By SibylSofiana
Chapter 5Rescue Me
"So, he's taken, huh?"
The girls were sitting in a corner, Tomoyo drinking tea while Anne had an espresso, taking a break after the end of the shoot. A lot of people were still hanging around, but Eriol and Nakuru-chan had already left. Tomoyo didn't know whether she should feel relieved or gloomy at that fact when Anne posed the question.
As Anne was looking in Ted's general direction, Tomoyo thought Anne was referring to Ted and herself, and she said in mock-horror, "Oh, goodness no! You can have him!"
"Really?" Anne looked at her disbelievingly.
"TRULY. Although," Tomoyo remarked, eyeing Anne, "I honestly don't know what you see in him, Anne-chan..."
"He's gorgeous, charming, intelligent and rich – what else can a girl ask for?"
"Are we talking about the same guy here – Ted "The Stalker" Whitaker? He's about as charming as a leech," Tomoyo said dismissively, sipping daintily at her tea.
"Of course not, Tomoyo!...Well, as for the leech part –" Anne grinned hugely.
After sharing a quick laugh, Tomoyo shushed Anne, while looking suggestively at Ted's general whereabouts, and they both settled down.
"Scratch that," Anne giggled, waving her hand in the air. "No, I'm not talking about Ted, but your friend, Eriol Hiiragizawa." She said dreamily, "You think if I ask him out, he'll say yes?"
Tomoyo froze.
Eriol? Her Eriol? Wait a minute, when did he become her Eriol?
As Tomoyo struggled to regain her composure, she heard a deep sigh beside her.
"Uh-oh, I guess that's a no," Anne sighed into her espresso cup.
~0~0~0~
Earlier
"Tomoyo, I--I'm attracted to you..."
Tomoyo looked up at him, shocked. She didn't think her innermost thoughts would come out to taunt her like this – could Eriol read her mind?
Ever since yesterday, she couldn't seem to get him out of her head. She'd been thinking of him a lot. They hadn't seen each other for more than ten years – and they had only been reacquainted during these past two days.
Now here he was, verbalizing what she herself was feeling!
Tomoyo had never had a relationship before – and she certainly had never been kissed before! But there was no denying that spark between the two of them. She was attracted to Eriol, and she wanted to get to know Eriol more.
So, Tomoyo was forced to be honest with herself.
"I'm attracted to you too, E-Eriol..."
Tomoyo felt Eriol's surge of emotion pass through the hand he held as he reacted to her statement. As he finally bent to kiss her hand, she shivered. She had seen him kiss Sakura-chan's hand a lot of times in the past – but when his lips touched her hand...this was somehow entirely different.
"We need to talk about this, what it means. Tomorrow," Eriol said softly.
All she could do was nod as his eyes lingered on her lips before he turned and left.
~0~0~0~
"Yes! I mean, no, I mean ---aaaargh, I don't know what I mean!" Tomoyo replied in a panicky sounding voice, trying to pat down her heated face with her hands.
Despite her disappointment, Anne grinned. Tomoyo was usually so calm and poised, that to see her become so flustered was quite amusing. The look was quite becoming actually, and Anne couldn't help but feel just a twinge of envy – Tomoyo was very lovely, with her smooth, porcelain complexion, those speaking violet eyes, and that gorgeous head of ebony hair.
No wonder Ted Whitaker was smitten. And Eriol Hiiragizawa, too, from the looks of it. Two's company, but three's a crowd. Anne sighed. Anyway, it was more than obvious that the only person Eriol could see was Tomoyo.
"That's a no," Anne gave a small smile. "So you plan on going out with him?"
Instead of denying it, Tomoyo replied, "Um... yes."
"But doesn't he live in London?"
"There's that," Tomoyo admitted. She hadn't really thought things through.
"Honey, long distance relationships just don't work out. I've been there."
"We-ell, it's not exactly a relationship yet..." Did mutual attraction count as a relationship?
"But you'd like it to be," said Anne matter-of-factly. She patted the other girl's shoulder.
"Well, you had better talk it over with him soon. In the meantime," she said, looking at her watch, "you'd better head out to the restaurant – if I know Touya, he's already there."
"Oh my, yes! I'd have to get a cab ---" Tomoyo stood up, still flustered with her runaway thoughts.
"-- I can take you myself, Tomoyo," smoothly interjected Ted, who was suddenly beside them. "It's on my way."
How long had he been standing there?
"Oh, no, thank you, Mr. Whitaker, I don't want to trouble you –"
"Ted, please. And it's no trouble at all. Besides, you're running late."
"Um, not really, Touya is just really punctual..." she began, but Ted couldn't be dissuaded, so she had to give in gracefully. "Oh, alright. Arigatou, everybody!" Tomoyo called out, and answering replies came back.
After confirming that she was free tomorrow (with Anne giving her a sly glance), Tomoyo said goodbye and walked out with Ted to his car.
~0~0~0~
They didn't talk much – while Tomoyo was polite, she didn't want to encourage Ted's attentions, so she kept her eyes in front while Ted manouvered his car through the crowded streets. However, as the crowded streets gave way to a clearer stretch of road, Tomoyo narrowed her eyes. She distinctly remembered Touya telling her that the restaurant was just ten blocks away from the studio – in the other direction.
She looked at Ted in alarm.
"Where are you taking me, Mr. Whitaker?"
Ted grinned, giving her a quick glance. "Just somewhere we can have some pre-dinner drinks, so we can talk for a while."
"My cousin will be very worried about me, Mr. Whitaker."
"A little sidetrip won't hurt. You'll just be a little late, that's all," he shrugged.
"This is kidnapping, you know," Tomoyo said lightly.
"Now, now Tomoyo, no need to blow this out of proportion," Ted chuckled. "I just want to get to know you better, but you're not giving me any opportunity at all, so I'm just winging this." He reached over casually with his right hand and patted her knee, and Tomoyo shrank away at the contact.
"What's the matter? I'm just being friendly," Ted managed to sound hurt, but Tomoyo wasn't convinced. Maybe he was harmless, but she wasn't letting her guard down.
"I'm not that kind of girl, Mr. Whitaker," she answered coldly. Staring straight into the windshield, she said, "I'd appreciate if you'd let me down here." But where here was, she didn't know. They were now driving along a riverbank, and snowdrifts covered the side of the road.
"It isn't safe here, Tomoyo," Ted protested.
It isn't safe here with you either. I'll take my chances.
As if he heard her thoughts, he said, "Hey, I'm a nice guy!"
She was about to refute that when a truck suddenly appeared out of nowhere, backing up on their side of the road. Ted was caught off-guard, and he hit down hard on the brake pedal. But the road was slippery and they skidded on the ice.
Ted then lost control over the wheel – to Tomoyo's horror, the car headed toward the railing by the river. She screamed as the car hit the railing and flew in the air into the icy water.
~0~0~0~
It had been a long time since she'd resumed her form as Ruby Moon. There had been no need in the past few years and she enjoyed her new life as Hiiragizawa Nakuru, model.
But when Eriol asked her to keep watch over Tomoyo, she did not protest. The photo shoot was over anyway, and she needed to stretch her wings. She transformed into her Guardian form, and kept herself hidden in the shadows above the rafters.
Ruby Moon's eyes narrowed as she watched Tomoyo move past Ted Whitaker towards the car. Eriol-sama will not like this. As she couldn't do anything about it at the moment, she just followed them.
As she flew through the air, following the car, she felt suspicious. She knew the restaurant where Tomoyo was meeting Touya – and Ted was heading in the wrong direction.
Suddenly, she spied a truck backing up in front of them. Too late to warn them, she watched as the car spin-tailed and crashed into the river.
Ruby Moon went into action. She flew down and tried to prevent the car from going down with her limited powers. But the pressure from the water was too much for her wings, and the car was sinking further.
ERIOL-SAMA!
~0~0~0~
Honestly! Eriol marked a paper in disgust as he adjusted his glasses. This latest batch of students was clearly in need of a rude awakening. After pencilling in his comments, he moved on to the next paper. Thankfully, this particular one showed promise. He took a quick look at the name. Ah, one of his more discerning students. A little polishing here and a quick comment here –
Ruby Moon?
Eriol started, then dumping the papers onto the nearest table, he quickly reached out with his aura. As soon as he pinpointed Ruby Moon's location, he instantly winked out of the room to appear near the river.
He took one look at the situation and immediately took action. He quickly scanned the surrounding area for something he could use. But all he could see was snow and water. No help for it -- Eriol brought out his staff and flung a spell onto the water.
The water took form and pushed the car up to the surface, then thrust the car safely back onto the road. The car landed none-too-gently, water gushing out of it and streaming past Eriol's feet. The spellcasting had cost Eriol some effort, and his sweat was cold in the night air as he lowered his hands.
Disposing of his staff, he quickly unlocked the doors with a mental wave, and yanked the passenger door open. He quickly set aside the airbag, undid Tomoyo's seatbelt and pulled her into his arms. She was unconscious as he lifted her out, her wet hair trailing over his cheek.
As he stepped away from the car, he said to Ruby Moon over his shoulder –
"Take care of him!"
-- before he disappeared with Tomoyo in his arms.
Burgundy eyes widened in surprise before they narrowed in anticipation.
"Gladly."
Ruby Moon's smile was sinister.
~0~0~0~
Eriol winked back into his suite, staggering under Tomoyo's deadweight. I haven't done that much magic in a long time, and I'm exhausted. But he set that aside, knowing he had to see to Tomoyo. After a quick check, he was relieved to see that she didn't suffer any serious injury.
What she needed was a hot bath. Eriol went straight towards Nakuru's bathroom and turned on the taps. As steam came out of the tub, he paid attention to Tomoyo's clothes.
No time for propriety here. He brushed back Tomoyo's hair from her face and quickly pulled off her gloves and her scarf, then gave attention to her sodden wool coat. He then pulled off her boots, then gulped as he pulled down her stockings.
He turned her around to unzip her dress, and pulled it down to her legs to join the rest of her clothes. It was that moment when Tomoyo opened her eyes, and looked at him unseeingly.
Her stockings were still around his shoulders. Oh my God, she'll think I'm a pervert! Eriol thought as he looked back at her. Visions of Nakuru pointing at him and saying "Hentai, hentai!" danced in his head but he shook them off.
"E-Eriol?" She was trying to focus on his face. He could tell she was in shock as her pupils were dilated.
"It's okay, you're safe, Tomoyo," he replied soothingly.
"Mr. W-Whitaker –"
"He's been taken care of, I left him with Ruby Moon." Which did not necessarily mean he was safe. If Whitaker had something to do with this, he would personally see to it that Ted Whitaker be buried alive.
Eriol returned to the moment at hand. "Tomoyo, sweetheart, we need to get you warm, you have to get into the tub."
Tomoyo apparently could still comprehend this and she stood up shakily with his help. Eriol thought it was the better part of valor to let her keep her underwear on. He guided her to the tub, and she woozily sat down and lay back against it. She immediately stopped shivering.
"I'll have to leave you for a moment, Tomoyo. I'll see about some dry clothes."
Eriol headed quickly out of the bath. He was becoming increasingly lightheaded with proximity to an undressed and wet Tomoyo.
Get a grip, man!
~0~0~0~
Eriol looked at Nakuru's bed disgustingly. It was piled with tons and tons of clothes and a lot of other things besides. There was no help for it – Tomoyo would have to sleep on his bed and he'd take the couch in his room.
And she would probably have to wear one of his shirts. He found one of Nakuru's nightgowns and cursed. Nakuru had packed a see-through one with strings and nothing else. He was already strung-up with this day's events that he didn't need another shot to his already high libido. A nosebleed at this time would probably kill him.
After a few minutes, he headed back to the bathroom and knocked on the door. He only came in partway and held up a long-sleeved shirt he had retrieved from his room.
"Once you're through, you can put this on. I'll hang it here at the back of the door."
"Arigatou, Eriol." She was looking at him with those liquid lavender eyes and he backed out of the bathroom quickly.
"You're welcome. Don't stay in there too long, I'll just be in the other room."
Unsteadily, he went back to his room to towel himself off and straighten out a few things. After stripping down to his boxers, he went straight to his own bathroom to splash water on his face. He was surprised to find out that his hands were trembling.
After some time, he grabbed a shirt from the closet and considered the sleeping arrangements. The couch would be slightly uncomfortable but he could live with it. He grabbed a pillow and an extra sheet and threw it on the couch.
"Eriol..."
Eriol turned around then gulped. Tomoyo had just come out of the bath and she looked particularly fetching with her gorgeous wet hair on her shoulders, and her long legs coming from under his shirt.... oh, bloody hell, don't think about what she's not wearing underneath!
He shook himself free of the fantasies warping his brain and concentrated on the matter at hand.
"You can rest here in the meantime – Nakuru's bed is a disaster area." He took out the brandy on the complimentary bar and poured some into a glass.
"Here, drink this." He gingerly moved closer to Tomoyo and handed the glass to her. Tomoyo obediently took a sip and promptly coughed. Eriol patted her back.
"It'll help you get warm."
"Are you trying to get me drunk, Eriol-kun?" A trace of the old humor lit her face, and he gave a small grin.
"I wish. Now, get into bed."
"That's an invitation if I ever heard one," she replied, her voice husky.
Eriol looked at her uncertainly. Did she hit her head during the accident? She was certainly behaving strangely – maybe he should call a doctor?
"Oh, stop it Hiiragizawa – it was a joke!" Tomoyo said grumpily as she handed him the glass and climbed onto his bed. Where she instantly fell asleep.
~0~0~0~
As he silently stood by the bed drinking in her sleeping form, Eriol couldn't quite help wishing it wasn't.
~0~0~0~
Authors' notes:
Really sorry about the late update – a lot of things on our mind lately ;p Glad you guys liked Reynaldo. Let's see if Eriol gets to bump into him soon, hehehe! As for Ted Whitaker, well let's just say he's in a lot of trouble...
Scenes from when we were writing this...
OneSofiana: muses as she writes Hmm...is Eriol a "boxer-shorts kinda guy" or a "jammies kinda guy"?
Sibyl: passing by, looking over Sofiana's shoulder How 'bout a bare-all kinda guy?
Sofiana: visions of half-naked Eriol supplanted by Sibyl's latest comment Sibyl, you shock me! Hentai, hentai!
TwoSofiana: Hey, how about Eriol rummaging through Nakuru's wardrobe for a nightgown for Tomoyo to wear?
Sibyl: a finger on her lip while staring at the ceiling How 'bout Tomoyo wearing Eriol's shirt instead?
Sofiana: Sibyl, you're starting to scare me...