Author's Notes: Ta-DAH! The long awaited sequel to "Behind Closed Doors." If you haven't read the previous story yet, good luck to you. It'll difficult (but not impossible) to fully understand all of this one. I know it has been a long time coming, and I hope that it was worth the wait. Constructive Criticism is always welcomed. Enjoy~! :D
Disclaimer: I do not own CardCaptor Sakura or any of CLAMP's characters or works. However, I do claim rights to my own story line and original characters.
Memories Left Behind
Chapter One: We Began With Good-Bye
The sound of the phone hitting the wooden surface of the floor drew the eyes of the room's occupants. They turned almost as one to see who or what had caused the disturbance.
Three pairs of eyes lit up in obvious recognition, some delight, but the fourth pair of eyes stared at Sakura in obvious confusion.
For her part, Sakura remained pinned under the gaze of that last pair of eyes, their amber intensity seeming to pierce right through her heart. For a moment, she forgot how to breathe as blood drained from her face.
"Are you okay?" his wary voice asked. He shifted his stance subtly to move in front of the other three, discreetly protecting their smaller forms from this unknown intruder. He studied her with a critical eye. "Do you have the right room?" he asked politely.
Sakura felt her head nod haltingly, her voice lost.
He looked around the room swiftly, his gaze darting about as if searching for other eyes and ears before he swiftly approached her, shifted her aside gently and shut the door behind her firmly. Once there was a barrier between him and the outside world again he seemed to relax minutely.
"Sorry," he began. "I don't like the idea of anyone walking by and looking in at us right now."
Sakura nodded again, still unable to find her words. Her shoulder seemed to burn where his hand had lain just moments before as he had moved her.
A frown crossed his features and he studied her. "You are from Ava, correct?"
Sakura nodded again, feeling like an absurd child's play toy.
He peered at her in confusion and doubt. "Can you not speak?"
"I can," Sakura's voice squeaked out in an octave higher than normal. Get a grip on yourself Sakura! Her inner voice screamed at her. I know you never thought you would see him again, but…
A head poked around his elbow and Sakura was drawn to the giant grin that was lighting up the face.
"I'm Kerri," she said, extending her hand to Sakura. "It's nice to meet you…?"
Sakura felt a rush of gratitude toward the twelve year-old girl in front of her. Kerri had remembered Sakura's instructions from long ago that her identity had to remain a secret. She was holding to that promise even now, even as she knew full well who Sakura was.
Kerri's demeanor and bright smile eased Sakura's feelings of intense guilt and panic slightly; just enough to force her to relax and play the part. It's just a new mission, she reminded herself. Just like any other mission before it. And if she was lying to herself, well, it was something she'd have to confront later.
"Sakura," she held out her hand and shook Kerri's, shooting her a hesitant but grateful smile. "My name is Kinomoto Sakura," she said once again, but this time she spoke directly into those intimidating pair of amber eyes.
"Li Syaoran," he introduced himself, shaking her hand in turn. His head tilted to the side as he watched her face; something in her voice was familiar.
Sakura felt a jolt like electricity shoot up her arm at the contact, but squashed it down. "I am from Ava," Sakura continued. "I have been the agent assigned to your case Li-san."
He continued to look at her as if there was something familiar that he could not quite pin down, but moved aside to show her the rest of the room's occupants. "You've already met my eldest, Kerri. These two are Nathan and Aria." He pointed at each in turn.
Sakura nodded at the both of them. "It's nice to meet the both of you."
Taking their cues from their older sister, the two remained quiet and simply nodded back. Aria had a much more difficult time with this then her brother. She looked about ready to shoot off across the room and hug Sakura as tightly as she could.
Always quick to read her siblings' moods, Kerri immediately planted herself next to Aria on the small couch and firmly pulled her sister into her own lap, whispering in her ear as she did so. Aria's face fell slightly from whatever she was being told.
"Please, sit down," Sakura indicated to Syaoran as she made a move to more fully enter the room, her heart pounding in her chest. As Syaoran took a seat next to his children, Sakura gracefully sat in a cushioned arm chair across from them. "I have heard the initial proposal from my employers," she flushed faintly as she remembered that said employers' voices had been cut off abruptly when she'd dropped her phone. A phone that still remained open on the floor by the door. "Could you please explain to me exactly what you will be expecting of our services given your current predicament?"
She watched as the guarded look from Syaoran's face fell and instead become emotionless. "I need you to protect my family." Even his tone was listless.
Sakura felt a stab of pain pierce her heart. Her memories recalling so vividly how his face used to light up with so much warmth and passion, the way his eyes seemed to dance with life. She struggled to keep her voice and face schooled; noting that Kerri looked up at her father's tone and her own face fell in dejection.
"Protect them from whom?"
"An ex-lover of my wife's."
Sakura's eyes darted to his children with slight incredulity. Should we be discussing this in front of them?
Always quick, Kerri caught Sakura's gaze and gave her a half-hearted smile. Sakura frowned slightly. She understood Kerri's need to protect her family, but…this might have been pushing it too far. And why would the daughter feel a need to protect her father? Shouldn't it have been the other way around?
"And where is your wife?" Sakura asked, knowing the answer, but still knowing she had to play the part. It was expected of her.
There was a long moment of quiet in which Sakura watched Syaoran's face intently, but it didn't seem as if he had heard her question. She opened her mouth to ask again when a voice piped up.
"She's dead," Kerri answered firmly, looking at her father almost sternly.
Syaoran, for his part seemed to only see his hands as they lay in his lap.
A pang of horrified guilt ran through Sakura as she realized what he must be seeing.
His deceased wife's last moments.
Her blood all over his hands after she had physically forced him to pull the trigger she herself had aimed at her own heart.
The quiet moment dragged on. "I'm sorry," Sakura said softly.
She watched the shattered family in front of her. Nathan seemed lost in his own world as he played with the fringes on a decorative pillow. Kerri was looking at her father with a mixture of frustration and longing. Aria tried to climb out of her sister's lap and onto her father's, but he didn't even look up at her touch. She settled back into her sister's arms dejectedly, trying hard not to cry. Syaoran, for his part, seemed lost to the world; completely unconnected to anyone and anything around him, his children included.
I did this. Sakura felt her heart lurch in horror, a new weight piling on top of her shoulders. I helped do this to them… But, I had to. It was my mission. They would have died otherwise. Every last one of them.
She sat quietly, waiting and observing. She tried to imagine what the world would be like without these four in it, and found that she couldn't even fathom the possibility. I did the right thing, she told herself. I know I did. But then why do I feel so miserable?
As the silence dragged on, Sakura stood, catching their attention. "I think that will be all for the moment," she said gently. She held out her hand to Syaoran as he stood. "I will contact you again about this after the wedding to settle the finer details. Until then I am going to instruct that none of you are to leave the premises tonight, am I clear?"
She waited until she had a nod from each of the little ones, before she locked eyes with Syaoran once more. "I will be escorting you back home tonight. Do not leave without my permission." She plastered on what she hoped was an encouraging smile as he grasped and shook her hand. "It will be our pleasure to work with you Li-san. We will put forth our best efforts in helping to protect you and your family."
For a moment, Syaoran looked at their interlocked hands as if half-remembering something, but shook it off in the same moment as he released her and signaled for his children to follow him. Kerri grasped her younger brother by the hand and pulled him along when he looked like he wouldn't budge. Aria followed behind the three of them, pausing in the doorway a moment and looking back at Sakura.
After a quick glance at her family, Aria dashed back to Sakura and threw her arms around her neck, Sakura having already knelt to the floor as if reading the little girl's mind.
Sakura enveloped her in a tight, warm, and brief hug. "It's going to be okay," she whispered to her with more assurance then she felt. Aria nodded her head where it lay between Sakura's neck and shoulder. Sakura released her and kissed her on the top of her head. "Go."
Aria raced after her family, glancing back at Sakura briefly before the door swung shut behind them. Only then did Sakura silently pick up her phone, snap it shut, and fall heavily into her seat once more. She buried her face in her hands, feeling the first few pinpricks of tears threaten.
All too soon there was a knock on the door.
"Sakura?" Mika's voice called from the other side. "Tomoyo-chan's calling for you. The ceremony is starting in an hour and she says you're not ready yet."
Sakura wiped her face with the back of her hands and managed to fake a laugh as she opened the doors. "Even at her own wedding when she should be completely focused on herself, she still has to worry about everyone else." She sighed dramatically as she placed her arm around her niece's shoulder. "That's our Tomoyo."
Mika laughed in good humor as the two walked back down the hall to enter the bridal room.
"I found her!" Mika called excitedly as she led Sakura into the room.
"Good!" Tomoyo called out in relief as she turned to see her best friend in the doorway. "Mika-chan? Could you check on everyone else for me and make sure they're ready?"
"Of course!" Mika's eyes lit up in delight at being able to carry out the bride's orders and she all but bolted from the room leaving the two alone.
Tomoyo waited until Mika's footsteps had faded before enveloping her friend in a tight hug. "Sakura," she whispered, feeling her friend's shoulders start to shake. "You can do this. I know you can," she soothed as she disentangled herself from her friend and handed her a tissue. "Here, go into the bathroom and wash your face. Your dress is already hanging behind the door. I'll get your make-up ready while I wait."
"Thank you," Sakura whispered as she brushed past her friend and into the bathroom, shutting it snuggly behind her.
Tomoyo stared at the white wooden door, feeling her heart go out to the young woman behind it. "You're the only one who can do this Sakura," she said to the empty room.