Chapter Thirteen

Meet the End of the Story

I will overcome all my fears,

all hardships,

and I will overcome

my brother...

February 2020 – Somewhere above Europe

The private jet of the Li-family where they all sat in was one of the bigger ones from their collection. There was room for about twenty people, which didn't sound like much. That was the entire reason Sakura once again misunderstood the benefits of the rich. When hearing twenty people could board at the max, she expected a small and simple airplane. How was she supposed to know they would fly in a huge monster like this? That there were just twenty seats, but enough room for a few hundred? That all the rest was occupied with everything that could possibly entertain the passengers, and was not needed in any way at all?

All bewildered, she sat on a chair, trying to just stay still and take it all in, giving herself a chance to calm down. Such a plane, she called a waste of money. But maybe that was just her and her poor upbringing. Syaoran and Eriol certainly didn't mind all the extras. They were playing air hockey on a large table. Tomoyo stood filming on the sideline, rooting for her boyfriend who visibly lost. Touya and Yukito were watching a movie in front of a large flat screen, while her father, Fujitaka and Tomoyo´s mother, Sonomi talked at two luxurious chairs, a nice bottle of expensive red wine between them.

Meilin, Ryu and the other members of the Li-family all flew from China on a different plane, but Sakura believed it would be as meaningless big as this one. The only thing that still stayed the same, no matter how luxurious your plane was, was the view outside. Most of the time, she only saw the clouds, big and small ones, in all color scales of grey and white, sometimes mixed with purple, orange and yellow. And sometimes she caught a glimpse of the land underneath those clouds.

She didn't notice the end of the air hockey game, but when Syaoran came to sit next to her, she cuddled herself under his arm.

'Did you win?' she asked the amber eyed man next to her.

Syaoran gave her a grin and a kiss on the forehead. 'Of course, Eriol is no match for me when it comes to games. Maybe you want to give it a try? You might be better, at least better than Eriol is.' He nudged his head towards the table.

Sakura sank deeper in the chair. 'Maybe later. Let me just sit like this for a while longer.' She jawed and enjoyed the feeling of Syaoran's arm on her shoulders, the rising of his chest with his slow breathing and the weight of his hand on her arm. For a while they didn't say anything at all, just enjoying being near to each other.

'Calmed down a bit?' Syaoran asked her sometime later. He had of course noticed Sakura's reaction on their traveling method. She really tried her best to not turn around and run away, while saying something like: That's too much; I don't want to ride that thing for free!

Or something like that. He could somewhat understand her way of thinking, but only half way. Because he had always been rich, riding high class, going on expensive holidays was just a normal thing for him. Most of the time, he didn't even care all that much about it. But he discovered that going on these trips was a whole lot more fun, when Sakura tagged along. He just hoped she could get accustomed to his rich state. That instead of worrying and complaining, she would simply enjoy the new environment.

'Yes, I am. Sorry for worrying you again. How about that match?' Now she nodded her head towards the table, which made Syaoran grin boyishly at her.

'Sounds good.'

Half way during the first round, it was clear that Sakura was absolutely no match for Syaoran. Intrigued by the screams of fury from Sakura, Touya and Yukito had come to follow the game and cheer for Sakura. When she devastatingly lost, Sakura didn't even mind. The game had brought her in high spirits again. And although she knew Syaoran didn't mind winning at all, she pretended not to know and said sweetly to him: 'This must be so easy for you. How about a match with Touya? I'm quite sure he will try his hardest just to beat you.' To make it worse, she blinked her eyes innocently at him.

Within a second, Tomoyo stood ready with the camera and everyone made room, as if the match would become furious. Yukito shook his head, and had to try his best not to talk Touya out of it, seeing the victorious glint in his friend's eyes. He did wonder why Sakura opted this match. Wasn't she supposed to keep the two of them apart? When he asked her, she just shrugged, although her eyes said there was a reason behind it.

Sakura merely laughed and sat on a chair with a good view on the two of them. Meanwhile, Fujitaka and Sonomi gave a short glance and then just ignored everything. And so the long hours in the plane were filled with a match that just kept on going. When the flight captain told everyone to boggle up, the match still wasn't decided and turned out in a draw of 32-32, consisting of 10 point games.

It did result in two extremely exhausted boys, who, when they got out of the plane and set foot in Austria, didn't fought or argued and just tagged along with the others. Sakura ignored the two of them perfectly, and chatted happily with Tomoyo. Yukito and Eriol walked next to each other, on their way to the cab, and nodded both knowingly. This was Sakura's way of getting both of them to leave each other alone and probably her silent way of revenge for not telling her everything about the trip to Austria. Luckily, she wouldn't be all that surprised when they reached the chalet they would stay in.

February 2020 – Somewhere in the mountains, Austria

They all got in the cabs that Yelen had ordered for them and they drove towards the ski resort. Along the way, Sakura and Tomoyo gaped out the windows, when the airport got replaced by the highway, and later on picturesque villages and high mountains. Once again, the difference between Japan en Europe was outstandingly huge. The two girls looked at and discussed everything. Eriol sat in front and kept the chauffeur busy, while Syaoran sat next to them, sleeping soundly, his head on the windowsill.

Sakura was nicely surprised when they reached the chalet Yelen had rented. It was quite large, but that was only to be expected with so many people gathering. The roof was made of decorated wood, and covered with a four feet deep pack of snow. Large icicles hung from there and pointed towards the evenly decorated balconies. Behind the chalet, high mountains reached up, completely covered with snow. Little moving specks showed that those were the slope and that it was still open, even though it was already getting late. The chalet stood on a hill and in the valley laid a huge lake with little villages surrounding it.

She was pleased with their new holiday home, and now knew for certain that this holiday would be a blast, just as it should be. She got out the car and waited for the others to follow, because she didn't dare to be the first one to enter the chalet. Instead, Syaoran, no longer sleeping, went first, followed by Eriol and Tomoyo, all with their bags in hand.

When Syaoran opened the door, they got in a small hallway, all with closed doors leading to places they yet had to find out. At the end of the hall, stairways reached upstairs, and next to that, an open door led towards the living room, where laughter could be heard. Fujitaka and Sonomi told each other how lovely this all looked, while Syaoran led the way, by putting his suitcase down and walking in the living room, soon followed by the others.

Sakura heard Meilin yell and saw two arms appearing around Syaoran's neck. She thought it to be nice of Meilin to hug her cousin, instead of starting a fight. When Meilin let go, she hugged Tomoyo and Eriol, before bombarding Sakura herself.

'Sakura! It's so nice to see you again! How are you? Did you have a save trip? Did you like the plane?' Meilin asked all at the same time, while hugging her friend and smiling broadly.

Syaoran and Eriol rolled their eyes at each other, but Sakura answered everything at the same time. 'Meilin! Good to see you as well and I'm fine, had a nice trip and only half like the plane. And you?'

Meilin told her precisely and colorful about what she thought of the plane and the flight. Meanwhile Ryu greeted his friends and introduced himself to the others. A quick look around showed them that Meilin and Ryu where to only ones here. When they asked about the remaining Li-family, Ryu answered: 'Some work came in between and Yelen wanted to leave China a little later. Meilin and I didn't want to wait, so we took a flight earlier. The others waited for Yelen and they will arrive later in the evening. My parents decided on the last moment not to come.'

Meilin finally let go of Sakura and mixed in: 'We'll show you where your rooms are, and everything else.' She quickly introduced herself to the others and then demonstratively showed them the way in the chalet. Fujitaka, Touya and Yukito shared a room, as well as Meilin and Ryu, Eriol and Tomoyo and apparently Sakura and Syaoran. One look on Sakura's face though, made Tomoyo change this plan in the blink of an eye. 'I want to share a room with Sakura, and then the boys can share one too.' she said decisively. She shot the boys her famous do-as-I-say-look and earned with that a big grin from Touya and a mocking boyfriend. Meilin was perplexed, took Tomoyo by the arm and hauled her in the nearest room, out of hearing of the others.

'What are you doing?' Meilin whispered fiercely to her friend. 'Hadn't we decided to let them sleep in the same room?'

Tomoyo put her finger on her lips. 'Not so loud! We don't want them to know, remember?' she whispered almost without a sound.

'Then why?' Meilin asked again, her delicate face full of disbelieve.

'Because, you little idiot, Sakura got scared. Didn't you see her eyes? Besides, we should take it slow with the two of them, to make sure that Sakura is willingly at least. We've got the entire week to do as planned.'

'You call that slow?' Meilin muttered, but then let it rest. Better later in the week, then some different place and time, when she wasn't around to see and mingle. The both of them left the bedroom and stepped in the hall again, only to see that Eriol, Ryu and Syaoran were missing.

Meanwhile, the boys had retreated in the bedroom on the other side.

'Come on, man, do me a favor and switch with Tomoyo. I want to spend this holiday with my girl! Don't you?'

'Don't whine, you sound just like Tomoyo if you do that. And besides, didn't you see the look on her face? She is not ready yet to share a room with me.' Syaoran answered Eriol, both of them whispering fiercely.

'But...!' Eriol muttered without getting an argument out.

'Now you really sound like Tomoyo.' Ryu cut in, although he didn't know Tomoyo all that well. He and Eriol, together with the girls, had decided beforehand that Syaoran and Sakura had to share a room. But Tomoyo, the trickster, had turned sides on the last moment.

´Listen, you guys.´ Syaoran reasoned. ´I know that you all wanted to play matchmaker, especially Ryu because you haven´t had the chance yet to do so. I understand why you want to do this, but please...! You both know Sakura needs her time in this matter. Creating scenes won't ever help her. Promise me you don´t do anything stupid.'

Both boys looked mockingly at him, but then nodded. Syaoran didn't see their crossed fingers behind their backs. They returned to the hall again, only to find it empty and they went downstairs to the living room.

While the friends all argued, Sakura was left in the hall, doubting about what her so called friends had all in store for her. She was supposed to enjoy this holiday, and certainly not by getting mixed in a match making contest. Which was quite strange, when thinking about it. She knew for sure they wanted to do some match making, but didn't they all know Syaoran and she were already together?

On the other hand, she knew very well that Tomoyo saw trough her smile and that it was obvious that she did not yet want to spent the night in the same room as Syaoran. But they all knew that beforehand, didn't they? For god's sake, she already kissed him, a whole lot sooner than she originally planned. It just didn't mean she had to rush the rest as well.

Touya ruffled her hair. 'This is going quite well, don't you agree?'

Yukito rolled his eyes, and Fujitaka smiled just like he always did. But Sakura suddenly got agitated. Somehow, after that statement, she wished that she wasn't such a coward, and just shared her room with Syaoran, who after all, was her boyfriend.

Suddenly Tomoyo and Meilin got out of the room, just as Fujitaka proposed to get to the living room again and drink some coffee or tea. They all nodded and went downstairs again. First they all sat on the couch and chairs drank some and talked about everything that had happened since the last time they had met. The clock ticked already five in the afternoon, but they decided to wait with dinner until the others had arrived. So in the meantime, they went sightseeing in the village nearby. Fujitaka and Sonomi stayed behind in the cottage.

The road down was slippery with snow and ice, and occasionally they yelped and held each other upright. When they came at the centre of the village, they were in high spirits. They strolled down the few lanes and went in some souvenirs shops, and forgot the time.

Just outside the village, they discovered a market, with all handmade crafts. The group got split, and at some point, Sakura found herself alone at a stand with wooden statues, shawls and simple jewelry. She knew for certain that her friends were nearby, but because of all the shawls, she couldn't see them.

When she turned around, she unexpectedly bumped into a middle-aged lady, and they both lost balance. Sakura barely managed to steady herself, but the lady fell against a table, and some of the jewelry fell on the ground. Because of her thick dark blue jacket, white scarf and a light blue hat, she couldn't see her expressions.

Sakura immediately apologized though she forgot to speak English, 'Oh, I'm so sorry!' She gasped. 'Are you alright? Here, let me help you.' Sakura helped the women upright, before bending down and collect everything from the ground. The owner of the stand came soon enough and helped her, although he probably only wanted to check if anything went missing or not.

She apologized to him as well, now remembering to speak English. Then she found one of the wooden statues got broken, and immediately bought it from the little money she had: that's how sorry she was. When the owner finally went and helped other guest, she turned towards the lady again, only to find her laughing. Not a loud laugh, but a gentle, rather amused laugh. She held her head rigid, and Sakura noticed she looked Chinese. Furthermore, she was by far one of the most beautiful women she had ever seen.

The lady spoke first. 'Are you alright, dear? You seem to be worrying too much.' Her voice was as gentle as her laugh, with a rich, powerful sound to it. But most importantly, she spoke fluently Japanese, much to Sakura's relieve.

'Yes, I'm fine, thank you. And I'm sorry I knocked you over, I must have not paid attention.' Sakura apologized again, putting the broken statue in her bag. When she was careful with it, she might still be able to glue it together when she got home.

'Don't worry about it. These things just happen sometimes. It's nothing to fret about. But I am surprised you bought that little thing. It's the risk you take, when you open this kind of shop, so I'm sure he didn't mind all that much.'

Sakura gave her a weak smile. 'Yes, well... I would have felt guilty if I hadn't done that.' At that moment, four younger women came to see what the commotion was about. The first thing Sakura noticed was that they took very much after their mother, and they looked very much alike. Slowly, Sakura realized who she had before her. 'Quadruplets? Then you must be...! Oh! Now I'm even sorrier for bumping into you!' Sakura's face colored a deep shade of red and she felt very insecure at that moment. Of all the ways to meet her! She quickly bowed down and introduced herself. 'You must be Li Yelen. I'm Kinomoto Sakura, nice to meet you.'

Syaoran's mother bowed as well, smiling broadly but calm, which gave Sakura the idea that she realized sooner than she did. 'Nice to meet you.' She said in that smooth voice of hers. 'Let me introduce my daughters: This is Fanren, Shiefa, Fuutie and Feimei. The two men in the back are Keta and Han, the husbands of respectively Fanren and Shiefa.'

The four women were as tall, beautiful and composed as their mother and the differences between them where hard to see. Sakura could understand why little could keep them apart, even though they all had a different haircut and clothing style. The only difference was that one of the sisters had a bit larger belly than the others. Sakura assumed that she was Shiefa, and that Syaoran was right about her being pregnant.

The four of them observed Sakura for a short moment, and then their composure completely vanished. They moved at the same time and suddenly where all over Sakura, squealing, awing and adoring her.

'Oh, she is so adorable!' Feimei squealed, holding Sakura's chin in her delicate hands.

'Her eyes are so green! Xiao-Lang's favorite color!' Shiefa murmured, putting her hand on Sakura's cheek.

Fanren held auburn hair, all mesmerized. 'Such smooth hair! And it suits you so well.'

'Ah, and such cute clothes!' Fuutie told her sisters. 'I don't know the design, you must tell me where you bought this!'

But Sakura couldn't answer them. She was freaked out by the sudden attention. She had just realized that it was Syaoran's mother who she had so carelessly knocked over, when the four of them jumped all over her. All she did right now, was trying her best not to scream. The startled look must have been showing on her face, because just a few seconds later, two of the sisters (she had no idea which two of them) where hurled aside, by none other than Syaoran. He threw – gently - Fuutie and Shiefa in their husbands arms, and Fanren and Feimei in Touya's and Yukito's arms, who just showed up after Syaoran, and now fully got the attention of two of the sisters.

'Fuutie, Fanren, Shiefa, Feimei, get a hold of yourselves. You're embarrassing the family, as usual.' He gave a yelp when all four of them turned around and hugged him at the same time. But besides his harsh words, he hugged them back, quite lovingly. When they let go, he gently kissed his mother on the cheek and shook hands with Keta and Han. The girls excitedly introduced themselves to Touya and Yukito, and hugged Eriol, who showed up behind them. They treated Tomoyo exactly the same as Sakura, but praised her amethyst eyes, long hair, smooth skin and, of course her clothes. Tomoyo gently told them she made hers and Sakura's clothes herself, and then Fuutie took her by the arm and a long, long conversation started.

Syaoran went towards Sakura, as Meilin and Ryu joined the group. 'You okay?' he asked her gently as he put his hand on her back.

She smiled weakly up at him. 'Just a bit startled, I guess. It all happened a bit too fast. The first thing I know, I knock over your mother, and then I get attacked by overenthusiastic quadruplets.'

'You did what?' Syaoran looked at her amazed, then at his mother and started to laugh.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Dinner was a whole lot different, when the Li-family sat at the table. The quadruplets just couldn't stay silent; their husbands tried to reason with them, or otherwise, just ignored them. Meilin, Syaoran and Eriol obviously felt right at home and Yelen ruled the table like the beautiful queen she actually was.

At first, the others sat uncomfortably at the table, except for Fujitaka, who smiled his calm smile like he always did. But soon enough, everyone opened up, and the situation got more comfortable. On demand of Syaoran, the four siblings didn't attack Sakura or Tomoyo anymore, but didn't think that demand concerned their interacting with Touya and Yukito. Poor Touya had no time to, quite subtle, keep Syaoran and Sakura apart. The only one who kept the boys alone, was Fuutie, who was in a deep conversation with Tomoyo. Yelen conversed with Fujitaka and Sonomi, but often glanced at Sakura, as if trying to see if her future daughter-in-law was right for her precious son, or not. But somehow, that didn't bother Sakura at all. She talked with Syaoran, Meilin and Ryu, and felt more comfortably every minute. She thought that, maybe, she could get used to this strange family.

After dinner, Sakura went up to her room, so she could see if the little wooden statue could be repaired or not. Syaoran followed after her, wondering what she planned on doing, so she ended up by having to tell him the entire happenings on the market. He laughed uncontrollably at that.

'It really went like that?' he asked her and gave her a hug. 'Well, don't worry about it. My mom is not that soft to be hurt by that. Here, give me that thing. I'll fix it for you.' That earned him a broad smile and sparkling emerald eyes.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

There was no wind, no clouds, the sun shone brightly and everything that could be seen was covered in a thick blanket of snow. With a thick pink jacket, and white trousers, a red hat and sun glasses, Sakura skied down the ski run with excellent skill. It was Monday, and the slopes where filled with skiers and snowboarders. It was high season, and most people where one or two weeks free from work or school. She had already found many nationalities: there where people from Austria, the Swiss, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, England and a lost Moroccan. Maybe there were a lot more nationalities, but she hadn't found them jet.

She especially liked the winter, and even more so when she could go skiing. She had only done so during school festivities, but she had learned fast, and developed her techniques rapidly. So now, she could easily keep up with the others. In front of her, Ryu and Tomoyo skied. They where both the best of their little group and always skied up front. Behind her came Syaoran, Eriol and Meilin. The both boys decided to go down last, so they could pick up anyone who had fallen. They too skied very well. Meilin, directly after her, tried her hardest to keep up, but also was the one who got helped up most by Eriol and Syaoran.

Nonetheless, the slopes where long, the snow perfect, and the ski lifts comfortable. They had all the time they needed to get down, they stopped to drink or eat whenever they wanted, and just had a good time.

Ryu pointed with his stick to the right, and then went after it in a new direction, followed by his friends. They were already skiing since eight this morning and hadn't had a break yet, so when Meilin let out a yelp, followed by a curse, none was surprised but they all immediately stopped.

'The hell with it!' Meilin muttered agitated. She lay on the ground with the ski's tangled. It certainly was not her first time skiing, but she just couldn't get the hang on it. Eriol stopped left from her and put her ski's right, while Syaoran stopped at the right, and helped her up.

From a bit further down, Ryu called his girlfriend. 'Are you alright, Mei?'

He couldn't hear her answer, which was probably just as well, but Syaoran raised his thump.

'Let's stop and drink some, okay?' She yelled back at her boyfriend. 'I need to dry up!' And true enough, her bum and hand gloves where soaked, from falling down all the time. Ryu raised his stick, saying he understood. When Meilin started to move again, so did the others.

Sakura waited till Meilin was in hearing distance. 'You okay, Meilin?'

'Sure, Sakura. Don't worry. It's just that I still have a jetlag, that's all.'

Sakura nodded she understood, and they continued, until they saw Ryu standing at the side, next to a little restaurant, halfway the slope.

'Ah, finally!' Meilin yelled, and directed her skies straight towards Ryu, who embraced her warmly.

Sakura put her skies at the side, and walked inside the restaurant, followed by the others. They sat down at a table, viewing the slope.

'Glad you came with us this vacation?' Syaoran asked her as he sat down next to her. Out of habit – which she developed quite fast – she crawled under his arm. He gave her a small kiss on her hair, and she smiled sweetly at him.

'Yes, I am. But I don't understand our parents. None of them wants to ski! What's the use of going to a ski resort, when you don't want to ski?'

Syaoran shrugged. 'I don't know. Mother never went skiing with us. She works when we're not at the chalet, she cooks for us when we get there and then she just drinks coffee and talks with whoever joins her for a cup. I think this is her way to spend some time with us.'

'I think it's the same for your dad, Sakura.' Tomoyo agreed. 'He is rarely home, so I think he takes this opportunity to see you and Touya a bit more, this week.'

'And besides,' Eriol cut in softly. 'He told me he doesn't like to ski, because it reminds him of your mother.'

Sakura nodded sadly. She knew that. Before she and Touya were born, their parents used to go skiing often. They even met each other during a ski contest. Sakura could understand that her father didn't like to go skiing anymore.

'My mother has bad knees and can't keep up the entire week. She's coming along tomorrow, and Thursday. If her knee feels alright, she might go a third day.' Came Tomoyo's explanation.

'Here's hot chocolate for everyone!' Meilin piped in, holding a tray with 6 cups.

'You know what I don't get?' Tomoyo said, looking out the window. Everyone shook their head, except for Meilin.

'That this hot chocolate is so much better than in China?' she said smiling.

'No.' Tomoyo glared at her, but did first taste her drink before continuing. 'That Touya and Yukito joined Syaoran's sisters for skiing, instead of us.'

Sakura shrugged her shoulders. 'That's not so strange. Feimei has taken a liking to Yukito, and he convinced Touya to tag along.' Then she looked up in thought. 'Though it might have something to do with me begging Touya to go with them.'

'You're the worst.' Syaoran mumbled, though he, of course, didn't mind even one tiny bit.

'You know, this chocolate is really good.' Tomoyo muttered.

Sakura finally started on her cup. 'Hm, indeed.'

'Here, can you put these on the heater?' Meilin asked her and gave her her gloves. 'We have to sit here for a long time, if I want to get them dry.'

'And it's only the beginning of the day.' Ryo told the black haired girl teasingly. She huffed as she sat beside him. After all, she was still grumpy from the airplane. He had to do a lot better to get her spirits up.

'I don't mind staying here for while.' Sakura responded. 'It's nice and warm here.'

'And the hot chocolate is really good.' Eriol added who tasted his cup as well. He sat besides Tomoyo and held one of her hands in comfort.

At the end of the day, when they all went to the chalet, they could say with honesty that they spend more time in the restaurants besides the slope, than on the ski run itself. But despite that, they still had a great day.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

'Thursday?' Meilin whispered.

Tomoyo nodded. 'Alright. By then, they have had the time to adjust themselves to this place, and if it succeeds, they can continue for two nights in a row.'

Eriol sighed and rolled his eyes. 'What if Sakura gets scared? Poor Syaoran: he has to spend the remaining days all alone.'

'Nonsense! We gave her time, right?' His girlfriend shot back at him.

'Wow, five whole days.' Ryu said sarcastically. 'They have only been together since last week, you know. That's not a very long time at all.'

'What are you guys complaining about?' Meilin whispered furiously. 'Didn't you two really want to play matchmakers?'

Both guys shrugged. 'Well, yes, but there already together.' Ryu answered meekly.

'Then how long did you two wait?' Tomoyo asked Meilin and Ryu, trying to get back to the other subject.

Ryu blushed a nice shade of red. 'Well, not so long…'

'First day after we got back in China.' Meilin piped in, no embarrassed at all.

'Oh, wow. That's a whole lot faster than 5 days! So what are you complaining about?'

'Oh, shut up! How long did you two wait, then?' Meilin retorted.

Now Tomoyo had to blush. 'Three months.' She mumbled.

To get back on the point…!' Eriol sounded agitated. 'I don't mind doing whatever to Syaoran, but Sakura is really sensitive for these kind of things. All that has to happen is one misunderstanding, and then it's all over!'

'Dear, you whine too much. Leave Sakura up to me.'

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The week went by easily and happily. At least, most of the time.

There was this accident when Touya, Yukito and the quadruplets joined the group of friends for skiing for a day. And just as Sakrua had feared, Touya picked a fight. And not with Syaoran, but with Sakura herself. To make everything confusing, Touya and Syaoran treated each other with great respect, though you could see both faked it completely. And they made it a competition which they both enjoyed immensely.

But Touya of course had to pick a fight with someone. And who better than his little sister, if he couldn't hurt the gaki? Sakura had tried the entire morning to ignore him, but even her patience had run out at some point. The point being the moment they went to a restaurant for lunch. Unlocking the skies, they waited for Sakura to finish. She wanted to put her skies together and put them vertically in the snow, as they always did. But somehow, she didn't quite succeed. And then Touya had to make a remark: 'Leave it to a monster to make a mess of it.'

And that was the last drop. She hammered the skies in the snow – finally succeeding – and turned towards her usually-acceptable-but-not-today-brother. 'Why you!' She yelled and stomped towards him to give him his usual stamp on the foot. She succeeded in hitting his foot, but he didn't cringe at all. And just as Sakura realized her mistake, her own foot slit away from his, and she fell face first in the snow.

Touya stared at her for a moment, decided enough was enough and then burst out laughing.

Sakura's face went beet red, although no one could see, and she mumbled: 'I'm not a monster.' She wanted Syaoran to help her, but when he appeared at her side, he laughed as well. Even worse, she heard the entire group laughing.

'Did you really forget we're wearing ski boots?' Touya asked with a big grin. 'My feet are save as long as I wear these.'

Sakura looked up at her big brother, with malice in her eyes. 'Then you better start wearing them forever!' But he just laughed and went inside the simple restaurant, soon followed by the others. Only Syaoran waited for her to get up. It's the least he could do, Sakura thought with anger. But when she looked at him, she forgot all her negative feelings. He still wore a big grin, an honest, beautiful big grin. She fell in love with him all over again.

She pouted at him, and he helped her get rid of most of the snow and then kissed her gently on the lips. At least this accident had a happy ending.

But other than that, nothing much happened. Touya did as told and wore his ski boots most of the day and evening, and didn't give Sakura any opportunity for revenge.

Besides this accident, only one strange thing happened to Sakura. She knew for certain, really very certainly, that Tomoyo, Meilin, Eriol and Ryu were planning something. And seeing their nature, Sakura didn't trust them one tiny bit.

She already had an idea of what they were planning, so she thought of a countering attack. Sadly enough, she didn't come up with a good one. That meant there was only one option left.

On Thursday evening, Sakura grabbed her bag, and placed them in Syaoran's room. Syaoran had no idea what went on, but when he asked her, he got a vague answer. 'Just a moment, I'm trying to ruin their plans.'

When she got all her belongings in Syaoran's and Eriol's room, she took Eriol's belongings and put them in Tomoyo's room and then returned to Syaoran again. He stood in his room, and raised an eyebrow at her.

'Listen, Tomoyo and accomplices are trying something. I'm not hundred percent sure, but I think they want us to change rooms. Probably with the lame excuse that Tomoyo and Eriol want to spend some time alone.' She whispered, her face close to Syaoran's ear, so no one else could hear. 'They haven't had time to play matchmakers and Tomoyo lost some chances to videotape us, so I really think this is their plan.'

Syaoran tried his best to concentrate on her words. She was so close, and she just did the bolt thing of moving her belongings in his room. Did she really mean to...? Could it be that...? 'I don't get it. Are you trying to play along with them?'

Sakura shook her head at his foolishness. 'No, of course not. I can't think of a way out, so I'm just trying to make sure they don't have all that much fun in playing matchmaker. Where is the fun in planning everything, only to find out you did it for nothing?'

Syaoran sighed. 'So you want to change rooms, before they have the chance?'

'Basically, yes.'

'And do you realize that you're spending the night in my room?'

She looked blankly at him, and then it suddenly hit her. She turned beet red.

'I thought you didn't want that yet?'

'You're not going to do anything, right? I trust you.'

Syaoran stared at her for a full minute, before giving a deep sigh. 'Sakura, you're my girlfriend. I will do anything you say: if you say I can't touch you for the first five years, then fine! But do you really have to provoke me?'

Sakura blinked her eyes once. Twice. And then gave him a wavering smile. 'Really?'

'What, really?'

'Is it really that hard? To not touch me?'

Syaoran let out a laugh. 'Of course, because I really love you. And that's also the reason I'm trying so hard not to touch you. I don't mind taking everything slowly, because I know it's what you want. I don't mind you sleeping here, if that is what you want. But please consider my feelings as well. Can't you at least ask me if I'm okay with it?'

Sakura's feelings raced inside her head. She could understand what he meant, and she knew what she had done wrong. Why hadn't she thought of asking him in the first place? He had as much to say in their relationship as she did. She hadn't, not even once, thought about how fast he himself wanted to move. He obeyed by her rules, and she didn't even realize. A tear formed in her eye. 'I'm sorry. I should have asked you at the beginning.'

He held out his thumb to clear away the tear. 'Don't cry, Sakura.' He held her close and kissed her hair.

'Syaoran?'

'Yes?'

'How fast do you want to go?'

'Well, we're only together for a little more than one week. I don't want to move that fast. Not only because I know you don't want to, but also because I myself don't want to. I love you, even without sex and I want to prove you how much, before taking that step. So even if you're sleeping in this room, I won't try anything. But to be honest, I would like you to sleep beside me, so I can hold you close, and know that you're not going anywhere soon.'

'I'm sorry, Syaoran, that I didn't ask before barging in.' Sakura sniffed in his shirt and grabbed his shirt at the back. 'Please let me sleep beside you tonight?'

Syaoran let go of her and smiled. 'I would like that. And I have an idea to cheer you up.'

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

'Where's my bag?' Tomoyo muttered agitated. Did Sakura clear the room, or something? And where was Sakura anyway? Come to think of it, where did Syaoran disappear off to? She had to find them soon, or else their little plan couldn't be put into motion.

She looked in the closet, and under the bed, until she finally found a bag. But it definitely wasn't hers. Wasn't that Eriol's bag?

She went downstairs, to ask Eriol, who followed her up stairs, accompanied with Meilin and Ryu.

'What's my bag doing here?' Eriol asked no one in particular. He looked amazed at his bag, which stood under Tomoyo's bed.

'Hey, isn't that your bag?' Ryu asked his black haired girlfriend, pointing under Sakura's bed. The suitcase under Sakura's bed wasn't pink, as it should be, but an expensive looking shiny black one.

'What's my bag doing here?' Meilin repeated after Eriol.

'But my bag is still not here!' Tomoyo whined.

The four friends looked at each other dumbfounded, and then all thought the same thing. They turned around and quickly went in Ryu's and Meilin's room.

'Mine is still here.' Ryu said with a smile, looking at his bag, standing at the exact place where he left it.

'Ah! There it is!' Tomoyo exclaimed and hurried towards her velvet bag. 'But what's it doing here? I'm not going to share a room with Ryu!' On second thought she added: 'No offence, Ryu...'

'None taken.' he said gallantly. He didn't want to share with her either.

'But why...?' Meilin asked, looking at her friends for a clue.

'It can only be....' Eriol pointed out. His friends understood immediately. They ran towards Syaoran's and Eriol's room, only to find it locked.

'Are they in there?' Meilin asked excitedly.

'I can't see anything.' Tomoyo tried to look through the keyhole. 'And I don't hear anything.' Then she smiled wickedly. 'Maybe there busy?'

'Maybe we can see more from the balcony?' Eriol opted, which earned him a broad smile from his excited girlfriend. Out of nowhere she grabbed her camcorder. Ryu and Meilin rolled their eyes at them. They were in for a game of how-to-make-sure-Sakura-and-Syaoran-get-closer-together, but they definitely weren't as bad as that love-addicted-couple.

Just as they wanted to enter Sakura's and Tomoyo's room, they could hear Sakura downstairs, talking to her father.

'I thought she was in there?' Meilin whispered fiercely. The others just raised their shoulders at her and eventually they decided to go downstairs and forget it for the moment.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

'I'm going to sleep.' Sakura said, yawning widely. She just lost for the fourth time at the game they played and rather not lost a fifth time.

'Good idea.' Syaoran admitted. He just won for the fourth time in a row, and grew tired of it.

'Hm.' Tomoyo looked expectantly at Eriol. 'Shall we go as well, Eriol?'

Eriol nodded obediently. 'Good idea.'

Meilin yawned as well, although it was visibly fake. 'Yes, I'm tired. Are you coming too, Ryu?'

Ryu nodded obediently. 'Good idea.'

Sakura and Syaoran knew immediately they were still up to something.

When they went upstairs, it was remarkable that none of their friends said anything when Sakura and Syaoran disappeared in the same room. Tomoyo and Meilin switched rooms, without blaming them, and soon everything was silent.

It took a while before Syaoran and Sakura had convinced themselves that nothing would happen, before they fell asleep.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

'Ssst!' Tomoyo whispered and tried to shut up the quadruplets, who were giggling like young girls. 'You're waking them!' They grew silent and everyone held their breath as Ryu tried to move the curtains without a sound.

They stood at the balcony in front of the room Syaoran and Sakura slept in. It was still dark, and the moon gave enough light to see something. Everyone was present, except for Fujitaka who didn't want to sneak upon his daughter and Keta and Han, who didn't really care. Sonomi surprised them all by showing the same strange hobbies ass her daughter. Instead of a camcorder, she held a camera. Touya stood stern and rigid at the back, glaring like crazy, with Yukito at his side to strangle him if necessary. Yelen stood next to her four daughters, showing the same enthusiasm as them: she too held a camera. Tomoyo, Eriol and Meilin stood in front, camcorder ready, and Ryu tried his best to move the curtains through the half opened windows. Ever so slowly he succeeded.

The results of his hard work and their efforts to stay silent were worth it. When the curtains opened, there was a clear view on the bed. Sakura and Syaoran lay in bed, his arm around her, her head on his chest. Both slept soundly and seemed very happy.

Tomoyo filmed, Yelen and Sonomi took pictures, and the quadruplets tried to squeal softly.

In the back, Touya smiled softly. No, he didn't like the gaki. But if he had to give his sister to someone, it would be him. They both looked so serene and comfortable. So happy. And that's what he wanted for his little sister, in the end. He promised himself to at least try to behave himself towards the ga... eh... Syaoran.

And besides, they both wore pyjama's, so nothing had happened yet.

He didn't notice Yukito, who saw his accepting expression. He didn't say a word, afraid that Touya would take his thoughts back, but smiled happily. When he looked at the window again, he noticed Tomoyo. She had pointed her camera towards them, and captured the moment where their feelings where visible on their faces and gave Touya an encouraging smile.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

THE END