Chapter Text
"Horror stories are so strange," Eriol said in a somber tone, looking thoughtful as he glanced at each of his friends, trying to catch a glimpse of the expressions on their faces.
He relished every sigh, every shiver, every goosebump that coursed through them as if he were a vampire feeding on it.
The fireplace flames still granted him the same dramatic aura that had surrounded him just moments ago during his calm and eerie tale. And the Englishman seemed fully aware of it, using it to his advantage at every moment, as though he had calculated every gesture, every tone of voice perfectly timed for each part of the story.
And now, while everyone enjoyed some marshmallows and hot chocolate, the young magician adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath before continuing.
What delighted him most in that moment was simply being with them again, seeing each of his friends reunited. After everything that had happened in their childhood, they had slowly drifted apart over the years. Despite keeping in touch by phone nearly every week, it just wasn’t the same. So he was genuinely happy that they’d all gathered with him and his wife to celebrate Christmas that year.
“Dinner should be served soon, but in the meantime, allow me to entertain you with one more tale before we eat.”
Beside him, Sakura jumped up before he could say another word, prompting a round of laughter from their friends.
The young cherry blossom had bloomed into a beautiful woman, with long hair and a smile even more radiant than the one she had as a child. She was an ethereal beauty, especially when she wore her husband’s oversized white coat, which nearly swallowed her whole and shielded her from the cold.
And her next gesture made her even more endearing in his eyes.
Sakura hugged a pillow tightly, glancing at her friends and then at Eriol, waiting with quiet anticipation for him to begin another story — one that would make her tremble with fear, just like when she used to listen to Naoko’s scary tales during school trips. The Englishman merely chuckled, reaching for his forgotten teacup on the side table, sipping the liquid slowly in loud gulps. Then, at last, he resumed his narration.
“Winter was harsh in the highest mountains of Japan. Still, that’s where a mother and her children had lived for years. Despite being kissed by snow often and facing unimaginable hardships, they always overcame every challenge because they were united.”
A second of silence fell over the room as the sound of the wind howled and a strange noise echoed outside the cabin where they were.
Syaoran Li dared to look away from Eriol and toward the cloudy landscape, but still, he couldn’t see anything unusual.
"Don’t worry. It’s just the house creaking. Shall I continue?"
Sakura almost said no but restrained herself and smiled.
“Yes. It can’t be that bad.”
Eriol laughed as if he knew a joke she didn’t and gave her that look that always made her feel something strange — tender and soft as always.
Finally, he spoke again.
“One day, the household’s foodran out due to her children’s carelessness, thus the mother asked her two oldest children to go hunting while she and the youngest would search for fruits. It was something they routinely did when their stock ran low, so they all assumed it would be peaceful.”
“What… what happened?” Sakura interrupted, her heart tightening with a pessimistic thought that something terrible might’ve happened in such terrible weather. Avalanches and wild, enraged animals flashed in her emerald eyes, and she clutched the pillow tighter as Eriol gave her an enigmatic look.
“You’re about to find out,” the Englishman warned. He calmly poured himself more tea and continued.
“The sky darkened. The mother and her younger children returned home with their pockets full of grapes and strawberries. Yet, the older children’s delay worried the woman, but she trusted they were fine — they knew how to fight and were as strong as their father. Still, it kept getting darker, and there was no sign of them anywhere. And so, she went out.”
“What happens next?” Li asked, leaning forward. The armchair creaked beneath him, but he remained tilted forward, eager to hear what Eriol had to say, holding his breath in anticipation.
Even after all those years, he still resembled that skinny, innocent child.
“What happens?”
“The bad weather triggered thousands of avalanches down the mountain, and the mother was buried alive. But her spirit survived, and she kept searching for her children, never resting for even a single day.”
Sakura jumped as she felt something touch her leg and darted toward Eriol, throwing herself into his arms.
And again, their friends laughed at her, but Eriol held her close, rubbing her back to calm her. Even so, he smiled as if he was thoroughly enjoying this — and he was, she knew it.
“Almost done, dear. Just hang in there a little longer,” he whispered in her ear and kissed her forehead.
Still holding his beloved in a protective embrace, Eriol continued with more deliberate and swift words.
“To this day, they say that if there’s a storm and you walk around the mountain, you might see her spirit wandering aimlessly. No one who’s seen her has lived long enough to describe what she truly looks like.”
He finished with a sigh, brushing Sakura’s tousled hair back and gently cupping her face, gazing deeply into her eyes.
He was always so careful with her, and Sakura was grateful for that. She nestled closer to his chest and smiled as she closed her eyes.
Eriol rested his chin on top of Sakura’s head and looked at his friends, each processing the story in their own way. For instance, looking toward Li, his not-so-little descendant was analyzing every detail of the tale, rubbing his hands together.
Tomoyo, on the other hand, closed her eyes and clasped her hands, praying that the spirit — real or not — could somehow find peace. Meanwhile, Sakura looked at Eriol with those big, frightened green eyes. Over the years, she had changed a lot, but she still had that sweet air and her unique way of seeing the world. She wasn’t as afraid of horror stories as she used to be, but she still got scared easily.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he murmured just for her to hear, rubbing his thumb across the back of her small hand.
“But think of how sad this story is. A mother leaves the comfort of her home, leaves her younger children behind to help the older ones, only to get lost and die — and still finds no peace. For her to rest, she must find her older sons, but she’s doomed to never find them. Ever.”
Sakura thought for a moment, then nodded. It was sad.
The thought of her endlessly wandering, climbing and descending that mountain, snow soaking and burning her feet with every step, in search of her beloved children, made the girl hide her face in Eriol’s neck and bite her lower lip. Suddenly, she felt more melancholic than scared and, to distract herself, she spun her staff key between her fingers — just like she used to do as a child when she didn’t know how to express her frustration.
“Candies?”
Spinel popped into the living room, carrying a tray full of sweets.
“Ruby Moon and Keroberos were stuffing themselves with candy, but I managed to save a few for you. I advise eating them quickly.”
The guardian left the tray on a side table and yawned briefly before heading off. The day’s festivities had been long and lively, full of dancing, singing, and magic — just as had become tradition ever since Sakura defeated Eriol and transformed all the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards.
Tomoyo reached out and grabbed several sweets. The black braids of her hair shimmered like a waterfall over her shoulders as she smiled at the couple before her. It was rare for her not to be carrying a camera or phone to snap thousands of photos of them, but in her memory, every moment spent with her friends was recorded and treasured.
She brushed sugar crumbs off her skirt and said,
“Lovely sweets. They remind me of the ones I ate in China. How are they made?”
Eriol laughed.
“They’re Chinese, actually. Imported just for the occasion.”
Tomoyo hummed and popped a few more into her mouth while Li methodically selected his. The Chinese man unwound his scarf and stuffed all the sweets in at once. His clumsy way made all his friends laugh, but he didn’t care — not even the pink creeping up his ears stopped him from eating.
Even if just for a moment, he missed home. And just eating those familiar festival treats made him feel close to his mother and sisters again.
What made everyone stop, however, was a tiny figure running into the room, her childish giggle echoing around them. Her dark brown hair sparkled in the firelight as she ran confidently toward her parents, asking to be held. Behind her came a very worried and breathless Yue — he had clearly been chasing the little girl down the hallways for quite a while.
His long silvery hair was poorly braided and adorned with black butterfly clips, which only made his hair and white robes stand out more.
“Maa, paa, Yu told me a sthory!” said the little girl.
She tried her hardest to speak clearly, though her chatter wasn’t always easy to understand as she was lifted by Sakura and placed between her and Eriol.
The little girl held her parents’ hands as she swung her small legs, staring at the fire crackling in the fireplace.
“He told me about... the Encounter.” She emphasized the word with a wave of her hands.
A faint light left her fingers and an image formed before everyone. Sakura gasped in surprise at the sight of herself at ten years old in her Tomoeda school uniform, the Clow Book still sealed in her hands as she searched for the source of a strange noise in her father’s basement.
The expression on her childlike face was one of astonishment as she opened the book to find only cards inside. She still remembered exactly what she thought in that moment: A card game stored here? I wonder if Dad will let me keep this book?
The image in front of them was the product of their daughter’s advanced magic, yet it was so real that Sakura could see her past self entirely. If she closed her eyes, she could relive it all again in seconds.
Tsubasa was probably so strong because she was Eriol and Sakura’s daughter. And the young lady Hiiragizawa would have to train her daughter properly when the time came, but for now, she simply squeezed her daughter's hand and smiled warmly.
Eriol, beside her, seemed to react the same way. They shared a long, secret-filled look, and finally turned to their daughter with grace.
“And what did Yue tell you about the Encounter?” Eriol emphasized, curious about this supposed tale.
“Paa made a mischief and Maa fought him. Uh-huh.” Tsubasa explained shortly and confidently, nodding her head as if she had said something very important. And everyone looked at her fondly — she was an exact copy of Sakura, except for the blue eyes inherited from her father.
Li laughed.
“And your mother fought very well, Tsutsu.”
“Weally?” She perked up, jumped off the couch, and hugged Sakura’s leg.
“Tell me everything!”
“Tell everything?” Sakura made a mock thoughtful face, then looked down at the little one, gently fixing her messy hair with her fingers.
“Telling everything would take a long time, sweetheart. And you’d surely fall asleep halfway.”
“But she already knows the story of how you became a Card Captor,” Tomoyo quickly jumped in. Always the doting aunt, she loved seeing her goddaughter smile, and whenever she had time, she would tell her many stories and show her tons of videos of her mom’s adventures.
Tsubasa loved hearing them all and always had something to say about the parts that caught her attention the most.
“So, how about telling the story of how maa and paa grew closer, while you were transforming the cards?”
Yue, who had remained quiet until then, let out a disapproving sound, glancing sideways at the clock and then at the child. For someone with a perpetually stern and serious expression, he no longer scared Tsubasa, nor did he stop her from acting foolishly — his own words.
“Or we could postpone this until tomorrow, when everyone is awake — right at breakfast, if you don’t mind, Mistress.” He reminded everyone of the time.
The little girl, however, protested without hesitation and wagged her finger at the moon guardian. “No! No story, no sleep, Yu!”
Stubbornness and beauty must’ve made up that tiny being, Sakura supposed. She didn’t remember being that insistent as a child, and she had serious doubts that Touya would ever say otherwise — he never spoke of their childhood days for a very specific reason.
But Yue, as always, was right. She looked at her husband, silently communicating all her thoughts to him with a glance only he could interpret. He was better at soothing Tsubasa’s tantrums than she was, possessing the knowledge and wisdom of his past life — though she had learned much through the years they had spent together.
“Tsu, I know you want to hear our story,” he began, gently taking her from Sakura and making eye contact with her, “but like your mom said, it’s a long one, and we’re all tired. So tired, in fact, we might fall asleep before the story even begins — and then you’d never find out what happened. Wouldn’t it be better if we told it to you tomorrow?”
The girl pondered for a moment, looking at the faces of her parents and godparents. She seemed to be searching for signs of exhaustion — and whether she found them or not, she didn’t say. Tsubasa was clever and knew how to recognize when a battle was lost.
She kissed both Eriol and Sakura on the cheek, taking her time to linger in his arms and the warm comfort they offered. Thick, cozy blankets didn’t hold the same power as the affectionate embrace of her parents.
Finally, she allowed Yue to pick her up, waving shyly at Tomoyo and Li. It was rare that she saw them in person, since adult life kept old friends apart more often than not, making the promises they once made on graduation day fade into memory.
Tomoyo, more than Li, was frequently in England for business — heading the fashion and cosmetics empire she had started in her teens with her mother’s support. Now a CEO, she didn’t have time for much else. Her clothing line had taken a while to gain traction, but it was now highly renowned, and she was living her dream: designing clothes and seeing people wear her creations out on the streets, pieces she had imagined and brought to life over the course of her entire life.
Li, on the other hand, had taken over his clan once things had calmed down after the battle against Eriol. The responsibilities fell on his shoulders while he was still young, and he had to learn to handle each problem that came his way, advised by his strict mother. He had become undeniably strong and wise, but there was still a trace of that bashful, stubborn Chinese boy from the past.
So yes, it was a miracle the four of them were together now.
Sakura stretched, feeling more awake now — and clearly, one memory after another was resurfacing in her mind, just as it was for her friends. She rubbed her hands together in an exaggerated motion and let her eyes wander to the vibrant wallpaper she and her husband had picked out when they first moved to Liverpool.
“I kinda miss those days,” she said. “I liked always running around and fighting. And I really loved the cards.”
“Then maybe we should tell that story — end the night in style?” Tomoyo asked excitedly, her eyes shining in a special way.
She joined her cousin near the fireplace to warm herself. “After all, I’ll be leaving tomorrow morning, and you are a good hostess, aren’t you?”
Sakura closed her eyes so she wouldn’t have to see Tomoyo’s pleading expression, but she was genuinely considering the suggestion. A quick glance at her husband, and she sat beside him again, taking his hand and playing with the rings on his fingers, organizing her thoughts and searching for the right words to begin her tale. Though, he coughed, as if he wanted to be the one to count his version of the story and with a sigh, she let him.
“Alright.” Eriol took a deep breath and smiled. “It was a few days after the sealing of the final card…”
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