A/Ns:
#1. All the children are grown up now, as you might have guessed from the previous chapter. Meiling, Tomoyo, Sakura and Syaoran are about 19, and Toya and Yukito are about 26. I would say Yue looks like about 23 in his true form, but I guess that is immaterial.
#2. I really do believe Kero-chan and Spinel-chan were having a long distance relationship from the things shown in the clear card arc. In the "Leave it to Kero" segment, we see two teddy bears labelled as "cat" and "bear". It appears as though they have exchanged those bears, and fans probably know what exchanging bears mean in the CCS universe. This is just one of several hints. It is probably the ship that no one asked for, hehe.
While reading this story please remember that while a part of it won't resemble canon, it is still written in the spirit of the CCS universe, where it is possible for any two people to fall in love. I am not sure if that is an agreeable concept in the context of the real world, but I think 85% of the relationships in CCS are quite wholesome, and the one that I am trying to develop here would surely be too.
A young girl entered the reading room of the Tomoeda Public Library one Saturday afternoon, her hands carrying three heavy volumes that she had just selected from the bookshelves. There was still about a month left before her college started again after summer break, so it was the perfect time for her to indulge herself in some pleasure reading. It was fortunately not too crowded, but someone sat at almost every desk near her. She looked around, mentally debating whether she should ask the person seated at the nearest desk for permission to sit there, or walk all the way down to the far end of the hall, where there was likely to be an unoccupied desk. As she took a step further, trying her best to see the far end of the hall, a strange sight caught her eyes. Someone with long silver hair, oddly resembling someone she knew, was sitting by himself next to an window towards the end of the hall, surrounded by several books. Yet, she also knew that it was improbable that the person she knew could be found in a place like this. So, her curiosity drew her closer to the strange sight. As she approached the person, she became more and more sure that the improbable event was in fact the truth. I wonder why he got the sudden urge to read books today, that too this form , she thought. As she was pondering over it, one of the books slipped from her fatigued arm and landed on the floor with a thud. She mentally reproached herself, and bent down to pick up the volume she had dropped on the floor. When she straightened herself and looked up, icy blue eyes were watching her from the desk ahead of her.
"Yue-san," the young lady smiled courteously as soon as she got her bearings back. "Nice to see you here," she greeted, as if finding the magical moon guardian of the Clow cards at their town library was the most expected thing ever. Although she felt a little bit of curiosity, she did not ask why he was there, assuming it would appear rude to be inquisitive of a person she barely knew. Honestly, she did not even know how to speak to Yue-san, and could not remember a time they had an actual conversation. However, since he had already seen her, as an acquaintance, it would be impolite to simply walk away without greeting him.
"Daidouji-san," the silver haired young man returned her greeting as laconically as possible. It was a miracle that he even bothered to remember her name. Probably, it was due to the fact that she was Sakura's best friend.
"Do you mind if I sit at the other side of the desk?" Tomoyo asked, more due to the fact that her arms were tired of carrying the heavy books, than out of the desire to seek the company of the introverted person she was talking to. Yue silently nodded and gestured to the desk he was seated at.
Tomoyo set down her burden on the desk as quietly as possible and seated herself diagonally from Yue across the desk. Once she was seated, she noticed Yue's attire. He was not dressed in his usual white outfit, but in normal clothes, which consisted of a trouser and a formal shirt. Of course his usual outfit would not be suitable to wear anywhere in real life other than at a costume party, which she was almost sure that he would never attend. However, it was still strange that he was wearing formal clothes on a Saturday afternoon. Nevertheless, it would probably have been stranger if she were to find Yue-san wearing a pair of jeans and a tee with a cap on his head. It seemed that like their personalities, the dressing style of Tsukishiro-san and Yue-san also had nothing in common. She noticed that the young man's eyes were intently focused on the pages of the book before him. Suppressing a small giggle at the bizzareness of the situation, Tomoyo opened the cover of one of her books.
Both Tomoyo and Yue continued to read their respective books in silence. The daylight faded into dusk, and the place gradually grew more empty as many of the library patrons who had been reading there started leaving one by one. Tomoyo had dozed off for a few moments as she rested her head on the desk before her. When her eyelids opened again to scan her surroundings, the person seated at the diagonally opposite to her was no longer there. Just like Yue-san to leave without saying a single word , Tomoyo thought. Unlike his other form, Yue was not one to care for pleasantries. She quickly glanced at her phone, it was 7:15 PM already. Tomoyo moved to gather her books and belongings, planning to check out a couple of volumes for reading at home over the week. Once the young girl working at the front desk had scanned the barcodes of the books that she wanted to check out and linked them to her online account, she placed them in her backpack, and headed out into the evening streets of Tomoeda, illuminated by the lonely streetlights. She hummed a tune in her throat as she walked to the nearest train station. Once she entered college, with great difficulty she had convinced her mother that it was alright for her to use the public transport just like everyone else. She had already received weird looks when an entourage of bodyguards would show up at the college to pick her up or drop her off. It made her stand out so much that many of the students started treating her differently from others. Except the group of friends she had grown up with right from elementary school, almost everyone else treated her with the civil deference of an important acquaintance rather than with the cordiality of a friend. It was something that Tomoyo never wanted, and when they were children, her social status never came in the way of making friends. However, people's perception of the world changes as they grow older, and as humble as Tomoyo was, she could not really help it if people knew her as the daughter of the owner of a big company rather than through her own identity.
Sonomi Daidouji had actually wanted to send her daughter abroad for education once she finished school, especially since she consistently received perfect grades throughout her school. However, Tomoyo could not bear the thought of staying so far away from all her friends and the quaint little town she grew up in just yet. She had requested her mother to allow her to enroll in a local college, assuring her that she would definitely be considering the other options if she decided to go to university for graduate studies. Fortunately, her mother was understanding enough in such matters.
Everything all right with the cards and Sakura? Tomoyo typed a text message and sent it to Keroberos after she had boarded the train and claimed an empty seat. The appearance of Yue-san without any tangible purpose was by no means a standard event, so she could not help but worry about all her friends who were users of magic.
"Tadaima," Touya announced his presence as he returned home from his part time job that same evening. His father was at home and was setting up the dinner table with his sister's help.
"Okaerinasai, Touya-kun," Fujitaka greeted cheerfully. He watched his son close the door after himself, slightly disappointed that Touya was not accompanied by the boy who had almost become the fourth member of his family over the years.
When they sat down for dinner a bit later, Fujitaka brought up the topic again. "Tsukishiro-kun usually dines with us on the weekends. I wonder if he is doing alright," he remarked thoughtfully.
"He is doing fine, dad, just busy. He would be needed elsewhere on Saturdays from now on, but I am sure he will stop by sometime tomorrow," Touya answered as truthfully as was possible without divulging the details pertaining to his friend's dual identity. Thankfully, while his father was very caring in a parental way, he was not overly curious about such things. Touya had the utmost respect for the man before him for everything that he had been silently doing for him and Yukito over the years. Indeed, Touya could not have given that lonely boy a place to come to anytime without feeling like an uninvited outsider had it not been for the unconditional support of his father and sister.
Sakura however gave her brother a quizzical look. She knew well enough how much Yukito-san was partial to her dad's cooking, and more importantly she was also aware of the yearning he had for spending time with all three of them during these family dinners. He would not simply miss it for a trivial task. "Oni-chan, were you being mean to Yukito-san?" she asked with a concerned expression on her face.
"Geez, I don't know why you keep holding on to such an idea. Has Yuki ever told you something like that?" Touya asked casually as he chewed his food.
"He won't, even if he is hurt, because he is so gentle," Sakura defended the absent person.
"Don't make foolish assumptions, monster," Touya made a face at his little sister, who was not so little anymore. "Otherwise, I won't be gentle at all with that brat whenever he is mean to you," he said with a smirk.
Sakura was swallowing a big rice ball. She clenched her fist into a ball and brought it down on the table loudly.. "Syaoran-kun has never been mean to me, and if he ever is, I wouldn't tolerate it, because I am not as gentle as Yukito-san," she said zealously as soon as she managed to gulp down the food. However, as soon as the words were spoken, both siblings realized that amidst their banter they had almost forgotten the quiet presence of their father who sat at the same table. However, it was not the first time that it had happened, and Touya was almost sure that through such unintentional subtle implications, his father kind of knew that the relationship his daughter had with that brat from Hong Kong was akin to what his son had with Yukito. Both the brother and sister were bashful enough to not bring these things up on purpose before their father though. Thus, an awkward silence followed, where Touya grabbed the glass of water, and gulped it down, trying to hide his blush, while an equally embarrassed Sakura muttered something about the food being delicious, and continued to stare at her plate as she resumed eating.
Fujitaka smiled kindly at his two children, pretending to have not picked up on anything, "let me get the desserts. I made fruit custards today," he said, adjusting his spectacles on his nose.
"I want two servings," Sakura piped up, relieved that their father changed the topic. Fujitaka simply smiled and went to the kitchen. Touya knew that the second serving would go into that yellow plushie's stomach, and wondered if their father also silently knew that there was another non-human being who resided in their house. Afterall, the generous man always seemed to have extra desserts ready for Sakura to take up to that lazy sun guardian whose present life goals were to excel in every video game on the market, and pursue a long-distance relationship with another magical being named Spinel-sun through emails and video calls. If only the moon guardian were that carefree and played video games once in a while , Touya sighed, wondering whether Yue was having a good day while being out in the world in his true form.
It was Touya's turn to do the dishes after dinner that day. As he was setting down the dishes in the kitchen sink, he saw his father walk up to him. "Allow me to give you a hand, Touya-kun," Fujitaka kindly offered.
"There aren't that many today dad, I will be done shortly. You can go and rest," Touya resisted.
"I insist, Touya-kun. You had to cover for me the day before yesterday when that unexpected dig came up," Fujitaka smiled. This time, Touya also smiled and nodded. The two men started cleaning the dishes standing side by side. "Have you decided what you want to do once you earn your degree?" Fujitaka asked after a while.
"Not yet dad, I am thinking about it," Touya answered.
"Is Tsukishiro-kun not in favor of going abroad for postdoctoral research?" Fujitaka asked again. "For a student of his caliber, securing such a position should be relatively easy," he added.
Touya felt somewhat perplexed, unsure how to explain the situation to his father. His father was an eminent professor and researcher in his field, and it was natural for him to expect that his son would come to him for academic career advice. He could not blame him if he had felt a little hurt that his son was not even willing to discuss his career options openly with him. "Well, not exactly. But Yuki has family obligations which require him to remain in Japan at the moment," Touya finally answered as honestly as he could.
"You are not planning to go abroad without Tsukishiro-kun, are you?" his father asked, his face more concerned this time.
"That is not an option for me," Touya quietly responded.
"I thought so," Fujitaka sighed softly.
"We are still trying to figure it out. Some day, I hope that I will be able to share more encouraging information with you, dad. But we both do not know when it will happen, if at all, so please forgive me if I disappoint you in any way," Touya said, a bit remorsefully
Fujitaka smiled, placing a gentle hand on his young son's back. "It's not your career that I am worried about," he said.
Touya stopped scrubbing the plate in his hand, and turned a little to look at his father's face. "Dad?" he asked, silently asking for an elaboration.
"You are both great students, and I am sure that you both will do well, no matter where you live and whichever career path you choose. Rather, I am worried about your happiness, which a father cannot help but do. And as far as I could tell, that is connected to you being with Tsukishiro-kun," Fujitaka told his son.
"Is that what you truly want, dad?" Touya questioned, his voice barely above a whisper.
Fujitaka could clearly see the emotions playing within the depths of the dark eyes of his son. "As I said, I want you to be happy. And of course, I want the same for Tsukishiro-kun. I am grateful that the two of you were able to know each other, and care for each other. Tsukishiro-kun's disposition reminds me of Nadeshiko-san so often. I have been away from you and your sister due to my work much more than I would have liked. Without Tsukishiro-kun's presence, I know that both Sakura and you would have been more lonely. That is why, sometimes, I find myself looking forward and taking comfort in the fact that a kind and gentle person like Nadeshiko-san will always be there for my son," he explained.
"Dad!" Touya quickly extended his hand and held his father's arm for a moment before drawing it away. He was not a person who was outwardly emotional, and his shyness soon overcame him. "Thank you," he said, and when those words were spoken, his father understood that they were from the very bottom of his heart.
"Don't thank me, Touya-kun, but seize the opportunity of happiness when it presents itself to you. As you must be aware, the US could provide a better life to the two of you than what is possible in this country at the present day," Fujitaka reasoned.
Touya lifted his hand to brush back the bangs from his forehead. His father was probably thinking that he was hesitating with regard to his relationship with Yuki because they were both men, and that there was some sort of disagreement between the two of them over the prospect of seeking opportunities abroad. His father managed to convey a lot without saying much at all, and the advice he offered was quite pragmatic, and has been the basis of Touya's own reasoning for considering opportunities in that country. However, how could he explain to his father that the fact that Yuki and himself were both men was the least of their concerns at that point? How could he tell him that the young man his son was in love with was not even a human, without sounding like he had some serious mental issues? And to tell his father that the person whom he just compared to his beloved deceased wife was meant to only be a temporary form of an centuries old and yet naïve temperamental magical being? No, that would be beyond ridiculous. Besides, the secret was not only his to disclose it to others. Touya shook his head.
"Did I say something wrong, Touya-kun? Perhaps, I spoke too much. I thought it was time that I told you these things. And I will do the same for your sister once I feel that the time is right for her," Fujitaka stated, noticing his son's gesture.
"No dad, you said nothing wrong. In fact, I have been considering things along the same lines. And I will continue to do my best for everyone involved. Please, wish me luck," Touya finally smiled genuinely, in order to reassure his father.
"You always have done that Touya-kun. And I know you will succeed this time too," Fujitaka lightly brushed his hand over his son's dark brown hair. They were done washing the dishes, and Touya stacked them up and placed them on the countertop. "Come, let us finish drying these, and then we are all done," he smiled back cheerfully.
Tomoyo was getting ready to go to bed that night when the notification tone of her phone sounded. She stopped brushing her long hair, and looked at its screen. The sun guardian had finally replied, possibly while catching a break from his video games only when dessert arrived after dinner. They are all doing great. Why? Keroberos had written.
Tomoyo placed a hand on her cheek and thought a bit about how to answer. She did not know if Sakura, Kero-chan and the others already knew that Yue-san was out in the world in his true form, and hence she was not sure if Yue-san would appreciate it if she passed on that information to others. After all, it was a mere coincidence that they happened to run into each other in the library. Who knew what went on in the mind of that mysterious person? It was none of her business anyway. She took her phone again and typed: just checking. Hey, I am planning to try a new cake recipe next weekend, want to try some? Once the message was sent, a reply came immediately. It was a large YAY, followed by a lot of happy emojis. Kero-chan never missed anything pertaining to food, especially sweet things. As Tomoyo predicted, the word "cake" was enough to make him completely forget the previous topic, which was what she wanted anyway.
Tomoyo spent a lazy next week, reading the books she had borrowed from the library through Saturday. On Sunday, she baked a large black forest cake and went to her best friend's place with it. Touya oni-san was not there when she arrived, but Tsukishiro-san was there, helping Fujitaka-san with dinner preparations. Sakura had just returned from her double date with Li-kun, the other couple being Chiharu-chan and Yamazaki-kun, and her face had sparkled from the happy memories of the day. Once Touya oni-san returned, they all had dinner together, and then it was Kero-chan's turn to get the most awaited dessert. Of course, a perfect picture of the cake slice was snapped, and sent to Spinel Sun before the treat disappeared into the small creature's big mouth. Tomoyo and Sakura chatted for an hour after dinner in Sakura's room before Tomoyo left. Everything seemed to be perfectly normal in that household.
Tomoyo went back to the town library again on the following Saturday, to return the books that she had finished, and find new ones to read. She was roaming amongst the bookshelves of the fiction section, reading the titles and picking up the ones that seemed interesting. After flipping through their pages, she either placed it back on the racks, or kept it with herself if she felt that she had liked them enough to read further. She had already picked up two books in that manner, and was hunting for her third selection. A title placed on the topmost level of the rack caught her attention. Carefully balancing the weight of two heavy books which she held against her chest with her left arm, she stood on her tiptoes and reached out her right arm for the book, but her fingers did not quite reach it. Glancing around, she could not see portable wooden steps that were placed in every row for people to use to gain easier access to the top levels of the racks. Someone must have removed it. With a sigh of despair, she attempted to reach again, tiptoeing to an extent that she nearly lost her balance and would have fallen backward had not someone's hand lightly caught one of her shoulder blades.
"Thank you so–," she turned her head to express her gratitude to the stranger who helped her, to find herself staring into icy blue eyes. "Yue-san?" she questioned, mouth slightly agape.
"Which one?" the silver haired man asked.
"I am sorry, what do you mean?" Tomoyo asked in bewilderment.
Yue closed his eyes momentarily, as if annoyed that the girl did not get the question. "The book that you were intending to retrieve," he explained.
"Oh," Tomoyo mentioned the title of the book she was reaching for. He speaks as if every additional word he uses will cost him one year from his eternal life, and expects everyone to understand it regardless, she thought rather wryly. Her eyes widened again as she watched Yue's feet covered with black leather shoes leave the ground. "Yue-san," she cautioned the moon guardian who was floating at least a foot above the ground in a low voice. "Someone might see you," she said apprehensively.
Yue had acquired the book that Tomoyo wanted. He calmly landed his feet on the ground again, unfazed by the feeling of alarm that characterized the countenance of the young girl. "There is no one else in this entire section at the moment," he extended the book to the girl before him.
"Thanks, you can sense it, I suppose?" Tomoyo asked as she took the book from Yue's hand. The moon guardian nodded once, and started making his way out of the row of shelves. Tomoyo followed him back to the reading room, since she had also obtained all that she needed. She noticed that he held two books in his hands, and saw him take a seat next to the window once again. The reading room had plenty of unoccupied desks that afternoon, so there was no need to go over to Yue's desk. Not that she would mind, but he seemed like a person who would prefer to be left alone for the most part. She placed her books on the nearest desk, and settled down.
Tomoyo felt thirsty after a few hours, and went to the vending machine near the front desk to get herself something to drink. As she approached the vending machine, her gaze went through the large window between the machine and the front desk that opened to the adjacent lawn. There were a few large trees, and some benches beneath them for people to sit down and relax their eyes with the sight of the greenery, if they wanted to take a break from reading. All the benches were empty except one, where Yue-san was sitting. She glanced back to the front desk to find that someone else other than her was observing him intently. Tomoyo instantly recognized the dreamy look on the face of the young girl who worked at the front desk, probably as a part time job, as she gazed out of the window. Considering Yue-san's unworldly attractiveness, she sort of expected that the sight of him would captivate the attention of most women. Smiling to herself, Tomoyo bought a second drink from the vending machine. She was somewhat put off by his aloofness in the morning, but she knew he was not being deliberately cold with her, it was just his basic nature to be like that. He did prevent her from falling and got that book for her, for which he deserved her gratitude.
Tomoyo walked out to the lawn, carrying two cans of beverage. The setting sun on the western horizon was painting everything in its golden hue. She approached the bench where Yue-san sat. "Here," she said, extending one of the beverage cans to the young man seated at the opposite edge of the bench.
"I don't drink," Yue responded offhandedly, without turning his face to look at her.
"Huh?" The reply caught Tomoyo by surprise. She drew back her hand, inspecting the label of the bottle curiously, wondering if somehow she got the wrong kind of drink. "This is just fruit flavored soda, not alcohol," she tried to clarify. She was only nineteen, not even of the legal age to buy alcohol. Why on earth would Yue-san think that she would offer him an alcoholic drink out of nowhere? Besides, he did not even look at the beverage can. It did not make sense to the young girl.
Yue realized that his words were misconstrued, since that statement also had a different implication to most humans. "I do not consume human beverages, or food," he clarified, leaning back against the backrest of the bench, his gaze still fixed ahead of him.
"I see," Tomoyo finally sat down on the opposite edge of the bench. She wondered vaguely if Sakura knew about it. It was not that Yue-san was ever a topic of discussion between them, so probably she had no reason to tell her. "Kero-chan and Tsukishiro-san, they eat our food, so I had no idea," she added
"The former one has no need for it and just happens to be a blithe creature who craves such unnecessary things. The latter however needs food for sustenance," Yue informed.
"Is that so?" Tomoyo said as she finally opened her own beverage can and took a sip. "I shall return the other one then, thanks for telling me," she smiled brightly at the young man seated on the other side of the bench. A silence followed as expected. Tomoyo studied Yue out of the corner of her eyes as she sipped her soda. The long sleeves of his shirt were rolled up to his elbows, revealing his slender and pale forearms, and his hands were folded on his lap. The loose ponytail with which he usually tied the far ends of his long hair was looped over itself, probably to prevent it from brushing the dirt on the ground. He was a being designed to predominantly fly, as Tomoyo realized. While flying, it was not a problem if his hair went past his feet, but while walking the streets as a human, he had to make that practical adjustment. Even with the looped ponytail, his hair still reached to his knees. The earring with the bright blue jewel was still present on his left ear, and stood out in contrast to the pastel shade of his shirt. He was sitting with his eyes closed as if in meditation.
"Do you like it here at the library, Yue-san?" Tomoyo asked hesitantly after a while, wondering if the question would annoy the reserved man.
Yue opened his eyes slowly. "It is tolerable, since it is quieter here than most other parts of the town," he replied. When his other form had the strange idea of making him go out and explore the world in his true form, it did not take long for him to realize that the place where he would like to spend that one day of each week would be a library, away from the noise of the town. "And they do have compelling collections of older books here," he added.
"I am glad of that," Tomoyo replied with a smile. For the first time she noticed Yue giving her a sideways glance out of the corner of his eyes.
"You didn't ask why I was here like this today and the day before," the moon guardian remarked.
"Why would I? I mean, was I expected to ask that?" Tomoyo turned her face fully towards Yue as she answered.
"Does that mean you know the reason?" Yue followed up with another question.
"Not really. I won't deny that I was surprised when I saw you here the other day, simply because I have not seen you go anywhere in your true form. But at the same time, you are free to go wherever you wish to, and you just said that you liked reading things here. So, what's the problem?" the young girl responded.
"It was my other form's idea to let me experience the world as myself," Yue quietly informed, not sure why he bothered to tell her.
"I think it is a brilliant idea too. I hope you will soon be able to find other places and activities that you really like," Tomoyo replied with a radiant smile. Taking the last sip of her drink, she stood up to go back inside to her reading. Surprisingly, Yue stood up too. The sun had already set, and the two made their way back to the reading room of the library in the soft glow of the twilight. When they were at the door, Yue held it open for her to pass through. The girl at the front desk must have observed them from inside, and gave Tomoyo a baffled look, before shifting her glance to her youthful companion. Yue gracefully walked back to his previous seat without sparing the poor girl a single look.
As Tomoyo passed the girl in order to throw the empty can of drink in the trash, and return the unused can to the vending machine, she tried to give her reassuring smile. She observed that a badge pinned to her shirt carried the name of Hana. If she really set her heart on Yue-san, she would probably end up heartbroken. Nevertheless, Tomoyo knew that people could always change. She did not really have an opportunity to interact with Yue-san before that day, but during the brief moments that they conversed a while ago, she realized that although Yue-san was cold and distant, he had a certain civility in the way he spoke, which many youths of the present era lacked, and there was a certain degree of earnestness to his words. It was perhaps due to the fact that was actually from a different era, and had been put in a vegetative state until his awakening during the final judgment. While part of it was also true for Kero-chan, he seemed to have quickly adapted to everything in the modern world. On the contrary. talking to Yue-san was somewhat like talking to one of those characters from the classic fiction books that Tomoyo loved to read. She had a feeling that things were about to get interesting from there, and as a keen observer of such developments, Tomoyo was definitely excited.
Please try to leave a review, as it really makes a difference while writing future chapters to know that there are folks other than me who are interested in it. I try to keep everyone in character in my stories, so please point out if you see any lapses. That would help me too. Thanks for your time.