling's POV(

Sasaki said that I had fainted after Tomoyo said...that she loved him. It wasn't just a silly little crush. She really loved him. No one has told me where Tomoyo is, but everyone is worried about her. I don't know why.

Sasaki entered, holding a cassette tape.

"We recorded it, remember?" she asked me, uncertainly.

I nodded.

"Do you want to hear it?" she asked.

I squeezed my eyes tight and nodded again. Sasaki popped the tape into the tape player on the shelf. I heard Pocky sticks crunching a little before the staticky voices began. Sasaki fast-forwarded to the part where Tomoyo said....that she....well, you know what she said.

"I know that you think so, Tomoyo, but it is unfair for both of us to continue this charade. I love you too, Tomoyo. But only as a friend. Because..I love another. And there are so many people out there, and in here, that will gladly give you their hearts forever, if only you do the same." Eriol's voice sounded strange, not just because of the static. There was so much...emotion in his voice. I never knew if he had emotions before. But here, I could hear it all. Pain, and sadness.

"I give you my heart, Eriol Hiiragizawa. Will you give me yours?" Tomoyo's voice also seemed strange, but not because she sounded heart-broken. She sounded...unsure.

"No, Tomoyo, I can't. I've already given it away, it's no longer mine to give. If you give me your heart, Tomoyo, all you will receive back is pain. Please, for the both of us, don't." Eriol's voice was so human. It scared me, how vulnerable and hurt he seemed, just then. My world was that Tomoyo loved Sakura, but would give her up for her happiness, I would never fall in love, and that Eriol was invincible. Yet here he was, just a normal person. My world was crumbling.

"But I love you." I once saw a movie, where the female lead's world collapsed. It was a fake world. She didn't like her friends or her job, and she didn't love her husband. But she said she did, just to keep the security around her, when she found the love of her life. That was how Tomoyo sounded. It was eerie. Tomoyo was always so earnest, so honest. It didn't fit, but it was terribly real.

"But I don't love you. I'm sorry, Tomoyo." There was something much more disturbing in Eriol's voice now. It was fear. Fear of hurting Tomoyo. I was putting together a jigsaw puzzle but the pieces didn't fit together. It made me feel insecure, and more afraid than ever.

"How can this be happening? We understand each other so well. I was sure you'd feel like I do. I put so much faith in you, Eriol. But you--you don't care." Tomoyo sounded...no, it was impossible. Tomoyo, in all the time I had known her, had never gotten the slightest bit...angry. But I could hear it in her voice. Tomoyo was hurt and angry. What was going on? Next thing you know, Sakura would sink into depression. My world wasn't crumbling. It was no longer there.

The tape ended there, and all I heard was static. Sasaki pressed STOP, and removed it. She placed it in one of the drawers on the chest.

"It's yours, Meiling. Do what you like with it." she said softly.

Eriol said in the tape, that he loved someone else. Who was it? I thought I'd go mad just guessing.

It's you, you fool, a voice in my head said. Don't you see the way he looks at you? I shook my head. It was impossible that Eriol, the handsome, charming ladies' man could possibly love Meiling Li, the freak. The female Li with no magic. The selfish, conniving, jealous, possessive, insecure, incompetent Li Meiling Rae. Hah, that was a match made in heaven, I thought sarcastically. But whoever it was, it was someone who he had really fallen for. I don't think he would bother to hurt Tomoyo if it was just a crush. That is, if Eriol was capable of a crush. I wasn't that sure.

The breakfast bell chimed. I rose hastily, then came toppling back into bed. I couldn't believe it. For the first time in my life, I couldn't protect myself. I was vulnerable, frail. Weak. The word made me want to spit at myself in disgust. You are no Li, I heard the elders saying, you are too weak. I hated myself. I could hear the contempt in their voices and feel it in my heart. Too weak to stand, an invalid. I was weak, dependant. This may possibly have been the worst day of my life.

A knock broke me out of my anti-self esteem thoughts.

"Come in." I said.

Eriol's head poked in.

"Meiling? Are you hungry?" he asked. I nodded. staring down.

"Huh? Where's my cast?" I asked, frowning.

"While you were unconscious, I healed it, with Sakura's help. You arm should be fine now." he said kindly, placing a tray of rice and salted mackerel, steaming hot, on my lap. I inhaled the wonderful scent hungrily.

"Meiling..." he began.

"Hai?" I replied. He was looking at the chest of drawers. The top drawer, to be exact. Did he know that I had the tape? Did he know what was on it? Kami, I thought, I hope not. I would die of shame and embarassment. He looked into my eyes. I glared back. Be strong, Meiling. Be strong.

He nodded. "Nothing." he said. I think he saw right through me. I've always been vulnerable and afraid, but I've always fooled people with a mask of competitiveness and possessiveness. Eriol knew I wasn't that way. Just that moment, it was the first moment he saw right through my mask. He knew who I really was. Eriol was the only person who had ever done that. He was my third true friend. My first had been Syaoran. He met me before I hid my true self. He knew the real me, the one I was in China. The second was Tomoyo. After Syaoran "dumped" me, I let her see who I was, too. I just needed to tell her everything, she had understood so well. And Eriol, the one I loved, was the third. I just hoped, that he didn't see that part of me. I hoped I had hidden it in the back, where he couldn't see. He nodded, smiling weakly, then left. I stared at the door for a matter of minutes before I realized he had left. Was this what love felt like?

I sighed, shaking myself out of my stupor. Would my life ever again be normal?

*

The door creaked open, awakening me. I opened my eyes to see Sakura and Syaoran. Sakura smiled, and set down a tray of food down in front of me.

"Eriol-kun said you might be hungry. It's a little past noon." Sakura said, smiling in that sweet little way of hers.

"Meiling...are you alright?" asked Syaoran, leaning down and touching my forehead.

"I'm fine, Syaoran. Really." I said, "Just tired..." I yawned loudly, covering my mouth. "I heard everyone talking about Tomoyo. What happened?"

"She's locked herself in her tent. She won't come out or talk to anyone." said Sakura sadly. My eyes widened. Tomoyo had always been good at hiding her emotions, especially sadness. Why now?

Sakura and Syaoran kept me company while I ate lunch, then left. I stumbled onto the floor and got dressed. I would help Tomoyo.

I put on my heaviest jacket and warmest boots. I pulled the window open, bit by bit, silently. Crawling through the window, I realized how small it was. I squeezed through and landed in a round ball outside the window. I shakingly stood up and closed it, just as I had opened it. It was too difficult to walk, so I crawled to Tomoyo's tent.

"Tomoyo?" I called. My voice was slightly muffled by the thick scarf around my neck and lower face. JAPAN WAS COLD!

No answer.

"Tomoyo?" I called again, slightly louder. No answer.

"TOMOYO DAIDOUJI, TALK TO ME RIGHT NOW!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I have a VERY loud voice. Miraculously, no one in the mess burrow heard me. Weird. No answer.

"Tomoyo, if you do not speak this instant then I will cut a hole in your tent and make you!" I threatened. No reply.

I pulled a pocket knife out of my pocket. (A really fancy one Syaoran had given me for Christmas.) I pulled out a pair of tiny scissors and snipped a hole in Tomoyo's tent. I crawled through and gasped at what I saw.

Tomoyo was lying there, unconscious with a tree branch pinning her down. I looked up. It looked like a tree had broken one of its bracnhes, making a hole in the tent, that let it fall in Tomoyo.

"TOMOYO-CHAN!" I screamed, frantically heaving at the branch. It was heavy, but I was the strongest fighter out there. I got it off and checked her pulse. It was slow. Scary slow. Her body was cold, but she was still alive...for now. She wasn't breathing. I heard footsteps.

"Omae!" called Kinomoto, "What are you doing?"

"Tomoyo..." I whispered. He looked down. "Her pulse is slow, really slow. She's cold. This branch broke a hole in her tent and fell on her."

Kinomoto shook his head sadly. "I can't believe no one noticed a hole in her tent."

"It probably only happened after you left her alone. But that's not important. We have to get Tomoyo into the mess burrow." I lifted Tomoyo's head as gently as I could and Kinomoto lifted her feet. We walked to the mess burrow, slightly awkwardly. I was fearing for Tomoyo's life.

*

Kinomoto and I shoved open the door. Everyone stared. We lay her down on the bench in front of the fire. I put my scarf underneath as a pillow. Kinomoto checked her pulse. "She's not breathing." he said, and everyone froze in fear. "Who knows CPR?" Silence.

So, Kinomoto did it himself. Soon, Tomoyo had a weak pulse. We knew she might not make it. We knew she probably wouldn't make it. But we all hoped, and prayed, for Daidouji Tomoyo with all our hearts. Kinomoto carried her to another room, a room with a bigger fire and a bed. He motioned for me to follow. I did.

"Li," he said, "she's got hypothermia, a broken arm, and her left hand has frostbite. I need your help."

"Me?" I asked, pointing to myself. "Ask Eriol or Sakura. They have healing magic."

Kinomoto shook his head. "Even Sakura's power can't heal this sort of thing. I need your help. I hear you studied herbs and other healing type things. Do you know what cures frostbite?"

I gently took Tomoyo's left hand. "I do. But, it only grows in warm places, like China. I have none and no way of getting any."

Kinomoto nodded. He handed me a strange-looking tool. "Sterilize it over the fire." he ordered. I would have fought back, had the situation not have been so urgent and serious, but now I obeyed.

*

I entered the main room and seated myself beside Eriol.

"How are you?" asked Eriol.

I smiled weakly. "The real question is, how is Tomoyo?" I said, "She's not doing well. If anything, she's worse."

Eriol looked upset. "And how are you?" he asked once again.

I sighed. "Fatigued. Eriol, Tomoyo has about a 90% chance of dying. We may never see her alive again."

Eriol patted my shoulder. "If we pray for her, she will live. We must all pray for our friend's life." I nodded and bowed my head. I don't know exactly how long I stayed like that, but I fell asleep there and dreamed about the man beside me.

Charisma's Critique: This is my longest chapter ever! *blink blink* Wow. So, this was a real turning chapter, the halfway point (I was going to make the story stretch over the 2 weeks the characters are there, but I found it was already pretty stretched out from my P.O.V. so I'm just going to make it 1 week. The rest of the camp was too boring to write about.) Anyways, that was the first of the T+T...sort of. Oh, and Ah-Choo(sorry if I didn't get that right..), I'm glad you still like Meiling-chan, and yes, poor, poor Meiling. I didn't see your review until after I started writing this chapter, so that's why my response is down here.

Charisma's Vocab:
Kami-God
Omae-You (in a superior sort of way)

Okay, since this is a cliffy, I'm sure you're all VERY annoyed with me. However, the more reviews I get, the more motivated I am to update! Okay? Got that? REVIEW! (Did I mention this is my most reviewed fic EVER? Weird, no?) Please? *puppy dog eyes*