Thank you for reading this fanfic! It's my first one, so please review! This story came about while I was reading Tsubasa: RESERVoiR CHRoNiCLE, and I thought, wouldn't it be cool if I took it a bit further and made Emeraude evil? I hope you have fun with my first attempt at writing!

Sakura and Syaoran made their way through the thick forest that they landed in.

Strange… Sakura thought. Clow is a desert, not a…

They broke through the tree line to find a large, thriving city overlooking a large plain. The city of Clow seemed different, somehow. It had changed in the time they were gone. Suddenly, something crashed behind them. A large shadow fell over them as Syaoran pulled Sakura behind him in a protective stance. He saw a monstrous flower with a number "1" on its forehead. Its thorny vines twisted around its stem as it moved. A vine shot out toward him. Syaoran reacted lightning-fast, thanks to Kurogane's sword training. The vine dropped to the ground, cut off at the base. Syaoran held his sword in front of him as a guard. He felt a pulse of magic as Sakura used the Freeze card.

That's right; her feathers are the Clow cards, sacred magic of Clow's royal family, he thought.

Syaoran slashed the flower monster through, destroying it. "This isn't Clow as I remember it," he told Sakura. "Have we been gone so long?"

"I don't know," she replied worriedly. Her love of her country clearly showed. "Let's go and see now."

They traveled quickly down the slope of the hill that the forest grew on, towards the capital city of the country of Clow. Bright colors and loud sounds greeted them. The townspeople were holding a festival. Farther off, Sakura could see a royal throne being carried through the crowd.

Is that… Toya?

She headed for the throne, at a run. Syaoran ran after her, calling at her to stop. She dashed on, blindly, overcome with the desire to see her brother. Syaoran caught up to her just as she stopped in front of the royal figure seated on the throne. IT WASN'T TOYA!

Sakura stumbled in surprise. Seeing a female instead of her beloved brother left her speechless.

"Who are you?" Syaoran demanded for her. He received a tittering laugh in reply.

"So," the figure said in a haughty voice, "is this the missing princess and her sweetheart who ran away 3 years ago? Back to claim the throne, are you? Well, you're too late. Now, the country of Cephiro belongs to the princess Emeraude."

"Where's Toya?" Sakura asked in a quiet voice. "Where's Toya?"

Emeraude sniffed in disdain. "That softy was never meant for the stress that comes with a royal position. He died a mere 26 months after you left. I also suspect that he was heartbroken by the loss of his dear sister." Her eyes hardened. "It's all your fault!"

Sakura felt numb. Toya had died, while she was traveling around with her friends. The last member of her family was gone. She was all alone. She barely felt the tears as they slid down her face.

As if he could tell what she was thinking, Syaoran clasped her hand in his. "I'm here for you, Sakura," he whispered into her ear. He gently wiped her tears away with his gloved hand.

"I won't allow you to return to the castle, you wretch. You killed him!" Emeraude declared.

By this time, a crowd had gathered around them. Many of them recognized the girl who wore a tattered cloak that stood before their new ruler. Their much-loved princess had returned, to save them, some believed. Emeraude was, needless to say, an oppressive tyrant. Most of the villagers had protested her rule, but what could they do? Their king was newly dead, and their princess had vanished. And Emeraude had the backing of the Royal military to support her reign. So now, they banded together to help their rightful princess. As Emeraude rode out, every family sent a representative to offer Sakura and Syaoran a place to spend the night. They were swamped with children sent to do their parent's bidding. Sakura was flustered with the amount of people wanting to speak with her, until she saw a very young girl, standing at the edge of the people.

"We'll go with her," she decided, and Syaoran followed her.

The little girl's name was Presea, they soon found out. Presea followed the princess around everywhere. She was much like Chu'nyan, of Koryo. There was no doubt that she would grow up to be famous.

The next day, someone knocked on the door. Presea's mother opened the door to reveal…

So, how did you like the first chapter? It's a little shorter that I would have liked to make it... I will update as soon as I can, so please review for inspiration! Thank you!