Regrets (Sakura/Yue)

[storypaint]

Comm: 52_flavours
Words:
Title: Regrets
Series: Cardcaptor Sakura
Theme no.: 17. Fitly to themselves most hard to bear
Character(s)/Pairing: Kinomoto Sakura/Li Syaoran, Yue/Clow Reed, hints of Kinomoto Sakura/Yue
Rating: G
Notes/Summary: Sometimes regrets sneak up on you. A story set in Sakura's future, assuming she is like Clow Reed and doesn't age at a normal rate.

Disclaimer: Cardcaptor Sakura belongs to CLAMP. All fanfiction archived here is a derivative of canon material that is not my property. I do not profit from these writings. The opinions and actions expressed in these stories are not necessarily the views and beliefs of the original author or me.

It was a lesson that the young Sakura never would have learned: sometimes regrets sneak up on you. In her case, July 13 sneaked up on her that year, and she found herself without a gift for him, and nostalgic.

"Mistress?"

She'd been contemplating old memories and staring out across the lake behind the house. Yue also had a habit of sneaking up on her. Seven decades and she still went, "Ho-ee!" when he appeared suddenly.

"Yes, Yue?" she said, turning to embrace him. As always, he stood stoicly in her embrace, barely moving enough to return it. She wondered when he'd stop being so stiff. It reminded her of the way Syaoran used to stand when she hugged him, and she didn't want to remember again.

She pulled away from him and looked back over the water.

"Is there anything you regret, Yue?" she said, looking at him from the corner of her eye, noting the way he'd reached for her-- just a little-- when she'd let go.

"No," Yue lied, and she could tell he was lying, but she said nothing, wishing that she wasn't one of those things.

Sakura looked over the water and thought about a boy long dead. After a moment, Yue moved closer. His fingertips brushed her hand and she grabbed back firmly. He thought about a man with smiling eyes and perfectly round glasses for a moment, and then squeezed back just a little.