AN: No more notes till the end.

Disclaimer: Insert standard disclaimer here.

The Tomoeda Arcana

Chapter Four: The Tower

It was Drag Your Family To School So That They Can Look At All The Wonderful Stuff You Did And Didn't We Do A Great Job Educating You Day at Tomoeda Lower School. Every classroom was packed with dotting parents and bored siblings. In one particular room, three boys stood around a table, intently studying what was on top. Their conversation went like this:

"It's an elephant," said one.

"No, it's a horse," said another.

"No, it's an elephant. Look, these are its ears, this is its trunk and these are its tusks."

"I'm telling you, it's a horse. The ears are too small for an elephant and its neck is too long. It's even got a saddle. Only horses wear saddles."

"Elephants can wear saddles, the fancy ones with all the tassels and a phone-booth perched on top. Besides, she likes elephants."

"She doesn't like elephants. What kind of girl likes elephants? It's horses that she likes."

"She likes elephants. I'm her brother, I should know."

"I'm her brother too and I'm saying she likes horses."

"Elephants."

"Horses."

"Elephants."

"Horses."

Just when things were about to get violent, the third boy broke his silence. "I think it's a racing car."

The other two blinked and swiveled to face their brother. "A racing car?" they asked simultaneously.

The third brother nodded.

The other two looked back to the sculpture.

"It's not a racing car," said the first brother.

"Racing cars don't have legs," said the second.

"Those aren't legs," said the third. "They're little stands to hold the car up."

"They're not stands, they're apart of the sculpture, they're made of the same stuff. Stands have to be made of different material."

"Fine then, they're legs. It's a car with legs," the third brother conceded, anything to stop this conversation.

"Cars don't have legs, they have wheels." The first brother, who was also the oldest, just wouldn't let it go.

"This car's got both."

"You can't have both. You can either have wheels or legs, not both."

"What about tables? A table can have wheels and legs. So you can move it around." The second brother, who loved annoying the eldest brother, just had to voice his opinion.

"What?" said the first brother. "You think it's a table now? What happened to horses?"

"I didn't say it was a table," the second brother said, slowly and clearly. "I just said tables have wheels and legs. You should learn to pay attention."

"I only pay attention to things worth paying attention to." The first brother stepped menacingly towards his sibling.

Again, it looked as if a fight was about to break out, but then third brother spoke up, "Quick, she's coming this way. What did we say it was again?"

Chiharu stepped up to her three brothers. "So," she said brightly, "what do you think?"

Her brothers looked intently at the sculpture and tried to put on expressions of serious thought. The mmmed and ahhed and scratched their heads in contemplation. The third one even put his hands out in front of him, framing the piece with his fingers, the way movie directors do when they picture a scene.

When it became obvious that Chiharu wanted something more than expressions that looked like displays of indigestion, the first brother said, "I think it displays an excellent understanding of positive and negative space."

Seeing that his sister approved of that comment the second brother added, "The earthy tones of the clay contrast well with the more fluid form of the sculpture itself."

"It will look great on the dining room table." That was from the third brother.

Their opinions given, the three brothers sighed in relief and visibly relaxed. They had the air of people who had navigated a minefield and had come through with all their limbs attached.

"And?" asked Chiharu expectantly. "Do you think I captured the subject?" Apparently there was another minefield up ahead.

"And..."

"It's a very good sculpture..."

"Of..."

"An ele..."

"Horse..."

"Car..."

Chiharu's smile fell. "You don't know what it is, do you?"

Her brothers looked sheepishly to the side, at their shoes, at the ceiling, anywhere except Chiharu's face. "No," they muttered.

A mallet came out of nowhere and whacked them each on the head. "Can't you see, " WHACK "that it's a representation, " WHACK "of family love?" WHACK.

Eriol chuckled to himself as Chiharu's family squabbled amongst themselves. Off to the side the Yamazaki's parents were listening in stunned silence as their son lectured them on how flying squirrels were responsible for the fall of the Roman Empire. His two little sisters egged him on.

On the other side of the room, Naoko was chatting with her parents and Terada-sensei, while at the front Rika was showing her grandparents the history project she did this year. Eriol allowed his eyes to roam around the room, flitting from one happy family to another. This school open day had turned into some sort of carnival.

Eriol's eyes stopped on one student; there was someone whose family couldn't make it.

Tomoyo sat alone at her desk, tucked away in one corner of the room. Happy families swirled around her, but she was her own little island of solitude. She was looking outside, her chin resting on her hand.

Eriol walked over and perched himself on her desk. As he fiddled with some flyers advertising today's events he asked, "Will your mother be attending today, Daidouji-san?"

Her gaze gliding towards him, she said, "No, she had to fly up north because of business."

"Nakuru couldn't make it either." He held the paper against the desk and sharply creased an edge. "Apparently the 'Really Cute' chemistry professor will be lecturing today and Nakuru just had to attend." He continued when Tomoyo didn't say anything, "Spinel would have come but I think a flying cat would have attracted too much attention."

They lapsed back into silence; Eriol fixed in his bout of origami, while Tomoyo idly watched. The background chatter began to creep into their little bubble of quiet. Eriol finished his folding and tucked the two pieces into his pocket. Tomoyo was a bit annoyed that he didn't show her what he had been making.

The annoyance turned into surprise when Eriol reached out and took her hand. "Come away with me," he said.

"Excuse me?" said Tomoyo.

Eriol pulled her out of her chair "Let's get out of here. Let's escape."

Tomoyo looked around the classroom as Eriol led her to the door. "But Terada-sensei will know if we're missing," she said with alarm. "We'll get into trouble."

"No we won't," said Eriol, "Look over there." Eriol tossed his head in the direction of the classroom. Tomoyo looked back, sitting at her desk, talking quietly was herself and Eriol. She looked back at Eriol.

He noticed the question in her eyes. "It's just an illusion, people will think we're really there."

"But what if they try to talk to us – I mean them?"

"A part of the spell is that they won't want to talk to us, they'll suddenly remember something important and completely forget about talking to us." Eriol was quite pleased with this spell, what was the point of an illusion if it was easily discovered. The best illusions were ones that were never challenged.

Tomoyo was still hesitating on the threshold. Eriol squeezed her hand and asked, "You do trust me, don't you?"

She answered by stepping out the door. Eriol smiled and the two of them raced down the hallway.

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Tomoyo felt like a kite, flying along in Eriol's wake as they raced through corridors and stairwells. At first she thought Eriol would take her outside, but when they reached the stairway, instead of going down they went up. As he opened the door that led to the roof, the sun burst into her eyes, and she had to hold up a hand to shield her against the glare. The sky arched a bright blue above them.

Tomoyo looked down from the blue sky to her other hand, specifically what it held.

"I think you can let go of my hand now, Hiiragizawa-kun," she said.

Eriol glanced down in surprise, as if he had forgotten that they were holding hands at all. "I better not," he said, "if I let go the Tomoyo in the classroom will disappear." Tomoyo didn't like the idea of herself vanishing so she kept her hand where it was, in Eriol's.

Eriol had led them to the edge of the roof. "So this is it, huh?" asked Tomoyo. "Our great escape to the rooftop. Very exciting."

"We're not finished yet, Daidouji-san. Have patience." Eriol took from his pocket the pieces of paper he had been folding in class. He showed them to her; they looked like wings. "We're going to use these."

"I don't think those would get us very far."

"Just turn around."

Tomoyo dutifully spun in a circle but because of their held hands Eriol spun with her. She tried spinning the other way but that didn't work either. She started giggling when her next attempt had them standing back to back. The local pigeons were bemused at the sight of two students twirling around each other like drunken ballerinas.

Fighting down giggles, Eriol said, "Wait. Just stand still and I'll turn around."

Tomoyo stood completely still, except that her shoulders were shaking with laughter. Eriol walked a circle around her, drawing her arm across, till he was behind her. He took one pair of paper wings and carefully fastened it to the back of Tomoyo's shirt, securing it with a spark of magic. He then reached behind him and did the tricky maneuver on himself with the other pair of wings.

With a flick he spun Tomoyo away from him. She jolted to a stop when she reached the limit of her and Eriol's reach.

Swinging their hands between them, Eriol said, "Now we jump."

Tomoyo was incredulous. "What? Off the roof?"

"No," Eriol said with patience. "Just up and down."

"Up and down?" Tomoyo repeated with disbelief.

"Yes, Daidouji-san. Like this." Eriol started to jump up and down on the spot. When she realized that he wasn't going to stop, Tomoyo joined in. The complete ridiculousness of jumping up and down on the school roof caught up with Tomoyo and she started laughing again. She kept on laughing till the moment where she jumped up but didn't fall down…

Tomoyo looked down. Her feet were still there, but the ground was falling away, the school buildings getting smaller and smaller. She looked over her shoulder. Sprouting right out of her back was a large pair of wings, the pinions scrawled with 'WELCOME' and 'CLASS OF'. They beat leisurely against the wind.

"Jumping activated them. Turned them from pieces of paper to – " His explanation was cut off by Tomoyo throwing her free hand around Eriol's neck and burying her head against his shoulder.

"We're going to fall, Hiiragizawa," murmured Tomoyo.

"I won't let you fall, Daidouji."

He snaked his arm around her waist. He carefully stretched out the other, bringing her arm with it. And then…

"Are you humming?" Tomoyo asked against his shoulder. They were thousands of feet in the air, about to drop to their doom at any moment and he was humming.

"Of course I'm humming," said Eriol, "Where else will I get the music for our dance."

"We're not dancing, Hiiragizawa."

"Oh yes we are," Tomoyo felt themselves spin. "If you'd only hold your head up you'd notice." Eriol went back to his humming.

Tomoyo took a deep breath and tried to stop trembling. So they were high up in the air, big deal. Birds did it all the time, they were okay, but then birds had wings. But then so did she. Eriol had started singing, some song about walking on sunshine. Tomoyo looked up and fixed her eyes firmly on his face; if she kept looking at him then she wouldn't be looking down.

Eriol noticed her gaze. "Sing with me, Daidouji-san," he said.

Tomoyo snorted. Could this get any weirder: first flying then dancing now singing. Well, why not? Hesitantly at first, but growing with confidence, she joined in. Soon she was singing with gusto. When they finished that song, she immediately launched into another one. The two of them waltzed through the air, dancing on nothing.

She collapsed with laughter against him; all the twirling and spinning had made her a bit dizzy. Eriol looked down at her and asked, "Ready for something different?"

Tomoyo had just enough time to raise her eyebrows when Eriol threw himself backwards and took her with him. Their wings folded instinctively as the pair hurtled downwards, head first, the air screaming past them. Tomoyo screamed, but it wasn't out of fear, it was out of exhilaration. The ground was looming before her, getting closer and clearer with every second, but she wasn't afraid. Falling through the sky in Eriol's arms felt completely safe.

As if on cue their wings furled open at the same time. The sudden increase in air resistance sent them out of each other's embrace but they still kept a firm hold on each other's hands. They ended their dive in a smooth arc that sent them rushing back into the air again, spinning in circles, pivoting around the other.

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Their flight had sent them all the way to the Tower, the place where Sakura had received her final judgment. They perched themselves under the spire, well out of sight of the observation floor. They sat on the red steel struts and fanned their wings in the breeze, their feet dangling towards the ground. Eriol still had a firm grasp on Tomoyo's hand; partly it was to maintain the illusion back at the classroom but also because he didn't want her to fall. And it felt (he had to admit) nice to be connected to someone like this.

They weren't alone on this tower, a family of swallows had made their nest between one of the joins in the framework. Tomoyo was now watching one swallow flutter up to the nest and deposit something green in the gaping beak of a chick. Eriol noticed her wistful smile.

"Hungry for grasshoppers?" he said.

Tomoyo turned back to face him. "No," she chuckled, "I was just admiring them."

Eriol contemplated the swallows. "Yes," he said, "swallows are very good flyers, but we didn't do too bad today."

"Not that." She gazed back at the birds. "They're a family."

She seemed so sad. Eriol didn't like that. It suddenly seemed important that she be happy. He didn't know when this started to happen, when he suddenly shifted from guaranteeing her safety to ensuring her happiness. Before he was content to keeping an eye on her, now he wanted her to be smiling while he did.

"Would you mind terribly, if I was your family," Eriol said tentatively. "I mean, till your mother and Sakura-chan return."

"Does that offer include Akizuki-san and Spinel-san?"

"Unfortunately, yes," he said, his voice laden with long suffering.

She smiled. "What about Mizuki-sensei?"

Eriol stared at the horizon. "Kaho didn't stay in Tomoeda," he said "She went on to England." His voice was still full of suffering, but of a keener, more sharper kind.

"Hiiragizawa-kun, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. She sends me letters frequently, and I've still got Spinel and Nakuru." He tried to soften the conversation, "Unfortunately."

"But it's not the same. They can't fill the space Mizuki-sensei holds in your heart."

"True, but they, and the fact I know that she's happy where she is, make her absence easier to bear."

"Why didn't you go with her, Hiiragizawa-kun? You only hurt yourself by staying here."

"There is something I need to do," he said airily. "Someone needs my help."

"You are very kind, Hiiragizawa-kun, to put this person before your happiness. They must be important to you."

Eriol thought about that. At the beginning of this whole escapade he would have disagreed, Daidouji Tomoyo meant nothing to him; he did this out of responsibility, obligation, and the fact that he was the only person capable of doing so. But now, as he looked at her, her eyes brimming with empathy and understanding for him, he had to admit that that had changed. He didn't know when but he now cared what happen to her.

"Yes," he answered, "she is important."

Tomoyo didn't press him for any more details, he was grateful for her tact.

"What will you be doing tomorrow?" he asked, best to look to the future.

"Probably homework. You?"

"Same."

"You wouldn't like to come around tomorrow, would you?" she said hesitantly. "We could work on the homework together, but if you've got plans tomorrow, then I understand."

"No, I'd be happy to come over."

"Great."

The sun started to stretch the shadows across the land.

"I guess we better be going back," said Eriol.

"I had fun today Hiiragizawa-kun."

"Me too, Daidouji-san."

Hand in hand they launched themselves off the tower and into the sky.

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The rose bush shook as Tomoyo severed one of the blossoms. She carefully removed the lower leaves and snapped off the sharp thorns, throwing them to the ground. She carefully placed the rose in her basket, along with all the others she had collected.

Tomoyo had spent all morning in the rose garden, methodically working her way through each bed, selecting the best blooms. Her basket was now loaded with red, pink, orange and even candy-striped roses. Soon she would make her way back to the house and arrange her spoils in all the empty rooms.

Tomoyo smiled at what her mother would have to say at all this flower gathering. Sonomi appreciated beautiful things, especially flowers, but she didn't have the patience to choose which bloom would be best. Sonomi preferred the after flowering pruning, where she could slash with abandon.

Tomoyo sighed, she didn't want to go back to the house just yet: it was too empty. That was why she was out in the garden. She had dismissed all the house staff, the maids, the gardeners and her bodyguards (with full pay of course) because she didn't want to feel as if she was bothering anybody. The downside, though, was that the house was empty.

She idly snipped a Piccadilly Rose, the yellow petals flushing orange at the tips, and thought that Eriol better appreciate all the effort she had gone through this morning, to make the house more welcoming and presentable. Maybe if she brought some flowers, a piece of the outside, the inside of the house wouldn't seem so empty and grey.

Tomoyo snapped off a thorn and found her eyes resting on the bloom. All morning the petals kept reminding her of that incident in the sewing room. She found herself imagining that the flowers would start bleeding any moment now.

That incident reminded her of all the other incidents: the pair in the classroom, the jester who wanted to watch videos. All had left cards that featured their portraits, and all had fitted perfectly in that wooden box. She couldn't just ignore them anymore; hope that they would just go away. The things they had said were hurtful; completely untrue, but hurtful all the same, and she found that their theories and accusations had stayed with her. She couldn't do her homework, make dinner or take a bath without going over all those conversations. And at night, when she was lying in bed, tucked under the covers, was just awful. Then all the fears and doubts that she buried deep inside would surface. Maybe she was worthless, useless, a nothing, unwanted and unimportant.

No, she sent that train of thought back to the station. She was worth something, she was important. How do you know, whispered the voice of doubt. Because Hiiragizawa-kun said so, she thought back. When she thought she was about to be swept away by an ocean of darkness, drown in its endless debts, though she stood in sunlight, he had given her this. She was important, he had said, and she had clung to it; if one person thought this then so could she.

Hiiragizawa-kun: maybe he could help; he was a powerful magician. Tomoyo was a bit nervous about asking for help, for being a burden, but she didn't' know who else she could turn to; everyone else had disappeared from her life. She decided that she would tell Hiiragizawa all about her strange visitors when he'd come to visit within the next half hour.

"I see my predecessors have failed."

The unexpected voice caused Tomoyo to stab her finger on a thorn. She jerked her hand away and examined the dark red bead on the tip. She turned towards the voice.

"Apparently you have found hope, little-one. Or perhaps someone gave it to you."

The speaker looked like her great-grandfather. Tomoyo knew it wasn't really her great-grandfather: that would be too much to hope for. Her great-grandfather never came to the Daidouji mansion, never came to see Sonomi or Tomoyo, he was always busy with business, or on the few times that he was on holiday he spent it at the house by the lake. No, the only people who ever came to see Tomoyo were the card people.

The man walked to her side and bent to examine a Double Delight, his dove grey pinstriped suit sliding to his movements. He turned his face to her and said, "You have a lovely garden here, my dear."

Tomoyo spun on her heel and ran.

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The bell above the door jangled as Eriol stepped into the bakery. He was instantly engulfed by the smell of freshly baked bread. It seemed as if the smell of fresh bread did something to the air, make in glow golden, as if he was looking through syrup.

He stepped up to the counter. "Welcome!" said the sales person, a bubbly girl who loved bread so much she had styled her hair into two bagels on the side of her head. "How may I help you today?"

Eriol considered the assortment of bread, pastries, cakes and donuts displayed before him. "I'll take some butterfly cakes please. And some donuts."

"With or without jam?"

"Both. And some with the chocolate icing with sprinkles."

"Anything else?"

"Some chocolate brownies, and some apple Danishes and some apple pies and some mince pies."

"Anything else?"

"And some éclairs, but only two because I'm on a diet." Eriol beamed at the bemused sales person.

"Are you planning a party, sir?"

"Oh no, I'm just about to visit someone. I thought it only polite that I bring something."

The lady looked at all the foodstuffs she had to wrap. "She must be very special for you to bring so many things."

Eriol thought about that, Daidouji was special, but he'd never consider her actually special to him, yet here he was buying the whole contents of her favorite bakery, how did he know it was her favorite bakery, she had mentioned it in passing, strange that he remembered it. "Yes, she's a special friend."

While the woman packaged all the cakes and pastries into blue and white checked boxes, Eriol considered the situation between him and Daidouji Tomoyo. His embroidered bug was working perfectly: it allowed him to know not only the whereabouts of Daidouji-san but also her state of mind. So far there was nothing out of the ordinary, no magical threats or attacks were noticed. The only thing to worry about was that she seemed depressed or faded, but not as bad as before, now Eriol could sense a small spark of hope in her aura.

He was concerned about these cards, however. They seemed too much like Clow cards for it to be a coincidence. He had thought for a moment that Daidouji herself had made them, out of some desire for her own magic but he dismissed that. Tomoyo wasn't into mimicry or envy. And besides, the cards seemed too otherworldly for her to have made them, but they didn't have any magic at all.

"Here you go, sir." The lady handed him his purchases, all stacked on top of each other and tied up with string. Eriol was handing over the money when it hit him. It was like he was plunged into icy water; the bakery, the sales woman, the loaves of bread all lined on the shelves all seemed distant. Something was wrong.

The shock must have shown on Eriol's face for the sales person said, "Are you okay, sir?"

That shook Eriol out of his daze. "No, nothing's wrong," he said. He practically threw his money at the woman and said, "Keep the change." He barged out the door and broke into a run.

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Tomoyo ran to the front gate. She didn't want to run to the house: there was no one there to help and she had to avoid the grey empty spaces. She needed light; she needed people.

The basket kept smacking into her leg at every step, the roses jostling inside. The sound of her footsteps changed as she left the plush lawn and hit the gravel driveway. She kept running, crunching at every step. The front gate loomed into view and Tomoyo sobbed with relief.

That sob turned into a groan when she realized that someone was leaning against the supporting pillar: the fake great-grandfather. Tomoyo skidded to a stop, gravel rattling at her feet.

"Please," begged Tomoyo in a small voice, "let me go."

The man left the pillar and began to walk slowly over, as if he was taking a stroll through the park.

"I don't want to hear whatever it is you've got to say," said Tomoyo. She took a step backwards, ready to run again but knowing it was hopeless. "You can try telling me that I don't have a life or a world or a heart, but it won't work."

"I'm glad to see you've been paying attention." He kept on getting closer, no matter how many steps she took he still kept getting closer. "But I'm not here to talk about you, little one. I'm here to tell you a secret."

"I don't want to know about your secrets." He was standing right in front of her now.

"What you want doesn't come into it." The visitor stepped suddenly to her side, grabbed her arm and proceeded to pull her in the direction of the gate. Tomoyo tried to wrench herself from his grasp. He laughed and said, "But I thought you wanted to go outside."

He didn't actually lead her outside the gate, instead they stopped before it, the ornate iron bars twisting and curving before her. The fake great-grandfather shook her slightly. "Look," he commanded.

Tomoyo peered through the bars. She expected to see the street she walked along every day: the birches that lined the footpath, the Tuscan style mansion across the road that was only lived in during the holidays, the grassy verge that sprouted dandelions and crickets in the summer, but all those were gone. Instead, there was a giant oak tree, its limbs clothed in bright green.

At the base there was a girl, dressed in her school uniform. She was bouncing up and down and shouting at the tree. Tomoyo gasped: she knew that voice. She pressed herself against the bars, desperate for a closer look. Her eyes only confirmed what her ears knew from the start, the girl chucking a fit below the tree was her mother.

"Nadeshiko-chan," shouted Sonomi. "Get down. It isn't safe."

"Just a minute, Sonomi-kun." Tomoyo traced the voice back to high up in the branches. Perched precariously on a limb, returning a fledgling to its nest, was Kinomoto Nadeshiko.

Tomoyo knew what was going to happen next, her mother had told this story many times before; often priceless china was broken, once all the windows on the second floor had to be replaced. The ending never changed, but at least it was a happy ending. A happy ending for two people that is. Well, two out of three ain't bad.

"Watch your mother," said the fake great-grandfather.

Sonomi had raced to the other side of the tree when she heard the crash. Tomoyo was a silent witness as her mother's face registered concern about Nadeshiko's well being, relief that she was okay, outrage that she had landed on a man and that he was looking at her with adoration in his eyes, and then heartbreak when she realized that her Nadeshiko was looking at him the same way.

"Oh mother," Tomoyo whispered and leant her head against the bars. Sonomi just stood there as she was excluded from Nadeshiko's world, unable to share in this moment of happiness.

"Do you see?" asked the fake great-grandfather. "Sonomi thought that she would have Nadeshiko forever, but she was wrong. In one moment all her hopes and dreams of a future were destroyed."

Even though the sun was blazing, the iron bars were cold against her forehead. "Why did you show me this?"

"You need to realize that the structures we build in our lives are not permanent, that they are destined to be destroyed. And there is nothing you can do about it."

"No, I mean why. Why are you doing this to me? Who is doing this to me? Who sent you?" Under the oak tree, Sonomi had recovered and was now pulling Nadeshiko away.

"Who do you think?"

"I don't know. that's why I'm asking."

"Who do you know that has the power to do all this, to alter reality, to summon figures from cards."

"I don't know anyone who could be this cruel."

"What about that magician of yours?"

"Hiiragizawa?" She looked at the visitor. "He wouldn't do such a thing."

"Really? How well do you know him, little one? He deals with things you couldn't imagine, how can you be sure of his motives? Think about it, little one. Who decided to stay in Tomoeda unexpectedly? Who didn't want Sakura to know about his presence? Who manages to show up after every visit? Who is coming right now?"

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Eriol flew up the footpath, heading for Tomoyo's house. He had never been here before, never been in this neighborhood, never walked let alone run down this streets, never even seen the front yard of her house, but he knew exactly which corners to turn, exactly where he was suppose to be going because the pull of his magic and the sense of her in danger drew him on.

He pelted along a thick concrete wall. Just up ahead was her front gate, a line of black in the stretch of cream. In the black were two smudges of white that with every step resolved into her hands.

He skidded to a stop in front of the gate. "Daidouji-san," he gasped and went to place his hands on top of the pale white ones the gripped the iron bars so tightly. "Are you all right?"

Tomoyo snatched her hands back and stepped away from the gate. She looked at him with startled eyes and said coldly "What are you doing here, Hiiragizawa?"

"I came to see you. Remember? We were going to have lunch."

"But it's much too early." She looked at her watch but her eyes also took in her basket, specifically what was lying inside. She quickly sucked in her breath.

Eriol gripped the iron bars and leant forward. "Shall I come in, Daidouji-san? You seem a bit unwell."

Tomoyo flung something up between them. "What's this?" she demanded.

It was similar to all those cards he had seen in the sewing room, but with a different picture. This one had a picture of a tall building, like the turret of a castle or a lighthouse. The building was being struck by lightning and had a figure falling along the front. That figure was Amamiya-sama (Eriol knew all about him because of his connection to Sakura). At the bottom of the card was written 'The Tower'.

"A painting of your great-grandfather. Did you do this, Daidouji-san? It's very good." Eriol was trying to be cheerful.

"Don't play dumb, Hiiragizawa. It doesn't suit you." She waved the card in front of his face. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Doing what, Daidouji? I'm not doing anything."

"Yes you are! For the last month I've been visited by these, these… things! I want it to stop!"

"Stop what? Daidouji, you're not making any sense."

"Don't lie to me, Hiiragizawa. Don't ever lie to me." She began walking towards the house. Eriol stretched his arms through the bars in a vain attempt to stop her.

"Daidouji, don't go."

She whirled around. "I want you to stop sending these people! I want you to stop playing these silly games! I want you out of my life." She continued her dignified walk up the path.

Eriol was left at the gate, trapped behind the swirling bars as she slipped away.

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Tomoyo shut the front door quickly behind her. She sank to her heels and tried to get her breathing under control. Once the blood rushing through her ears had returned back to their usual veins and arteries, she could hear the silence echoing through the empty rooms. In her hand her imitation great-grandfather mocked her as he fell from his tower, his mouth open in a scream, or was it a laugh. At her feet lay the shattered roses, petals scattered like bloody snowflakes.

She really was alone.

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Eriol flung the front door open and slammed it shut behind him. He kicked off his shoes where they smacked against the wall and dropped to the floor. He stalked into the hallway.

"Oooh, yummies," cooed Nakuru as Eriol shoved the boxes of bakery goods into his arms. Nakuru could only stare blankly at his master's stiff back as Eriol stormed past him. Eriol reached the lounge room and slammed that door behind him as well.

Spinel appeared from the stairway, wondering what all the noise was about. Seeing Nakuru's bewildered face he asked, "Is anything wrong?"

"He just walked by and didn't even say I'm home."

Spinel peered around the banister at the closed lounge room door. "I guess we better see what the problem is."

Nakuru immediately bounded towards the door and turned the handle. When the door didn't budge he said, "It's stuck."

"Let me try," Spinel shifted into his Spinel Sun form and laid a coal black paw on the door. "You're right, it is stuck."

"I know how to open a door, Suppi. Maybe he wants to be alone."

Spinel Sun regarded the presence on the other side of the door. "Nobody wants to be alone," he muttered.

Spinel flared his butterfly wings and unsheathed his claws, digging them into the floorboards to steady him. He opened his jaws and fired off a bright blast of energy. The door disintegrated in a shower of splinters and – water?

Spinel Sun padded into the room; behind him Nakuru shifted into Ruby Moon. Though it was the middle of the day the lounge room was completely dark.

Something crunched under Spinel Sun's paws, sending sharp little pinpricks through his pads. He felt cold creeping on icy fingers up his legs and through his coat. In the dim light he could see his breath crystallizing as a cloud in front of him. Ice started to glaze the surface of his wings.

"Master, are you okay?" Spinel called into the darkness. No response. "I could use some light here, Ruby Moon," Spinel Sun whispered over his shoulder.

Ruby Moon waved a ball of light into being; Spinel Sun had to shut his eyes against the glare. When he was able to open them again he had to rub them is disbelief.

The room was a freezer, practically arctic. The reason it was so dark was that all the curtains had been drawn and iced shut. Every surface was covered with a patina of frost, the walls, the furniture, the potted plants in the corners. Icicles stabbed down from the ceiling and ice crystals powered the carpet. Spinel picked his way through the snow and frosted furniture to stand before Eriol.

Eriol was in the same state as the room: all his clothes were dusted with ice, his glasses covered in ferns of frost; tiny snowflakes tipped his black hair. His skin was pale, though that was usual, but his lips were blue.

Spinel looked over towards Ruby Moon. "Would you be able to make us some tea, Ruby Moon?" he said politely.

"You want me to make tea? Now? When he's like this?"

"Yes, please. And bring some of those doughnuts we got today."

Ruby Moon spun on his heel and swept from the room, muttering about how males were so incomprehensible.

When Ruby Moon had left, Spinel turned back to his master. "Are you going to tell me what this is all about, or do I have to guess?"

The ice sculpture said nothing.

"Okay then," said Spinel. "Since you should be with Daidouji-san at this moment, and obviously you are not, I'll presume this is about her." Ice began to quickly form around Spinel's legs, racing up the paws. "And judging from this chilly reception," Spinel chuckled slightly at his joke, " you are not happy with her. She said something, did something?" Spinel fished.

The ice around Eriol's mouth crumbled slightly. Spinel cocked an ear towards his master. "Sorry, I didn't catch that, Eriol-sama."

Through a layer of ice, Eriol said, "She said I was hurting her."

"Hurting how, exactly?"

"By sending cards to her."

"What kind of cards? Birthday or playing?" It was best to be a bit irreverent when talking to Eriol. Getting him angry was the best way to snap him out of the gloom.

"Clow cards," Eriol said with irritation. "Or at least things that look like Clow cards."

Eriol sighed and ran a hand through his hair, dislodging ice crystals. Water began dripping off icicles as the atmosphere began to thaw. He began to explain things to Spinel.

"Today, she showed me this card and said that I sent it to her. I've seen similar cards with her, but I thought nothing of it. Now it seems that these cards are responsible for her misery."

"This is very serious, Eriol-sama." Spinel beat his wings, partly in alarm and partly to warm them up. "If these cards are trying to undermine Daidouji-san, trying to destroy her hope, then she is in danger. We both know that if a person loses hope they lose all. You were right to stay here."

"You're missing the point, Spinel. She thinks I'm the one who's behind all this."

"But you're not," Spinel Sun stated.

"Of course I'm not," Eriol exploded. "I know that, you know that, Ruby Moon making tea in the kitchen knows that. But Daidouji doesn't know that."

"But when you tell…"

"Tell her? She doesn't give me a chance. She thinks I'm an evil, manipulative, vile, untruthful, power-hungry, cruel, malicious, spiteful, merciless monster."

"And that's what bothers you isn't it," Spinel said quietly. "That Daidouji-san would think you a monster."

Eriol leant forward and hissed, "I have given everything for her and she still pushes me away. After all I have done for her, she should be grateful. I have given my life for her. Does she think I want to be here, watching over her, making sure she's happy? She should be begging me for my guardianship." His voice became cold, and it was like winter had returned to the room. "No more. If those dark forces want her so badly they can have her. I want nothing to do with Daidouji. She is nothing to me."

"Tea's ready," Ruby Moon said brightly. He slipped slightly as he stepped in a puddle, but managed to recover.

"Ruby Moon," Eriol commanded. "Put down that tea and go pack our bags. We're going home to England."