Title: Tempt Not a Desperate Man

Summary: Due to an unfortunate twist of fate, Syaoran ends up homeless, jobless, and penniless. In order to take back what his rightfully his, he embarks on a dangerous mission: seducing the cynical Sakura Hiiragizawa.

Disclaimer: Plot's mine. Everything else's Clamp's.

Chapter One: Prologue

"That's all of them, sir."

He shuffled the papers nervously before perusing the fine print some more, pretending to be intent on searching for any loopholes. His client leaned back in his chair, stretching his legs out and puffing out his chest. "How many pages you got there, Jude?"

Flipping through the documents, Jude Hamilton said, "Sixteen. That's not including the ones about where your stock portfolio goes."

"And how many would there be if we added those?"

Jude knitted his eyebrows together, deep in thought. "Twenty-three."

His client laughed. "Twenty-three pages, you say. Only twenty-three? My ancestors worked tirelessly for centuries, pouring forth sweat and blood in equal amounts, and you say all of their work can be destroyed with my signature on two dozen flimsy sheets of computer paper?"

Jude coughed and adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"Forget it. Never mind I said anything." Syaoran stood up abruptly and reached out a hand. "Thanks for all your work. And tell Eriol congratulations for me, would you? It's not every day that you get to snatch the entirety of Li Corporations and as a bonus, bankrupt their CEO, thereby receiving all of his possessions. All in one fell swoop. Great work, great work. In fact, he deserves a standing ovation." He clapped.

The door to Hamilton, Bransworth, and Farmington closed with a click as Syaoran swept out of the building.

And that was that. Eriol Hiiragizawa had won this round: he had taken the entire Li estate, acquired more 70% the stock shares of Li Corporation, and pretty much replaced Syaoran as head of the Li clan. In fact, Syaoran bet that if he paid a visit to the Elders or even gave them a call on his cell phone, he'd get the door shut in his face and a one-way train ticket to their voice mail. Syaoran who?

But the worst part was that all of this was his fault. Eriol was a bit manipulative, true, and might've been the instigator of a few technical details that helped land Syaoran in his present situation, but no, Syaoran sighed, I only have myself to blame. He'd been too distracted after coming home from Japan to notice the disapproval in the Elders' eyes when they saw him step off the plane alone. He was twenty-two. And according to the Li clan's standards, one whole year past the marriage deadline.

On his twenty-first birthday, the Elders had given him a choice: find a bride within a year, or we'll find one for you. This statement had been the result of much wheedling, and Syaoran gratefully accepted his birthday present with all the joy of a five-year-old.

Syaoran chose the former obviously, and after some more persuasion was allowed to fly to Japan to accomplish his mission. Twelve agonizing months passed. It seemed like an easy task, find the girl and slip on ring on her finger, but She seemed to have completely dropped off the face of the planet. And the strangest thing was no one else appeared to know where She was either.

Her brother, the Syaoran-hater of the family, merely averted his eyes when he saw his former enemy. Her father, poor Fujitaka, only shook his head and closed the door. The entire town of Tomoeda watched as Syaoran went frantically from door-to-door, begging for any knowledge of her whereabouts. Chiharu didn't know. Rika didn't know. Naoko didn't know. And Tomoyo? She herself wasn't even there to ask. Apparently, Tomoyo and She had left together to god-knows-where.

Maybe She'd gone on a business trip? To Tokyo? To Seoul, perhaps? Or maybe even to the Americas?

And so it had turned into a wild goose chase. Traveling from country to country, continent to continent, Syaoran found himself becoming more and more desperate as the sands of the hourglass fell faster and faster until finally, on April 1st, he faced the truth.

For the past fifty-two weeks, he'd known in the back of his mind all along where She was. Yet somehow, he'd hoped, prayed, that his suspicions would prove to be wrong. But now the jig was up, as some would say, and he boarded the plane on his twenty-second birthday without a wife on his arm.

The events that followed were very swift, and the end came quickly for Syaoran, if not painlessly. The Elders made their decision three days later.

Oh, the celebration was wonderful. Held in the grand ballroom of the Li mansion with pretty ladies flitting around in their ornamental robes and all the richest men who were lucky enough to be invited showing off their best Armani suits, the Li's were at their best.

And then came the ceremony.

Due to Li Syaoran's blatant show of disrespect, leadership must fall into the hands of one more worthy of the honor.

Eriol Hiiragizawa, cousin of Li Syaoran and nephew of Li Yelan, do you accept the following terms of our proposition?

I accept.

And you understand the consequences should you happen to not adhere to any one of our customs?

I understand.

Then let it be known to all, that the next leader of the Li clan has been chosen. Please show your respect to Hiiragizawa-san.

And Syaoran had been forced to bow his head also. Just a couple of years ago, he would've been the one kneeling in front of the Elders, accepting the ceremonial sword of the Li clan, reciting the oath that each leaders had recited before him. But now?

A groups of googly-eyed schoolgirls pointing at him across the street interrupted his reverie and reminded him of who Li Syaoran was now.

Stripped of his money, stripped of his possessions, stripped of his name for God's sake, the infamous Li Syaoran was now jobless, homeless, and completely broke.

But that's going to change, Syaoran resolved. Amber eyes hardened, and his mouth tightened into a thin line across his face, the gears in his mind whirling as a plan slowly began to form. It would be risky, and if his gamble failed…

Well, he smiled, I've got nothing to lose, have I? And without another thought, he raised his hand to signal a taxi.

William Shakespeare once said, "Tempt not a desperate man." And Syaoran was practically the epitome of the word "desperate."

Watching the taxi driver speed away, he checked his posture. Shoulders back, chin up. Father, I wish you could see me right now, planning my first coup d'état.He smirked and began walking up the steps to his previous home.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, after all.

Syaoran pressed the button for the intercom of Li estate. "I need to speak with Eriol."

"Is that you, Li-san?"

"The one and only, Wei."

"…You're sure this is wise?"

I've got the "desperate times" part down-pat…

"Wei. Please."

"…"

"Miss home, Syaoran?"

"A little…but that's not why I'm here. Hey Eriol, think I could borrow Her for a moment?"

"…Who?"

"I'm not stupid, Hiiragizawa."

There was silence on the other line, and then…

so all that leaves now is the "desperate measure."

"What do you need Sakura for?"

Syaoran placed his palm on the smooth metal of the gates guarding the Li mansion. His gates. "Just wanted to talk to my girlfriend, that's all."

A/N: Just a little teaser to get things going. I wrote this all in one sitting, so I'd appreciate any feedback (positive or negative) telling me whether I should continue with this or not. Thanks!