Author's Comments: I want to truly thank every single one of my awesome reviewers for your enthusiasm of the story. I had a fun time working on this chapter, hope you guys like it as well. I won't keep you any longer, go enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Card Captor Sakura.
Revelations
Chapter 3: Fate
A group of students, roughly about the size of thirty, were sitting in a small lecture hall, each busy chattering about the exciting event taking place on campus that day.
"I heard that hunky model what's his name, who was shirtless on that jeans ad is going to be here…" told a skinny brunette to the friend beside her.
"You mean Adam Smith, the famous American model is coming to our school?" Literally screeched the blond hair girl beside the brunette, and the two girls continued to talk in glee until they heard a loud 'Ah-hem'. The entire class quickly quieted as they saw the professor had entered and was standing behind the dais.
"I know Archeology 310 can seem a bit less exciting compared to the modeling shoot, but I will ask that everyone save their thoughts on the subject until after class."
"K doc." "Yes, sensei." Replied the young men and women whom dutifully began to take out their laptops and notebooks.
"Alright, we have a lot of things to cover today. First-"
"Excuse me Kinomoto-san," an elderly gentleman with a friendly face knocked on the doorway.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your class, but I came to ask for an important favor."
"Principal Morimoto, what is it that I can do for you?"
"I was wondering if it was alright by you and your students that this room be borrowed for the modeling shoot this period," looked the principal at the eager and agreeing students to the not so happy professor.
"Well, the thing is, we have a pretty tight schedule for the day. Have you tried the other rooms?"
"Yes I have, however the literature rooms are all busy taking exams. Your class is my last resort," explained the elderly man good naturedly, while the students pleaded for their professor to accept the favor.
"Oh alright, but don't blame me when you guys fail your semester finals," grumbled the dark haired professor as the class cheered.
"Thank you sensei, and I hope you all enjoy the treat," said the principle with eyes filled with mirth before he departed.
"Wow, can you imagine? Adam Smith can be walking right through that door," said the blonde haired womanwith hearts in her eyes, and the female population of the class had similar reactions, while the guys snorted in response.
"It better be some hot chick that walks through that door and not some pretty boy," said the ruffian of the class.
"No sane woman would ever consider going out with you Keji," snapped back the insulted blonde. Soon two sides of the class were engaged in a bitter argument and just as the professor was about to intervene, a high pitched foreign voice did the job for him.
"What iz diz! What are all deez cockamamie dead thingz doing aroundz here!" A short skinny man with a thin mustache, wearing tight black clothes looked disgusted at the ancient artifacts around the room. Trailing behind him were two young men conveying a similar arrogance as they nodded in agreement.
"Indeed, dusty vile things they are," declared the stuck up assistant, while cameramen were busy carrying in expensive lighting equipment and setting up platforms around the room.
The wide eyed class looked at the foreigners in wonder, while their professor was nashing teeth and trying to suppress his temper with the intrusion.
"I toldz them I wanteed a literature room!" Complained the little Frenchman, waving his right arm dramatically.
"Yes monsieur, however the school says the classes are being used and the best they could do is this room," said the shorter assistant as he looked contemptuously up and down an old dusty cabinet, which earned him a glare from Touya.
"Ib I wasn't the greet Fernando Meuosoni, no one else in my shoes can work wid such disgusting condeetions!" Declared the small haughty man and turned to his assistant, who used a fine towel to dab the barley formed sweat away. The angry professor had had enough, and was taking large strides toward the man with the pleasant idea of personally shutting him up.
"Tell Tomoyo to comez in," said the Frenchman to his assistant. Touya quickly halted and looked toward his doorway, where sure enough, Tomoyo appeared. She didn't see him as he stood at a blind angle, and she was focused on the funny sight of Fernando, who appeared like he was in his own little world.
Tomoyo was elegantly clad in a low cut dress shirt with a slim fitting black suit-jacket; the slanting cut of the black skirt accentuated her long legs and she had her hair sleekly pulled back into a bun that was placed at the nape of her neck. The outfit looked perfect on her, it was professional but at the same time feminine. Her presence quickly captured the attention of many students and a few started pointing and talking in low whispers to one another. It appeared he wasn't the only one in the room who thought she looked gorgeous.
"Eh! What are deez peoplez doing here? Shoo them away, we don't needz them. Wee have our own pretty student modelz," said the man with a nonchaltant wave, and his proud arrogance caused many of thestudents to growl in anger.
"That's not a very nice thing to say, and for you to come barging into their classroom. I would have thought the great Fernando had more class than that." Tomoyo's gentle voice turned all eyes on her.
"OH MY GOD! It's Tomoyo Daidouji in OUR classroom!" Screamed a girl in the back of the room.
"I'm such a big fan of yours, you haveNO idea! I own virtually all the clothes you have ever modeled and even though it cost me my life savings, it was worth every penny!" The passionate fan went up to Tomoyo and the rest of the girls quickly followed, all expressing their undying devotion to her. Tomoyo who was used to this kind of attention, returned them an easy smile and tried to sign as many photos of herself, that all the girls seemed to own a dozen each.
"Git away from her! I will allow you all to watch ib only everyone stayz in their chairz, and not bothering my modelz!"
Fernando walked toward Tomoyo and the mass of girls surrounding her quickly went back to their seats.
"Darleeng, you look az beautiful az ever!" Fernando gave Tomoyo a barley-there kiss on both her cheeks and she returned the gesture.
"Now come, come. I'm sorryz to say we will have to work around deez junk-"
"The junk you're referring to is a Ming dynasty cupboard," added a stiff voice. Tomoyo turned around to the familiar tone and her eyes widened as she confirmed her suspicion.
"Touya! What are you doing here?"
"This is my class," replied Touya evenly.
"Oh, is that right? Well, haha, what a coincidence," said Tomoyo realizing her voice sounded higher than usual, and saw Touya slightly raise his eyebrows in response.
Great, I'm making a fool of myself, and in front of a live audience of curious students.
Fortunantely for Tomoyo, the awkwardness was broken by Fernando, who was staring intently at Touya from head to toe.
"And who iz dis handsome specimen?"asked Fernando in great interest.
Tomoyo almost burst out laughing when she saw the look Fernando was giving Touya, looking in all the world ready to eat the guy.
"A friend, and he's taken." Tomoyo couldn't hide the amusement in her words, which Touya caught ear of and shot her a distressed glare.
"By who? You?"
"No, of course not me. I'm with Eriol remember?" said Tomoyo, vainly trying to keep her voice low so the contents of her conversation couldn't be heard, but she would have been better off without bothering with Fernando talking as though the people around him were deaf.
"Humph, well if you ask mee I think you can do a lot better than that four eyez!" Tomoyo rubbed her forehead and laughed recalling the bitter feud between this Frenchman and her English boyfriend, it was over a little insignificant thing, but she figured it had more to do with the country they originated from.
In the midst of this conversation, the class was eagerly listening to every detail and memorizing them to recount the juicy gossip to their friends. Tomoyo suspected as much and skillfully got Fernando to begin the shoot.
"Ok, first darleeng, I'll hab you give me a few solo shotz then we'll call Smithz over," said Fernando as he directed Tomoyo over to a large white screen and gave her a long pointer. The photographer nodded to his assistants and they turned on the overhead projector, along with classical music to enhance the intellectual ambience.
"Adam's here too? I thought he was in the States finishing for Guess Jeans," asked Tomoyo as she thought of the guy who was as sweet as American pie, and as innocent as a new born babe. Flashes of bulbs went off as Fernando captured Tomoyo in different angles, posing as a teacher using the pointer and explaining the contents on the overhead.
"Yes, well wen he heard it was I who was leading the shoot, he decided to drop eberthing for me," explained the busy little man as he directed Tomoyo into other various poses.
"I dink dat is good enugh. Though the décor of de room is terrible, but I guess I can somehow salveege it," muttered Fernando loudly and Tomoyo smiled apologetically to Touya, who was looking pastready to strangle the little man.
Promptly, a blond hair and blue eyed man walked into the room.
"Ah Smithz perfect timing, we just feenished the solo shotz," said Fernando as he beamed at Adam. The girls shrieked in excitement as the handsome hunk looked over and smiled at them.
"Hey Fernando, and it's always a pleasure to see you Tomoyo." Adam openly walked toward her and gave her a big bear hug, the girls 'aww'-ed while the guys rolled their eyes, but the dislikeof the man came greatest froma glowering professor, illustrated by the grittedteeth and the vein along his temple going a mile a minute.
"Did Fernando tell you the reason I grabbed for this shoot in a heart beat, was because I heard I was working with you babe?" Adam smiled unreservedly down at Tomoyo, and she smiled backat his sincerity.
"Hmm is that so…" narrowed amethyst eyes sought Fernando, who quickly swirled around and started ordering the assistants about.
"Chop, chop! The two ob you go get changed, ib I wanteed to see lovey dovey between girl and boy, I would hab gone to a chick flick."
For once Touya felt grateful to the little man, but he still felt aggitated as he watched the pair walk out of the room, with Adam placing his arm comfortably on Tomoyo's shoulders.
It was five minutes till noon and the camera crew were busy packing all the equipment back into large silver cases. The students were given the remainder of their usual class time the opportunity to get autographs and pictures taken with the two models. Adam was especially popular with the girls as he generously gave each of them a great bear hug, the guys wouldn't have been too ecstatic about this had they not been enraptured by the other stunning model. Eventually the noon bell rang, but the students were slow to leave, however they had little choice when their professor ordered them out the door. A large crowd of students had formed outside the doorway, and the only thing stopping them from charging in were the scary burly security men standing guard. Giggles and loud chatter erupted when the students got out the room and each were pounded with questions by their peers; even as Touya closed the door, the voices could still be clearly heard.
"Babe, sorry I can't stay and have lunch, but I have to jet back to L.A. before my agent finds out that I had gone 'poof'." Adam gave Tomoyo a kiss on the cheek before heading out the door.
"Goodbye and don't give Clarice such a hard time,"scolded Tomoyo and he replied with an impish wink and waved bye before turning out the door.
"Phew, he'll have a hard time getting past those adoring fans." Tomoyo plopped down into one of the chairs in the first row, while Touya came around and sat in the seat next to her.
"I hope you don't mind if I rest a bit before I head out," said Tomoyo, gently closing her eyes as she held her head upright on her left palm.
"Go ahead, it must have been exhausting." Touya looked at the girl, no he couldn't call her that anymore. She was no longer the little girl that he remembered as his sister's best friend. In the six years since he had last seen her in person, she had blossomed into a beautiful and elegant young woman, rivaling any beauty he had ever known. She also held a resemblance to his deceased mother, the physical resemblance was especially similar with the same gray lavender hair, but it was Tomoyo's graceful presence and calm collected quality that made him think of Nadeshiko.
"Shoots are usually draining but this is the first time I worked in front of such a big audience." This was basically the truth but what really made the shoot tough was having Touya among the crowd of spectators. For some reason she felt the same need to make a good impression, like the time when she first modeled for Fernando.
"You handled it well, I could barely tell you were tired," commented Touya. Tomoyo opened her eyes and gave a small smile as she looked away.
"It's a model's job to keep up appearances," said Tomoyo slowly, who seemed to be thinking about something else, but her amethyst orbs quickly cleared and she stood up to leave.
"I should be going; it wasgood seeing you again."
"Hold on. Come with me, those vultures out there will pick you dry." Touya moved toward the corner side of the room where it appeared the dustiest and least aesthetically appealing. He gently lifted large crumpling maps out of the way and revealed a small wooden door.
"Impressive, a secret doorway. Very Doctor Jones." Purple eyes alighted with interest and scanned over the door as if it was the most fascinating thing she had ever seen. Touya smiled at her enthusiasm and unlocked the door with an old fashion key.
"It leads into an old passageway that directly takes us out to the side of the school." Touya took a flashlight before entering the passage, and closed the door behind Tomoyo when she followed.
"I found it by accident, the door was originally concealed behind the plaster wall and I happened to have a few stone statues near the area when that huge earthquake hit. The following morning, I discovered one of the statues had fell against the wall and had made a hole, thus revealing the door. Since then I have used it to escape the clutches of colleagues and students."
"You make it sound like a blessed getaway from prison," said Tomoyo with mirth, as she looked at the aged stone walls with fasination.
"Took the words right out of my mouth."
Tomoyo laughed and slowed as Touya came upon a similar wooden door and creaked it open. The pair emerged from the underground tunnel and out into a peaceful andbeautiful area.
"There's not a lot of people around here," commented Tomoyo as she walked alongside Touya down the cement lane.
"Yea, has to do with some superstition about an accident that occurred here, and even though I don't buy it, its come in handy. Haven't encountered a single soul around here since I started using the passageway," explained Touya and Tomoyo nodded.
The beautiful maple trees on both sides of the lane and the bird chirping made the place heavenly. However, the moment was short lived as the two reached the entrance of the school where it was bustling with students; Tomoyo touched the bridge of her noseto make sure she had on her dark shades.
"You better get going before you're spotted, I don't think I can hold back more than ten fanatics at a time," grinned Touya, who was turning back to the school.
"Uh wait, would you care to go have coffee with me? It's the least I can do, with all that we put you through today." Tomoyo quickly added the last line and Touya raised a brow in question.
"Fernando, I know can be tough to work with. You have to really get to know the dear before his, how should I say it, 'special behavior' changes from offensive to endearing," explained Tomoyo.
"I can't promise anything with Fernando, but coffee sounds great."
"Great, then how about that place, looks pretty popular," pointed Tomoyo to a crowded coffee shop across the street.
"Perfect, the place serves the best cappuccino around, let's head on over."
Out of protective instinct, Touya placed his right arm around Tomoyo's back and steered her though the busy traffic.Both unaware that theywere being followed.
It was a chilly spring day and the warm cozy atmosphere of the coffee house was especially inviting. A tall woman wearing expensive sunglasses surveyed the room and smiled at the similar looking oak tables and comfortable sofas,like to those she frequently visited during her college years.
"Why don't you save us a seat and I'll order for you?" nodded Touya to a just now vacant table towards the back.
"Sure, just order me that cappuccino you were mentioning," said Tomoyo as she headed to the cleared table, and was luckily able to evade notice by the students, thanks to the low lighting of the place.
Tomoyo took off her shades and got comfortable on the semi-circular couch, and as Touya approached, she scooted over to make room.
"Sorry the space is so cramped," said Touya as he placed a large steaming mug in front of Tomoyo and himself.
"You don't need to apologize, it was the only available table. Besides, this cappuccino makes its all worthwhile," said Tomoyo with a wink as she took another sip of the foamed liquid. The young woman closed her eyes and enjoyed the warm liquid moving down her throat, warming her entire being from the chill. However this momentary bliss was rudely interrupted by a snort followed by poorly suppresed laughter.
"What? What's so funny?" asked Tomoyo as she looked at Touya, who was recovering from just choking on his drink. When he moved his eyes back up to her face, he burst out laughing. Nonplussed, Tomoyo blinked at the man, which only made him laugh louder.
"I'm sorry, it's just that your donning a very stylish mustache," said Touya as he continued to chuckle.
"Oh gosh, like you yourself don't have one," embarrassed, Tomoyo quickly used a napkin to wipe the foam from her upper lip.
"Well, it's just that you looked exactly like one those ads for 'Got Milk'," said Touya as he tried to recover. The sound of his laughs was contagious and Tomoyo couldn't help but join in along.
After they both recovered from the fun moment,the cheerful pair then started to discuss the recent marriage between Sakura and Syaoran, which inevitably led to the topic of the long-drawn and bitter feud between the two important men inSakura's life-her husband and brother.
"I still can't believe you addressed Syaoran by 'gaki' in their wedding toast."
"Well, he hasn't changed much from his ugly, ten year old gaki-self," explained Touya in a matter-a-fact way.
"Poor Sakura, she'll have her hands full with the two of you when the time comes for family reunions."
"Please don't remind me, I'm still getting over the gross fact that I'm actuallyrelated to that brat." Touya took a big gulp of his coffee while Tomoyo smiled, finding his over protectiveness of his younger sister such acute quality.
A few tables away from the pair was a short, fat balding man pretending to be reading the newspaper, but on closer inspection a camera lens can be seen camouflaged in the right column. Rapid clicks went off and the man silently rejoiced.
These shots will rake in more money than the Mona Lisa herself! Just wait, by tomorrow these pictures will be on every star magazine from here to Timbuktu!
While the paparazzi continued clicking his camera in secret, the two individuals shared a comfortable silence and both mentally admitted they were enjoying the other's company.
"So how come you didn't pursue fashion designing? I always figured you'd become a famous designer. Not that what you're doing right now isn't just as good," said Touya who quickly added the last line when Tomoyo gave him an amused smile.
"To be honest, since I was a little girl I always believed that one day I would be a designer. Now I guess it's more of a hobby when I have the spare time, but come to think of it, it's been quite a while since I last touched a needle," replied Tomoyo with reminiscent eyes.
"Do you plan on going back to pursuing it, perhaps in the future?" asked Touya, but even before he finished the sentence Tomoyo was already shaking her head.
"No I don't think so, and even if I did-" Tomoyo stared down at her pale smooth hands. "-these rusty old hands of mine aren't quite the same as they used to be," joked Tomoyo as she tried to play off the subject, but Touya noticed the twinge of sadness and what seemed like pain in her eyes.
"Nope, have to do better than that, I don't buy it at all. You're passionate and talented in whatever you do, so we'll leave it at that, and we won't mention your poor lying skills."
"I don't know whether I was just insulted or complimented," laughed Tomoyo.
"Let's just think of it as the sad, hard truth." Tomoyo smacked him in the shoulder and Touya chuckled at the unsuitable, displeased expression on her face.
However, his twinkling dark orbs and honest smile won her over and the happy pair spent the next few hours pleasantly telling one another the places they visited, and the work they've been up for the past several years. Unintentionally, both were avoiding the subjects of their girlfriend or boyfriend. Instead, they became completely transfixed on one another and unbeknownst to both, established the first links in a bond that went beyond friendship.
"Oh my, it's gotten late, and oh gosh! I made you miss your afternoon class!" exclaimed Tomoyo, dismayedas she looked at her wristwatch.
"Don't worry about it; those guys are always looking for ways to get out of my class. However, you are right, it is getting late. Do you need a ride back home?"
"No, its fine I'll call my driver. Thanks for the offer."
"Alright, well here take my number, in case you ever get the dieing urge to know more about the Holy Grail," said Touya.
Tomoyo laughed as she accepted it and gave him her number in return. Together they walked out of the cozy coffee house and waved bye as Tomoyo stepped into the waiting limo.
I guess it ends there.
The tall man smiled wryly at his wishful thinking, and resumed a slow trek back toward campus.
I hope this chapter met your guys' expectations, and I'll try to get the next chapter out as fast as possible. I appreciate you guys taking your time to read my story; leave a review if you have any comments! Enjoy the summer!