Disclaimers/dedications in part 1, Old: Eriol.
Notes: 'Something new' refers to Tomoyo's realization, and acceptance, of her feelings for Eriol. Remember the end of volume twelve – the scene where she's standing and holding the phone to her heart? That's an up-lifted expression, in my opinion, and that's when she really lets go of her all-consuming love for Sakura. I'm not saying that she's going to completely stop loving Sakura, but I do believe that it's possible to love more than one person, especially since not everyone marries the first person they love. In this particular piece, I merely have Tomoyo waiting until she knows for certain that Sakura will be happy before she examines her heart. And it's quite a new thing for Tomoyo to have her feelings returned, isn't it?
Further notes: I think Sonomi is too strong a person to marry for anything less than love, even though she tells Fujitaka that she loved Nadeshiko best. She loved Nadeshiko best once, to my mind, but when it was apparent that she couldn't have her, she finally opened her heart to the possibilities of another. His name, Keiji, is purely arbitrary on my part, and taken from my earlier (unrelated) fic Nearly Almost Close Enough.
New: Tomoyo
Tomoyo smiled slightly as Eriol snuggled determinedly into her, looking for the most comfortable position he could find. She held in a giggle as his nuzzling turning into gentle pushing, nudging at her until she lay almost on her stomach. He followed, apparently bent on sleeping in her spot. Of course, she mused, it would only be her spot if she was sleeping in it; if she wasn't sleeping there, it was just a random area of the bed and he didn't want it.
He flung an arm over her waist, grumbling indistinctly at her, then decided that what he really wanted was to have his hand under his head, but owing to circumstances he tunneled it under her pillow instead, and sprawled himself across her back. After a moment of stillness and silence, he heaved a contented sigh and settled all his weight onto her. Tomoyo blinked at his arm a few times. She was comfortable at the moment, but there were going to be problems soon.
"Hiiragizawa-san?"
"Eriol-san," he reminded her patiently.
- "Fine. I…"
"Eriol-san."
Tomoyo rolled her eyes. "Eriol-san."
"That's right."
"I think…"
"Eriol-san," he repeated. "You gotta start over. Here, I'll help." Eriol raised his voice to a squeaky falsetto. "'Eriol-san?' That's what you say. 'Eriol-san?' Got it? Okay. I'll pretend to be laying here like before." He wiggled slightly and settled even more heavily on top of her. She sighed loudly even though she thought he was funny.
"Eriol-san?"
"Yes, Tomoyo-san?"
"I need to breathe. Not all the time, you understand," she added quickly, "but once in a while it comes in handy."
Eriol considered this thought for a few moments. At least, Tomoyo hoped he was thinking. It was possible he'd passed out.
"Do I have to do something about this?"
"I would appreciate it if you did."
"Do I have to move?"
"Considering that it's you crushing me? Yes, I think you do need to move."
Tomoyo was surprised when Eriol stiffened and pulled away, moving to the far side of the small bed. Something about him went very quiet, as though he'd pulled in on himself. He turned to the wall, curling up on his side.
"Sorry, Tomoyo-san," he muttered.
"Hiiragizawa-san?" He went even quieter and she winced. And she did like him, really. Where was the harm in staying with his given name? "Eriol-san, what's wrong? I only asked you to move a little. You don't have to sleep all the way over there if you don't want to." Tomoyo rolled over to look at him, propping herself up on her elbow. He was so unhappy all of a sudden. She didn't know what she'd done to upset him. Maybe it was because he was drunk, but she didn't think so. He seemed so…hurt.
"It's okay." He wouldn't look at her. "You don't have to say that. I can sleep over here. I'm very lucky that I'm not on the couch; it's very kind of you to share your bed with me. I should have been more thoughtful."
"What?" She reached out and touched his arm, trying to read him. "You've already thanked me. I told you, I'm not uncomfortable sharing with you. Why are you acting this way? You were happy enough a minute ago."
He still wouldn't look at her. "You wanted me to move. It's okay. A lot of people can't sleep with somebody next to them. You're being nicer to me than you should be, so I should be nice and move away so you can sleep. I'm used to it, now. So it's okay."
Tomoyo blinked, considering this. That Mizuki-sensei wasn't a cuddler was a little more information that she'd been looking for. It did explain, though, why he'd been so delighted when she'd told him he could sleep close to her if he really wanted to. She hadn't bothered to think about how the man slept when she'd decided it would be safest to have him with her. She was lucky he didn't sleep naked, now that she was thinking about it. Well, she wasn't Mizuki-sensei and she'd rather he not treat her as such, even if it did mean he wasn't going to be making any mistakes come morning.
She'd never really shared her bed before, and certainly not with a man. She could remember sharing with Sakura-chan once or twice, but Sakura-chan had a tendency to kick so Tomoyo hadn't been anywhere near her. Meiling-chan had once fallen asleep in her lap, but she'd been sitting in a chair, so it didn't seem to count. Of course, she'd crept in with her mother after bad dreams when she was a child, but that hadn't happened in years. Her mother had been away so often when she was young that she wasn't very used to cuddling anyway. But she thought that she liked it.
Eriol still had his back to her, so she did the only thing she could. She slid across the space between them and curled up next to him. She felt him jump when she put her arms around him, but he relaxed again almost instantly.
"Tomoyo-san?"
"I'm sorry, Eriol-san," she apologized very seriously. "I didn't know you were stupid." It would be best to distract him, make him stutter in resentment, or laugh, or do anything besides be still and quiet. "If I had, I would've just elbowed you in the ribs so you'd move a little." She hugged him a little tighter. "Since you wouldn't listen when I told you that you didn't have to move so much, I had to come over here."
"Oh." He held very still. "You really don't mind?"
"I've never really slept with someone before, but this seems to be the way it's usually done. At least from what I can tell from television and movies and such."
He considered this, still not moving. "Well, sleep…yeah. This is how it's done. Almost, hang on a second." He suddenly reached behind him and grabbed her, dragging her over him so that she was on his other side, much to her shrieking dismay. "I'm supposed to be on this side," he explained, moving just enough so that she wasn't pressed into the wall.
"Eriol-san! Could you give me a little warning next time? You scared me."
"Okay. You're warned." He rolled them both over so that she was once again facing out into her room. "There. That's better. Now…where was I?" Once again, he began shifting around behind her as she laughed out loud.
"You're very silly when you're drunk, Eriol-san."
"I'm not drunk."
"Of course not," she chuckled.
"I'm not. I told you that before. I can't believe you told Wei-san I was drunk. I'm not drunk. I am Hiiragizawa Eriol, formerly half of Clow Read, and I don't get drunk. I'm not drunk." He paused in his nesting to peer into her face. "You don't believe me, do you?" He huffed in indignation and went back to making a nuisance of himself in the search for positional bliss. "I'm not drunk. I'd know if I was drunk. I've been drinking, yeah, but I'm not drunk. You lied to Wei-san, you know. I'm not drunk at all."
"Of course not."
"You should have seen Kinomoto-san. That was drunk. I'm not anything like that." He tucked one hand under his head, burrowing his other hand up from her waist, slipping between her breasts and under her chin to rest under her pillow. "I didn't have to have somebody help me get home. Yue had to help him. Not me; I got here all on my own. Nobody drunk could manage that. You want drunk? Clow Read could get drunk. Man drank like a fish when he wanted to. Couldn't find his way outta a paper bag, he'd be so drunk. I'm not drunk." His hand came out again as he pulled her back up onto her side before tucking itself into the space under her neck. "Then he'd go looking for Madoushi…I ever tell you about her? Beautiful girl. Ooh, he was so in love with her. Anyway, he'd go lookin' for her, but he was in Japan so he'd just end up wandering around town all night. That's drunk. I didn't wander. I'm not drunk." He nuzzled her ear, nodded sharply just once, and pressed her flat into the mattress. "Can you breathe? I can breathe. This is good."
"You're very drunk." He was just off-center enough, she decided.
"I might be a little tipsy," he conceded, tangling his legs with hers. "I might even be slightly impaired." He hugged her for a moment before his hand stretched out to angle her alarm clock so he could read it. "But I am not drunk." He fell asleep, hand still reaching out and cheek still resting on hers. Tomoyo laughed very, very quietly.
"I'm sure you're not." She settled into her pillow, ready to resume her interrupted sleep at last.
It was nice lying in the dark like this, Tomoyo thought sleepily. Eriol was a warm, quiet presence over her, his breath sighing in her ear. He was a little heavy, but somehow that was nice, too. She didn't mind that he smelled like cigarettes, toothpaste, and beer. She liked the way being together like this made her feel closer to him. She'd missed him and his strange playfulness while he'd been away, and now he was here and for once she had him all to herself. The thought filled her with a drowsy contentment that wound its way through every part of her being, making her feel just a little strange. But it was a very nice strange.
Reaching out, she slipped her hand under his, felt his hand tighten around hers in response, and followed him into dreams.
+++
A low, nearly inaudible click and buzz woke her. With practiced ease, Tomoyo reached out and slapped her alarm clock before it started to beep. Satisfied, her arm retreated back under the blanket and she settled deeper into bed for a few extra minutes of sleep. She was warm and comfortable and had the distinct impression that she'd just had the best night's sleep of her life. Maybe she'd just unplug the clock. Behind her, someone mumbled something about getting cold and a warm hand traced her arm until it tucked itself under her cheek.
It took her a heart-stopping moment to remember that Eriol was sleeping next to her. Well, that wasn't quite true, as he was still lying mostly on top of her. She turned her head and was immediately nose-to-nose with him. Despite his earlier mumbling, he was still deeply asleep. He would have been very cute, she thought, but for the fact that he looked like hell. His hair was a total mess, there were purple smudges under his eyes that attested to his late night, he was paler than ever, and he needed to shave. And to put it gently, he didn't exactly smell like a rose. Tomoyo was forced to wonder if the other boys, and she did consider them a lot of overgrown boys, looked as bad. They hadn't been out as late as Eriol had been, but the hangovers would probably be very similar. She smiled smugly. There was her 'I told you so' if any of the guys wanted to continue arguing about the traditional date of bachelor parties.
Now that she was awake she had to admit that sleeping in would be disastrous. Not only did the men have final fittings for the tuxedos – just to be on the safe side – but she had a lot of last minute details to attend to and it would probably take up most of her day. Tonight was reserved for the girls' party at her mother's house. They could have done it last night, considering that's where they'd all been anyway, but somebody had to have a party on the traditional night, didn't they? She was expecting the howls of protest from the men to be loud enough to hear across town. But really, women were smart enough not to incapacitate themselves before important events.
With a regretful sigh, she turned her head and tried to slip out of bed quietly. Eriol pulled her back to him before she'd gotten more than a few inches away. Then, apparently thinking that she had far too much freedom, he threw his leg over her. He murmured her name and something else she couldn't hear before he buried his face in her neck. She smiled to herself and tried again, but he tightened his grip on her even more and she found that she couldn't move at all. It was adorable, in a way, that he should be so possessive. Now, however, was not the time for such things.
"Eriol-san?" She didn't really want to wake him up until she had to; his hangover would no doubt make him very unpleasant company for a while. He tightened his grip even further and grumbled. "Eriol-san, I really need to get up right now." He pulled the blanket over their heads. "Come on now, let go and let me get up." She nudged him in the ribs with an elbow and was reward by having him roll completely on top of her, flattening her in the process. Well, it looked like she was going to have to try something else.
"Let me up so I can make breakfast, Eriol-san." She got absolutely no response. Maybe something slightly more urgent would do the trick.
"The apartment is on fire." Nothing – but perhaps something with a little more shock value would do it.
"Eriol-san, the baby is crying."
He raised his head slightly, eyes still closed, and muttered, "Spinel…baby's cryin'," before laying back down.
"Spinel?" Tomoyo turned her head to look at him in surprise. "Spinel?"
"'s gettin' the baby. G'back t'sleep." He buried himself deeper into her shoulder.
Well, that was interesting. She'd have to remember to ask about it later.
"There's a burglar in the house." Nothing at all.
"Akizuki-san is in the pantry." Still nothing.
"Kero-chan is in the pantry." She thought she felt him wince, but he didn't move.
"Spinel-san is in the pantry?" She hazarded.
"'s okay, 's makin' the baby's bottle."
At least he'd remembered that the baby was crying. That had to be progress of some kind. He still wasn't moving, though; it was time for the big guns.
"I can't get undressed if you don't let me up, Eriol-san."
Eriol immediately rolled off her and moved away a few inches. Tomoyo managed to stifle her laughter until she was in the shower. Her mother had once told her that there were exactly two things a man would definitely move for - food and sex. Apparently Eriol-san wasn't hungry.
She encountered her second problem of the morning as she stepped out of the shower and slipped into her robe: Eriol was still asleep in her bed. While she was comfortable sharing a sleeping space with him, she wasn't sure she was quite so comfortable about getting dressed with him in the room. It wasn't that she was so terribly shy, but he had been very drunk and might not remember that nothing had happened between them. She didn't want to scare him. And he was with Mizuki-sensei, and she was sure that her former math teacher would definitely not approve of her being naked in the same room with Eriol. So now she had to find a way to get him up and moving.
She'd already tried most of her arsenal just to get herself out of bed, and Eriol hadn't seemed overly impressed with it. In spite of the fact that that there was a burglar in the burning apartment, Kero-chan and Akizuki-san were in the panty, and Spinel was taking care of the baby, he'd wrapped all the blankets around himself and showed no overt signs of life. Apparently, the baby, the burglar, the guardians, and the fire were her responsibility. And she had to make breakfast for him, too.
Breakfast, now there was an idea. Tomoyo smiled gleefully. She'd seen the results of a night spent drinking before and breakfast was never high on the list of the 'indisposed.' In fact, they seemed quite adversely affected by the thought of it, much less the smell. And she did have some fish in the refrigerator….
Not long after starting the fish she heard Eriol hit the floor in her bedroom. Her fears from last night returned when she heard him gagging quietly. She stepped out of the kitchen and saw him crawling towards the bathroom and beamed. He was so sweet; he'd remembered that she didn't want him throwing up in her room if he could help it. The white carpeting in the living room was out of his reach, so she didn't have to worry about that any longer. Things were going surprisingly well considering the state he'd been in when he first arrived.
She put the fish back where she'd found it and took out some bread to toast. She turned down the heat under the teakettle and headed for her newly deserted room. She patted Eriol's head as she passed him. "Shower while you're in there, Eriol-san. You smell bad. I'll get a towel and your clothes from the dryer while you're throwing up. You may not want to do it, but the yellow toothbrush is yours and I expect you to use it."
He muttered something inappropriate which she chose to ignore. He wasn't feeling well and considerations had to be made for that sort of thing. He probably didn't mean to be so vulgar, and he would no doubt apologize for it later. And if he didn't do it on his own, she could always mention it to Li-kun and Li-san if she felt that an apology was really necessary.
Tomoyo's luck was holding; he'd finished throwing up by the time she returned, though he was still draped over her toilet looking shaky and wrung out. He watched her with glassy, bloodshot eyes as she put toothpaste on his toothbrush, turned the water on in the shower and made sure it was comfortably warm, and set his glasses on the counter in front of the sink, with his neatly folded clothes and towel next to them.
"Try to hurry, please. I've got a lot to do today. And I've heard that misery loves company, so I'm sure the other boys miss you terribly. Wei-san said he wanted a few words with you when we spoke last night, anyway. I'll have breakfast," she was careful not to smile when he turned green at that word, "ready when you come out."
"I'm not hungry," he managed to tell her in a weak whisper.
"It'll help settle your stomach. Did you want some aspirin with your breakfast?"
He turned green again and glared at her. "Stop saying that word, Tomoyo-san. Yes, I would like some aspirin. If you've got any the size of a small planet or large moon, that would be wonderful. How can you be so cheerful this early?"
"Why, Eriol-san, your presence is enough to brighten anyone's day." His glaring increased at her earnest tone of voice and she smiled even more sweetly. "Plus, I find you very funny right now. Not quite as funny as last night, but you weren't so surly then. Why don't you shower and see if you can't find your humanity while you're in there? It's nearly nine, and I'd like to be going by nine thirty or so." She stepped out, shutting the door firmly on his whimpers as she turned on the light and fan on her way out.
He looked a little better when he finally made his way to the kitchen, and surprised to find that it was toast on his plate instead of fish. Two aspirin sat on the saucer with his teacup and Tomoyo sat smiling benevolently on the other side of the small table.
"I thought I smelled…. Weren't you making…? I mean…" he sighed and rolled his eyes in what she took to be vague amusement at himself. "I think I'm not making any sense yet. Thank you for making this instead of a traditional breakfast."
"You're a lot closer to my nice white carpet and you're welcome. I'm told that bread or toast is easiest to keep down when someone is…ill. I made mint tea, I think that'll help too. Unless you're like Mother; she can't stand the smell of it even when she feels fine."
Tomoyo felt her smile fade a little. Things were tense with Sonomi and getting worse. But she missed her mother, even if they were fighting about whether or not she would go to university. Her mother was only concerned, she knew, and under a lot of pressure from her own parents, Great-grandfather, and even the public relations team at Daidouji Toys, to make Tomoyo go to Toudai like everyone else in the family had. Sometimes, as much as she was enjoying living on her own, she wished she could go home.
"She loves you, Tomoyo-san," Eriol told her quietly, picking up his tea and flinching just slightly at the smell. If there was anyone who would understand how lonely it was to be without family, it would be Eriol, she thought to herself. He understood her and that was some comfort.
"I know. It doesn't make this any easier, though," Tomoyo said. She shook her head, unwilling to let such thoughts darken her day. There was still a wedding to prepare for and she wanted to be nothing but cheerful for Sakura-chan, who was nervous enough without having to think about Tomoyo's problem. "You're just trying to get on my good side so you won't have to tell everyone why I'm bringing you to Li-kun's this morning," she teased, trying to regain the light mood from earlier.
"And miss out on telling them I was found passed out in a gutter by the porn shop? No, no, no Tomoyo-san, I want to tell them. They're sure to ask you just what you were doing at such a place." He smirked at her and cautiously ate a piece of toast. "It's burned."
"Don't complain; I don't make it that often and that's better than usual." She certainly wasn't going to tell him that she'd burned most of the bread she'd had just to get it to 'slightly burned' instead of 'on fire.' She sipped her tea and watched him for a thoughtful moment. "They won't ask me what I was doing there. They might wonder, but they would never dare ask. They would certainly ask you what you were doing there, though, wouldn't they? Have you thought of what you're going to say to that?"
"What makes you so sure they wouldn't ask you?"
"Well, Yamazaki-kun and Terada-sensei wouldn't feel comfortable asking that sort of question, Li-kun would rather die than hear about that sort of thing, Li-san doesn't know me well enough, Touya-san still thinks of me as a little girl, and Tsukishiro-san is far too polite. Wei-san already knows that's not what happened. You're the only one rude enough to inquire so deeply into my personal life. I thought you were one of those infamous English gentlemen, Eriol-san. How sad to know I was wrong."
"I didn't say I would have asked you, just that one of the others might. Kinomoto-san, by the way, does not think of you as a little girl. At least not all the time." He grinned at her as he finished his toast. "It was a very interesting night."
"What you can remember of it, I suppose," Tomoyo ruffled his hair condescendingly as she passed him to put her teacup in the sink. "We need to leave soon. I've got several appointments this afternoon and there are things I need to get done before I can get to them."
"Of course, Tomoyo-san." He padded to the door and began pulling on his shoes. "I suppose I didn't say it last night, but thank you for putting up with me. You're probably a better friend than I deserved last night."
"And this morning," she added cheerfully, joining him at the door. Impulsively, she hugged him. "You're lucky I like you, Eriol-san."
"I am, at that," he agreed, hugging her back.
"You're still telling them I found you at the porn shop."
+++
She took one look at the living room and decided that Li Wei was even more powerful than Syaoran, even if he was slated to be the next Clan Head when his mother stepped down. All four of the guys who'd made it back to the apartment were cleaning up the mess they'd made on their way in. They were very clearly miserable, but they were cleaning well and without complaint.
"I've brought your little lost duckling home, Wei-san," she sang when she saw him.
"I was wondering when he would find his way back," Wei said gravely. His eyes sparkled with repressed merriment as he looked at Tomoyo. "Thank you very much for returning him. I was afraid he might have fallen in with the wrong sort."
"Where the hell were you last night? You were supposed to come here, you moron. And whyyyyyy is Daidouji giving you a ride home, Hiiragizawa?" Syaoran glared at him suspiciously. "Did you go and wake her up last night? Do I need to kill you?"
"No, Li-kun, you do not." Eriol winced; it wasn't obvious but Tomoyo was watching him closely. He didn't back down, though. With a very rueful laugh, he continued, "Actually, Tomoyo-san found me…."
"He was sprawled in front of my door when I stepped out this morning, Li-kun." Everyone turned to look at her, which nicely kept them from noticing Eriol's surprise. "I thought it might be nice if I brought him in and cleaned him up before driving him over here. It wasn't my idea of fun, but it's nothing that demands a beating."
"I don't know, Daidouji, you spelled it out pretty clear that he was supposed to drag his sorry ass back here when he was done. I don't care how drunk that sot was, even Yamazaki made it back and he stayed just as late."
"Um, I think the police or someone gave me a ride. I'm pretty sure I went to Chiharu-chan's first. Maybe her mom did; I think it was a lady who drove me," Yamazaki confessed. "I might have ended up sleeping under Emperor Penguin if they hadn't brought me here. Speaking of which, did you find your way back on your own, Li-san?"
"Caught up to Xiao-Lang," the dark haired boy murmured. "Don't shout."
"Well, as long as you all made it back in one piece," Tomoyo nodded. She would never dream of telling them that their evening had come out just about as well as she'd planned it to. Men tended to get a bit blustery when they found out they'd been dancing to someone else's tune. "Has anyone checked on Touya-san and Tsukishiro-san?"
"I just tried their number but there was no answer, Tomoyo-san," Wei spoke up.
"Hmmm. I suppose I could stop by and see if they made it home. If they haven't, we'll have to start calling around. Sakura-chan would be very upset if they got themselves lost, imprisoned, or hurt."
"I have your cellular number; why don't I make a few calls and let you know if you need to go there? You're very busy today, I know."
"Thank you, Wei-san. I would appreciate that very much. I'm running late as it is." She bowed politely. "I'll see myself out, since I'm sure you'd all like to get back to what you were doing."
Terada-sensei, Syaoran, Yamazaki, and Po-sin glared at her. She raised an eyebrow and they scattered like leaves, returning to their earlier tasks.
"As you like." Wei bowed in response and speared Eriol at a glance. "Why don't we have a little chat about not worrying your friends, Hiiragizawa-kun? I think you have time since you don't need to shower and shave like the other gentlemen."
Tomoyo chuckled as she left. She'd explained last night that Eriol wasn't causing too much trouble and that she didn't mind looking after him if he was too ill to travel. Wei would most likely give him a fearsome lecture about wandering the streets when he was too drunk to see straight and leave it at that. He probably needed that lecture, since he could have gotten himself killed on his way across town. Not for the first time Tomoyo found herself thinking that, despite having Clow's memories, Eriol was really very young.
+++
"Just how much glassware did they break?" Tomoyo asked, staring at the bill in her hand. "There were only seven of them!"
"Well, Daidouji-sama, they did attempt to construct a pyramid with a ten-mug base. I think," the owner of the pub laughed suddenly, "that they might have succeeded if the Chinese boys hadn't been asked to demonstrate their fighting skills while they were standing next to the construction site. It was a very interesting night. I'm sure many of my patrons will be back tonight just to see if those boys will be stopping in again."
"They had better not," Tomoyo muttered, signing the bill. "I need them to be in the wedding, and at this late date I don't think I could find and dress replacements for those I'd have to kill."
"Perhaps a post-wedding-reception party, then. I rather liked them, even if I did have to throw them out over the pyramid. I can't have that much glass on the floor; my insurance rates would go through the roof."
"I like them, too. That's why I'm here this morning." She took her receipt, shaking her head slightly. "You don't happen to know where they went next, do you?"
"Just down the street, Daidouji-sama; five doors down, maybe six. Thank you very much for coming in and settling their account. They may have paid for the drinks, but not the glasses they broke."
Tomoyo chuckled and stepped out into the morning sunshine. She'd called all five of the bars she had suspected they'd go to, and only three had confirmed that they'd been there. From the sound of things, it'd been just those three, but she'd check a few of the other nearby pubs just to make sure. Then she'd have to visit the taxi company she had arranged to bring them home. She knew for a fact that Yamazaki-kun and Eriol-san hadn't used it, and it sounded as though Li-kun and Li-san had walked, and Touya-san and Tsukishiro-san had obviously not used it or they would have been with the rest of the boys. She would have to talk to them, though, to be certain that there wasn't a bill waiting at a different company. She checked her watch and sighed. If Wei-san didn't find those two soon, she was definitely going to be late.
The bill at the second pub was astronomical. Apparently, each of the men had stood a round for the entire house at least once. Four of them had done so twice, but there was no way of finding out which of them had done it. Which was, she thought with exasperation as she signed yet another credit card receipt, very lucky for them. She was never, ever, going to do this again, not even for her own wedding. She'd just elope to Las Vegas like her parents had. Of course, she mused, as she returned to the street, she would probably wait until the fourth or even fifth date to do that, instead of the third.
When her phone rang, she had it to her ear even as the caller's name and number flashed up on her caller I.D.
"Hello, Wei-san. You've found them, then?"
"I have and they're fine. Kinomoto-sensei says they just left his home to return to their apartment."
"I should have added something like that to my list. Thank you, Wei-san. I'm very glad they're all right. They'll be over to meet up with the rest of the guys soon, I'm sure. Speaking of which, is the apartment cleaner than it has been since it was built, or are they still working on it?"
"It's cleaner than new, Tomoyo-san. Hiiragizawa-kun proved to be very diligent once he and I finished speaking."
"You let him get a word in?"
"Just one or two. Mostly things like 'But…' and 'I didn't…'"
"He's always been a troublesome boy," Tomoyo laughed.
Wei laughed with her. "I should be very interested in hearing how your morning goes, repairing the mischief that the boys got into last night. But for now, perhaps you should step right along."
"Will do. Thank you for your help, Wei-san." She hung up giggling and headed for the rest of the bad news. Which could have been worse; they'd been considerably less rowdy at their final destination. The taxi company had the best news of the lot - one passenger who hadn't posed any problem at all. Wei had obviously known to meet the cab and help the nearly unconscious teacher into the apartment. What a dear man! She made a mental note to talk to him about the extra trouble he'd gone through and see if she could make it up to him somehow.
+++
"You," Tomoyo said, setting down a bottle of '96 Joseph Drouhin Puligny Montrachet to be chilled, "would not believe what the men got up to last night."
"I might." Chiharu laughed and poured Tomoyo a glass of some Bordeaux that no doubt came from Sonomi's private wine cellar. "When I went home this morning, I got some very tantalizing hints that something interesting happened last night."
"Really? Syaoran won't say a thing to me about it. Oniichan and Yukito-san wouldn't, either, but Dad laughed when I told him that they weren't talking about it. So did Wei-san." Sakura looked over her shoulder as she opened one of the balcony doors to let in the cool evening breeze. "Why do you think they won't talk about it?"
"They're just trying to protect their manly images, Sakura-chan," Naoko told her, flipping through an issue of Cosmo. "If they have to tell you they threw up all over each other, they'd be very embarrassed."
"That's probably close to the truth." Rika nodded in confirmation. She was stretched out along the green sofa, drinking juice instead of wine in deference to her recently discovered pregnancy. "Yoshiyuki-san was very cryptic about the party when I spoke to him this morning."
"Oh, Yamazaki-kun hasn't said a word to me. My brothers, on the other hand, had a lot to say about last night."
"You haven't seen him today, then, Rika-chan?" Tomoyo sat down on one of the squashy animal pillows that currently littered the floor of her old sitting room.
Meiling laughed. "I don't think those guys are seeing anyone until the hangovers subside." She stretched her legs out and left her feet dangling over the arm of her chair. " I didn't see them, but Syaoran and Po-sin sounded pretty rough around the edges when I stopped by to talk to Wei-san. He had them cleaning the bathroom, as I recall."
"I haven't, no. You know, this is the first time I've gone a full day without seeing him in three whole months? You'd think I'd miss my new husband, wouldn't you?" Rika laughed. "But he's so out of sorts when he hasn't slept well that I'm very glad I haven't."
All the girls laughed at that, until Sakura sobered up and asked anxiously, "You don't think Syaoran would be like that, do you?"
"No, he usually wakes up okay," Meiling assured her, still giggling. "Wei-san seemed to think he was feeling well enough to do all sorts of things this morning."
"You must have stopped by just after I left, I think," Tomoyo leaned back, taking a deep drink. "They were just finishing up the living room when I was there. You said Wei-san had them in the bathroom. That must have been…interesting. All those chemicals and fumes and boys in such a small space."
"You stopped by Li-san's apartment?" Mizuki Kaho stepped into the room, smiling at everyone. "Whatever for?"
"Kaho-sensei!" Sakura beamed. "I'm glad you made it. I thought you might not come, since you're so late."
"I wouldn't miss this for the world," Kaho assured her. "I was trying to find Eriol and lost track of the time."
"He should have been at Li-kun's." Tomoyo was puzzled. "That's where I dropped him off this morning. From the sound of it, he was going to stay there most of today and possibly tonight, too."
"He was in the kitchen with Wei-san when I stopped by," Meiling added. "I thought you said you were going to make sure they all went to Syaoran's when they left the bar, Daidouji-san. Why were you bringing Hiiragizawa-san there in the morning? I was there pretty early."
"Yes, why was Eriol with you this morning?" Mizukilooked slightly concerned. "Was he okay?"
"He decided to pay me a visit very, very late last night. Apparently he wanted to discuss the difference between the letter of the law and the spirit of it. He's very entertaining when he's been drinking, isn't he, Mizuki-sensei?"
"I have no idea," she said, sounding bewildered. "He doesn't really drink that often, and he's never been drunk."
"Oh, he was last night. He all but fell into my apartment when I opened the door, and he swore that he couldn't remember where your hotel was. Then he was too sick to want to be driven anywhere. Then he was tired. Then he wanted a story. And he was cold. And he wanted to sleep on my side of the bed, not his, even when I told him I wasn't moving. At least he doesn't snore. He might not have made it through the night if I'd had to listen to that."
"He wanted to sleep on your side of the bed." Kaho repeated. "He was in your bed? With you?"
"Yes. I decided that I'd rather have him throw up on a hardwood floor than on my white carpet. And there was the little matter of whether or not he was planning on dying of alcohol poisoning or a concussion, or both. So I thought it might be safest all around if he slept where I could keep an eye on him."
"So the two of you shared a bed, huh?" Meiling grinned slyly. "Should we be making this a double wedding?"
"Meiling-chan!" Tomoyo stared at her in shock, and the other girl began laughing.
"Just checking, Daidouji, just checking. He's not exactly hard on the eyes, you know. Aren't drunk men supposed to be…well…you know…easy?"
"Only if you're willing to play along," Rika giggled.
"He wasn't, I wasn't, we didn't, and we wouldn't have anyway."
"Did anyone else notice that Tomoyo-chan didn't say anything about not wanting to?" Chiharu asked with wink.
"Oh, honestly! How long has this party been going on?"
"A while, I would guess," Kaho murmured.
Naoko smile apologetically. "We're only teasing, Kaho-sensei. We almost never get to see Tomoyo-chan blush like this."
"It's true, Tomoyo-chan. You're blushing just like Syaoran."
"And you, Sakura-chan!" Tomoyo retorted cheerfully.
"I do not! I never blushed this badly. Did I?"
"No, you blushed worse," Naoko assured her. "It just shows up better on Tomoyo-chan because she's so pale."
"I wasn't this bad, I'm sure of it. Syaoran would have noticed it if I had been."
The other girls exchanged glances and burst out laughing.
"What? What's so funny?" Sakura demanded, a smile tugging at her lips in spite of her 'anger'.
"Syaoran wouldn't have noticed you blushing because he was too busy hoping you weren't going to notice that he was blushing. The two of you were so blind about each other; I don't think you'd have gotten to this day if Daidouji and I hadn't stepped in."
"We make an excellent team, Meiling-chan," Tomoyo agreed, giving Meiling a one-armed hug as she went to refill her glass. "What do you say we start on Naoko-chan next? I know a boy who's got his eye on her…."
"Tomoyo-chan!"
"That tall one? Kind of blond, his hair curls a little bit, with that silly smile…?"
"Meiling-chan!"
"That's the one."
"It shouldn't take too long," Meiling said confidently. "There'll be another wedding before we're out of university."
"You two…!" Naoko sputtered, turning red.
"Let's get through this wedding first, shall we?" Kaho suggested mildly. "Then we can think about the next one."
"But we've already got Chiharu-chan's and Yamazaki-san's wedding all mapped out, and that's not until Chiharu-chan finishes medical school," Rika protested cheerfully.
Chiharu blushed but nodded vigorously. "But if we're going to get Naoko-chan married before university is over we should start planning for it now."
"I'm not getting married! I don't even know who this boy is!"
"Well, that's what Daidouji and I are for, Yanagisawa-san," Meiling assured her. "You'll know him in no time."
"Then Meiling-chan and I sit back and congratulate ourselves on another job well done while the two of you fall deeply, madly, passionately in love." Tomoyo added, snatching the Cosmo from her hands as she tried to hide behind it. "Ooh! Maybe you've already got someone in mind. 'Does he love you? Take this quiz and find out!'" Tomoyo read aloud. "Did he pass?"
"I wasn't reading that part!" Naoko protested.
"Let's not embarrass anyone, all right?" Mizuki chided gently.
"Sakura-chan, I think Mother said she wanted to talk to you before the wedding tomorrow," Tomoyo told Sakura, obediently redirecting the conversation. "You'll want to ask her about it when she comes up tonight. She's probably got a couple of wedding memories about Nadeshiko-san she'd like to share with you."
"Really? That'd be so nice. Dad didn't see Mom until the wedding started, but Sonomi-obasan was probably with Mom before that. I don't really know what to expect before the wedding. I mean, I know what I'm supposed to be doing, but…I'm a little nervous. And I shouldn't be! I mean, what if Syaoran thought I was nervous because, well…and I'm not! Not about marrying him. It's just that I'm nervous anyway," she confessed in a rush. "I'm sure I'm going to forget something or do something wrong."
"I was really nervous, too," Rika offered. "Even though I love Yoshiyuki-san more than anything, and he loves me, I worried that he might change his mind, or that I'd do something wrong, or I'd trip, or he'd trip, or I'd mess up saying the vows," she chuckled, shaking her head.
"But you looked so calm, Rika-chan!"
"I worried about everything until the music started and Father took my arm. Then I was okay. It was just the waiting; it gave me too much time to think about what could go wrong. But once I saw Yoshiyuki-san standing there, looking so nervous himself…."
"I'm sure Syaoran will be in a panic," Meiling laid a comforting arm across Sakura's shoulders. "He won't have time to notice if you're nervous, too. And if he comes completely unstrung, we can get him roaring drunk before the wedding starts. He'll be happy as a clam and almost half as smart."
"Meiling-chan! I didn't go through all the trouble of making sure those boys would be hang-over free just to get them drunk for the wedding itself!"
"You've seen him drunk before?" Chiharu asked curiously. "He doesn't look the sort! When was that?"
"Oh, he and a bunch of our male cousins go out whenever someone announces an engagement while he's home. He doesn't normally drink much, but Po-sin nearly drowned him in beer when we announced our engagement. He said he felt a lot safer when Syaoran had to ask him who he was." Meiling smiled sweetly, a faraway look in her eyes. "Syaoran was really concerned for me. He told Po-sin that he'd kill him if he ever hurt me. So Po-sin made sure Syaoran was really out of it when he told him that we were going to go to university here in Japan, while you," she smiled at Sakura, "and he would be in university in Hong Kong. Anyway," Meiling shook her dreamy look away, "he's a lot more agreeable when he doesn't know where he is."
"We're not getting any of them drunk again, Meiling-chan." Tomoyo said firmly. "Eriol-san, I believe, instigated the building and destruction of a pyramid of bar mugs last night, and we don't need any of them getting ideas like that while the wedding is underway."
"I was wondering why Oniichan and Yukito-san had glass in the cuffs of their blue jeans," Sakura said. "I did the laundry this morning, and their clothes from last night were in with it. They must have worn some of Oniichan's things back to their apartment. Dad said I was lucky I wasn't home last night."
"That's the same thing my brothers said to me this morning." Chiharu nodded. "They wouldn't give me any details, though."
"Yoshiyuki-san didn't mention anything about pyramids to me," Rika said, her tone indicating that her husband was going to be in a lot of trouble when they finally got home together.
"Eriol-san didn't tell me about it, either. I found out when I went around to pay off their tabs and check for damages," Tomoyo replied. "All I heard last night were a lot of assurances that he wasn't drunk."
"But he was?" Kaho sipped her wine and looked sideways at Tomoyo.
"Oh, very. He chattered like a myna bird to anything that moved, and a few things that didn't. I think he was talking just to hear the sound of his own voice. He didn't shut up until he fell asleep."
"Eriol can get that way, sometimes. He'll outtalk even Akizuki-san." Kaho smiled gently at the thought. "Then there days when he doesn't say anything at all."
"I wish he'd gone for days without telling any lies with Yamazaki-kun," Chiharu sighed. "They still email those things back and forth. With the two of them together again, I can't trust Yamazaki-kun even if he says that the sky is blue when the sun is out."
"Well, at least they have fun together," Tomoyo laughed. "Those two closed down the bar last night; I'm sure we'll hear something big out of them tomorrow. Eriol-san seems to be very creative when he's had a few."
"Let's just hope it's not before the wedding," Naoko giggled. "I'd hate to think what it might be and what it might cause."
"We might hear something big, but they wouldn't have rehearsed it at the pub. Unless they've got very, very good memories, they'd have drowned that lie in beer." Chiharu grinned suddenly. "That's such a nice idea; a great, big, dead-before-it-ever-started lie."
"Oh, you'd miss it if he stopped, Chiharu-chan, be honest." Rika poured herself another glass of juice. "You just don't want to admit it. Give me your glass and I'll fix that. Three's your usual limit, and you babble like a brook if you go over that."
"Well, I can see I'm just in time!" Daidouji Sonomi bounced into the room with a girlish giggle and opened the wine Tomoyo had brought. "This is definitely the stuff to be drinking if you want secrets to come out," she said mischievously. She poured a round and settled herself near Mizuki-sensei. "We're talking about men, right? I like men; they're cute. Annoying as anything, but they do some of the funniest things. When I first met my Keiji, he…."
The girls laughed, relaxing again as Sonomi proved that she could be less a parent than she was a little girl when she had the chance. There had been times when their family had wondered if Tomoyo's maturity hadn't actually belonged to her mother.
Tomoyo didn't relax as her mother's story unwound. She felt both relieved and slighted by her mother's actions; Sonomi had chosen the farthest seat from her daughter that she could, but she had smiled her old, openly affectionate smile, and had yet to use the word 'school.' She'd known her mother was going to be at this party; she was technically the one hosting it since it was her house and Tomoyo no longer lived there, but it was awkward all the same. So instead of relaxing, she had a couple more glasses of wine.
+++
Or maybe a few glasses was closer to the truth, she admitted to herself as she locked the door of her childhood home behind her. Enough that her mother pulled her aside a few hours later and told her to stay the night with the other girls. And enough that she refused, with brittle politeness, and had one more before she made her good-byes and promised to be back before the others had a chance to miss her in the morning.
Which would not be any sort of problem, as it was still relatively early and she hadn't planned on getting much sleep on this, the night before Sakura-chan's big day. She had hours to kill, really, before 'sleep' showed up in her schedule. However, Tomoyo mused, 'recheck the stitching on all the dresses' and 'review possible escape routes should something 'strange' happen' didn't sound like much fun. And she felt like…having fun. Just going with the feelings the wine had set spinning free inside her. She smiled, knowing it was a silly smile, and twirled around with a bit of song, precisely because it was what she felt like doing. She wanted, she realized, to play with the wine in her veins and see where it took her. She turned left instead of right.
She laughed softly to herself and executed a quick, tricky, dance maneuver as she decided that she'd follow her impulses wherever they went. After all, weren't drunks supposed to wander the streets, singing loudly and dancing badly? Hadn't Eriol-san had said something like that about Clow-san last night? That he'd wandered the streets seeking out the lovely Madoushi-san. He'd probably been lucky he'd never found her in Tomoeda, since it sounded like the water mage wouldn't have hesitated in letting him know how little she appreciated being woken in the dead of night, no matter how smitten the drunk.
Tomoyo's feet followed their path to Li-kun's apartment as her thoughts followed Eriol's ramble from the previous night. He wouldn't be expecting turnabout and she did enjoy surprising him. He made the funniest faces if you were observant enough to catch them. He was fun, and more playful than the others really gave him credit for.
She firmly gagged the nagging voice of her upbringing, which was trying to tell her how late it really was and how rude it would be to wake someone just because she could, because they'd excuse her thinking that she was drunk. She had been drinking, damn it, and she was going to act like it. Even if she wasn't very drunk, even if she was just on the far side of sober, she was the only one there who knew it. It was fun to pretend. Besides, it was only going to be this once, after all. She walked into the building giggling guiltily and knocked softly on Li-kun's door.
She knocked a little more forcefully, wishing she had magic to let herself in with, when she got no response. She gave a very brief thought to making enough noise to wake the neighbors, but decided against it since they weren't actually Eriol-san's neighbors. It would be just her luck that no one would answer. She wasn't even sure if Eriol was spending the night; it was just as possible that he'd gone back to his hotel rather than endure the suspicion of both of the Li boys. Po-sin hadn't liked him the moment he'd laid eyes on him, and that was before he'd known how much his cousin disliked the charming Englishman. He'd said he was going to….
"Tomoyo-san? It's the middle…what are you doing here?" Eriol had appeared in the doorway, rumpled and sleepy-eyed, and just looking at him made her stomach flutter.
"Eriol-san! I missed you today!" She was a little surprised to find that this was true, but pushed it aside to be dealt with another time. "I came to say goodnight!"
He stared at her uncomprehendingly. "You missed me?"
"Yep!" She ducked under his arm and into the apartment to flop down on the sofa, noticing that he had a pallet made up on the floor.
"What are you…are…Tomoyo-san, are you drunk?"
She decided to ignore that since she had no way to answer it properly. "How come you're sleeping on the floor?"
"You are. Good lord." He scrubbed a hand over his face. "I never thought to see…" his hand stopped and he peered in horror at her through his spread fingers. "You didn't walk over here, did you?" She beamed at him and he moaned.
"It wasn't that far. Li-kun lives at lot closer to Mother than I do to the bars. Plus, I'm not nearly as drunk as you were. I haven't tripped once, have I?" She pointed out reasonably as he grabbed his glasses.
"That's hardly the point! There's…you…you could…and…and…Tomoyo-san, there are people who could have hurt you out there!"
"Shh! You'll wake the others! And I was fine! If you're going to get so excited over such a little thing, I'm just going to go home. And why are you sleeping on the floor? Is it because this couch is really uncomfortable? I bet it is. No wonder Li-kun always entertains at the table."
"You," he said firmly, "will stay right where you're at." He bent and picked up a bag. "Don't you dare move a muscle." He walked off toward the bathroom, muttering to himself.
Tomoyo sighed in irritation. She understood his concern, but really! She wasn't an idiot, and she wasn't completely helpless. She'd expected him to be a little more…fun…than this. She glanced down at his bed on the floor, then over her shoulder. The lights were still off, and he would expect her to be where he'd left her… He deserved it, really, if she played a little joke on him. She quickly slid down off the couch and settled under his blanket.
Eriol cursed colorfully, added something less than nice about her, and bounded for the door when he returned to the living room and didn't see her. Tomoyo started giggling before he got the door more than half open.
"Really, Eriol-san! Do you eat with that mouth, too?" She propped herself up on one arm as he stood silhouetted in the light from the hallway. "Were you going somewhere? Don't let me stop you if you were." She sat up and waved him on.
She thought he stared at her, since he was facing her and silent for a long moment, but his face was hidden in shadow and she couldn't see his eyes. "Don't ever scare me like that again." He stalked across the room, suddenly seeming angry when he hadn't been just a moment ago, and pulled her to her feet. "I'm walking you home; you're in no condition to be out alone."
"I'm fine." She jerked away from him. "You were a lot worse than I am."
"I'm not a pretty young woman." He nudged her out, catching her arm again as he locked the door behind them.
"Because that makes a difference when it comes to getting mugged and murdered?" She shook him off.
"That's not what I was referring to and I'm going with you. That is final."
"You're not much fun tonight."
"I'm a lot more sober." He held the main door open for her. "And you weren't very happy with me yesterday night, as I recall."
"That's different."
"Different how?" He asked in disbelief, tucking his hands into his pockets as he strolled beside her.
"You were sicking up every time you turned around. Plus, you were loud. You were rude, and incoherent, and insufferably cute." What in the world had made her add that last bit? It was true, certainly, but how embarrassing! She glanced at him from the corner of her eye and realized that he was going to chalk up everything that happened this night to the alcohol, so she was free to totally honest with him, if she felt like it. What an interesting idea! It was time to see where all her thoughts went when she wasn't monitoring them every second. "Which was nice, but annoying. I had every reason to be irritable. I, however, have been quiet and polite and not at all troublesome tonight. And before you can point out that you're taking a long walk in the middle of the night because of me, let me remind you that I didn't ask you to." She sniffed disdainfully.
"I was cute?"
"If you hadn't been, Eriol-san, I would have left you to sleep outside." She grinned up at him, noting that he was in a better mood than he had been a minute ago, before skipping off ahead a few paces. She turned around to see him shaking his head. "I would have felt bad, but I would have done it, and it would have been nothing less than you deserved."
"Then you'll deserve it just as much if I repeat everything you say tonight to you tomorrow. In front of witnesses."
"The other girls already know you're cute, Eriol-san. It's been a topic of much discussion the last couple of weeks. Li-kun thinks we're all crazy. I'm afraid you'll have to try again. Let's get ice cream - are there ice cream places open this late?"
"No. Are you going to dance the entire way?"
"I might. Would you care to join me? I'll forgive you for being so grumpy if you do."
"It'll be awfully hard to get where we're going if we try to dance our way there."
"And where is it that we're going, again?" She asked, skipping back to his side and taking his hand, lifting it so she could twirl herself under his arm.
"Home, Tomoyo-san."
"I don't wanna go home," she pouted. "I wanna dance, let's go dancing. There are clubs open yet…"
His expression said that he was giving serious thought to just picking her up and carrying her. "They'll be closing soon enough. Once you get home, you can put on some music and dance there, if you'd like."
"My neighbors wouldn't like that."
"They're not much fun, are they? That's the impression I got of them last night. Anyway, what do you care if they complain? You've paid your rent, you're allowed to get loud and rowdy once in a while." He laughed. "That would be something to see; quiet little Daidouji Tomoyo getting loud and rowdy."
"I'm not now?"
"More like carefree." He gave her a strange look that she caught only from the corner of her eye. "It's quite a thing to see, too."
"I'm like this more often than you'd think." Something serious in her bloomed and stretched itself between them as she spoke. She was playful; she sang and danced at home when she was cleaning, or drawing and wanted to think, or just because she liked to sing. Was that so very hard to believe? Was her 'public face' that convincing? Did that make her seem serious, or boring? Eriol liked the cheerful, carefree type…and she didn't want to wonder why was that so important to her, that he know she really was the kind of woman he was attracted to.
"I…"
She didn't want to think about it, didn't want to spoil the lovely bright mood she was in with this close, heavy feeling that was charging the air around them. "Short cut!" She sang out instead to cut him off, and darted through the hedges beside him and into a small park.
"Tomoyo-san, wait! Damn it!"
"Come on, Eriol-san, I'll race you!"
He was quiet; she could barely hear him over the pounding of her feet and heart as she raced across the grass. Laughter bubbled up inside her. She felt wildly exhilarated, like she was flying instead of running through this midnight park. Maybe this feeling was why her mother still ran every day, even though she was a forty-two-year-old businesswoman with many serious responsibilities. It was wonderful.
She may not have been able to hear him running, but she did hear his curses when he caught up with her as she exited onto the sidewalk. She stopped dead to keep from ending up in the street and thus avoided the hand that had been about to grip her arm. Eriol sailed past her and almost hit a parked car before he stopped himself.
"See? I live just down the street. Short cut." She beamed at him as he turned to face her. "And I won!" He looked a little angry, a little worried, and a lot exasperated. Her smiled widened and became hopeful; there wasn't a boy yet who could resist that one and she knew it. Sonomi had taught her that it wasn't wrong to use a weapon if she had it, she just had to be careful when she was that weapon.
The smile didn't fail her. Eriol sighed, scrubbed a hand through his hair, sighed again, and rejoined her on the sidewalk. "I didn't know that park was there. It wasn't a fair race, you had a head start."
She laughed with delight and led the way to her building. "It was fair enough. You just don't like being beaten by a girl."
"Sakura-san bested me at magic years ago and I didn't mind that," he reasoned.
"That was different. You got something out of losing. Besides ridicule, I mean, you got something. I'm not giving you anything but a gloating victory smile."
"How do you know that's not exactly what I wanted from you tonight?" He asked playfully at her as she fished out her keys and made several unsuccessful attempts at using them. Maybe she wasn't quite as sober as she'd thought.
She was thinking that through, as well as thinking about the little shiver she'd gotten when he'd said he wanted her smile and just what she should say to that, when she felt him nudge her forward. She'd been standing in her open door, she realized with a blush, just standing there like an idiot while he smiled down at her.
"Would you like some tea, Eriol-san?" She asked, remembering her manners as she entered. She kicked her shoes off and halfway across the room just because she could. He simply toed his off and left them neatly together on her rug.
"It's a bit late for that, don't you think? Besides, I don't think I want to watch you try to deal with boiling water in this condition. Why don't we just call it a night?"
"Because it's still early?"
"Early if you mean morning, yes."
She found her clock and blinked. "It's barely gone midnight, Eriol-san. You want me to go to bed this early? That's insane. I never went to bed this early when Sakura-chan was still the Card Captor and I had costumes to prepare. I'm not doing it tonight, of all nights."
"Sakura-san needs you to be well-rested. You aren't doing something as simple as carrying a camera around tomorrow."
Something about him had changed when she'd mentioned Sakura-chan. She wasn't sure what, but she didn't like it. Why should someone so dear to both of them put that look on his face? Why should she want it gone as badly as she did? What was it about him, about being around him these last few weeks, that was changing everything so rapidly, confusing her even when things should have been clear? Which one of them had changed so drastically? No, no thinking, not tonight, she'd promised herself that on her walk to Li-kun's.
"Simple, Eriol-san? You think carrying that camera was easy? I had to make sure I caught all the action, and keep the camera steady, and anticipate what those Cards and everyone involved was going to do, just to make sure I had usable footage. And that camera is a lot heavier than a bouquet of cherry blossoms, let me tell you! Easy! Hmph! You have no appreciation for all the work that goes into a movie. I'll have you know I spent a good deal of time trying to film and run at the same time. Li-kun used to complain about having to watch over me just as closely as he did Sakura-chan during those battles. Meiling-chan was certain I'd be killed for my art."
"Never would have happened; those Cards are basically gentle souls."
"She was more afraid of it after she left and you arrived."
"I would never…"
"Chase me with a piano? Lock me up inside a school all alone?"
"You weren't alone; I was there but you couldn't see me. As for the piano, I wouldn't have let it hurt you."
"You were just hoping I was fast and good at dodging."
"My faith in you was well founded, wouldn't you say? You're here. You're fine. You're not going to change in front of me, are you?"
She blinked, realizing that she had led him back to her bedroom during their conversation and had just pulled her nightclothes out of the drawer. "Are you planning on staying?"
He stared back at her then shook his head. "I really need some sleep," he muttered to himself and turning away.
"Then stay here." He turned around to gape at her. "Not while I change!" Tomoyo laughed, finally realizing what he'd been thinking she'd offered. "I meant, stay here tonight. It's a long walk to Li-kun's and you don't have to go if you're tired. I've put you through a lot of effort, even though I didn't ask for anything, so letting you sleep over again is the least I can do. You're welcome to use the shirt you slept in last night, though I haven't had a chance to wash it."
"Tomoyo-san, I couldn't…"
"You could last night. It's in the bathroom, you remember where that is." She pushed him out and shut the door, changing hastily. "What's the difference if you do it again tonight?"
"The difference is that I'm sober this time."
"I'm not."
"That's another thing."
"What? Afraid I'll assault your virtue?"
"Not really."
"Why not?" She thought she heard him laugh, or maybe just cough, but she was already blurting out the rest of the thought she'd had. "Because I love Sakura-san?" Was that the reason…? She flung the door open and found Eriol standing on the other side of if, still wearing his street clothes. "Get changed, you can't sleep in that, it'll be uncomfortable. Plus, the other boys will ask you why your clothes are wrinkled." Tomoyo gestured to the bathroom. "Stay. Make sure I'm safe and don't go wandering off again the moment your back is turned."
He obeyed her very, very, very slowly and something about him seemed haunted. "You don't seem the type to go haring off in your night-clothes, Tomoyo-san. Are you truly happy about Sakura-san's wedding?"
"What kind of question is that? Of course I am!"
"Clow knew the Amimaya family; he knew where Nadeshiko-san would be born. You're not a group that lets go once you've fallen in love. He was a little worried about your mother because of it, though he was pretty sure that Nadeshiko-san would marry Kinomoto-sensei no matter what happened. He never fully realized how deeply hurt your mum was. We both know your feelings, so I've been worried for you."
She stared at the door, fascinated by the idea that Clow had been interested in her family. Intrigued with the idea that Eriol knew so much about her through her ancestors. She wondered if Touya-san and Sakura-chan took after the Amamiya family at all, and how.
"It's none of my business, I'm sorry, Tomoyo-san." Eriol said softly into the silence, and she realized that he couldn't see her face and thought she was angry with him.
"There was a boy, once," she told him abruptly, and realized with a sinking feeling that there was a boy now, too. "By the time I realized my feelings for him, he was already falling in love with another. It wasn't love that I had for him, but it might have been if I'd given it time, and a chance. I never confessed to him; I never will, since he's happy.
"The Amamiya family tends to love deeply, and forever, but we have room for more than one special person. Even Mother loved again after Nadeshiko-san, loved him well and still does. I want to find that happiness, too, of having loved more than one person." Her father had once said it was a gift, to know that Sonomi had loved so completely, and could thus be so sure of her feelings for him. Her mother had been his first love, and she knew Sonomi treasured that. Either way it happened, being loved seemed more than wonderful to her. "I'll always love Sakura-san, but I'm happiest knowing that she's happy with Li-kun and that I can still find another to love who will return my feelings."
"Well," Eriol sounded a bit embarrassed, "I suppose that answers my question, doesn't it?" He opened the door, looking nearly as embarrassed as he had the night before. His boxers had a large yellow smiley face splashed across the front, and the back of the smiley's head on the back. "Not one word, Tomoyo-san. Not one, or I will leave you here to wander off at will and face the dangers of the night alone."
Tomoyo smiled broadly and led the way back to her bedroom.
"Um, Tomoyo-san?" He asked once they were in bed and she was cuddling against him.
"No, no lullaby tonight either," she told him, yawning, suddenly exhausted. "You can't sleep on my side of the bed, and I'm not telling you any stories because you whined about the last one."
"What?" He sounded confused and she laughed, realizing that he didn't remember asking the night before.
"Was there something else I could deny you?" She asked, chuckling.
"Do you really think this is a good…"
"Yes." She cut him off. "Now go to sleep. I'm drunk and tired and really comfortable so now is the part where I pass out."
"Oh, yes, the passing out part. All right, then. Good night, Tomoyo-san."
He held her gingerly, she noted as she began drifting off. He wasn't cheerful about it like the night before, or sure about it, but he held her all the same. She felt a little guilty about it, knowing that she shouldn't be in his arms, but she willfully wrote it off to being drunk, even if she was pretending most of it. But it was going to be hard to fall asleep if he had the attitude of a man going to meet the headsman.
"If I tell you one, just one, story will you quit thinking so loudly and go to sleep?" She finally asked, deciding that humor would work to loosen him up.
"A story?" He chuckled. "Any story I want?"
"Yes, but since you can't remember it, I'll repeat the one I told you last night. Once upon a time," she began, "there was a young man named Hiiragizawa Eriol…"
And for the second time in two days, Tomoyo fell asleep laughing in Eriol's arms.
+++
Life hadn't been a laughing matter when she woke up. It wasn't that she'd been hung over; she hadn't been, except for a slight headache and a little queasiness that quickly passed. It hadn't been the fact that she'd woken up in the arms of a man she was beginning to realize she cared for far too deeply for it to be simple friendship. It was the fact that he was happily involved with someone else, making him the third person she'd liked that she couldn't have, couldn't even confess herself to.
Such a thing on the morning of the wedding of the person you liked best was just a little too harsh to be smiled away.
She'd smiled Eriol on his way, dropping him off bright and early (and irritated that she wasn't in as a bad a state as he had been) at Li-kun's. Wei had waved from the balcony, which assured her that Eriol wouldn't wake the Li boys by unlocking the door with magic. She'd smiled through her stop at the florists and the dry cleaners. She'd smiled her way past her mother's sigh, Naoko's frantic call home for her journal, Meiling's minor case of nerves as to her own wedding, Chiharu's more serious case of nerves concerning her wedding, and been properly upbeat in the face of Sakura's anxious euphoria.
She was done smiling for the next ten minutes, she swore, leaning against the door to what had once been her private bathroom. Done smiling and done thinking about Hiiragizawa Eriol.
"Daidouji-san?"
Tomoyo jumped at the soft voice, wincing inwardly as she realized her situation. Mizuki-sensei was seated at the vanity several feet to her right, clearly waiting for her since her make-up was already on. She should have known this was coming. The woman was a powerful mage in her own right, and even if she hadn't been she probably kept decent track of her boyfriend. And really, Tomoyo sighed to herself, she had not been discreet about her interest in her friend the night before. She had only confirmed what the older woman had probably been able to see anyway. Now she was going to have to deal with the consequences of her heart's actions.
"Mizuki-sensei. Have you been waiting long for me?" She nodded and moved to the other seat at the vanity as though they had arranged to have this talk beforehand. It was obvious Kaho had been waiting and it would be foolish to pretend otherwise. She got out her make-up because it needed to be done and she was out of time to be foolish with.
"Not long, no. You were with Eriol again this morning?"
"Yes." Tomoyo took a calming breath. "Last night, and the night before that, as well."
"I thought so."
Mizuki-sensei remained calm, but Tomoyo was fairly certain that most of that was an act. She'd just been told that her boyfriend had spent two nights in a row with another woman. Even prepared, that would be a blow. But what the other woman thought, and what had actually been…. "It was platonic, Mizuki-sensei. We didn't so much as trade a peck on the cheek." And if she'd wanted that, wanted more, that didn't change the fact that it hadn't happened. That they'd spent the last two nights entwined, innocently, didn't need to be told. There was no point in hurting the teacher any more than she already had.
"Daidouji-san, I…"
"You have nothing to worry about, Mizuki-sensei. What I feel, no matter what it is," because it wasn't love, it couldn't be love this early on, "doesn't matter. Eriol-san loves you. You make him happy. He would never risk that, and he would never hurt you."
"Daidouji-san…"
"I know we aren't friends. I'm not sure why that is, but I assure you that I don't have ill will towards you. I have no intention of following up on my feelings for Eriol-san. He's happy; that's all I need to know." She met the other woman's eyes in the mirror and smiled gently. "As far as he knows, I've only got pre-wedding blues and nobody to take them out on. You don't have anything to worry about, Mizuki-sensei."
"I'm sorry, Daidouji-san. I'm not happy that you're hurting." Mizuki's brown eyes were warm with concern.
"I know," Tomoyo smiled again, taking comfort in the fact that at least she and her former teacher could still get along. She picked up the eyeliner again and turned her thoughts back to Sakura-chan and the wedding. She had so many things to be happy about, really. She wasn't lying when she said, "I'll be fine." But she might have been stretching the truth.