Disclaimer: I don't own CCS, Clamp does. But I do own this story.

Pairings: Syaoran x Sakura, Eriol x Tomoyo

Chapter Seventeen

"Unfold"

"Today should be the last day," Sakura smiled up at him. "Tomoyo's been a huge help. She's been dropping by to help me after work the last two days too."

Syaoran didn't think that was all too good for Eriol but he chuckled nonetheless.

"I can arrange for everything to be moved here tomorrow morning. Oh, and I might be a late coming home this evening. I have to wait for the manager to arrive so I can return the keys to my apartment and settle the termination of my contract along with the last of the payments."

"Good. So by tomorrow, you're officially living here."

Sakura gave him a look. It wasn't like she'd been using her apartment much the last few months anyway. Syaoran had made sure to keep her in his place 24/7 save for the very rare three or four days a month when she had to stay at her place.

"I'm going to miss having Tomoyo so close though," she admitted with a small frown.

"I can buy out the floor below us and have her and Eriol move in there together if you want."

Her eyes widened at this. She knew he was joking but she also knew that it was entirely possible. I mean, this was- as the public would say -the Li Xiao Lang after all.

"If they end up married, that would actually be nice," she said and grinned.

"On second thought, I'll have to think about it. I don't mind Tomoyo but I don't know about having Eriol live so close and in the same building. That sounds like complete torture."

Sakura laughed.

"Yo!"

"What is it?"

"I'm forwarding you that lawyer's number."

"And here I thought you forgot all about it."

Eriol couldn't help but roll his eyes. It had only been what? Two? Three days? He had been looking for the file Akiyama had given him at his home but as it turned out, he'd had it in his office drawer buried underneath medical files all this time.

"I'll send you Nao Morita's number as well if you want to give the guy a thank you call too. Unless you want to give your thanks to his son, then you can ask Sakura for her senior's number."

Silence met this statement and Eriol had to stifle a laugh as he forwarded the second contact from his phone.

"Thanks."

"No problem!" he replied quite brightly. Syaoran's foul mood always did amuse him.

"Oh, and Sakura said today will be the last day they'll be packing her stuff from the apartment. So you can have your woman's full attention as soon as tomorrow."

"Thank you. Please give your wife my sincerest gratitude. Having to share Tomoyo these past few days got me all depressed."

"Just go get married already."

With that, Syaoran hung up and Eriol chuckled. It wasn't that he hadn't been considering marrying Tomoyo. He actually had, it just wasn't the time yet, especially not now when their best friends had only just had theirs.

"Eventually," he told himself and spun around on his office chair.

Sakura kicked the apartment door open all the while trying not to drop the large carton boxes that were folded up under her arms.

Lan gave an excited bark and deftly ran inside when Sakura let go of her leash. She had been taking the puppy with her wherever she went lately ever since she took her out that one time to see Tomoyo.

"Lan! Get come back here a sec will you!" she called after the canine as it ran back and forth. The leash was trailing after her and knocking everything from the boxes on the floor to the walls.

The puppy had taken to Sakura though and had immediately ran back her way when she called even if Sakura knew she didn't actually understand her. But when she did, the leash had slammed onto the legs of the small table in the middle of her otherwise empty living room. The leash had twisted itself around it and when Lan pulled on it to run back to Sakura, she deftly pulled the table along with her.

Dropping everything she was carrying, Sakura practically lunged to catch the large vase, but-

CRASSSHHH!

Sakura winced at the sound and the puppy nearby gave a tiny yelp before freezing on the spot. She at least knew she had done something wrong.

With a groan, Sakura looked at the mess on the ground from the scattered flowers to the water surrounding it to the pieces of broken china.

"Lan," she said with a sigh and the puppy looked up at her looking quite guilty for a dog. Her ears and her tail were hanging anyway. Sakura didn't even have the heart to scold her. Instead she bent down and unhooked her leash. "Be careful next time."

With that she proceeded to clean up the mess. Maybe it was her mistake to keep the flowers she had received from Kentaro and the Moritas in her apartment. But then again, Sakura didn't want to keep it in the place she now shared with Syaoran either. It didn't feel right for her because every time she saw it, it reminded her of her primary intentions of being with her current husband. Just the memory of Syaoran handing her the flowers that time days ago was enough to revive her guilt.

Sakura also knew that Syaoran had read the card since the envelope it had come in was torn open. But he never questioned her about it though, much to her relief.

"Is this it?"

"Yes sir," Josie replied before taking the documents her boss just signed. "I'll return later with the final compilation," she added before bowing and taking her leave.

Syaoran leaned back onto his chair and took out his cell. He may as well make the call he intended to give earlier. He wasn't sure if it was appropriate though. The flowers they sent may have bee addressed to them both but they were sent to Sakura and he was pretty sure Sakura had given her thanks already despite not telling him about it. But he felt like it was the right thing to do… being her husband and all.

With deft fingers, he opened the contact Eriol had sent him earlier that day and pressed a finger on the screen to start the call.

It had only rung around two times before the person on the other end picked up.

"Hashimoto & Kurata Law Offices, this is Ms. Isobe, Akiko speaking. How may I help you?"

Syaoran had to try not to sigh exasperatedly. He had expected Eriol to give him the man's personal line at least.

"Hello, may I speak to Mr. Kentaro Hashimoto?"

"May I have your name please?"

"Mr. Li Xiao Lang." He wasn't personally acquainted with the man but he did send the flowers, he'd at least know it was him after hearing the name, right? "My wife is an acquaintance of his," he added just to be sure.

"Okay, please hold."

Music had started playing but it didn't last more than ten seconds or so when an older man's voice started speaking.

"Mr. LI, good morning! This is Kentaro Hashimoto speaking."

"Good morning Mr. Hashimoto, I just wanted to personally call and give you my thanks for the flowers you and the Morita family sent the other day."

"No problem at all. It was the least we could do. Sakura's such a sweet girl and we're really happy it all worked out for her in the end."

Syaoran didn't quite understand what he meant by this but it was probably how the guy normally expressed his words.

"She had been troubled for a while. I mean, I don't blame her. The condition her father gave her wasn't something easy to deal with after all. But then even you gave your support on the matter so all's well."

Now Syaoran really didn't understand what he was talking about. What condition from her father? And what did he mean when he said Syaoran gave his support on the matter? He didn't even know there was a "matter" to deal with.

"Yes, about the condition set by her father," Syaoran started unsurely. He didn't exactly know how to ask about it when he didn't exactly know what he was asking about in the first place.

"Yes, you don't have to worry about that. I've spoken with Nao, or Mr. Nao Morita I mean. He's the Tomoeda branch's bank manager of the Bank of Japan and he's also the one personally handling the late Fujitaka Kinomoto's account. We spoke and settled matters on the day of your wedding with Sakura. He should know the final details however since he personally handled the transfer."

"Thank you for the trouble then," Syaoran said, trying to keep his voice casual although his insides had already begun to churn uncomfortably. He still didn't understand what was going on but something was definitely up.

"You're very welcome Mr. Li. Please don't hesitate to call again if you have anything else to discuss."

"Yes, goodbye then Mr. Hashimoto."

The man on the other line gave his farewell and hung up, leaving Syaoran to stare at his cell somewhat dumbstruck. From what he had taken from the conversation, it was clear to Syaoran that money was involved. Sakura's father's money to be precise. But why? He personally had nothing to do with Sakura's late father or his money, so why did his lawyer talk as if he had a role to play regarding it?

Syaoran never really did have much patience when it came to serious matters and this was definitely one of those. It somehow involved him after all though without his knowing it.

Without another thought, he proceeded to call on the second number Eriol had given him.

"Good morning, you have reached Mr. Morita's office from the Bank of Japan's Tomoeda branch. How may I help you?"

Inwardly, Syaoran felt grateful. At least the call connected within the office of the man he was looking for this time and not the company's main line.

"Good morning, I would like to speak to the bank manager, Mr. Nao Morita."

"May I know who is calling?"

"Mr. Li Xiao Lang."

"Oh! Yes sir, of course, just a moment please!"

It wasn't hard to notice the woman's voice getting flustered and Syaoran could only assume she knew exactly who he was and why he was calling. Although it was muffled, he could hear people talking in the background.

"Hello Mr. Li!"

The voice this time sounded even older but more enthusiastic than Kentaro Hashimoto.

"Good morning. Is this Mr. Nao Morita speaking?"

"Yes and good morning to you as well. What can I do for you?"

"I'm simply calling to express my thanks for the flowers your family and Mr. Hashimoto sent the other day."

"Ah, yes. I'm honored that you gave the time to personally call Mr. Li. But it was the least we could do. Sakura is the beloved daughter of a dear friend after all. It was such a surprise when we found out that she was engaged to be married to the Li Xiao Lang himself."

Judging from how the man spoke, Syaoran was sure he was a chatty type of person. Normally this would irritate him but at the moment, that was a good thing.

"Imagine my surprise when Sakura came in with that friend of hers last year. I mean, I already knew she was to be wed to a Li Xiao Lang but it never occurred to me that it meant you of all people."

The man on the other line laughed heartily but it was the last thing Syaoran felt like doing. Sakura visited Tomoeda months before he even proposed to her so how can they talk about their marriage?

"Mr. Morita, I actually also gave a call to Mr. Hashimoto a few minutes ago to thank him. He mentioned that you handled the transfer of Sakura's father's account."

"Ah, yes! I haven't spoken to Sakura yet about it but the matter is already settled. The condition of Fujitaka's will was met so I immediately did as he had instructed and transferred the total amount of 300 million yen to Sakura's bank account. The transfer of ownership of Fujitaka's property in England as well as the one here in Tomoeda has also been officially turned over to her name. Kentaro had already filed the necessary documents and had given the official copies to me which I will hand to Sakura when she decides to drop by unless she'll have some other person pick them up for her which is fine too. I understand you two must be busy with one thing or another considering everything."

Syaoran tried to calm himself. It wouldn't do him any good to jump to conclusions when he didn't exactly know all the necessary details yet. But now he at least knew a large amount of money and properties were involved and that they were successfully transferred to Sakura. What he wanted to know the most was why he was necessary for all this to happen.

"Mr. Morita, about Fujitaka's will," he started hesitantly. "I'd like to know its full contents if possible. I know it hardly matters now but being Sakura's husband, I'm concerned for my wife and I just want to make sure everything's all settled."

"Ah, well you are directly involved so I suppose there's no harm in confiding in you the details. Would you like me to send you a copy?"

"Yes, can you fax it to my office as soon as possible?"

"It's confidential so I'll do it myself."

"Thank you very much," Syaoran said sincerely before giving him his office's fax number. "I'll be waiting for it then."

"Alright, thank you again for taking the time to call Mr. Li."

"No, thank you."

Sakura checked her cell. No texts or calls. It wasn't like she was expecting anything and it wasn't exactly late but she thought Syaoran would've tried to contact her at least once but he hadn't all day.

"What's wrong?" Tomoyo inquired as she placed a plate of spaghetti carbonara on the table.

"It's nothing," she reassured and pocketed her cell before resuming setting the table. "I'm glad I finally finished packing everything. Sorry you had to help me all this time though Tomoyo."

"It's fine. I actually enjoyed myself. Who knew that much stuff could pile up after a couple of years though."

"I know. I didn't even think I had that much stuff."

"When are the movers getting here?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"You know you could've had a couple of Syaoran's people do all that for you instead of paying for a moving company to do all that."

Sakura shrugged. "If I hire a moving company, it just feels more… official I guess. I don't know… that's just me. I also don't want to bother Syaoran with more unnecessary stuff. He's already a busy man as it is."

"You sure Syaoran won't mind you have dinner with me tonight?"

"I'm sure it's fine. He hadn't tried to call me all day. I won't be surprised if he's still working up until now."

"Where's Sakura now?" Eriol asked, still frowning and looking very and completely serious which in itself was unusual.

"Who knows," Syaoran answered as he swirled the glass in his hands before downing the rest of its contents and silently picking another bottle from the bar in his office for another refill.

"Talk to her about this Syaoran," he suggested to which Syaoran merely snorted. "I'm serious. Maybe there's some explanation for this."

"I fail to see any. And if I think about it anymore, the more everything makes sense."

Eriol's frown deepened. He had come to Syaoran's office from his (rare) invitation, saying that he had something important to discuss with him. The moment he stepped through the doors, he had already been drinking and looking half murderous, half helpless.

"If I think back on it, Sakura was employed into my personal office around the time of her father's death. That would explain why she's been fairly straightforward with wanting to date me. True, I can't make certain as to why my name is even in her father's will but I have several possible conclusions. One, his father wanted her to marry into a rich family. I know that doesn't really sound convincing since he could've chosen a much more accessible person besides myself. Also, it isn't like they're strapped for money either which takes me to two, Sakura most likely lied to her father about dating me which ended up with my name on his will. That makes much more sense, don't you think?"

"Maybe," Eriol replied. He really didn't want to add more fuel to the fire going on inside his best friend but in his opinion, what he had just said did make sense. And if he himself thought about it, all those times he heard Tomoyo talk to and about Sakura fit this situation very well. So this was the marriage thing they were talking about on the phone those many months ago.

This realization did nothing for Eriol but depress him though for it meant that his own girlfriend knew just what Sakura had been plotting from the start and that she had supported it all this time. Sure Tomoyo didn't know that Eriol was Syaoran's best friend at the time but still, how can she blindly support something as conniving as this? Going so far as marriage just to get money? Really?

Eriol didn't realize his fists had tightened to vice-like grips until he heard the file in his hands crumple. He tried to smooth out the fax paper though it wasn't like he was interested in reading its contents again. Fujitaka's will was clear and straightforward, a ten year old would've understood it the first time it was read.

What he was concerned now is what would happen to Syaoran and Sakura. This was a big blow to Syaoran not only to his image for ending up married to a scheming woman, but also emotionally for he knew just how deep his feelings ran for her.

"Have you read everything?" Syaoran suddenly asked.

"Do I have to? I get the point without having to," he said rather bitterly.

Sure he wasn't affected by this as much as Syaoran but he had gotten a hint of something wrong going on. If he had done some further digging on the matter, he could've found out enough to at least delay their wedding or something. The thought of that really hurt his pride. He had been so close to making a difference. Things wouldn't have gotten this bad if he had.

"The last pages are instructions from Fujitaka Kinomoto in the event Sakura didn't get married to me."

Eriol rifled through the pages until he reached what Syaoran meant. It wasn't a continuation from the will but seemed more like a second part since the last page had Fujitaka's signature yet again just like the first part. These instructions must have been given separately is what he thought.

The second part was more detailed than the one Eriol had read earlier but it had a lot of different schools, groups, and institutions listed with a large amount of money written next to it. This ran a few pages.

"Three hundred million yen," Syaoran spoke again. "I could've just given Sakura that amount if she asked me. It also states that the properties her father owned would have still gone to Sakura even if she hadn't married me but it's just that the money would've been donated to the organizations and companies on that list with a portion of it left to her. But apparently she isn't satisfied with that much and would rather have all of it for herself than have some part of it given to a just cause instead. Even I didn't know she was that kind of person. I think I might have just married the worst possible female in the world. She makes those gold diggers and fame whores I've previously dated seem like outstanding women."

"What are you gonna do about all this? If it gets out…" Eriol trailed away. It wasn't exactly the time to mention Syaoran's reputation but it was something that needed to be considered.

"I already took care of it," he said much to Eriol's surprise. He had been there since late in the afternoon and had been with Syaoran since but he hadn't made a call or given any instructions so he must've done something before he arrived. That wasn't good. Syaoran wasn't thinking properly since he had just dealt this huge blow and Eriol was quite sure he couldn't have done something remotely rational.

"What did you do?"

Syaoran merely shrugged.

"We're home," Sakura told Lan as she ruffled her fur before settling her down free of her leash on the floor of Syaoran's- or rather their –apartment. "Syaoran?" she called out into the silent space. It was dark than it usually would be if he were there. "Not home, huh."

It wasn't unusual for Syaoran to stay at the office late but he would usually tell her beforehand if he did though.

She was about to head to the bedroom when the doorbell rung behind her. Half expecting Syaoran, Sakura opened it only to be face to face with one of Syaoran's bodyguards. She wasn't exactly acquainted with anyone from Syaoran's security team but she was fairly certain that this guy was the one in charge. She had seen Syaoran talk to him personally a number of times before.

"Ma'am," he said rather gruffly and handed her an envelope.

"Oh, uhmm… this is?"

"For you."

Without another word, he turned and headed towards the waiting elevator where another one of Syaoran's other bodyguards stood.

Sakura watched as the doors closed and the lights above it indicated they were heading back down the building.

"Okay?" she said, struck dumb at the situation, before closing the apartment door once more. Well now she was 100% sure that those guys were Syaoran's bodyguards. They wouldn't have access to this floor without Syaoran- or herself -if they weren't.

She looked down at the envelope in her hands. It was most likely from Syaoran and it felt like there was nothing inside it. When she opened it to check its contents, there was only one thing inside.

"A check?" she asked herself before pulling the rectangular piece of paper out.

It was indeed a check, and it was addressed to her.

The total amount was for 300,000,000 yen.

Author's Note:

Dun dun dunnnn... And the plot thickens!

By the way, 300 million yen amounts to more or less 3 million in US dollars.

You may ask why I chose that specific amount, but I have nothing to say except that it's the most realistic sum I could think of at the time of this story's inception. *shrugs*

Raeny