After years, I am finally done with my promised "touchy-feely" oneshot! As you read the story, I suggest you guys to listen to the music link which you'll find in my profile page. The music in the given link entitled "Sunflower's Prayer" was composed by V.K. and it was what truly inspired me to complete this fanfic. This story was in my head for a very long time but I just couldn't find a good way to put it into words until today, finally. Anyway, enjoy!

Sunflower's Prayer

written by Eiffie

"Syaoran!" A small girl came running to me while carrying a sweet smile on her face. "Take it! Take it!" she said, a flower necklace on her tiny hands.

"How beautiful!" I told her as I knelt to match her little height, and she grinned even more. "Is it for me?" She nodded.

The little girl tiptoed as she tried to reach me to put the necklace around my neck but she was just too small that she couldn't. I softly laughed at her charming struggle and eventually carried her around my arms so she could easily reach my head.

"Preeeeeetty!" she exclaimed with a clap of hands after she successfully placed the necklace on me.

"Am I?"

"Yes!"

I laughed. "It's all thanks to Little Miss Sakura who is kind enough to give me such a pretty necklace."

In her glee, she wrapped her tiny arms around my neck.

Ever since the Little Miss was born into the royal family, I had always watched over her like an older brother would do. My mother, who served in their kingdom for several years, had brought me into the castle at the age of six after father passed away because of his illness. To allow me to stay in the castle, my mother had no choice but to train me to work despite my young age. It was a year later when Sakura was brought into this world.

When I was first introduced to her as her guardian when she was about seven years of age, she immediately hid behind her mother's dress, peeking at me with her frightened emerald eyes. I noticed then that she was uncomfortable with strangers despite the fact that I had worked in the castle for years already. It took me a while before I could fully gain her trust until one day, I decided to make a wreath of freshly picked flowers, hoping that it would help me become closer to her. While I was making the wreath in the gardens, to my surprise, she carefully peeked behind my back. I turned to her with a smile and asked if she wanted to make one too, to which she quickly nodded. After she made her first attempted wreath, she finally showed me something that I have tried so hard to gain ever since I watched over her—

Her sweet and innocent smile.

Since then, the Little Miss and I would play in their family's humongous garden during my break.

She was so happy. So peaceful. So innocent.

And how I wished it would always stay like that.

How I wished.

o O o

"NOOOOOOOOOOO! I want to see Mommy and Daddy!"

I stood from afar as I painfully watched the princess crying desperately before her older brother. Her fists endlessly blew on him one after another while her brother merely stood quietly, accepting all her anger and frustrations. As seconds passed, I noticed that her punches on him were getting harder and heavier, and I knew I just had to stop her.

"Little Miss—I mean, Your Highness!" I was about to get in between them when her brother looked at me with his painful eyes while shaking his head, as if telling me to let him handle the situation.

He knelt before ten-year old Sakura and placed his hands over her shivering shoulders. Despite the sad look in his eyes, I could see him forcing himself to be brave for the sake of his sister who continued to sob. "Sakura, please listen," he asked of her as he gently placed a few strands of her auburn hair behind her ear. "Father and mother… We won't see them anymore."

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Sakura screamed and began to punch him again. But the prince only enveloped her in his warmth and cried softly over her shoulder. The princess eventually became tired and gave in to his warm embrace. "…Why…" she weakly muttered in between her cries.

The death of their parents from the revolt of the masses forced the kingdom to close its doors to their people. The people's anger was no longer controllable and the council decided that it was their priority to keep the late king and queen's children under tight security. Prince Touya, the crown prince who was the same age as I am, was crowned king months later, but it was not done in public given the current circumstances.

As soon as the newly crowned King Touya stepped onto the throne, the castle's servants and other staff were immediately reduced to more than a half. He told me that it was to prevent further betrayal against his family. He tasked me to make sure that all the remaining people inside the castle had clean records and were willing to stay completely loyal to the royal family and to them alone.

While I was busy completing the tasks given to me by the new king, I became too occupied to even be aware of the Little Miss's presence. I no longer had an ample amount of time to see her in the castle's gardens just as we both have promised years ago. I could no longer hear her laugh. I could no longer see her smile. And it pained me even more to realize that she may have, in fact, already stopped smiling since her parents' death.

One day, in the middle of work, I decided to stop by the castle gardens and see for myself if the Little Miss was ever there. When I came to, I saw the Little Miss making a wreath of roses by herself. I felt so guilty for not having spent time with her for such a long time, most especially at her time of need now that she lost those who were most precious to her. As soon as she was done with the wreath, I was relieved to see a soft smile appear on her face. To think that I thought she would never smile again.

"She looks so peaceful, doesn't she?" a voice said behind me. I recognized the voice and immediately knew that it was the king.

"Indeed," I answered with a hint of doubt as I kept my eyes on Sakura. Despite seeing her smile, I knew that her smile had changed. It wasn't as radiant as it was before. I could tell that there was still anger and sadness clouding her heart.

"Syaoran, I know I have already asked so much of you." I turned to look at the king, wondering where his words were heading. "If I could ask of you one last favor, would you do it for me?"

I bowed to him. "Anything for His Majesty."

To my surprise, he took my hands onto his and held them tightly. "Then I ask of you," his pain-filled and serious eyes looked directly into mine, "take my sister to any place far away from here."

I gasped in utter shock. "Y-Your Majesty! What are you saying!"

"I meant what I said." He looked away, as if wanting to take back his words. "If it is for Sakura's protection, I would do anything."

"Her protection?" I asked vehemently. "Why? Is there another revolt?"

"No." He had let go of my hands. "This castle is filled with memories of our parents, and their death. As long as Sakura stays here, her smile will never be the same as before again." He walked a little past me and watched Sakura who was now lying down on the vast field of green. She was staring up at the sky while holding the wreath upon her chest. "I want to protect her smile. But I couldn't do that as I'm already bound to this castle." He turned and looked back at me. "That is why I would like to entrust you with that responsibility."

"But Your Majesty… Taking her out of this castle? Where? And what good would that really do?"

"Didn't you tell me once that your family used to live in the mountains?" I nodded slowly. "You can bring her there. Teach her the normal ways of life. Teach her how to live. And if you can, bring back the radiance of her smile."

Her radiant smile…

I suddenly remembered the first time Sakura showed me her smile, a smile that was meant for me. Her innocence made me want to protect her forever. I wanted to take her away from even the tiniest thought of revenge and see her forever in glee. I wanted to make that happen.

Humbly, I bowed towards our king. "It shall be done."

o O o

Years later…

"Syaoran… Syaoran…"

In my sleep, I heard a girl's voice softly calling out my name. The sound of her voice felt like an early morning's radiance with birds chirping in the background. I knew that it was about time for me to wake up. Slowly, I opened my eyes, slightly blinded by the morning light passing through the window by my bedside. When I turned away from the light, my eyes grew wide to see a girl lying down beside me on the bed.

"Aaaaaaaah!" I screamed and backed away until I hit my head on the wall.

"Surprise!" Oh, dear God… It was just the princess. She suddenly jumped over me and hugged me in her arms. "Happy birthday!"

"Happy what?" I was confused and didn't know what was going on as I was rubbing my head. Then suddenly, I remembered. "Oh, right. It's my birthday," I sighed and covered my eyes in frustration.

"Yup! It's your twenty-sixth birthday!" she sounded so cheerful.

"You didn't have to mention my age."

"I just wanted to remind you that you're not very young anymore, that's all." She playfully stuck out her tongue at me.

I chuckled. "I'm not that old." I stroked her hair caressingly as she was lying over me. Her hair had already grown so beautifully long. And I couldn't believe she had already grown so tall. "I'm already twenty-six, huh?" I muttered beneath my breath. "Time flies so fast…"

The Little Miss raised her head and looked at me. "You talk like an old man," she teased.

"Your Highness… Your words, please."

"Oh come on, Syaoran. We're outside the castle! And I haven't heard 'Your Highness' from you for a very long time now."

"I just wanted to remind you that you're still a princess, that's all," I snorted.

She got off from bed. "A 'gorgeous' princess, if I may correct." She struck a pose beside the bed. I rubbed my temples when I noticed that she was only in her underdress. His Majesty would have my head if he saw her like that.

"Little Miss. Your clothes. Please."

"Make me," she shouted and ran outside the room. My mother came in immediately afterwards with a tray of bread and coffee.

"Happy birthday, dear," she greeted, sitting on the bedside while carefully placing the tray of food on my lap.

"Thank you."

"She's a lively one, isn't she?"

I laughed softly before sipping my coffee. "Very."

"That's good," she nodded. "I was worried when her parents passed away. The princess… Her heart was filled with so much hatred. Even the other maidservants noticed."

"And so has His Majesty." I frowned at the memory of seeing the forced smile on King Touya's face when my mother, the Little Miss and I left the castle.

"Speaking of, isn't His Majesty going to visit us today?"

"He will."

Every once in a while, His Majesty made it a habit to visit us in our humble home so he could also watch his own dear sister grow up before his very eyes. He would come in unexpected civilian clothes and in a not so grand way so that other villagers would not notice who he was and what he had come for. He may not had been able to visit us at least once a month but he made sure to see us during mine and the Little Miss's birthdays.

The princess's cheerfulness every time we celebrate my birthday… I always told myself that it was merely her own happiness and excitement for finally being able to meet her brother again after a very long time. Whether her radiant smiles were meant for me or not did not matter. As long as I could fulfill His Majesty's wishes to bring smiles to his sister's face, and as long as I could make her blissful for the rest of her life, I was happy.

That was what I always said to myself.

But my heart, for some reason, seemed to detest.

o O o

"He's not coming, is he?"

The Little Miss and I were sitting at the edge of the brick bridge where we were expecting to see her brother. It was almost sunset yet His Majesty still had not arrived. I glanced at the princess for a short time and noticed the sad look on her face. By then, I was able confirm to myself that her smile that morning wasn't really meant for me.

"Maybe His Majesty is just unexpectedly busy today," I told her to raise her hopes up. "He might come tomorrow or in the next few days."

"But…" I let out a silent gasp when I felt her hand on top of mine. She was trembling. "What if he would never see us again?"

"That's absurd. Your brother has no reason for him not to visit us, most especially you."

"But what if something bad happened to him? What if what happened to mommy and daddy… What if the same thing happened to—"

"Princess Sakura, that is enough!" My voice raised at her, to both our surprise. I immediately regretted what I had done when she quickly looked away and her face downcast. "Little Miss, I'm sorry…"

She shook her head. "No, you're right. I shouldn't be thinking so negatively. I'm sorry…" My eyes were stunned as she looked back at me with a smile, the same sad smile which she wore in the castle for too long.

I grabbed her arm and took her to my embrace. I didn't want to see that sadness in her face. Not again. I quietly sobbed as I buried my face in her soft auburn hair.

"Syaoran…?" I held her even tighter when she tried to move. I didn't want her to see me crying.

I tried to control my voice so she wouldn't notice the embarrassing look in my face. "Do you see the sunflowers below this bridge?"

"Y-Yes… What about them?"

"Do you know why they always face up?" I asked her softly.

"No… Why do they?"

"My mother once told me that sunflowers always look up to the sky to pray to God." I wiped my tears off my face and pulled away from her, smiling gently. "If there's something you want to ask for, Little Miss, you should smile to the sky and pray."

For a moment, she quietly stared at me in awe. Then slowly, just as I have told her, she raised her head and smiled radiantly to the sky.

"Please guide my brother to safety," she whispered.

I also looked up to the orange sky, and I prayed.

Please let our moments of happiness last forever.

Unfortunately, what I prayed for didn't last very long.

About a week after we celebrated my birthday, a messenger came to our small house to send us news that the princess, most of all, had never in her life wanted to hear: the death of her own brother. The boy had told us that His Majesty was already on his way to visit our house on my birthday when a group of rebels attacked him and his guards.

In the princess's rage, she ran to the messenger boy and clenched her fists on his jacket. "You are lying! Tell me that this is a joke! A cover-up!" she shouted as she cried loudly. "Wasn't he able to fix this whole damn mess my parents caused? Why in the world would people want to kill him then?! Give me an acceptable reason!"

I firmly held both her hands and held her in my arms. I wouldn't let her go despite her stubborn struggles against my strength. She eventually became tired from both her crying and fighting against me until her knees weakened to the ground and she felt weak to my embrace.

"…Why…" she cried out weakly.

My eyes began to tear up as I remembered the same scene with the news of her parents' death.

I gently brought her head close to my face and kissed her on the forehead. I then swore to God, and even to Hell if I must, that I would vow my entire life solely for Sakura and for her alone.

It was a few days later when we were sent back to the castle, as requested by the kingdom's circle of councillors. And it wasn't long until the Little Miss ascended to the throne as the new rightful leader of the country. But in order to protect her from further harm, I personally debated with the council to not announce of her ascension to the throne to the public.

"Are you out of your mind?" one of them said. "The king is dead. Without giving them a new ruler, the people would fall into chaos!"

"Then we'll tell them that he miraculously survived," I explained to the circle. "His body is within our walls after all, we still haven't released any news of his death, and we have not yet opened the castle to the public ever since the loss of their parents."

"What are you suggesting then?"

"That Her Majesty rules under the image of our late king." A new face in the circle of council stood from his seat and looked at me. "Is that what you are trying to say?"

"Yes."

The debate lasted for weeks as not all had agreed to the plan I had offered. Until finally, with the help of Eriol who was a new addition to the council, we were able to convince the majority to proceed with the plan.

"I must warn you, though, Syaoran." Eriol stood beside me in the balcony with the view of the castle's gardens. "We are not only deceiving the people. The name and the reputation of the late king is also going to be at risk depending on the actions of Her Majesty."

"I know that," I smiled at him. "I've been prepared to go to hell since long ago."

o O o

"Your Majesty, the people have begged for you to lower the taxes," the queen's advisor had said. "If we do not comply, they might start another revolt or worse, a revolution!"

As I stood quietly beside the queen's throne, I listened to every word and pleads of her own advisor. For two years since the Little Miss's ascension to the throne, he had stayed beside her as her one and only loyal advisor. But despite being called her 'advisor', the queen had never listened to any of his advices at all.

"Terada, if I say 'no', do you plan to betray me?" The queen stared at him with cold eyes.

"O-Of course not, Your Majesty!"

She smirked. "Liar." Both the advisor and I were stunned. "From now on, you are relieved of all your duties as my royal advisor and you shall be sent to the underground cells and live there for a lifetime."

I noticed her advisor shiver in absolute fear. "But Your Majesty—! My wife and children!"

"You have seen my face and you know the truth of my brother's death. Therefore, I cannot let you out of this castle."

Before I could speak, she had immediately called the guards to take away the man who continuously pleaded for his life. But the queen merely sat on her seat, boredom clearly on her face, without a care in the world.

"Your Majesty, I think you've gone too far," I softly spoke my mind.

"My brother was kind to those people yet they have still betrayed his kindness. This is the price they must pay."

I couldn't believe the words that came straight from her mouth. This wasn't the same girl I guided and cared for! I clenched my fists in anger. "Sakura!"

"Do you hate me now as well, Syaoran?"

I stood speechless when she smiled feebly at me. Her eyes looked sad and confused. How… After all those times, how could I ever hate her?

"No," I answered strongly. "But I hate myself for making the worst decision of my life."

o O o

That night, as I stood by the window beside my bed, my thoughts were heavily clouded with the people's cries and sufferings. Two years ago, when I told Eriol that I was prepared to face hell, was this what I meant? I knew that the Little Miss—no… that Sakura would make some mistakes as a start, but I never thought that it would come to this. She wasn't making mistakes. She was purposely making the people suffer. I knew she was angry but I never expected this… She wasn't the same Little Miss I once knew…

Just as I was thinking over those thoughts, a few knocks suddenly came to my door.

"Syaoran? Are you there?"

It was the queen.

I didn't know if I should open the door for her or not.

"Syaoran? Please. Can I… Can I talk to you?"

I eventually walked to my door and reached for the knob. But my hand wouldn't turn it open.

"If you're asleep then, that's fine. I guess I'll just have to talk to you tomorrow." She paused for a while. "But if you're there and you're awake, I know that you're really disappointed and I'm sorry." My heart sank when I heard her voice weaken. "I'm really, really, really sorry, Syaoran… Then, I guess this is goodnight…"

When the sound of her steps slowly waned, I quickly opened my door and shouted her name. She turned back around and gazed at me with her crying eyes wide open. I smiled as I opened my arms to her and she ran to me accepting all my warmth.

"I was so scared…" she cried on my chest. "I thought you would also leave me…"

I buried my face in her short hair. "You of all people know that I would never do that." When I let her go, I asked, "Would you like to come inside?" She slowly nodded.

I served the both of us a cup of tea and we sat beside each other on the couch. We told each other stories of our past, reminisced the memories of before, and laughed together as if we had no problems at all. It was a night full of smiles and laughter.

When it was already too late in the dark, I offered her my bed while I sleep on the couch instead. As I was tucking her in, she suddenly pulled my hand.

"Won't you sleep beside me?"

I frowned at her. "Your Majesty, you know I can't."

"Don't you want to?" I was greatly struck when she said those words.

I chuckled softly. "That is, indeed, a difficult question."

She pulled the bed covers open for me and patted on the empty space beside her. "Come now."

"Then, if you'll excuse me…" I slowly went into the bed beside her and pulled the covers to wrap us from the cold air. I hugged her from behind and she held my hands atop her abdomen.

"Will you stay by my side forever?" she asked.

"Of course."

"Promise?"

"I will try."

She rolled on the bed and turned to me with a grim look on her face. "Syaoran!"

I laughed softly and held her hands. "I'll stay with you forever."

"Even if people call me 'sick'?" She looked up to me with a sad look in her eyes.

I held her head close to my face and kissed her lovingly on the forehead. "No matter the circumstances."

I was not in the position to judge.

Because I'm also sickly and madly in love with you.

o O o

A few months later, Eriol had personally come to see me in private. He said it was a very urgent matter that was related not only to me but to the queen herself.

"The situation is already getting out of hand, and you obviously know that," he lectured. "If the queen won't listen to any of us then, there is no point for us to follow the queen either."

My heart began to race. I feared for what he had to say next. "Where are you getting at?"

"The people have already began rebelling. And I've already talked to the rest of the council. This madness has gone for far too long in the entire history of our country. And we all think that it is time to end this."

I could feel the blood rushing through my skin. But I wouldn't show on my face the fear that enveloped my heart.

"Her reign must come to an end."

o O o

The night before the fateful revolution, I approached the queen's room and knocked on her door for the final time. When she signalled me to come in, I slowly entered only to see her in her most beautiful gown as she stood in the balcony of her room.

"Everyone else has already left the castle just as your ordered, Your Majesty."

"I see. Well done." I watched her in silence as she bathed herself under the moonlight. "So, my time is about to come, isn't it?" When she turned around to face me, she was immediately taken aback as if a ghost had appeared before her. "Syaoran… Your hair!"

"Oh, this?" I chuckled as I ruffled my hair. "I've had the help of one of the maidservants to dye it dark brown. Does it suit me?"

"And… And your clothes…" she stuttered in both shock and fear. "Why are you wearing my brother's clothes?"

I simply smiled at her. "I was checking all the rooms to make sure no one else was left inside until I ran into this pair in your brother's room."

"No…" Her eyes trembled as she stared at me from head to toe. "You couldn't be… Syaoran, you can't do this!"

I approached her slowly. "What's wrong? I'm almost as tall as your brother. The color of our eyes are somewhat close. I may not be as tan-skinned as he was but it's close, right?" When I was already standing right before her, she struggled to push me away in her anger.

"They are going to send me to the guillotine! Me! Not you, Syaoran!" she cried out loud.

I held her arms and forced her to calm down. "Everyone thinks that your brother is still alive and that it was he who had brought this situation upon them. I've also managed to tell everyone in the castle to keep the truth to themselves."

"No…" she cried and shook her head. "No, you can't…"

"Tomorrow, while I try to take their time, I want you to dress in civilian clothes and run away to someplace as far as possible."

"NO!" she shouted in a voice stronger than before. Her face softened as she burst into tears. "Syaoran, I'm begging you. Please… Just let me show them the truth, that everything was my fault! You and my brother did nothing wrong! All… All you ever did was watch over me and that was it!"

"You're wrong, Sakura." I took her into my arms and hugged her so tight as it was our last. "I didn't just watch over you." I held her shoulders and showed her a radiant smile. "I have always loved you."

Her eyes grew wide.

I painfully laughed at her reaction. "Did I say something wrong?"

To my surprise, she buried her face in my chest and embraced me so tightly. "Syaoran, I love you too… so much…"

I sighed with a smile of relief. "That's all I needed to hear."

o O o

As soon as the sun rose, the village bells rang and the crowd clamoured. It had been days since the time of my capture and finally, the people's most awaited event was about to unfold in front of their very eyes.

Accompanied by knights both at my left and right side, I walked through the middle of the cheerful crowd. Their cheers, to a foreigner's ears, might sound like they rejoice for the coming of their savior. But in our country, the people rejoice for the nearing of their ruler's death. As I was nearing the stage of my performance, I saw Eriol atop the wooden stage, gazing at me with regretful eyes. I merely smiled, recognizing my fate.

When I finally reached the stage, the knight behind me untied my hands as he whispered a soft 'sorry' to my ear. I guessed that he was one of the knights who knew the truth from inside the castle. As I walked close to the guillotine, the cries of rejoice from the crowd turned into screams of hate. It saddened me to realize that their sufferings, despite only two years of Sakura's reign, seemed too heavy and great.

An old man dressed in pure white approached me with the masked executioner beside him.

"Your Majesty, have you any last words?" he asked.

I merely watched the crowd as they threw all their hate towards me. But as I was watching them, I noticed a familiar face uncovering her auburn hair from her cloak. Her emerald eyes watched me in tears. With my lips, I formed the words 'smile for me' without a sound. As she tried to force a smile onto her face, I saw a small girl beside her carrying a basket of seemingly freshly picked sunflowers.

"Your Majesty?" the old man called to me again. "Any last words?"

I raised my head to the clear blue sky and smiled radiantly.

Please watch over the person whom I have dearly loved the most.

A/N: If you noticed, there is a tiny bit of "Servant of Evil" references in this fic, specifically in the last two parts of the story. I didn't mention it before the start of the story because I thought you might easily guess what would happen at the end, lol. I do hope the story was able to touch your hearts. Anyway, thank you for reading!