A/N

2017 update: Well, it's been a while now hasn't it? My last update was 12 years ago to be exact. A lot of things have happened since then (like me ageing by 12 years lol) - CLAMP has released several CCS related series like TRC, XXXholic, and the new CCS Clear Card arc. Yet my love my ExT has remained strong, albeit becoming dormant for several years. In any case [SPOILER ALERT], I know that ExT is getting less and less chances of ever happening with the new arc revealing that Kaho is living with Eriol. BUT I choose to not accept that because it fills me with so much hate lol. (Yes, I know they're canon) And despite having stopped writing for so many years, I chose to continue (rewrite) and finish this story for the love of ExT! (…and also before CCS marries off Eriol with the old hag or something)

To be very honest, I've already forgotten the story I originally laid out for this fic. But the new CCS arc has given me newfound inspiration and now I'm back to the story board. I believe I got myself a pretty solid story, and for that I have upped the rating (may potentially go up to T later on). I also had to rewrite the previous chapters because, well, I can't exactly write as how I used to. Lol

This isn't going to be a long story, maybe 7 chapters at best, with some minor adult themes here and there. Also, I'm going to make an assumption as to how old Eriol actually is because it was never really revealed in CCS canon world.

P.S. I understand in UK they actually use the word Form Teacher instead of Homeroom Teacher, but for simplicity's sake I'm going with the latter.

In case you haven't realized yet, this story is sort of a teacher x student fic. But I swear it'll be awesome. Hope you guys enjoy :)

As always, R+R please!

Chapter 1

Tomoyo mumbled to herself as she wrestled through the crowded corridor of her new school. It was the first day of school and all the students were noisy and excited. She had been trying to look for her classroom and it didn't help that most of the students were a lot taller than she was. She glanced at her watch and groaned. This had to be a first. She was never late for class in Tomoeda.

She finally found her classroom at the end of the 2nd floor hallway. When Tomoyo reached the door, she studied her reflection on the glass. Her hair was disheveled, her white school shirt was pulled back, and her blue and white knee-length plaid skirt was crumpled and slightly out place. Quickly grabbing her brush from her bag, she combed it through her long raven hair and pushed her 2 blue hair clips back into place. She readjusted her uniform and took a deep breath before finally opening the door to her classroom. She opened her mouth for a greeting but was surprised to see all the students silently bowed down on their seats, intent on finishing something they were writing.

"I assume you are Daidouji Tomoyo from Japan?"

Tomoyo's gaze moved to the front of the room and felt her heart skip a beat. The teacher was standing on the platform up front, leaning back on the desk as he watched her with lazy eyes. There was something about the way he looked at her that felt mysterious and almost familiar. He had dark blue hair and blue eyes that were concealed slightly by his glasses. He was tall and lean with his long crisp shirt folded on his elbows. When Tomoyo met his eyes again, she saw that he had an eyebrow raised.

"Are you finished taking up all of me, Miss Daidouji?" he asked with an amused smile.

Some of her classmates laughed. Tomoyo blushed and opened her mouth in retort.

"No need to explain, Miss Daidouji. Please sit at the back and write a 5-page essay on how Biology, Chemistry and Physics are applied in this world presently." He continued as he laid the clipboard on the desk and looked at her. "And let me just remind you that it's important to be on time. I am very particular about tardiness in my class."

Tomoyo sat down on the very last seat at the back of the first row and took out her pen and writing pad. 'Today must be my lucky day. I managed to get myself an attractive but extremely obnoxious homeroom teacher.' So much for first day high. Tomoyo sighed as she started scribbling on her writing pad.

Suddenly, the teacher appeared beside her as he leaned down to slide a piece of paper beside hers.

"This essay is to be passed today. And please follow this format." The teacher then smiled wickedly and whispered. "You put on quite a show just outside the door, Tomoyo. I suggest you come in early next time if you would prefer to have some time for vanity."

Tomoyo looked in horror as she realized the glass on the door was translucent. She felt hot around the ears and fought the urge to glare at her teacher. She managed to catch his name from the ID hanging around his neck. "Thank you for the advice, Sir Hiiragizawa." She said through gritted teeth.

Eriol stared at her with an odd look at his face before turning around to attend to the other students.

'So annoying.' Tomoyo thought as she glared at the back of the teacher's head.

The rest of the day turned out to be quite peaceful. She met her new friends, Mika and Yuta, who were the only other Japanese exchange students in all her classes. They had been kind enough to talk to her during break. Mika was ranting about how suave and handsome their homeroom teacher, Eriol Hiiragizawa, had been. Yuta on the other hand was more concerned if the teacher would be recording the essay they wrote this morning. Tomoyo laughed at the two, enjoying the sense of normality she got from the company of the duo.

As Tomoyo was exiting the main gate of the school, she felt eyes on the back of her head. But when she looked back she found no one. She shrugged and continued walking towards the black limo waiting for her at the corner of the street.

Meanwhile, sitting on a branch of the nearby tree was Tomoyo's homeroom teacher, whose curious eyes slowly followed the raven-haired lass. He didn't expect to see her here of all places. A wicked grin appeared on his face. The look on her face when he teased her was priceless. She hasn't recognized him yet, she hasn't realized. 'Well, well, well. Seems like I caught myself a feisty little minx in my class.'

Tomoyo woke with a start. She didn't know exactly what it was that woke her up, but it was very unusual for her to be very wide-awake at five in the morning. She glanced at the clock again. 'Maybe one of the effects mom told me.' Tomoyo sat up and glanced around her dim room. Although her room here in England was an exact replica of her room in Tomoeda, it just wasn't the same. Here in England it was more gloomy and lonely for some reason... 'Not like it's any different from how I normally feel...'

Tomoyo hugged her knees and closed her eyes. A few years ago, something happened to her and parts of her memory were lost. She only started to notice it when she found herself lost and confused on the way to Tomoeda High School one day. When they left the doctor's office, her mother looked so grave. It was then that she knew there was something very wrong with her. Her mother hesitated to tell her at first, but after a while she admitted that Tomoyo had inherited her aunt Nadeshiko's disease, the same disease that killed her.

Sakura, who she still recognized as her best friend and cousin, tried to help her regain her memories by using her own recorded videos. With the help of some of the Clow cards, Tomoyo eventually remembered Syaoran and the rest of their close friends from primary school. However aside from the existence of Kero and Yue, she seemed to have forgotten most about their card capturing days.

After a few months, the symptoms got worse. Whenever she tried to remember something, her head started to hurt and on bad days she would pass out. This prompted Sonomi to convince Tomoyo about joining the scholarship program for a short-term study in England. At the same time, Sakura and Syaoran decided to stop the memory recovery sessions in fear of deteriorating Tomoyo's health any further. Mother and daughter decided to follow the doctor's advice and strictly focused on taking the prescribed medicine.

After much though, Tomoyo decided to push through with the scholarship application. She knew it would be difficult to separate from her friends and family, but her mother agreed with her that this would be the best time for Tomoyo to take a breather from Tomoeda life and relax. Being surrounded by people who worried about her 24/7 had kept her on her toes and prevented her from enjoying a normal high school life.

Thankfully, the medicine got rid of her short-term forgetfulness and her headaches lessened. The doctor also said that the illness itself had been subject to study for several years now and they were expecting a potential cure to come out soon. In the meantime, they asked the Daidouji family to wait. Before she left, the doctor reminded her that while the medicine would help to stop her from forgetting, she might still have the occasional inflow of old memories. If this were to happen, she was advised to immediately go to the school clinic or lie down if she was at home. The side effects weren't expected to last for more than a few hours. Most of all, she was advised to try and maintain a positive and relaxed lifestyle during her stay in England as this would give her higher chances of recovery in the future.

Her mother sent her many bodyguards and ensured all of her expenses. She gave Tomoyo her own house and car, but her car was to be handled by her own driver until she was fully recovered. She had also promised to keep in touch with both Sakura and Syaoran until she returned. Her mother reminded her to take her medicine regularly and call her bodyguards or her mother for any emergency. Sonomi had also given her a personal doctor that would visit her house every Sunday to check up on her.

Tomoyo grabbed her phone and checked the time again. 5:30 am. Her first class starts at 7:30 am so she still had a lot of free time. Tomoyo rose from her bed and walked towards her terrace. She opened the glass doors and welcomed the early morning wind that gently touched her face. She gazed at the horizon, overlooking the greenery that spread over the hills. It was good for her mother to pick a house just at the outskirts of town where there was not much noise.

She was thankful that she managed to get through her first few days of school just right, including meeting the friendly duo Mika and Yuta. More than that, there was their homeroom teacher, Hiiragizawa Eriol. It was a Japanese name. When Tomoyo first saw him, she thought that he reminded her of someone but she couldn't quite put her finger around it. He seemed to be of Japanese descent but there was no reason for them to have met before.

Tomoyo leaned down the rail, feeling the familiar frustration creeping up on her. It was always just there, like a memory from the back of her head that kept nagging her, wanting attention but never really getting one. She bit back tears as closed her eyes. It was truly difficult putting up with constant doubt of her own reality. She knew that she was missing a big chunk of her memory. Everyone back home kept giving her smiles and telling her everything was going to alright. She was still trying to convince herself that this was true. Tomoyo gently flicked the small bell attached to the strap of her phone.

'You're pathetic, Tomoyo. Stop being a crybaby.'

Tomoyo took a deep breath and forced a smile. At the very least, she moved to England in hopes of making good changes in her life during her stay. And the first step was to accept the reality in which she was in. She spent so many nights reflecting about how she shouldn't be scared of the unknown. She needed to stop worrying about the things she couldn't remember and anything about her behavior that she couldn't understand. 'Daidouji women are built to last after all.' She mused silently.

When the raven-haired girl glanced back at her clock again, a part of her wanted to go to school very early. Tomoyo remembered the crowded hallways yesterday, and that was all it took to get Daidouji Tomoyo to rush to school earlier than she expected.

At 6:30 a.m. Tomoyo was already at the school campus, walking silently along the garden path towards her building. She stopped halfway just as the sun washed the garden with a golden glow. She squinted and shielded her eyes with the back of her hand. The garden was almost enchanting, a mixture of red, yellow, and violet flowers blossomed around her. She could hear the quiet chirping of birds in the distance and smell the faint scent of fresh orchids. Her lips curved upward.

Eriol stood hidden behind a tree and appreciated the beauty of the deity that stood before him. Tomoyo's long curly hair was loosely tied by a ribbon on her back, and the wind playfully and lightly tugged at her the loose strands framing her face. The sunlight gave her an almost ethereal glow. Eriol studied her through half-lidded eyes, suddenly feeling the urge to run his fingers through her hair, maybe touch her soft cheeks or trace the smile she had on her face. She was beautiful.

Eriol cleared his throat as he pushed his inappropriate thoughts away. He quietly moved towards the raven-haired lass and stopped a few meters from her. "Lovely, isn't it? It's my favorite spot in campus."

Tomoyo spun around and her smile disappeared.

Eriol saw several emotions in her eyes as she looked back at him. 'Does she seriously still not recognize me?'

Tomoyo merely stared at the man in front of her and looked hesitant.

Eriol smiled.

"It's a surprise to see you here in the garden so early, Daidouji." Eriol spoke in fluent Japanese in an attempt for small talk. "You'll be surprised to know that I can actually speak Japanese quite well. My father is Japanese and I studied in Japan for a year you see."

Still there was no answer.

"It was a nice little town with friendly people."

Nothing.

'Don't tell me she really doesn't remember...?'

Tomoyo finally smiled and responded.

"I'm relieved to know that you can speak my native language. This makes communicating with you a lot easier, sensei," At this, Eriol winced. "I wish I could talk with you more, but I'm afraid I have to go meet with my friends now."

Tomoyo bowed and walked briskly past him.

"Wait a minute." Eriol said firmly.

"Yes, sensei?" She said.

"You're probably unhappy with how I treated you yesterday. You know I was just teasing you right? You're not really upset with me, are you?"

She gave him a confused look.

"I just want you to know that outside the classroom, we're still friends." Eriol smiled and reminded her. "So I hope you can stop getting all formal on me."

Tomoyo smiled back.

"I understand. Hiiragizawa-san."

At this, Tomoyo turned and ran. Eriol stood there, already frowning. What was wrong with her? It looked like she didn't know him at all, when the past few years they were...

Eriol's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Something was wrong.

Tomoyo stopped running when she finally reached her building lobby. She placed her hand on her chest, unsure if her fast beating heart was from the running or from the surprise of seeing Eriol. When she turned around to find him standing behind her, a dashing smile across his face, she panicked. He had this almost rakish vibe about him that morning. He was in a his dark colored shirt, slightly unbuttoned and held together by a loose white tie on his chest. His hair was pulled back with just a few strands loosely spilling out. She stared back into his eyes and felt mesmerized. It took a while to register that he was still talking to her and she eventually snapped out of her reverie. 'Two consecutive days of checking him out. Shame on you, Tomoyo!'

She looked back towards the now empty garden, suddenly wondering what it was they were talking about. He seemed to have been implying something about visiting Japan. Whatever it was, she didn't catch it. If she didn't know better, she'd say he was actually being unusually familiar with her. Tomoyo recalled the lazy lopsided smile he had on his face. There it was again, the nagging feeling at the back of her mind. The smile was all too familiar.

Tomoyo shook her head, realizing that she was starting to overthink again. 'Time to focus on more important things.' She thought as she pulled her locker open.

+++ END CHAPTER +++

This was originally 2 separate short chapters but I thought it would be better to just combine the two. This gives more insight on Tomoyo's background. More interaction in the next chapter, and eventually some insight on Eriol's background.

Read and review, please! Thanks guys! :)