A/N: I want to explain a few friendships before I continue the story.
Tomoyo and Sakura met when they were ten, two years after Syaoran left. When they were twelve, Sakura accidentally released the Clow cards and Kero. Later that year, Syaoran came back to Tomoeda and tried to steal the cards, most of which Sakura had already captured and turned into Sakura cards. He managed to get a few loose cards, but just before he left to return to China, he gave them to Sakura. (Oh, and Sakura never admitted her feelings for Syaoran, so that part of the second movie never happened.)
On the first day that Sakura started working for Eriol, he approached her and asked her about the cards and Kero. He told her that he was the reincarnation of Clow Reed, and that he could sense her magic and feel the power of the cards coming from her. That's one of the reasons why she likes him, or at least thinks she does.
I hope that clears up some things for everyone. There's plenty of fluff in this chapter, with some of both varieties! I hope you enjoy it!
The Forgetful Bride
Chapter Two"Hey, Sakura," Tomoyo said softly, coming up behind the crying woman. "Hey, it's okay. I don't think Eriol-kun really believed that guy."
Sakura sniffled. "Really?"
"Yes, really. I already took care of both of them, so they shouldn't bother you any more. Why don't you wash your face, and then we'll take it from there?"
"All right," Sakura replied, blowing her nose on a tissue. She and Tomoyo went into the ladies room, and she washed her face with warm water to clean up the streaks left behind by her tears.
"There, now, don't you feel better?"
"Yeah, actually. Thanks for being such a good friend, Tomoyo."
"No problem!" Tomoyo smiled, and Sakura's spirits lifted slightly. The two women returned to the shop, and were glad to see that Syaoran had left. "So, Eriol-kun..." Tomoyo said menacingly. "Do you have anything you'd like to say to Sakura?"
"Erm...I suppose I should apologize for not stopping Syaoran," Eriol conceded. "I saw that you were embarrassed, but I didn't do anything about it."
"It's forgotten," Sakura replied, flashing Eriol a smile. "But what was he doing here, anyway?"
"Well, he and I were going to go to lunch, since he's back from Beijing. He has been there for the past few months on business, now that he's the leader of the Li clan."
"Wow, so he actually became the leader? When we were kids, he used to complain about it so much. He said he never wanted to be the head of the Li clan. But when he came back to Tomoeda to steal the Sakura cards from me, he was completely changed, and was focused on proving himself worthy of the title." Sakura felt comfortable discussing the Sakura cards with them, but talking about her history with Syaoran was a little unnerving, especially since she loved Eriol, and he was Syaoran's 'cousin'.
"Yes, and he certainly has proven himself. After he returned to China without the cards, his mother and the Elders made him prove his worthiness by defeating every other male Li in the clan in hand-to-hand combat without taking a break. Syaoran had to take part in seventeen straight fights."
"Oh, wow," Tomoyo said, impressed. "And he was able to?"
"Well, he must have," Sakura replied. "Otherwise he wouldn't be the leader, right?" she asked, turning to Eriol.
"It took him many trials, but eventually he was able to finish the task. Syaoran became the leader when he was eighteen, right after his father died," Eriol told them.
Sakura bowed her head at the news of Mr. Li's death. She remembered him as a cold, yet devoted husband and father. "And what of Syaoran's sisters?"
"They're all happily married and have started families of their own," Eriol told her.
Sakura smiled. "That's great. I remember how boy-crazy they used to be, back when we were little."
Eriol looked down at his watch. "Listen, Sakura-san, Tomoyo-san, why don't you two just head on home? It's been a busy day for all of us. I'll close up early, all right?"
"I think that's the first good idea I've heard all day," Tomoyo replied. Sakura nodded her agreement and turned around, heading for the back door.
Before Tomoyo could follow, however, Eriol placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hang on, Tomoyo-san. I...I need to speak with you about something."
"What is it?" Tomoyo asked, noticing that Sakura was out of earshot by now.
"Ai..." Eriol took a deep breath. You're Clow Reed! This shouldn't be so difficult! he berated himself. "Ai... Aishiteru, Tomoyo-san," he finished in a rush.
Tomoyo's eyes widened. "What?"
"Aishiteru, Tomoyo."
Tomoyo gaped for a moment, but quickly recovered. "Oh, no... No, this isn't right! You shouldn't love me! You should love Sakura!"
"Why? I don't have feelings for her, I love you!"
"But I can't betray Sakura's trust like that! I've never told her that I love you, too..." Tomoyo gasped and covered her mouth with her hand as she realized what she had just let slip.
Eriol took both of her hands in his. "You do love me?"
"H-hai," she replied weakly.
Eriol got down on one knee, still holding Tomoyo's hands. "Then will you please marry me?"
Tomoyo's eyes filled with tears. "I can't..."
"What?"
"I can't marry you...not until you clear things up with Sakura. It's just not right for you to leave her in the dark like this."
Eriol sighed, and nodded. "All right. I'll talk to her as soon as I can."
"Thank you." Tomoyo pulled Eriol into a standing position, and they shared a gentle, loving kiss.
Later that evening, Sakura was in the kitchen, trying to put out a small grease fire. She'd tried to make fried dumplings, but her cooking skills hadn't improved with her switch to independent living.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. With one final spray of the fire extinguisher, Sakura hurried over and looked through the peephole. To her surprise, Syaoran stood outside, holding a box of what looked like take-out.
"What are you doing here?" Sakura asked impatiently, opening the door a crack.
"Trying to work out a peace treaty?" Syaoran offered. "I brought sushi."
Sakura eyed him warily. I should just shut the door right in his face, she thought to herself. "Is there shrimp?" She hadn't had shrimp sushi since she'd left Tomoeda five years ago.
"Of course. I still remember your favorites from when we were kids."
"All right, you can come in," Sakura allowed grudgingly. She opened the door fully and walked back into the kitchen, making sure the fire hadn't restarted.
"A little kitchen trouble?" Syaoran asked, seeing all of the mess that the fire extinguisher had left behind.
"Nothing I couldn't handle," Sakura assured him. "I assume you're here to apologize for earlier?"
"Actually, no. I'm here to find out what exactly it is you see in my cousin."
"What's not to see? He's smart, he's good-looking, not to mention he already knows about my magic, Kero, and the Sakura cards. That's a great weight off my mind." Sakura deftly handled her chopsticks, taking a dainty bite out of a piece of sushi.
"Well, you know, there are other guys who would be comfortable with your magic," Syaoran pointed out.
"Oh, yeah? Name one."
Syaoran stared at her pointedly, but Sakura was still dense as ever. "What are you staring at me for?" she asked, staring right back at him with her eyes narrowed and her lips pouted.
Quicker than she could blink, Syaoran was on his feet and had pulled her into a standing position, as well. His arm snaked around her waist. "Sakura..." he breathed softly.
Suddenly, the light bulb went off in Sakura's head. "Oh...you were talking about yourself, weren't you?"
Syaoran nodded absently. Then he reached up with his free hand to brush a lock of hair off of Sakura's face, tucking it behind her ear before pulling her into a deep, passionate kiss. Sakura's eyes widened, but almost instantly she felt her body reacting to the kiss and the dizzying closeness of his body to hers, and they slowly closed. She let out an involuntary groan, and her lips parted slightly, allowing Syaoran to slip his tongue into her mouth and do a little exploring.
This isn't right, a small voice in the back of Sakura's mind said. You love Eriol-kun, remember?
This thought was enough to snap Sakura out of her trance, and she roughly pushed Syaoran away. Her whole body was trembling from the kiss, and she immediately missed the warmth that radiated from his form. "Syaoran..." she said hoarsely.
"I'm sorry, Sakura," he replied quickly. "I didn't mean for that to happen. You're just so...so..." He couldn't think clearly enough to finish. He turned toward the door. "I'll see you later, Em," he said.
"Wait...Em?" Sakura asked before he could leave.
"Em is short for Emerald. In some lights, your eyes sparkle like emeralds," Syaoran replied without turning around. In that moment, Sakura could read his aura clearly, and sherealized that if he turned around, he wouldn't be able to bring himself to leave. When she didn't say anything, Syaoran walked out the door and out to his car. Only then did Sakura sit down heavily on the couch, wondering what had just happened.
A/N: I was thinking of adding more, but this just seemed like the perfect place to stop. I really hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! I think I'll start on The Wolf and the Flower soon, since I've gotten mainly positive feedback on it.
A small note: In the book The Forgetful Bride, Joe (the character being played by Syaoran) calls Cait (the character being played by Sakura) "bright eyes". That's why Syaoran has the eye color-related nickname for Sakura there at the end.
I have a question for everyone out there reading my story: What are Syaoran's sister's names, and how old are they compared to him? I don't need exact ages; I just need to know birth order. It's very important, as I need to know so that I can "create" nieces and nephews for Syaoran.
Oh, and I am not going to post the next chapter until I've reached at least 40 reviews. I don't think that's too much to ask, since I've already got 24 reviews as of right now. So if you want to see what happens next, make sure to leave me a review!