Tomoyo reached into her black folds for a dart. She raised it, and then swiftly moved her arm, letting go of it. But then, Eriol spun around, holding up a gold disk. The poisoned dart struck the shield with a loud ping, and it fell to the floor. Tomoyo grit her teeth, glowering over at Eriol.

Eriol just smiled, "Now, now Tomoyo. Why be so old fashioned? Don't they use guns now?"

Tomoyo growled, "I never use guns, I'm always very neat and precise. I just didn't think you'd have a shield in your hand."

Eriol traced the design on the golden shield, "You're quite right, but you never know when these can be quite dandy. I always have them with me, I've had a couple of assassin attacks, but never like yours." He gave a little grin.

Tomoyo wanted to tear that mouth off his face, replacing it with a frightened one. She clenched her fists, "You call me by my first name. I never gave you permission."

"But don't you call the person you love by first name?" he gazed at her curiously.

She glared at him, knives piercing into his skin, "What do you mean by that."

He stepped closer to her, "Why my dear Tomoyo, don't you see?"

She took a step backwards, feeling dizzy, "What… what?"

He wasn't wearing a smile anymore, it was more of a longing face, "I love you Tomoyo."

"You… I don't even know you!" She cried.

"But I do. I know you, I know every thing about you." His voice was soothing and slow, almost like a cat's purr.

Tomoyo stopped moving, feeling shocked, "What?"

He stopped moving too now, "I love you."

The words entered into Tomoyo's mind, those three words, why were they having affect on her? Why didn't she just throw them away, pull out a dagger and slice it into his heart so he wouldn't love her anymore? Why did it feel as though… she wanted him to love her? As though she was quite happy to hear it? No! She wouldn't fall for an enemy! He was the enemy; she couldn't let herself forget that. He had money; he was a millionaire, a billionaire! Richer than her! She wanted that money, so why didn't she have it already? Why was she failing this mission? What was so hard about catching him, killing him, and taking his money? There was always something stopping her, always something tugging at her heart. Always something… could it be…

"You can't love me." She tore herself away from his gaze.

"Why? Why not?" His voice wasn't questioning her; he seemed to know the answer already.

"Because, I want to kill you. Why aren't you scared?"

"Because I know you won't kill me."

She looked over at him, "What makes you so sure?"
He gave a gentle smile. She felt herself being drawn to that smile, happy to see it, happy to see him smiling to her. And how much she wanted to keep that smile to herself, to let no one else to see it. What was she thinking, "Stop smiling at me!" She demanded.

"Why?" But he lowered the smile anyway, "Do you not want me to smile at you?"

"Yes, I don't like it when you smile." She frowned, trying to keep the emotions inside her sealed, trying to look as impassive as she could. Why had she lowered herself the point where she would look neutral? Wasn't she supposed to be growling and baring her teeth? Why look emotionless? Why not look angry and furious and scary? She tried. She glared at him and growled. He didn't look scared at all. Was she not scary? Wasn't he scared that she would kill him? Why wouldn't she kill him?

"Tomoyo, are you angry at me?" He tilted his head, staring at her like a little bird who had stopped pecking at the shells on the ground.

"Yes, I'm furious at you. I hate you right now!"

He looked a bit sad, "Oh dear, have I done something wrong? Tell me, your beautiful face shouldn't have any trace of anger, you'll look prettier with a smile. I love it when you smile. Won't you give me a smile? I want to capture it and keep it with me forever. Just one."

Tomoyo forward, "You are stupid, you are a stupid man. I have a knife right here, and I'll kill you, so why talk about smiles and other stupid stuff? Why can't you be scared? I want to kill you!" She was trembling with confusion. She hadn't the heart to pick up the knife didn't she? She couldn't do it. But she went on talking, "So hurry up and make a scared face so I can kill you. So my task can be done."

Eriol collapsed in a giant armchair, his face buried in his hands. Tomoyo felt herself shrinking. Was he crying? Wasn't she supposed to be happy? He was crying, he was afraid. Kill him now. But no, he wasn't scared at all. His heart was broken. His sweet smile erased with sadness in his face. She had never seen him so sad, never. And now, here she was, feeling pity for a man. Feeling pity for the man she loved.

Tomoyo had been gone hunting for three days, where was she? Sakura felt lonely. Without her best friends, she had no one to talk with, no one to quarrel with. The only thing to soothe her mind was the shard of jade she held in her hand ever day. The only person she could ever talk to nowadays was Li. She felt herself bubbling with bliss when she went over to his apartment to send him his homework. When they did math problems together. She was happy to be by his side, to be with him. And to see him smile.

"This is…" Li looked up at Sakura, "Can you figure out the answer?"

Sakura dropped her pencil, "Uh… oopsies, yeah. I think so."

She leaned down to pick up her pencil. It wasn't there.

"You dropped this." Li handed her a pencil.

"Oh, thanks." She smiled up at Li.

Li felt himself turning a tad red, so he looked down at the math homework.

As they began to do their math, Sakura felt the answers coming to her easily. All thanks to her partner.

"So, what's the answer?"

"Five."

"Oh." She scribbled down five. She pointed to another problem, "This one?"

"The X equals twenty-four, as Y is equal the square root of…"

"Twelve!"

"No. Ten."

"Oh." Sakura put down ten.

"Do you want to learn how I got these numbers?"

"No." Sakura grinned. She liked cheating. It was fun. She liked copying his paper. It was fun.

"Ok… I'll tell you anyway." Li started to explain, "I subtracted this number from both sides and then…" He noticed Sakura wasn't listening; she was gazing out the window.

"Sakura?"

"Hm?" She turned over to look at Li, "Yeah?"

Li looked back down at his paper, "Are… are you listening?"

"No." She put her hand out onto his head, "Is your head feeling better?"

"Much better."

Sakura quickly took her hand off and went off to make him something to eat.

"Wait, where are you going?" He stood up.

"Sit down! I'm getting you something to eat." She pushed him back down.

"No, no, I can get it myself."

"But your head, you'll get dizzy."

"Nah, as long as you help me." And then, he gave a smile.

Sakura felt her body feeling stunned. The first smile he had given, given to her. He had never really smiled at her, not really. But now he was direct. He was smiling at her. And she felt a sensation tingling in her body. She loved that smile. All she wanted to do was to keep that smile to herself, keep it all to herself. She wanted to keep it for herself. She wanted him to smile, to smile at her only. Because she loved his smile, she loved him.

-

Meiling stepped out the taxi, pulling out her luggage, screaming, "You stupid Japanese! You and that airport guard stinks!"

"You too!" The taxi shouted through his open window and then sped away.

"Oh, you'd better drive away you! I'll have my gun ready and out if you hadn't!" She cried, waving her fist at him.

"Geez." She huffed, "Delayed flight... delayed this... delayed that. Stupid stupid..."

She threw her bag at the automatic door that wasn't opening when she stepped in front of it.

"You stink too!" She screamed at the door as she passed through it.

She clambered into the elevator, stomping her feet and declaring that this elevator was too slow. As she finally made her way to the nineteenth level, she kicked the elevator door.

"Stupid, stupid, STUPID!" She cried.

She stopped in front of a door, brushing herself and straightening her Chinese dress, "Li Shaoran, here I come!"

She burst into the room shouting, "Shao-ran! I'm here!" She ran over to throw herself on top of Shaoran.

"M…Meiling?" Li muttered, surprised.

Meiling rubbed her cheek on his head, "Shaoran! I missed you so much!" She opened her eyes, screaming, "EH! A WOMAN!"

There was a woman, standing before her beloved Shaoran. What would a woman be doing here?

The woman blinked.

"Who are you?" Meiling frowned at her.

"I am Kinomoto Sakura…" Sakura bowed, looking a little surprised.

"I am… ur…" She was supposed to put her name in disguise, "Imy!" She twined her arms around Li's neck, "His… ur… Nimmi's fiancée!"

"Nimmi? Isn't his name Motoko?" Sakura's heart was sagging for a second.

"Uh… yeah! Motoko! I'm Motoko's fiancée!" She beamed, "Ne, Motoko?"

"Fiancée?" Sakura felt as though she had been dumped into a pot of steaming crabs.

"Wait, why do you know his name?" She leaned closer, giving a nasty frown at Sakura.

"Eh… I… I go to his school!"

"She's my friend Imy, will you let go? And I'm not your fiancée." He pulled her grasp off, relieved from that stunning jump she had put on him, "She comes here to bring my homework."

"Oh." Meiling looked disappointed, "Well, I'm going to go to school tomorrow and from then on, I'll bring the homework. Got it?" Meiling glared at Sakura.

Sweat trickled down her forehead, "Y-yes…"

"Good, you can go now." Meiling ordered.

Sakura picked up her math books and papers, and then was kicked out of the room. As she left the apartment, sadness welled up in her heart. Meiling's words repeating over and over in her head, "I'm his fiancée!" She trudged on, thinking, why did she feel so sad? Why did she care anyway? Because, she loved him.

ERIOL'S STORY:

As I look back into my life, I see no past. All I see is the eternal years of my life, a life that shall never die. I am a reincarnation of a man named Clow Reed. He died, but his memories were reborn in me. When I was born, I was born with his past, his life, with his memories. I was born to live on his destiny, to live on forever. But the truth is, I do not want to live that destiny, I want to live my own life. He gave me a life of riches I never wanted, he gave me all the human desires a man could want. But I wanted none of them, I didn't want any of those desires. I raised myself in a manner where I was polite, I raised myself to be mature like the other Clow Reed, it wasn't a thing I couldn't throw away. He was my nature, he was me. Rather, I was him. But I know several secrets of my own, something different about me from him. I fell in love with one person, a person I watched throughout my life.

It is hard to explain when you first fall in love with a woman, but I remember it well.

Years ago, a rich lady invited me to a party, a party for a young girl.

I arrived in a mini tuxedo, wearing a little bow, and I had washed and cleaned and done my hair. I came in a limo to her mansion, making sure I had my packet of poison in my left breast pocket. I was young, surely, but this lady knew my wealth and I knew she'd want it. The only thing to do was to attack the enemy before it attacks you. But I hadn't used my senses, because that is the worst thing to do.

I bowed to her, she bowed to me, sweetly smiling, "Young Hiiragizawa, I heard you were the richest man in town, visiting from England. So, of course I had to invite you to my daughter's party. I just wanted to know how such a young boy like you could just be so rich!" I could see greed flashing in her eyes.

I bowed deeply once more, "Daidouji-sama, I would be glad to explain." And then we took a seat, offered little treats and tea and martinis.

"Do you… drink martinis?" She eyed me.

I smiled mysteriously at her, "Why, I do indeed."

"You have the flavor of a grown man, Hiiragizawa." She handed me a champagne glass filled with a red color, an orange and lemon tipped at the side.

I took a sip, and then let out a refreshing, "Ah… this isn't so bad."

She took a sip as well, "So, continue."

"Of course." I gave a broad grin.

The taste of the cocktail was quite strong, and she purposely did it, no doubt. She knew I would take it, hearing I acted as though I were a grown man, and I did have the memories and attitude of one, so I it was definitely true. But I believe I had overdone myself, although I had quite kept my secret safe, I had indulged in the power of love.

She entered the hallway, catching my eye.

It was an angel before my very eyes, the beautiful princess who had just made my day. I pardoned myself from the conversation, making my way to the hallway, catching a better glimpse of her.

She had the hair of the midnight, streaked with the color of violet and silver, mingled in with the taste of bluebells and lilacs. The way she moved reminded me of the warbling of a nightingale, and her voice… I could hear it already, the sound of chiming bells ringing the last tone with such perfect melody and not a scratch. I felt myself trying to hold in everything, trying to hold in the whole world… I tried to hold her.

But then she slipped away and I saw her call out, "Sakura-chan!"

I nearly collapsed right then, and then a horrible, twisting feeling in my stomach. I could hear snickers in my head… laughing and laughing… but the voice was unreal, it was just my imagination. I looked up to try to hold it in now, but everything was too blurred… and I felt hot and sweaty and I could hear my glasses tumbling off my nose and onto the floor. I crawled into the bathroom and then pulled myself up to the sink. And there I gave it up. I saw that girl in there, she was laughing, and she was laughing at me. And she told me, "You'll never get me. Because you killed my mother."

And then I collapsed, whispering, "I didn't… I didn't want to… forgive me…"

I learned her name when I woke up. I heard it.

"Tomoyo-sama."

I stepped out of the bathroom, than flew back in.

"Yes?"

The voice was beautiful… her voice… her name.

I leaned back on the tiled walls, whispering the name to myself, over and over, "Tomoyo… Tomoyo…" it was so beautiful. She was beautiful. She was graceful and soft. I felt the tips of my fingers yearning to just touch her white skin…to touch her hair…I could just gaze into those eyes of hers forever. Forever… I could love her forever.

I put my glasses back onto my nose and stepped out. She was gone. I stepped back into the ballroom, I noticed bodyguards were helping the host step out of the ballroom, supporting her arms while she coughed and coughed. She had drunken it. Four years from now she would die. Today I found out whom I loved, and now I find out I killed her mother. And I knew she would never forgive me. But I would do anything for her, I would forever love her and try to get her. I would watch her. I would see her every move and every single thing she touched. I would even move to Japan to watch her, to see her, to have her never glance twice at me, but just as long as I could see her. To have her never talk to me, but just as long as I could hear her voice. I would even let her kill me if she wanted to. But first I would make her fall in love with me and then when she would kill me… she would regret for the rest of her life.

But never had I known that she would hate me so much. Never had I known that she would want to kill me so much. It's all my fault. If only I hadn't gone that day… than I would never have poisoned her mother… and neither would I have taken that martini… and I wouldn't have fallen in love with her… but what would be the point of that? I would rather die for her. I would rather her hate me and love her. Because there is nothing more to love than that, because I love her sincerely, and because there is no one else I'd rather love than her: Tomoyo Daidouji.