Hello, this is me again. And it's just soooooooooo great FFnet removed the punctuation marks and margins in my past chapter. Of course I am sarcastic. Sorry for those whom I had caused confusion with, I don't really read my work after I post it. –mushroom sigh-. Anyway…here's the next chapter. I don't know why but the story is rapidly reaching it's end that it might not even reach chapter 20. Anyway, just enjoy this one. This is pretty long because it has history attached to it. Thanks!
Gipsychan : Thank you for reviewing. I am really glad you liked my fic.
Kawaii-Kana : I was guessing that you were commenting on Kaho and Eriol, am I right? Don't worry, I don't dare ruin ExT…cos there's so many people chasing me from behind –shudder-
Blue angel : I really hope the imagination goddess in on my side!
Fuuruma : Well, she wasn't really evil outside. She's evil deep inside ;;;;;;;;;;;;; Anyway…yeah..hehehe..please continue reading!
Clownsareevil and Darkshadowheartless : Thank you for reviewing. Yeah, I found out the asterisks and pluses and hyphens do not work when used in sequences -.- so much for my margins. And yeah about the thing that Kaho is Hina-sama…you'll find that out here.
Amethyst sweet angel : Ahehehehe, well I cannot react to your reviews more. I opt to be fair and equal (hidden laugh). Anyway, please find out what Eriol would do in this chapter.
Pensieve000 : Thank you for the review. And yeah…some people make even more violent outbursts than you do.
Flitter bug : I laughed at your review not because it was stupid or something, but because you really reviewed those parts I found funny. Thank you for reading my fic always and reviewing as often as possible.
Not applicable : Well, if Kaho said "kill daidouji" I'm going to kill her first. Hmm…how many times have I killed Kaho in my fics ;;?
Cutekawaii : what a cute name! Well, If Eriol agreed to Kaho then I would't have anything to write about, ne? On the other hand…it might be interesting to try
Midnight blue : Yep, she's not bad after all I was so busy with schoolwork and learning Go that I cannot find time to type the fic (I write them in paper first before typing them) so I'm really sorry ;;.
Misery-chick4 : Thank you for reading this fic as well as Caress of Venus. It really made me happy.
PrincessSakuraTenshi12 : I'm really glad you took all the time in reading all of my fanfics. You also reviewed every one of them. –bows- Thank you!
LilAngel123 : Well, there needs to be a conflict somewhere, since Eriol and Tomoyo cannot be forever happy-go-lucky, ne?
Seraphinezzz : Shivers? Well, at least they are good ones. Thanks for reading!
KyteAura: Kyte-chan! I'm sorry your internet time is limited, mine too. Anyway, I can't keep on degrading Kaho in this fic, you know. I'm supposedly unbiased. (bonks Kaho with a pan)..hehehe… couldn't resist. TC!
Lance: Thanks for reviewing even though this is not the one you requested me to write. Oh yeah, don't think of hentai I've had bad writing experiences with it TT
I noticed you guys make the most reviews (and the longest ones) when Kaho m akes an appearance (in every fic I do). Why so? You all love Kaho that much, I presume. Anyway…thanks!
Note: In order not to mess up my story, I've decided that changes in scenery will be indicated by CAPPED first words. Unless Ffnet removes those too…
CHAPTER 9 : Tomoyo's ChoiceIT was a cool night, yet Arisa cannot sleep. She looked at Clow Reed, who sat beside her and was asleep. She held out her hand to brush strands of hair away from the sorcerer's face.
A while ago, she thought her heart would stop beating. "I need you," Clow had said, and held her tightly. There was something in her that stirred when she heard him say those words, yet her heart was broken at the same time.
That time, when she met Hina near the woods, she had foun what could cure the sorcerer. Hina had told her.
Arisa had to leave Clow Reed.
It was not actually the cure, but upon conversing with the lady vampire, she had learned the real reason behind Clow's transformation into a vampire and what Arisa's role was in this chaotic dilemma.
Hina was in love with Clow Reed ever since she studied under his tutelage. She was awed by his skill and kindness, however, Clow would not lay his eyes on her. When she compliments him on his researches and writings, he would merely answer with a smile that there is somebody else more powerful than him: the legendary Hikari no Miko (light priestess).
Yes, the story about the fair priestess of light is just a legend, yet Clow obsessed over her as if she really existed. He would interview people, organize researches and search the forests and mountains all day long just to get some clues on how he might find her.
"I have fallen in love with a character in a folk tale," he would tell his students. "Hopefully, I can see her. After that, maybe I can die."
Hina was stricken with pain. How can Clow Reed, a powerful wizard, blindly chase after a legend that hasn't ever been found? And to think he was ready to die upon laying his eyes on her. Hina didn't like it. She didn't want Clow to die without spending time with her, a woman who was practically begging for his love and affection. She left Clow's school and trained hard for years, hoping to be the woman more powerful than the light priestess; hoping to be the woman Clow will see.
After a few years, though, there came grave news for her. A clue to where the priestess may be came up as soon as colonizers invaded the capital city. The runes Clow use to guide him must have told him the real identity of the priestess.
Enraged, Hina frantically began planning. No, she cannot give up Clow to somebody whom he haven't even met before! She will not bow before someone who was the product of a legend. She cannot bear to see Clow with the woman whom he had searched for so long.
That was why her plan to be immortal arose. If she's immortal, she cannot be defeated. She can be with Clow forever. To make her plan concrete, she met up with Clow Reed again and challenged him to a duel. The great sorcerer lost, preoccupied by other thoughts. As consequence, Hina turned him to a vampire, too. In that way, they could be together eternally and the priestess cannot do anything about it.
Yet, she was wrong. Riddled with the curse's burden, Clow fought more to find the light priestess in hopes of asking her aid to heal him. And he found her.
Arisa stopped playing with Clow's hair. Hina had told her, if Arisa will leave Clow Reed, she would lift the curse. If Arisa, the light priestess, will not meet with Clow for the rest of her life, Clow will be freed and will be normal once more…
She closed her eyes, forcing to stop warm liquid from trickling down to her face. She didn't want to leave Clow. But what of her promise to help him in any way possible to make him normal again?
Arisa looked fondly at the sleeping wizard. Maybe it was wrong for him to search for her in the first place. Maybe she was really the cause of his problems. Maybe…
Slowly, she crept out of bed and quietly got dressed. Sou, this is the right decision. It would be too selfish of her to stay with Clow as she wanted, knowing that the curse will only be lifted if she wasn't around. With her leaving, she can make two people happy. She can live somewhere far away, avoid the rumors and forget about everything that happened.
Yes, that would be a nice plan.
But…somehow, she knew, that wherever she went, Clow would look for her. Maybe she should leave a letter?
Slowly, she backed away from the closet. Picking up a small bottle of dried rose petals on her dresser, she went towards Clow and sprinkled a few rose petals on him.
"Your dreams are also mine…" she whispered. Sure that Clow will not escape that little sleep spell she gave, she sat on the dresser and began writing, her parchment full of errors mainly because of not knowing what to say, and because of tears wetting the paper.
She finished it at last, and placed it under the rose petal bottle. She picked up a small carpetbag with her few belongings and silently walked towards the sleeping wizard. She held her side carefully as she walked, since the wounds in her body are not yet fully healed.
"Thank you," she whispered before touching a feathery kiss on the wizard's cheek. "Because your dreams are mine, too, I'll make them come true."
For the first time since she stepped in Clow's manor, Arisa had used her magic against her savior, putting up a barrier to hide her magic and presence as she fled into the night.
TOMOYO woke up. Her eyes met the dark shadows on her ceiling, made by the furniture illumined by the moonlight. She had dreamed again, this time, in her dream, she was Arisa. But although she can read Arisa's thoughts, she cannot go against the dream's will.
The priestess left Clow, knowing that the chance of him being cured is high when she is not around. Tomoyo bit her lip. Why had all of this come to her now?
She opened her window to let in fresh air. As she breathed in the scent of dew already forming as the day slowly breaks, she thought of her dream. Was it a premonition of what is going to happen?
Eriol. He never called after they separated in school, though he promised to update her on what happened in the Tsukimine Shrine. She did call his house, but no one answered the phone. Had he been delayed in the shrine? Had he met trouble when he was there?
No, that's not possible. Sakura-chan said Mizuki-sensei thinks highly of Eriol, that's why she invited him to a conversation. But…what could have happened?
Tomoyo's thoughts kept coming back to her dream. She had just promised Eriol she wouldn't leave him, but if something like what happened in the past would haunt her, should she leave Eriol too?
Worried, she went back to bed and pulled the covers all the way to her head. How come most eighteen year olds do not meet this kind of problem?!
TOMOYO looked at Eriol worriedly. He had been keeping quiet the whole day. He had picked her up on the way to school, but no matter what conversation Tomoyo starts, he merely shrugged them off.
"Eriol…" Tomoyo started again. Eriol told her to call him by name without the '-kun' since he's not very comfortable with Japanese addresses. However, the task was only cast on herself and not to other people, even Sakrua-chan and Li-kun.
The young man turned her way. "Hm?" He continued walking towards the shoe lockers.
"You seem…out of it today. Are you feeling unwell?" Tomoyo asked.
"Not really," Eriol replied, almost absently, as he exchanged his black shoes with his indoor ones. "Let's go. We'll be late for first period."
Tomoyo bit her lip as she hurried to keep up with Tomoyo.
ERIOL glanced at the girl by the window. Tomoyo was looking out of the window, apparently not interested with the history lesson. She sighed repeatedly and fiddled with her pen.
The young man suddenly felt guilty. Did he make Tomoyo worried? He knew he was unusually quiet today, but that was because he couldn't think of anything to say. If he started being friendly again, she will ask what happened yesterday at the Tsukimine Shrine. And he didn't want to tell her that their former teacher wanted him to leave Tomoyo for good.
"Daidouji Tomoyo, descendant of the Light Priestess. I want you to end any contacts with her."
"What?" Eriol fisted his hands. "What did you say? Tomoyo…"
Mizuki calmly smiled. "You seem to be ignorant fo the real reason why your descendant was turned into a vampire, no? For many years my ancestor Hina had hidden a grudge for the Light Priestess. She was in love with Clow, yet Clow Reed was in love with an illusion, a manifestation that might be made by just himself. In order to surpass the abilities of the Light Priestess, Hina turned herself into a vampire, and she turned Clow into one, too, so that they may live together for eternity. However, instead of giving up, your ancestor tried even more to be close to Arisa-hime, thus. This tragedy of generations had started."
"But…what has it got to do with me? We do not have any relationship of any sort, and Tomoyo…she could be my friend even if she's not the descendant of the priestess."
The teacher eyed Eriol. "Arisa's line is our eternal enemy," she simply answered. "This generation was created in order to destroy the line of priestesses." She laid a hand on the table. "Hiiragizawa Eriol. I have listened to your request and I am willing to fulfill it. The loss of one person is a small price to pay for freedom from the curse. You can be with me instead, and entwine our generations, the way my ancestor has planned it. If our clans have agreed on this, we could stop the curse that has been passed down for hundreds of years."
Mizuki's eyes widened as Eriol stood up. "Thank you very much for the offer. But I had remembered: It was Hina's fault we were in this situation. Tomoyo…no…Arisa-sama, she had not done anything to cause us pain. It could be my ancestor's fault, you might say, so I can just find a cure for myself. But…I can never leave the side of the woman who has been with me all through this time. I need her more than the cure for this curse. Goodbye."
WHY Eriol told such strong words against Mizuki Kaho, he himself did not know. All he knew was when the teacher told him to leave Tomoyo, he had felt a surge of anger he had never felt before. There was a sense of protectiveness he felt towards Tomoyo.
Tomoyo accidentally looked his way and their eyes met. Just as he had thought, she had been thinking that he was mad at her. Eriol raised his brows in greeting and smiled.
TOMOYO blinked. Did Eriol just smile at her? He's not mad? A little bean of happiness jumped inside her frantically as she smiled back. How relieving. He's not mad at all. Somehow, it made her so happy. She did not bother to think about why.
Yet, there's still this problem. Why didn't Eriol tell her about what happened yesterday? She would try asking again, but she was afraid Eriol might snub her once more. Yappari, there's no other way but to ask the source. After school, she's going to see Kaho-sensei.
"YOU'VE skipped choir practice to see me?" Mizuki Kaho tended on her bonsai as Tomoyo sat across her desk.
The girl eyed her former teacher. "I…Eriol hasn't said much about your conversation last time. I'm sure he has told you how I am related to all of these…"
"Pretty much, yes. You are the descendant of the Light Priestess Arisa, right?" Kaho smiled when Tomoyo gave a small affirmative nod. "Eriol has his full faith in you, Tomoyo-san. Just like that time Clow Reed had placed his own faith in Arisa."
"Anou…" Tomoyo stood up to come closer to the teacher's worktable. "I came here to ask…if you could help us…I mean…Eriol." She bowed her head. "I don't want him to be a vampire anymore. I would like him to be accepted in his family once he returns to England."
Kaho stopped working and faced her. She smiled at the young woman. "I could help him. I offered him my help."
"Really? I'm so relieved…"
"But… he declined." The teacher looked away.
Tomoyo was filled with bewilderment. "Huh…what? You mean he did not ask for your help?" What could have Eriol told Mizuki-sensei? Blood started pulsing on her head, making it ache.
"He was quite against to my conditions, Tomoyo-san. We kind of…had a disagreement." The teacher took a deep breath and turned to Tomoyo. "With your powers handed down to generations, I am sure you know more of the history of Eriol's and your bloodline than anyone else."
The young woman gave a small nod. Somehow, she felt sick to the pit of her stomach. She knew what would be coming.
Mizuki held her hands. "Then, you know, that the only way to release Eriol-san from the curse…"
"Is when I end contact with him."
The red-haired nodded smiled and nodded. "Yes. When the powers of a clan are transferred, the feelings also pass down the line as well. This is probably the reason why Eriol-san felt really close to you, and vice-versa. You were both reminiscing the emotions felt years before by your ancestors. Fate wanted you to meet each other, in order to redo history all over again. But, I cannot help you if you cannot break from that fate." She looked at Tomoyo sternly. "I will give you three days to decide on this. I know that you know what you should do. If at that time you decided to carry on with your friendship, I will forget than anything like this has ever happened. But if you take the other way…"
"Will Eriol…be cured?"
Mizuki gave a small smile. "And he will be on his way back to be a member of his family again."
At that moment, Tomoyo felt like crying. But somehow, she cannot cry in front of Mizuki-sensei. Not in front of someone who was the ancestor of the enemy, no matter how kind Sensei is. She felt half of her life was losing, but the will to make Eriol happy was stronger.
"Did … Eriol reject that idea because he did not want to end our friendship?" she asked softly.
The teacher considered for a moment before answering. "Yes, I believe he said he still has to protect you. Since you are new with your vocation and since dark forces are always after the Hikari no Miko, he has to be by your side."
"Is that so…" With that, Tomoyo bowed and bade her goodbye, pledging to give her decision three days after this meeting.
What is more important? Tomoyo was thinking as she went home. Accepting Mizuki-sensei's idea means she has to forget everything about Eriol. She has to stop being with him and stop any contacts with him. In payment for that, he will be a normal human again and he can go back to his family in England.
On the other hand, being with Eriol had given her the essence of her living. She now knew what is it she was living for, or for whom. Leaving Eriol would mean her purpose in life has ended. Besides…
"I can't leave Eriol like that!" she argued with herself loudly. "That bumpkin will always get into trouble, like revealing himself or getting shot by silver bullets or getting stricken by strong light and I…" She closed her eyes. There is something else holding her back, and she did not know if this feeling inside her is true or just part of the history repeating among themselves.
She has to think… a lot, and every minute with Eriol now should be well-spent, now that the time for them being together is fast diminishing.
TBC…
Author's Notes: Yes, how sad, ne? (Sobs) Anyway, please don't flame me with "You should get Tomoyo and Eriol back together now!" sort of thing in my email because…hey, I am an ExT fan. There is absolutely NO way I would end my fics with sad endings!
I'll try updating soon. Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu!