Summary: In the beautiful moonlit garden sits obviously the princess, her emerald eyes gleaming. Next to her is the Prince, with messy chestnut hair partly covering his eyes. What a perfect scene…too bad the princess isn't really a princess.
Authoresses Note: Okies, I just had to try this…yeah, I keep making new fics, but…I can't help it! Argh…I'm so irresponsible . but I'm gonna focus on updating them from now on! I'll try harder Hehehe…so this is set in traditional Japan…gomen nasai if I make any mistakes with all this history and stuff….just go along with it, lolz. It's my original story anyways =P leave a review, k?
DISCLAIMER: Me no own CCS…T.T…maybe oneday…XD heheh, but nah, CLAMP owns it…o wellz.
Waltz of the Katana
Chapter 1: Prologue
Just as the day's last strands of light faintly reached over the tips of wooden roofs, twice rang the bells of Chiheisen academy. They clearly cut above all the other chattering as girls retreated back to a cluster of houses standing apart from the rest of the town. They filed into the main house for the evening meal, about a dozen people at each of the long tables.
"Did you see Sakura? I haven't seen her since after the noon meal," one voice chattered innocently in the loud hall. The girl who spoke them had silky long raven hair, tied into a bun with chopsticks to keep her cool on the hot summer days like this one.
The girl sitting across from her had chestnut hair spun up into two high pigtails with ribbons crossing all over them. She laughed, "I bet she's off exploring something again. She'll be back soon though. How long can that girl go without this?" she held up a sushi roll that she had sandwiched in her chopsticks. As if hearing the call, a girl with glowing green eyes weaved past the others to their table. She had short auburn hair, and in the front it curved around the outline of her face. She was outfitted in a lush green kimono with cherry blossom imprints scattered around it. Vines snaked over the blossoms and around her waist.
"Hi Tomoyo, Chiharu!" she greeted happily and slid onto the bench with the raven haired girl, Tomoyo. "I found this really cool trail over by-"she explained to her friends, managing to at the same time eat fluently.
The two friends listened patiently, admiring the girl's energy at the end of the day. Even after all of the classes and training each day, she never seemed to get tired. That was the contrast between the three friends. Sakura the natural leader, Tomoyo the delicate flower, and Chiharu the comical lookout for the others. Each day you would hear a conversation sounding something like:
"Sensei gave us a surprise drill today! No fair, now my legs hurt…" from Chiharu,
"In Japanese history I heard tomorrow we're going to learn about the royal palace further up. I hear there's a prince about our age!" from Sakura,
and from Tomoyo, "Sakura, you ripped the hem of your sleeve again, be more careful will you, you'll end up getting hurt."
By the end of their companion's explanation, supper was almost finished. The dining hall still echoed with the remains of voices still lingering there. Chiheisen's students trailed in their separate directions, retreating to their sleeping quarters. Sakura rubbed her eyes, then blinked twice. "Phwee, I'm getting tired," she breathed out.
Tomoyo giggled, "So am I," she stood up to full height and smoothed out any slight wrinkles that had etched themselves into her dress, "…I'm heading back," she referred to the quarters that the three shared with seven other girls. "You coming?"
"Hai," Sakura and Chiharu chorused. They stood on each side of Tomoyo as they walked back to the smaller houses.
"Kinomoto, Daidouji, Mihara," a voice called just a few steps before the three girls left outside. A woman dressed in a fancy sea blue kimono slowly made her way towards them. She had a pale face, and her graying hair was tied in a braid swishing behind her.
Sakura's eyes turned awake suddenly, and she turned her shoulders out a little, very professionally. She lowered her head slightly and bowed. "Sensei Watanabe," she greeted. Tomoyo and Chiharu were right after her.
"Hello Kinomoto, Daidouji, Mihara." She nodded to the three, "would you mind of I had a minute with you three?" she suggested. It was stated in away where the words sounded like choice, but still voiced an order to be followed.
The three agreed their approval and waited for Watanabe to start.
Watanabe gestured for them to take a seat on one of the stone benches lining the paths outside. Once they did, she cleared her throat, "As Headmistress of Chiheisen Academy, I am dedicated to making sure our students grow to be great protectors of Japan. I am very proud of this martial arts school, as we not only just train the body, but the mind as well."
Sakura nodded lightly. After a slight pause, Watanabe continued.
"You for one are some of my most progressing students, and have demonstrated strong effort in learning the skills to be taught from this school. You exceed the standards, some of the most dedicated students currently." She rotated her hands in a speech-like way, "The palace of Japan a further up from us. Finally they're making ties with our area. The prince is to be engaged to the senator's daughter. The prince is both of Japanese and Chinese blood, from his parents. They hope to bring China closer too."
Scratching her head trying to hide her tiredness, Chiharu asked politely, "Uh, so how does this relate?"
"I would like you to accompany the senator's daughter on her journey to the palace," Watanabe finally let out. She looked hopefully at her students.
The three glanced at each other. "Umm…"
Watanabe had a rich laugh that rung out gently at the girl's readable thoughts. "This would be a great help to our country, but I will allow you each to personally decide if you are fit of the mission. Your reply is favorably preferred by tomorrow." She waved at them. "Oh, and may I have a word with Kinomoto?" she said in that same kind of command. She waved Tomoyo and Chiharu back.
"You guys don't have to wait for me," Sakura said and let her friends go ahead to the quarters. Then she turned back to the Sensei questionably.
"Also, I have noticed, you have similar physical traits with the actual senator's daughter. And…the journey will be complicated, for there are hints of alliances against the joining. In other words, the senator's daughter…lets say princess, will be in danger. You, you have expert training, and you also have…the clow cards. Being a card mistress, we believe you will be better protected, with the card's spirits with you. What I'm saying is, we'd like you to be the princess's decoy." Watanabe smiled warmly. "But then again, this is also your choice. Think about it," she added. "Good night Kinomoto," she said in parting, wand headed back into the main hall.
Sakura frowned. Sure lot of information to think about. She absentmindedly took one of the small dirt paths on the way to her quarters. In the dark stained sky, the little houses looked like lanterns, with a yellowish orange light splaying through the windows. The dark profiles of students going about their business moved around in the light, like dancers. It was just a normal, peaceful, warm spring night. Arriving at the house, Sakura briefly announced her return.
"Hey everyone, I'm back," she waved to all her roommates. Most of them were rolling out their straw sleeping mats, and they lightly chorused a "Hey," to her. "We heard about Sensei Watanabe's mission," a voice called out from one of the girls. "Are you going?" she asked eagerly.
Sakura sighed with tiredness and unrolled her mat. She slipped into her nightwear "I dunno," she truthfully admitted. Then she turned to her two close friends. "You decide?"
Chiharu glanced at Tomoyo, then looked back to Sakura. "We were thinking, and…we agreed. I mean, it is our duty, being martial artists in training. If we're sent of a mission, it's our job to go. That simple." She looked at the other girls, "but we're gonna miss you!" she cried lovingly.
"So are you Sakura? If you do, I can start making you some outfits for this adventure. You'll look so kawaiiiiiiiii!" she cheered.
Another girl pulled out a small yellow stuffed teddy bear from where he was perched on the window, "And Kero too," she joked.
The bear scowled. Yes, the bear scowled, as in saying that his facial expression changed. Of course, being the guardian of the Sun associated with the great magician Clow, this was all possible for him to be alive. Of course that wasn't his true form. "Hey, no way am I gonna get all dressed up!"
Tomoyo laughed, "Here, go calm yourself with some cupcakes over by my bag…don't eat them all," she joked. (heh, I dunno if they had cupcakes back then, but…whatever, lolz)
"So what did Sensei wanna say to you?" Chiharu asked. She leaned forward, waiting.
Plopping down onto her mat beside Tomoyo and Chiharu so that she faced them, she rolled onto her back. "She wants me to be a decoy." She flatly told them.
"Decoy?" they both repeated loudly.
The other girls leaned closer too, questioning Sakura.
"Decoy? For who?"
"You're gonna be a decoy?"
"Why does the 'princess' need a decoy?"
"Are you gonna accept it?"
"For how long?"
"Wouldn't that mean the real princess would be like a commoner?"
"Sakura's gonna be a princess!"
A major sweatdrop formed on Sakura as she listened to everyone's excitement. "Uh, well…I'm not…I guess—I have no idea for how—"she tried to somehow juggle hearing all the comments. "Well," she finally said loud enough to be heard over all the others. "I'm not really sure about any of the details. Sensei said that I look alike…" she shrugged. "I still have to think about it," she decided. Sakura placed her hands over her head, cupping her head on them. She just was getting a little tired…
After a few minutes of no success in going through the thought process without interruption, Sakura tucked a light quilt under her arm and headed for the door. "Going up to the roof, 'kay? You people are so noisy," she joked.
The others nodded, still going about their work. Sakura sometimes went up to rest on the roof, especially when it got warm. It wasn't surprising to find her still there in the morning, sound asleep. Once Tomoyo even came out in the morning, and in the still air she could faintly hear Sakura's heavy breathing from the roof as she slept.
Sakura tossed the quilt onto the roof, then stretched her arms up to it. She pulled herself up easily, probably with her own secret techniques and tricks that only the discoverer of their own secret place would know. The roof wasn't that high up, but it was quieter than the common ground where everyone else stayed. Sakura sat upright, staring nowhere in particular. She hugger her knees up to her chest, even though there wasn't the slightest wind to make her shiver. It was perfect, with only a breeze every few minutes to keep her from getting too hot. She carefully traced over her thoughts. A decoy. Directly being put in danger…but to protect a better cause. Yeah, a better cause than herself. Do I really want to accept that role? her mind rang out. It was a bit of a selfish thought, she admitted. Or was it? People believed that they could spare the life of a Card bearer, as long as they had made their 'will' for the next descendant that would rise one day, just as Clow had done before Sakura. There were other people who could use magic out there, besides Sakura. Being a Card Mistress was a gift, but there were more gifts besides hers. Sakura rested her head on her arms, still deep in thought. "If we're sent of a mission, it's our job to go. That simple," Chiharu had explained. Was Sakura's situation so different? Sakura closed her eyes. I don't wanna be the one to let the princess down, she thought. She smiled, "Maybe…"
Authoresses note: ::clears throat:: R-E-V-I-E-W ""