Chapter 10
Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura or any characters used in this fanfiction, except Kagi and Kiri. You'd think I've told you enough times already. Don't sue me!
I'm a slow writer. I've got homework. Sorry for delays or anything, but school is hard or more like, I'm lazy. Sorry if Eriol or Tomoyo or any of the characters are OOC. Please tell me if they are, too. They're all about eighteen in this fic.
Kagi walked up nervously to the Daidouji residence and rang the doorbell of the house. He was planning to go out with Tomoyo that day, like a date. Of course he was nervous. The door opened and Kiri bowed.
"Moriato-san. How may I be of service?" she asked. Kagi also bowed.
"Is Tomoyo-chan home?" he asked.
"Gomen nasai. Mistress Tomoyo isn't home right now." she answered. Kagi put on a sad look.
"Did she go out?" Kagi asked. Kiri shook her head.
"She didn't go out this morning. She hadn't been home since yesterday afternoon, actually. Mistress Daidouji assured us that she was safe. No one but her knows of young Tomoyo's whereabouts." she informed him. Kagi frowned.
"May I speak with Daidouji-san?" he asked.
"Gomen. Mistress Daidouji isn't here, though I think she said Tomoyo-chan was staying with a friend." Kiri said, thoughtfully. Kagi bowed.
"Arigatoo." he said and left. As he was walking from Tomoyo's house, he thought about what the maid had told him. 'Staying at a friend's house? It couldn't be Sakura. Maybe Eriol-kun knows.' Kagi thought and headed in the direction of his house. It took him only a few minutes to walk to Eriol's house. He knew a shortcut to it, so he didn't have to walk all those blocks there. He walked up the front footpath towards the entrance to the Hiiragizawa house. His home was large, larger than Tomoyo's home. The front garden was something to marvel about as well. Kagi shook his head, in wonder.
'How does a teenage boy and his cousin afford a house like this?' Kagi thought as he knocked on the door. He waited to be admitted.
~~~
Tomoyo had been reading one of the books from Eriol's library, when she heard someone knock on the door. Tomoyo frowned and put down her book. 'I was just getting started, too.' she thought as she got up. Nakuru was taking a nap and Spinel couldn't really answer the door. Eriol was still asleep and she didn't dare wake him up. As Tomoyo walked to the door, the thought never crossed her mind that the person at the door could be Rika or Chiharu or some girl from school. The thought that if Tomoyo were seen opening the door at Hiiragizawa's house, she would be the topic of gossip for months on end never crossed her mind, either.
~~~
The door opened and to Kagi's utmost surprise, it was Tomoyo who had opened it.
"Oh, Konnichiwa Ka-kun." Tomoyo greeted. Kagi just stared at her, mouth open.
"T-T-Tomoyo!? Where's Eriol-kun!?" Kagi asked, finally. Tomoyo smiled.
"He's still sleeping. Tired, I guess." she said.
"What are you doing here!? At Eriol's house!? In Akizuki-chan's clothes!?" Kagi asked.
"How did you know these were Nakuru-chan's clothes?" Tomoyo asked, curiously.
"I saw her wear them once." he said. Tomoyo shrugged.
"I stayed over here, last night." Tomoyo said. Kagi's eyes bulged.
"How-how could you have done such a thing!?" Kagi asked. Tomoyo finally realised what Kagi must of thought and nearly burst out laughing. She heard footsteps and Eriol came up behind her.
"Eh? Kagi-san? What are you doing here?" Eriol asked, sleepily. His hair was messed and his shirt was half-undone. He wasn't wearing his glasses, either. Tomoyo looked at him and blushed. She looked away and forced her blush to retreat. 'He looks kind of…cute.' Tomoyo thought. She mentally slapped herself and pushed that thought FAR away into the corners of her mind.
"What are you doing up?" Tomoyo asked, "I thought I told you to sleep." Eriol grinned.
"I heard shouting outside. I didn't think I'd be able to sleep again, so I just got up." he said, shrugging. Kagi was glaring at Eriol and Tomoyo was forced, yet again, to stifle her laughter. Kagi went up to a confused Eriol and grabbed his collar. They were both of the same height, so Kagi couldn't glare down at him.
"I'm going to kill you, you *censored!*" Kagi growled. Eriol was still looking at him, bemused. At that time, Tomoyo was leaning against the doorframe for support, as her laughter shook her body. Both men looked at her as if she had gone mad. It took a while for her to calm down, but eventually she did.
"It's not what you think!" Tomoyo told Kagi and burst out laughing. She leaned over and whispered into Kagi's ear, explaining why she was at Eriol's house. Kagi's expression turned from fierce to embarrassed. Tomoyo pulled back, giggling. His face was red and bowed towards Eriol.
"I apologise for my behavior. I assumed something, but Tomoyo has set me rights." Kagi said. Eriol was still confused.
"You're forgiven, I guess. Why don't we go inside? I think I'm still confused." Eriol admitted. They walked inside and sat at the table in the kitchen. "Can you explain what caused our dear Tomoyo-san to burst into fits of laughter outside?" Eriol asked Kagi. His face was still flaming and he refused to answer. Tomoyo pulled Eriol down to her level and whispered in his ear. When she had finished, Eriol burst out laughing and so did Tomoyo. Kagi grew redder.
"Shut up!" he said, angrily. This only made them laugh more.
~~~
Eriol, Tomoyo and Kagi had decided to go for a walk. They had passed many people and even a person who sold balloons. Eriol had snuck away and bought a balloon for Tomoyo.
"A balloon? I'm not a kid anymore, Eriol-kun." Tomoyo said, when he had handed her the balloon.
"Don't tell me you don't like balloons?" Eriol shrugged. "I'm sure I can find someone who is more appreciative of it." Eriol said, trying to take the balloon off Tomoyo. She moved out of his reach and grinned.
"I never said I didn't want it!" she retorted. Eriol grinned. They continued walking, Tomoyo between the two boys. Kagi later went to a flower stall and purchased a long-stemmed red rose while Tomoyo and Eriol were preoccupied. Her handed the rose over to Tomoyo with a bow.
"For you, milady." Kagi said. She accepted the rose with a laugh.
"You two spoil me so much." Tomoyo said.
"Well, if you want us to stop…" Kagi trailed off.
"Hey I never said anything like that!" Tomoyo said. She laughed, placing an affectionate hand on each of the boys' arms. "You two are so sweet, sometimes."
"Only sometimes?" Eriol questioned. Tomoyo rolled her eyes and smiled.
~~~
A week had passed and Tomoyo was over at Kagi's house with Eriol. They were sitting in the living room. Tomoyo sat at the couch, Kagi in one of the chairs of the room and Eriol was sitting on the panel below the window, looking out it. Tomoyo flopped onto the couch and sighed.
"I'm bored." Tomoyo said.
"Whining doesn't suit you." Eriol said, not turning from the window. Tomoyo giggled.
"Guess I was whining, wasn't I?" she said. Kagi nodded his head, mock solemnly. Tomoyo sat up and looked around the room. "No offence, but this room is pretty plain." Kagi looked around the room and shrugged.
"I guess it kind of is. I'm not really into room design. Practically any designing, actually." Kagi said. Eriol turned and looked at Tomoyo. Her hands were practically twitching to do something with the room.
"Well, if you want designing of any kind, just ask Tomoyo-san." Eriol suggested. Tomoyo looked at him and he winked. 'He knows me too well.' she thought. Kagi smiled, strangely.
"Hmm, sounds like a good idea. Why don't you come over sometime and help design this room?"
"Why don't I try now? It's not as if I have any thing to do now." Tomoyo said. She stood up and walked around the room, examining the walls. Eriol smiled to himself.
~Heh, unlike Tomoyo, I have no designing experience at all. Not very colour coordinated, either.~
~~~
The very next day, Kagi had bought all the paints Tomoyo had suggested and moved most of the furniture from the room. Now he was just waiting the arrival of Tomoyo and Eriol. 'Hopefully not together.' he thought, privately. The doorbell rang and Kagi stood to answer it.
"Ohayoo gozaimasu." Eriol greeted. Kagi looked momentarily dismayed. He would preferred some time with just Tomoyo. Maybe he would have summed up the courage to ask her out, then.
"Ohayoo. Come in." Kagi said. Eriol removed his shoes and was about to walk in, until her heard a voice.
"Chotto matte, Eriol-kun, Ka-kun." Tomoyo called and ran towards them. She smiled, genuinely. "Ohayoo." Both the men smiled in return.
"Ohayoo." they said, together. All of them walked inside and into the plain room.
"Let's just get started, okay?" Tomoyo suggested. Kagi nodded. They were only wearing some old clothes. Tomoyo dressed in overalls and a plain T-shirt. Kagi dressed in a brown shirt and cream pants. Eriol was wearing a dark blue shirt and black pants.
"You two start first. I'll go make some tea." Kagi said and walked from the room. Tomoyo and Eriol bent to look at the colours of the paints.
"I think this cream colour would be nice. And maybe dark green on those two walls?" Tomoyo questioned.
"Hai. That would look good. Let's get started. I'll do this wall, while you start with the ceiling, I think." Eriol suggested. Tomoyo nodded and unfolded a step-up ladder. She placed the bucket and brush on a shelf next to her. Opening up the can, she stirred it using a wooded stick. Slowly, she dipped in her brush in the creamy colour and scraped the excess against the sides of the can. Reaching up, she started to paint. Eriol was watching her, as she painted, a tender expression on his face. He noticed she wore her expression of concentration. He loved how she took her time with everything, not rushing, but doing the best job as she could. He also noticed that, slowly, she was painting towards the middle of the ceiling. Her other hand was wet from paint and she was slowly losing her grip on the ladder. With a small cry, she fell. Quick as anything, Eriol was over by the ladder and caught her in his arms.
"Baka." Eriol said, eyes concerned, "Be careful." Tomoyo couldn't think. Usually, she would come up with some pert reply, but she couldn't. She couldn't move, she couldn't speak and she couldn't think. All she could think about was how his arms felt so comforting around her, how beautiful his eyes were and how close their faces were from touching. She started to panic as his beautiful face, inched closer and closer. She could feel his hot breath against her mouth and it sent shivers down her spine. Loud footsteps approaching brought the two back to reality. Eriol dropped her on her feet. Kagi entered, looking at them, curiously. Tomoyo was blushing like mad.
"Something wrong?" Kagi asked. Tomoyo shook her head, hastily.
"I'm fine. I think I just need a drink." Tomoyo said and walked past him towards the kitchen. As she brushed past him, Kagi felt curiosity flare up in him. He looked at Eriol, suspiciously, but he had already started to paint again.
"What happened?" Kagi asked. Eriol looked at him.
"Nothing. Aren't you going to help?" Kagi sighed. Knowing Eriol, he knew that Eriol wouldn't share something unless he wanted to. He dropped the subject and got to work.
~~~
Tomoyo clutched her shivering hands around her mug. She had never been that close to a man before. She tried to convince herself that what she was feeling was just an aftereffect of Eriol trying to kiss her, but she knew it probably wasn't. She tried to convince herself that Eriol only tried to kiss her because it was a 'spur of the moment' action, but she knew that probably wasn't right, either. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. Best to ponder it later, when I'm alone. Tomoyo stood and left to join the others. Little did she know, she was being spied on by a pair of brown eyes…
~~~
"I knew it, Suppi-chan! They are just meant to be together!" Nakuru whispered, excitedly. Spinel popped out of her handbag.
"It's SPINEL, not SUPPI!" Spinel admonished. Nakuru hit him playfully over the head.
"Don't be a spoilsport." Spinel rubbed his head with a paw.
"What makes you think they're 'meant to be'?" Spinel asked, changing the subject.
"Didn't you see the expression on her face after master tried to kiss her? It was the same one that master wore when he found out he loved Tomoyo-chan!" Nakuru said, excitedly. Spinel shuddered, remembering. When Eriol had found out he was in love, he had been in denial for weeks. Staring into space at odd times, seclusion and freaky smiles for no apparent reason were common, then. Frankly, it was scary, but he guessed love was like that.
"So? She's in denial." Spinel said. Nakuru hit him over the head again.
"Baka! Denial is one of the first signs of falling in love!" she said.
"And you would know, how?" Spinel asked. Nakuru went starry-eyed.
"It's how I felt when I first met To-ya!" she said, dreamily. Spinel sweatdropped.
"Somehow, I think you skipped the denial part..." he said. Nakuru hit him again.
"WOULD YOU STOP THAT!?" Spinel shouted. Nakuru covered his face with her hand.
"Shh." she shushed, putting a finger to her lips.
~~~
Eriol looked up.
"Did you hear something?" he asked the other two. They both looked at him and shook their heads. "Must be imagining things." he said and they got back to work.
~~~
"We need to get rid of that Moriato-kun. He's the one keeping master from his happiness!" Nakuru said. Spinel sighed.
"Did it ever occur to you that maybe Daidouji-san doesn't like master like that?" Spinel asked.
"Who wouldn't like master? He's smart, talented, likes music and polite. Not to mention adorably kawaii!" Nakuru said, ticking the things off her fingers.
"Who knows? For all we know, she could love Moriato-san." Spinel shrugged.
"Then master would be heartbroken yet again." Nakuru said, sadly. Spinel nodded. "We should question her!" Nakuru decided. Spinel sweatdropped.
"What would you say? 'Tomoyo-san, are you in love with master?'" he asked, incredulous.
"Why not?" Nakuru whined.
"Don't ask so bluntly! Take it slow and do it subtly." Spinel advised. "Ugh, I can't believe I'm even trying to help you set master up with Daidouji-san." Nakuru pouted.
"You don't think they go well together?" she asked. The other guardian sighed.
"I just don't want another broken-hearted master yo." Spinel said.
"We'll just have to wait for the right time to ask, I guess."
~~~
Finishing up the painting, they three of them stepped back to have a look at their work. A cream colour and green were painted on the walls and gave it a cozy sort of look. Kagi put his arm around Tomoyo and Eriol's shoulders.
"We did a good job, ne?" he said to the both of them. Tomoyo's eyes gave a mischievous sparkle.
"Watashi-tachi{we}? I only remember Eriol-kun and I working here. Not to mention, I did all the designing." Tomoyo said. Kagi raised an eyebrow. He started to walk towards her, making her back away nervously. Eriol followed behind, smirking.
"Honto?" Kagi asked, when had her back against a wall. She grinned, evilly, up at him.
"Honto." Tomoyo said. Quickly, she grabbed the paint bucket from behind her. Only a little green paint was left inside, but it was enough. Splashing it onto Kagi, she ran past him. Tomoyo grabbed Eriol's hand and dragged him away. Eriol and Tomoyo were laughing, as Kagi chased them around. Finally, Eriol and Tomoyo ended up outside. "Do you think we've lost him?" Tomoyo asked, eyes sparkling with excitement. She looked so beautiful to Eriol just then. Before he could answer, he sensed Kagi's presence above them, but it was too late. A shower of cream paint fell on them, cool over their skin. They looked up to see Kagi's grinning face.
~~~
Eriol and Tomoyo had tried to clean themselves up as much as possible, but the paint was still very evident on their clothes and in their hair. Kagi had changed from his clothes, already. Tomoyo sighed.
"I need to go home and have a nice long bath." Tomoyo said, running a hand through her hair. Eriol nodded in agreement. She stood. "I'd better get back. Okaa-san will be wishing for me to be home for dinner." she said. The trio walked to the door.
"Me, too. Nakuru will probably want me to cook, again." Eriol said.
"Do you want me to walk you home?" Kagi asked Tomoyo. She shook her head and smiled.
"It's fine. You should start to cook your own dinner. I'll be with Eriol-kun, so nothing bad should happen." Tomoyo reassured him. Kagi glared at Eriol, jealously, but Tomoyo didn't seem to notice.
"Ja." Kagi said.
"Ja ne." Tomoyo replied.
"Ja ne." Eriol said and they started to walk to Tomoyo's. "School going to start up next week." Eriol stated.
"Hai. It will be nice to be back at school." Tomoyo said.
"Sakura-san and Li-kun will be back, too." Eriol also stated in his quiet voice. She remained quiet. "Will you be alright?" he asked, concern lining his words. Tomoyo put her hand behind her head and looked up at the sky.
"Wakarimasen, Eriol-kun. Wakarimasen. Demo, I guess we'll just have wait and see." Tomoyo said. Eriol glanced at her. "I think I'll be able to handle seeing Sakura-chan again. You'll be with me, ne?" she asked. Slight pleading was noticeable in her voice.
"Of course. I'll be here for you when you need me. How about you?" Eriol asked. Tomoyo turned and looked at him.
"Definitely. Pinky promise?" she asked, holding up her pinky. Eriol smiled, slightly at her childishness. He entwined her pinky with his own.
"I promise." Tomoyo giggled and they continued to walk. Reaching her house, Tomoyo turned to Eriol.
"Sayonara, Eriol-kun." Tomoyo said.
"Sayonara." Eriol replied. She walked into her house. "My amai{adj. sweet}Tomoyo." He walked away with a smile upon his face.
Boring chapter! Ugh, I need inspiration! I'm currently writing yet another E+T fic {aren't you getting sick of them? I don't think I am.}. I tried to make it more serious and realistic. I might be slow in updating now, but please bear with me. Please review, minna-san!!!