"No." Syaoran said softly, stepping in front of the girl protectively. "Why did you bring us here?"
Nadeshiko smiled slightly, then nodded at him. "I came to see my daughter."
"Then why did you bring us?!"
"Clow wanted me to bring her three best friends here with her."
With those words, Tomoyo appeared on the spot, a big question mark above her head. As soon as she spotted Sakura and the others, she ran towards them.
Syaoran ignored the newcomer and demanded, "WHY?!"
Nadeshiko then sighed. "I did not really want to be the one who had to do this to all of you, but I was told to do so from Clow Reed."
"Do what?" Cerberus questioned.
A blond woman walked into the area, took a seat. She smiled what seemed like an evil smile. "Go ahead Nadeshiko, or I'll tell them myself."
"Emi....." the magical creature glared daggers at her.
Nadeshiko nodded. Curtly, she stated, "I want all three of you to say good-bye to Kinomoto Sakura..my daughter."
All three of the mentioned people took a step forward. "Huh?! Why?"
"In other words, Clow wants her to be forgotten. She was a good user of the Clow Cards, but she wasn't the exact girl who was chosen to do the Cardcaptoring." Emi said with a shrug.
"I am going to remove her from your memories as well as you from hers." Nadeshiko said slowly. When looked at closely, they could see faint tearstains on her face. She smiled then. "I am sorry, Sakura-chan..I was not a very good parent already and now I have to do this.."
"Why do we have to forget Sakura-chan?!" Tomoyo burst out suddenly, her grayish eyes widened. "How are we supposed to forget her?"
"There's no way we could. And no way that we will!" Syaoran said strongly, fire in his eyes.
"Gomen nasai.." Nadeshiko's shape began to fade, and she finally whispered, "I will give you twenty minutes. Then I will be back."
Emi stood then, waved a hand and disappeared from the scene as well.
The remaining four were left to stare after them in confusion.
"She must be kidding." Syaoran snapped, annoyance obvious in his expression. "She actually expects us to believe that?! Humph!"
"I don't think we have any reason to doubt her though." Cerberus pointed out dully.
Sakura looked slightly frightened by it all. "I don't understand what's going on...!" she said faintly.
Syaoran stepped forward to take her into his arms, then widened his chestnut colored eyes. "Shoot!"
"Hoeh?"
"I have the weirdest feeling that this happened before."
"HOEH?"
"Just a feeling, though." he closed his eyes, trying to remember. "A long time ago....I read something about this place in a book...of Clow's...."
20 minutes after the two had left.
Cerberus was stiffly staring at the spot where Nadeshiko had appeared, Syaoran was still holding Sakura while Tomoyo was weeping slightly and whispering about how she didn't want to forget. Tension had grown considerably.
Nadeshiko reappeared where she had first come. The small sad smile seemed to linger on her lips as she looked at the group. She nodded slightly, then bowed. "Cerberus....Clow thanks you for taking care of Sakura-chan...Li Syaoran, I thank you as much as Clow for the same. Tomoyo-chan, I wish I could tell you to say hello to your mother from me....arigato, everyone."
Sakura's emerald eyes flashed. "You can't be my mother! If you were my mother, you wouldn't do this to me!"
Nadeshiko looked down and continued as though she had not been interfered. "Sakura-chan, I am very sorry." she instantly was in front of the group and waved her hand above them.
Cerberus was the first to fall. He landed in a soft hill of grass and began to snore. Syaoran and Tomoyo both fell at the same time...Sakura struggled to keep her balance, but to no avail. She landed next to the others, her eyes closing slowly. The last thing she heard was her name being called softly into her ear. Along with a tender, "I won't forget you."
And nearby, a blond woman watched silently as Nadeshiko buried her face against her daughter's body and began to cry.
"Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan!" a voice called out from behind the P.E. building and the auburn haired girl turned.
"Hoeh?" Sakura smiled. "Juna-chan!" she waved at the girl yelling towards her.
"Wait up! For a newcomer here, you know this place better than I do!"
Sakura giggled and waited patiently. "Really? This school's a bit small...."
"Hey! Stop making fun of me!"
"You're going back to Hong Kong?" Tomoyo questioned Syaoran, a sad expression on her face. "We'll miss you. Take care."
Meiling had a satisfied look on her face as she dragged the poor Chinese boy off to the airport as Tomoyo watched. The grayish haired girl then turned and headed off to school to see her best friends, Rika, Naoko and Chiharu.
And at home, the video recorder that she had kept so close to her at all times, was left forgotten in a drawer...along with many blank video tapes which had only one word on them. Sakura-chan.
Syaoran stared outside of the airplane window, watching as it went above the clouds. Meiling had her arm around his and he let her do so, eyes blank.
"Ne, Syaoran, you seem like you're thinking about something! What is it? What's on your mind, now?" Meiling demanded, ruby red eyes watching him like a mantis watching its prey.
Syaoran finally whispered, "Do you remember a girl who came to Japan when we were there? A girl by the name of Sakura?"
"Sakura?" Meiling rolled her eyes. "What are you talking about? Are you stupid? There's no such girl!"
"Oh." he said plainly. "Maybe it was just a dream, then."
"Probably." she stood up. "I'll be right back, I need to go to the rest room. Don't disappear on me, okay?" she demanded.
"Sure."
Meiling rushed off as the boy continued to stare outside of the plane window. ::Someday we'll meet again, Sakura....:: he thought to himself, ::And this time we'll stay together.::
"...Sakura..."
..and the boy had kept his promise of never forgetting...until the day of his death.....
And someplace else, a ten year old girl found a book in the depths of her closet and opened it. That book read "CLOW".....
OWARI.