Her life had by no means taken a dramatic, despair-ridden turn for the worse, though by all rights, perhaps she should have considered it in that way. Not that she was particularly thrilled, either. No, she merely chalked the occurrence up as one of the more unpleasant things Fate had in store for her. More than anything, she was permeated by a deep feeling of resignation.
Really, she was just...gloomy, in general.
That wasn't to say, however, that she was the outright epitome of depression. She didn't hate her life, nor did she despise everyone around her.
She was indifferent, rather pessimistic, and she wished that for once, something nice, something good, anything pleasant, would happen to her.
And so, the news rumbled smoothly from the village elder's wrinkled lips. The obligatory pity came with the news, and she was sure it wasn't utterly false, that the elder must have felt at least a little genuinely sorry for her, but it was worth nothing to her all the same.
"It is unfortunate, to be certain, and I regret it deeply, but I am afraid that the ancient curse that befalls our village has chosen to bind you, Sakura Kinomoto, to the one of Dragon Descent. If we are to preserve our village, and not let disaster fall upon it, we have no choice but to send you, along with our dearest hopes for your well-being."
Well-being, her ass.
The expected deluge of whispers washed over Sakura from every which way, and she clenched her teeth in more emotion than she usually expressed.
"...It's her, that one."
"Oh, thank God it didn't choose me!"
"Ssh, she can easily hear you, dolt!"
"I feel bad for her, but...well..."
"I know what you mean. We're actually kind of lucky this time around. I mean, to be honest..."
"Yeah. This choice affects us the least. She's always sort of been a loner; no family, even."
"This way, we don't sacrifice as much."
Bastards, the lot of them.
One thing Sakura could say for certain is that she was surrounded by morons.
Morons, who, she had to grudgingly admit, were absolutely right.
It was as if the years finally caught up with her, and she allowed a single tear to slide slowly down her cheek.
Auburn wisps framed her face as she plodded back to her secluded home.
Frantic footsteps pounded the pavement behind her, and she turned to look.
"S-Sakura! Wait up!" gasped the girl as she caught up.
"Tomoyo."
Said girl breathed slowly for a couple of seconds, before straightening her back and gazing straight into Sakura's listless emerald eyes.
"They can't...They can't do this! I-I don't know what to say, except...they just can't! Not you, Sakura!"
Sakura smiled, half bitter, half relieved to find one person who held true concern for her. Tomoyo was, most likely, her only genuine friend among the scattered populace within the village. The only one to have stayed by her side ever since childhood.
"It's...okay, Tomoyo. I've already resigned myself to it. When it comes down to it, it's probably for the best. It's not like there was that much left for me here. No one would really mourn my absence, you know?"
Tomoyo vigorously shook her head, her silky black locks whipping to and fro.
"I would, Sakura! You...You still have me! Your mom and dad might have...might have gone, but they wouldn't want you to just accept it like this! And they wouldn't want me to just let you! Please, there must be some way..."
Sakura calmly shook her head.
"You know that there isn't, Tomoyo," she said, not unkindly. "Ever since way back when, so many years before our time, before our parents or grandparents or their grandparents were even born, this is how it has to be. Once the next in line, the one who bears the title, One of Dragon Descent, is ready and willing, the curse placed on our village will activate and choose a sacrifice. That sacrifice is to travel alone to the lair of the One, and...and become his. Or hers."
Tomoyo bit her lip.
"We can't let this happen to you, Sakura! No one knows of what happens to those people who are chosen! All we know is that they never return, and those in the village will never see them again. It's...It's too ambiguous, Sakura! We-We don't know if you're being chosen as...as a lover, or...or...slated for death...or...to be some foul monster's meal, or...who knows what? Please, I...don't want to lose you, Sakura."
Sakura smiled a real smile this time. For as long as she could remember, ever since her parents died, only Tomoyo could ever make her feel this touched and complacent.
She walked up and wrapped her arms around Tomoyo, who had already begun sobbing.
"Thank you," Sakura stated, in a soothing voice. "Thank you, Tomoyo, for always being there for me. But you're all I have left, and I don't want to you see you dragged into this somehow. You have your own family and friends to turn back to. And you have too much to lose. So let me bear this on my own."
Tomoyo wailed softly against Sakura's chest.
"I'll always be your friend, Tomoyo. Even if you forget me...I'll always cherish what we had, no matter what."
"I-I won't!" Tomoyo burst out. "I won't ever forget you, Sakura! And...And I promise, I'll find some way! Some way to bring you back, safe and sound! And you have to promise me! Stay alive, so that we can meet again."
Sakura bit her lip, and knew that that was a promise hard-kept. But she looked into her friend's amethyst pools, radiating with determination, fury, sadness, and desperation, and sighed.
"I promise, Tomoyo."
Over the next few days, Sakura sluggishly prepared for her inevitable journey. Mentally prepared, that is. Apart from what she was wearing, she apparently wasn't allowed to bring anything at all with her when she went.
Tomoyo insisted on spending every last moment with her, but Sakura would have none of it.
"You can't just skimp out on your family and duties just to accompany me in my final hours. What about Eriol?"
Eriol was Tomoyo's lover. The two had admitted their feelings for each other fairly recently, and had since been involved, in every sense of the word.
Tomoyo puffed out her cheeks indignantly.
"Eriol, Shmeriol! You're about to embark on a life-changing-" Tomoyo faltered. Sakura could tell that in her mind, she was contemplating that the words might well have been "life-ending" instead.
Tomoyo shook her head fiercely.
"A life-changing journey! Why can't I spend some time with my best friend who's about to leave?"
Sakura shook her head, nearly as ferociously.
"You can, you just can't spend every waking minute in my presence! I'm not the only person who loves you, Tomoyo."
Tomoyo sighed.
"At least let me comb your hair. It's sticking out all over the place, in ways I can't stand."
Sakura laughed.
"Fair enough."
As the days went by, Sakura could feel the curse's energy welling from deep within her. It manifested sometimes as a feeble, flickering purple aura that encompassed her torso area. It grew stronger with each passing moment, and she could feel its immense pull, urging her past the confines of the village, roaring at her to go past its boundaries and find the place she was now bound to.
She was nearing her day of reckoning, so to speak, and the rumors were spreading like wildfire. Not only of her and her predicament, but of the Dragon descendant that she was to supposedly go meet.
"I've heard that it's a grotesque beast who feeds on human flesh."
"Not only that, someone told me it disguises itself as a human to lure passersby into a false sense of security."
"Its true form has scaly wings, and can breathe fire. It likes to scorch its victims before consuming them."
"Its even abducted several of the village's children. No doubt planning to add them as ingredients to some dreadful concoction."
Sakura recognized that last statement as actually having some semblance of truth to it, though grossly over exaggerated. A few years back, still after the time of her parents' death, one child went missing. The family of the girl claimed to have no idea what had happened, only that one day, the child simply disappeared. Apparently, the girl had been four years of age at the time.
Whether or not it was because the One of Dragon Descent had actually swooped in and taken the child, or whether it was a mere accident or other circumstance, Sakura didn't know.
A few people had walked up to her and gave their condolences, but otherwise, Sakura had largely no direct contact with the inhabitants of the village apart from Tomoyo.
And before she could blink, her time had already seeped away, and the day had come.
She wrapped her brown, ragged cloak tightly around her as the wind came in sharp, cold bursts.
She turned back to look, and was not surprised to see that hardly anyone came to see her off.
Surely, they have better things to do than say goodbye to a girl they hardly ever interacted with, who's now as good as dead, with nothing left tying her to her home of nineteen years.
All her life she lived in that village, and though it wasn't the best of experiences at times, it had been her only home.
And now, she is being forced to forsake it.
Among those who did come were the elder and Tomoyo.
"We wish you luck, Sakura. My apologies, but you cannot bring with you any of your personal belongings, other than travel attire. As outlined by the curse."
She wanted to roll her eyes. One would almost think the idiots of this village revered the curse rather than feared and despised it as they should.
"It is stated," the elder began, "that long ago, the curse was first placed on us when a strife arose between us and those of Dragon Descent. They are said to be bloodthirsty monsters, just one of which is capable of leveling entire homes and slaughtering hundreds. The leader of the Dragon-born people had desired a maiden from among our people, and for the sole purpose of quelling his insatiable lust, began a siege that would demolish most of our ancestors' entire society. Needless to say, he obtained what he wanted, and even afterwards, as punishment for our resistance, however feeble, declared that he would place a curse so that in every new age and era, his descendents, those of Dragon Descent, would claim one person from the village as a sacrifice."
He exhaled deeply.
"That sacrifice is then forever bound by the curse to the One of Dragon Descent, whomever or whatever it might be."
This time, Sakura really did roll her eyes.
Gee, way to make me feel better before I go.
Sakura pointedly ignored him and strode over to Tomoyo, before giving her a parting embrace.
"Sakura..." Tomoyo sniffled. "Take...Take care of yourself, okay?"
Sakura, for a fleeting moment, felt like retorting that that was probably impossible, but it passed and she grinned.
"You too, Tomoyo. Send your mom and dad and Eriol my regards."
Tomoyo nodded, even while crying, and hugged Sakura tighter.
"You'll be alright, Sakura. I-" she sniffed. "I just know it."
Sakura nodded, then gently broke the embrace and backed away.
She waved, as did Tomoyo, took one last look at the cottages and vegetable fields of her former home, before swiveling around and taking her first steps along the pebble-strewn road.
She tugged lightly at the scarf around her neck, loosening it the slightest bit.
Her feet kicked at the gravel on the ground as she methodically walked along the path, towards the home of the Dragon descendant.
Clouds had gathered overhead.
"Oh, shit," she muttered. She hoped that she wouldn't have to deal with the rain in addition to all this.
Oddly enough, however, Sakura felt at ease. She supposed she should have been scared of what probably was her impending doom, but for some strange reason, she was...well, in fact, more bored than anything.
Perhaps it wasn't exactly because Sakura accepted, complacently, the idea of being carted off as a scapegoat towards an unknown destiny, but the fact that she had already resigned herself.
Frankly, she was simply tired. Exasperated, frustrated, angry, but most of all, exhausted. Her life back at the village had been drained, nearly empty, from the very day her parents left her alone in the world. If Tomoyo hadn't been her anchor, Sakura had no trouble believing that she would have been utterly depressed, and that she would have given up on life.
As it is, she isn't the most cheerful of young ladies, but it isn't like she ever contemplated suicide or anything of that sort.
In her mind, it was more accurate to say that she was someone who lacked presence, someone whose personality barely lingered, whose emotional flames were left nearly defunct.
And she simply couldn't really bring herself to fear the unforeseeable ahead of her.
She couldn't say it hardly mattered to her, where her feet were taking her, but she almost felt like she was unable to muster up the effort to ardently confront her fate.
The rain came down, shattering her fabricated semblance of peace.
She smiled grimly.
Maybe she might have fooled herself into thinking that her solitude rendered her strong, but, she dimly realized as she wrapped her scarf more closely about her frame, there was no fooling Mother Nature.
It only felt like a few hours, and yet here she stood, directly in front of a set of enormous double doors. She was staring at a mansion; no, a castle. Elegant towers stretched up towards the sky on either side of the main infrastructure, and the stone walls looming high above her intimidated her.
She figured that she arrived so quickly only due to the magic of the curse. It had pulled and drawn her over here through the resonating bond established between her and the One of Dragon Descent.
Sakura timidly walked towards the doors, but was taken aback to discover that they were slightly ajar. She supposed this place didn't get too many visitors, so lax security wouldn't be the strangest of occurrences.
She pushed one of the doors in, and stepped inside.
"Um...h-hello? Is anyone there?" She had expected her voice to echo throughout the grand hallway that greeted her as she entered, but she supposed that the acoustics of the gargantuan room were blocked by the mounds of material strewn every which way.
A chandelier hung, suspended from the ceiling, and rows upon rows of books cluttered the place. It wasn't precisely a mess, but the sheer number of shelves and volumes left Sakura just a tad unsettled.
She had expected boiling pots of acid, or corpses hung on the walls, or black magic seeping through the very air.
Although there was a queer symbol on some of the furniture and emblazoned on a monument in the exact center of the room, one of a creature with an open jaw and unfurled wings - a dragon, Sakura supposed - the place otherwise seemed completely normal. If not overly luxurious and more lavish than anything she had ever laid eyes upon.
It was then that Sakura noticed a figure huddled in a corner, leaning his side on a bookshelf. His - she was fairly certain that it was a man - back was to her, so she couldn't be sure of what he was doing.
She tried once more, her voice a slight bit louder.
"Uh...excuse me?"
The man jumped, clearly startled, and a book fell out of his suddenly loose fingers.
"H-Huh? Who...what?"
Sakura blinked as he ran a hand through his mussed up, dark brown hair and turned around.
Amber met emerald, and neither person spoke a word for a good several seconds.
He was the first to snap out of it.
"Er...uh...pardon me, but who might you be?"
Sakura looked the stranger over, and decided that he was probably around her age.
She remained silent for a few moments, but eventually obliged.
"Well, don't you...know? I mean, today's...the day, right? And, well, here I am, I guess."
She felt uncomfortable with the way she uttered that, as if she was being delivered on a silver platter.
However, the man's gaze was still one of confusion.
"Today's...which day? I'm sorry, I don't quite...follow..." He trailed off as he spied from the corner of his eye the symbol of the dragon hanging from a banner.
"Oh," he said. His eyes widened.
"Oh! O-Oh geez, uh...shit...I can't believe it's already..." he muttered quietly to himself.
He looked back at Sakura.
"So...you're here because of the curse...right?"
She nodded tentatively.
What was going on? Nothing was at all as she would've imagined it to be. Was this person the Dragon descendant?
"Ah, well, this is..." he continued muttering. "Here, why don't we sit down? You must be, um, tired. From walking, I mean."
She noticed the several chairs he was gesturing towards, all located around a sturdy-looking table. She quietly made her way over and sat down.
The man sat as well, and sighed.
"Er, why don't start by introducing ourselves?" he asked, with a hesitant smile. "My name is Syaoran Li. I am of Dragon Descent."
Sakura raised her eyebrow, before speaking.
"I'm...Sakura Kinomoto. I come from the village down the path."
The tension in the air could have been sliced cleanly in half.
He...He doesn't look like a monster. In fact, he looks... The thought caused a slight blush to appear on Sakura's visage.
Syaoran sighed once more.
"I...okay, um..."
He seemed to steel himself, before proceeding.
"There's no use in beating around the bush. You were sent here because of the curse."
She nodded her affirmation.
"And...And the curse requires that I have to, um..." He blushed. "C-Claim you as my own. Otherwise the village will go down regardless."
Sakura couldn't help but interject.
"You're talking as if you have no control over the situation."
"I don't!" Syaoran urged. "Believe me, I don't. The curse has a mind of its own. I'm not the one who chooses who's to be sacrificed, and it's not by my power you're bound to me. The curse has existed over several ages, and each time it forces the same situation. Trust me, I have not been looking forward to this day, the day someone is brought over to live with me against her will."
Sakura tilted her head and gazed at him with something akin to wonder.
"O-Oh! That's not to say that I don't find you...attractive, or...or that I'm trying to offend you, I only meant-"
Sakura gave him a small smile.
"It's alright."
Syaoran fell silent. More agonizingly tense moments crawled by, and he sighed once more.
"Ms. Kinomoto-"
"Sakura is fine."
"...Sakura, then. Look, I...I know this must be difficult, and if there was anything I could do about it, I would, but the curse forces me at the very least to bond with you in some way. Um, the quickest and most painless method I can think of is to live together as a m-married couple."
He glanced at her briefly, before resuming.
"D-Don't worry, I promise to respect and care for you as a wife, and...and I'll give you all the space you need. You don't have to do anything you don't want to, I certainly won't force you into anything, and, uh...it's alright if you don't want anything to do with me, you don't even have to see me or anything, it can be a relationship in name only-"
"Mr. Li."
"S-Syaoran is fine," he muttered quickly, clearly flustered.
She paused for a brief moment, inclining her head.
"Syaoran, I arrived here, fully prepared for the worst. My life as Sakura Kinomoto, a resident of the village, had been cast aside, unwanted. My place there was flung away as payment, as a commodity. Not to say it was worth much anyway, but I felt a bit hollow that those around me tossed me out so easily and effortlessly. As if I were a used dishrag."
She laughed a little.
"Even then, I didn't really seem to mind. My existence in the village wasn't exactly a meaningful one. But as I walked here, I was left feeling put out. Ever since my parents died, up to this point in time living as a castaway, nothing I did felt fulfilled. I couldn't seem to live for myself, and I at the very least wanted to live on for my parents. I wanted to be able to be selfish. So, when I came here, feeling as I did that it was the end of the road for me...I was pretty resentful, to tell the truth. I was going to die, going to be eaten, to be raped, to be kept in tortured confinement, and that would've been it for me, and I had nothing to show for anything. In the end, I think I was most regretful of my apathy. It was almost careless, the way I carried myself, even as I faced my potential death."
Syaoran listened, but said naught a single word. His gaze was unreadable, but Sakura could tell his thoughts were focused. On what, she could only surmise.
"To be honest," Sakura continued. "I don't know what to make of this. I'm not sure how to react to...your kindness. Cruelty I was expecting, cold detachment I'm used to, but..."
She didn't know how to finish her thought. It was as if Syaoran was offering her a hand amidst Fate's aloof machinations, and she wasn't sure how to take it.
Syaoran pursed his lips, still staring straight at her.
"How did your...parents die?"
Sakura, surprised, raised her head to gaze back at him.
Syaoran glanced to the side, uncomfortable.
"If...If you don't mind me asking."
Sakura had said that she didn't know what to make of the situation. Yet, as she thought about it, she realized it was more that she didn't know what to make of Syaoran.
"...They were killed. It was the work of bandits. They burned our house to the ground. The last thing I remembered before I blacked out was the smell of charred wood."
She bit her lip.
"Next thing I knew, I was outside, staring groggily at the crumbling wreckage that was once my home. I screamed, because the dead body of the arsonist was on the ground in front of me, in a pool of his own blood. No one was around at the time, so I have no idea how I survived, or how the perpetrator had died. It didn't change the fact, however, that my mom and dad were gone. From then on, I was on my own. Left as an unpleasant reminder to everyone of the pathetic remnants of a family that had once lived among them."
"You're not."
Yet again, Syaoran startled her.
"I'm...what?"
"You're not pathetic. Being able to live in solitude, being able to stand up and shoulder everything after losing all you have is a sign of strength. Believe me, I know how difficult it is to remain alone. It sounds to me like people don't realize how strong you really are. Not many could have made this journey the way you have."
Sakura's eyes were glazed over in astonishment as they met his. She grinned.
"Syaoran."
"Y-Yes?" He gulped. He couldn't help but notice how a simple glint in her eyes seemed to transform her entire countenance.
"I'm a fool, you know? All these years, I've endured rumors personally, I've known how baseless they can be. Yet I found myself buying into the same sort of bull. A monster...a beast...a brute out for blood. What's ironic is...Syaoran, you're probably the kindest person I've met in a long time. I-I don't if I'll be able to live up to being a wife, since no matter the circumstance, I've only just met you. But I don't think I'll mind living here."
Syaoran scratched his head in slight embarrassment.
"I...just don't expect too much out of me, alright?" he whispered. "I'm sort of new to this."
Sakura's emerald eyes swept over him in a cursory glance, before she gently but firmly slid to her feet, her fingertips brushing the oak of the tabletop.
Treading softly over to Syaoran, she delicately placed her hand atop his.
"The extent of my experiences with romance," she giggled, "involves watching my dearest friend Tomoyo gambol about all day in giddy delight with Eriol, her lover. So I'm not some guru on the matter, either."
She smiled down at him.
"But perhaps neither of us need to be. We can...go about this at our own pace, and take it in together. There's no hurry, is there?"
Syaoran found his mouth clamped shut, and could only gaze in wonder at the girl in front of him.
"After all," she breathed, closing her eyes, "I've got my whole life ahead of me. And, for once, I'm looking forward to it."
Author's Note:
Gahhhhhh, I've had the document for most of this first chapter saved up for just about the longest time, but only recently went back and decided to look over it and finish it up. I've always adored Card Captor Sakura, and it remains one of my most beloved animes to this day, so I've wanted to contribute to its fandom for quite a while now. Thank God I finally got around to it. Anyway, this is probably going to be a two-shot, but that point remains arbitrary, because it might change when I get around to actually writing it. I really hope I have the mettle to finish this story soon and with gusto, because knowing me and my work ethic, such a thing is dangerous to hope for. I SWEAR, I'LL TRY MY BEST.
I hope this story was enjoyable to read so far, and please, drop a note and tell me what you thought of it!
Random quotation of the day:
"When you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be truth."
-Jude, Tales of Xillia
No, seriously. Jude, from Xillia, said that. I'm not talking about Godot here. Capcom must've collaborated with Namco in order to screw with our minds.