Whatername

Disclaimer: I thusly state that none of this really belongs to me, the idea is most likely Green Day's and Card Captor Sakura is definitely not my idea.

It was odd, I hadn't walked down the street like this, all by myself, in such a long time. I had spent so much time keeping the clan working, and keeping my goals in life; I hadn't walked with the people of Hong Kong in most likely 3 years. But now I was walking down the street without even one bodyguard with me. I was all alone- all alone with about seven-hundred people near me. In all honesty, it felt great. Suddenly, I bumped into some one, knocking the poor young lady to the ground. "Forgive me." Looking at the young woman, I saw that she was lovely, probably very close my own age of 22, and, by the looks of her, a model of some sort; she was stunning, even though she was wearing a pair of baggy cargo pants and a plain green t-shirt.

"Li Syaoran?" she said in Japanese.

I woke with the ringing of the bells on my alarm clock. I turned over, checked the time - 5:30 the hands said - and I let the alarm ring the rest of the way out. What an odd dream. I remembered all of it. It was odd I was dreaming about her- it had been what, six years since the last time I had seen her, and probably as much as four since I'd thought about her last. But the dream left me wondering: how was she doing, Whatsername? I can't seem to remember. I know her face, but I can't recall the name. Remember, I thought , What ever. It seems like forever. But now I wonder how Whatsername has been. Oh well, I have a lot to do, and I have to train before I get started, otherwise I'll never be able to Focus on being The Li. And now that I am, I have to focus, for the good of the clan.

Every morning the same thing: wake up at 5:30, go train with who ever needs help with something. Seems odd but all the people that train at the Li compound have to be up and working by 6, except those that have finished their training of course. The training area is vast, as I had wanted when I decided that the old ways of the clan needed to change. I'd had a vision of this compound; it was well out in the middle of nowhere, but yet again, I had wanted it large and out of the way of the rest of the world. And with everything the clan had to back it up, I found that it was simple to make it so I could run the clan from my compound.

Maybe I had built the compound to run from something, but I can't pin down what. I stepped into the main training room. I wasn't the first person here- I never was. No, I was always within the top ten, but never the first- that spot was simply reserved from Li Lang, a warrior who had joined our clan after his northern clan was destroyed. He was a good friend of mine and the undisputed, even by me master of the Li Clans blade, which simply meant that he was the best swordsman in all of the clan.

"Master Li," he said to me as he stood from his meditation, and bowed to me, motioning to a private training room.

"Master Lang," I responded bowing and leading the way to the private sparing chamber. I was the only person living in all the world that would be called Master Li, because I was The Li; I was The Li and I had responsibilities, but as I drew my weapon and attacked Lang with everything I had, I told the world that I was still my own person, and no matter what the elders said, I would always be the one to make my own decisions.

"Master Li, you are slow. Have you slept well?" Lang asked as we both jumped back from the flurry that had been our sparring match.

"I was simply thinking." I didn't miss a beat and for the next hour I was allowed blissful ignorance to the rest of the world; all there was at that moment was my adversary and me. Life was simple and good.

I found myself spending the entire day with Li Lang, as we had to travel into Hong Kong. It was a long trip, but it could have been worse. I sat in the front with Lang who drove the large white Lincoln Town Car, his own vehicle, and during the ride, I found myself thinking about Whatername, Thinking about it, did she ever marry 'ol Whatshisface? It seems like I vanished on that group of people with out a trace.

"Well, I have a meeting to attend Lang," I said as he stopped, ready to drop me off. The statement was totally pointless, but I was nervous.

"What ever injures your pride doesn't make a difference. When you decide to do something Syaoran, just do it," Lang said, nodding as I closed the door. He drove off, probably to sit in his car in the middle of a random parking garage, the large vehicle maneuvering oddly easily through the streets.

I stood in front of the mansion, the place I had been born and raised and most likely my least favorite place in the entire world. I knew it now; I had built the compound so I wouldn't have to be here. Sickening, I didn't even have any close family here, only the distant family and the Elders. I had a meeting with the Elders because they didn't like that I ran the Li Clan in a totally different manner than had been done in the past. Now I just had to prove to them why I did it.

why.

So I walked away, and I didn't look back. The Li Clan was mine, not a bunch of old morons' who didn't understand the modern world. I didn't have a masters in business, and a PHD in sociology to not understand these things. So I walked down the streets of Hong Kong, alone, all by myself and the several-hundred people. Déjà vu- I knocked over a young woman, dressed in khaki pants and a greet button up.

"Li Syaoran?" she asked. 'May the demons in hell destroy my soul, I'm going to be sick.' This is trite, storybook like- it was Whatsername. How does one respond to that, when one has forgotten the others' name?

"Yes, that's me." That was sickeningly rude. "Forgive me; this is just awkward for me," I said quickly afterwards. This dialogue was going badly already and she had only said two words. But it got better. She smiled, and chuckled at my discomfort; somehow I wasn't annoyed- no, it helped me loosen up.

"You don't remember me, do you?" she said. She was still smiling, but somehow it seemed to retreat from her eyes.

"I-I do, it's just that…" I paused, turning away from her, my hand holding hers- I hadn't even noticed, but I had helped her up. "I can't recall your name."

Again she laughed. "Well that is kinda sad." She side-stepped in front of my face. "But at least you remember me!"

"Don't tell me though, I'll figure it out!" I exclaimed in a very out-of-character bit of emotion. "Here, come and have lunch with me, I need to make it up to you…"

"Oh…" She covered her mouth. "I was supposed to meet some one though, I would miss him, and I had promised to see him." It was her turn to look away.

"Oh, alright, well you better get going. I mean he's expecting you right?" Somehow I assumed she was talking about Whatshisface, who some how I yet again I assumed she had married.

"You know what, I think I want to see how long it takes you to figure out my name," she said. "I'll call him and tell him that I'm spending time with you. It'll be more fun for me anyways."

"But won't he be mad that you're spending time with another man?" I said rather meekly, not like The Li that had stood up the elders.

"It's not like I'm his girl, jeeze!" she exclaimed. "I'm happy being single thank you very much!" She laughed again; I could grow used to that laugh. 'Oh great, now I want to get used to that laugh, I must be really lonely.' I thought.

"Alright then, I guess I'll see if I can remember a place nearby that has good food."

"WHAT? You don't know where a good place is?"

"I haven't walked in Hong Kong for 3 years."

I was walking with her, making small talk, and thinking about all that we had done in the past; we had spent a huge amount of time together. Despite all that time, I found it hard to remember details about her. It was as if something had made me want to forget about her. Still, the time that I had spent in Japan all those years ago, well, it had been a very good time in the end. I remember all those people I had become friends with- I could remember most of them, anyway; I had probably forgotten at least one.

We walked for a while until we eventually found a place that I remembered was good. Walking in, I asked for a table for two, and we were seated. She had to "freshen-up and make a call," and I found myself sitting, once more, all alone. I was thinking about her, desperately trying to remember her name. I couldn't do it though. It was as if something was blocking my mind from remembering her, as if something had caused me to forget. She came back, and talked with me for a while; we talked about old times, but her memories seemed better than mine: she remembered things that I didn't even have the slightest memory of happening- stories of things we had done when we weren't working, stories of us and our friends…

The food was good, although I don't particularly remember eating it- an odd tidbit that sticks in my mind, but totally unimportant. Then she asked me what I had been up to since the last time that we'd met. I looked at her and explained that I had become The Li, and what that meant, and how little time I had to myself. I found my self pouring out my anger to her, all my pain at the fate that had befallen me.

"Syaoran-kun." She gave me a slightly sad smile. "Did you ever have any dreams? Anything that you had wanted to do instead of being The Li?"

"I was never allowed to, so I never let myself have any," I said simply. It seems logical even now. I always thought there was no point in having a dream if you would never be allowed to achieve it. "I suppose I did have one, but it was squashed. I think that I knew it would be though, so it wasn't too bad."

"What dream was that?" she asked, looking me in the eyes, as if trying to look into my soul.

"I wanted to be the master of the cards, but that was squashed," I said simply, looking back into her eyes; they were exactly the same color as they were when we were younger, at least the color that I remember them to be.

"Oh." She paused, and almost looked away- her head began to turn, but her eyes stayed on mine. For that, I was grateful- at least she didn't regret what had happened in the end. "I'm sorry, but that was the way that it had to be in the end."

I smiled slightly. "It's alright. I knew that I wouldn't be the master; I knew it wasn't my fate."

I offered to walk her to where she was staying and she said that she wasn't going to be in Hong Kong for long enough to merit somewhere to stay: she was on a 6 hour lay over, and had 3 more hours. It was pitiful, but I knew that I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I were to be unable to figure out her name by the time she left, and I didn't know what to do to keep her around. This was a bind that I could see no way out of; I had become a totally savvy business man, but I found myself totally unable to see a way to keep myself with Whatsername. Fortunately, she decided that she wanted to go for a walk. I simply said yes, and we began on a completely pointless walk through Hong Kong, standing close so as not to get separated, but not too close; after all it had been a while since we had last seen each other.

"So, anything yet?" she asked me as we stepped into a new street. It was oddly loose, but suddenly I felt so claustrophobic that I wished I could be just about anywhere but there.

"…No. I can remember everyone else's name, but yours eludes me…" I said quietly, but I knew she could hear me, and I wouldn't try to hide it.

"It's alright. I remember you, and that's all I need in the end…" she said simply, but I knew that it bothered her. "Syaoran-kun, could you take me to the airport? I need to check in…"

"Sure." I looked at her sadly, but I tried to hide it.

I called Lang. The call was quick and neither of us much. Once Lang got there, I only introduced her to Lang, as she still wouldn't say her name… and I didn't want her to. The ride was not too long, and I found myself searching every nook and cranny of my mind for her name; it had become more than just pride. Now it was something that I had to do just to feel that I was a good human being, something I had to do to put a smile back on her face.

When we did arrive at the airport, I followed her out and Lang started to circle. He seemed to know me better than I thought. I stayed with her as she checked in and accompanied her all the way to the security desk, where I could go no further. She still had had an hour before her plane took off, but I knew she would retreat back to the waiting area simply because she had lost her comfort in my presence. And there wasn't really anything that I could do to stop her…

"Bye. It's been fun seeing you Syaoran-kun." She handed me a slip of paper. "That's my e-mail address, send me some mail some time. I hope to hear from you often." She smiled again and I felt a bit better, but that smile wasn't caused by me…

"Bye, I-I'm really sorry, I wish that…" I trailed off, 'so much for facing it,' I thought.

"It's alright. You've been so busy, I can totally understand it," she said and turned to go to security.

'DAMN.' The thought reverberated through my mind. I felt sick- not physically, but with myself. I had to do something; I couldn't just let her walk out on me. No, I had to figure out something, something that would allow me to make up for the fact that I couldn't remember her name. But there wasn't anything- there isn't anything that one can do… Then it hit me: if I didn't do something, Sakura would be leaving my life a second time; she had gone away, and I had taken a different path…

SAKURA!

"SAKURA!" I called out to her. Not missing a beat, she turned around with a jerk and smile- a true smile that went all the way to her eyes and made them dance with light. That was the smile that I had wanted from the beginning, the one that I could have had. Suddenly all the things she had talked about hit me, and I knew that she hadn't had anyone other than me. I had walked out on Sakura. But now, now I would try and fix it.

"Syaoran!" She didn't bother with anything other than my name, and ran forward and without thinking, hugged me. She began to pull away, but I held onto her. She gave me a quick look and stopped trying, just looking at me.

"Can you forgive me?" She began to say something but I had more to say. "I mean from all that time ago, when I left, I need you to forgive me for that. I think that I was running from something; I don't even live in Hong Kong anymore. I think that I was always trying to run further and further from something. I thought it might have been my fate, what I was to become as The Li, but now I see I was running form you. I was running from you because I was scared. I didn't think I could meet a woman like you, a woman that I could truly love at such a young age…" I paused and she continued to look at me. "Sakura, would you stay here with me for a while, even if it is just to get to know each other again?"

"Syaoran, I would love to."

A/N:

Man that a lot of syrupy fluff…