Title: Princess by Mistake
Author: Life. In. Pixels
Disclaimer: I do not own CCS.
Summary: Sakura is thrown into a life that is not hers where she meets the infamous Prince Syaoran Li. She will have to be clever, deceitful and tactful in order to maintain her position of power. But we all know... a life built upon lies is no life at all.
Author's Note: As you can see, I suck at writing summaries =P
Read the story, it's much better. I promise.
Chapter Two
Princess Sakura
The princess passed away during the middle of the night. The band of thieves buried the dead respectfully.
Kaptan handpicked the best horses out of the ones they had captured from the dead soldiers and sold the rest. He also sold the carriage and empty chest for some silver coins.
The group then traveled into the next town. It took a good day of riding before they reached it. The town was poor but it had a small tavern which pleased the men. They wanted a hot meal and a bed to sleep in.
During the whole ride, Sakura could feel Kaptan's eyes on her. She could almost hear Kaptan thinking. The boy was full of ideas on how to get rich. Coupled with his talent at swindling and stealing, he did very well for his own. One also mustn't forget the princess's cryptic message and the endless opportunity it would offer them if Sakura really took on the role of a princess.
She remembered the first time she saw Kaptan, with his long brown hair tied loosely, his beautiful blue eyes, and warm smile in that handsome face of his. His face resembled her brother, Touya, and maybe that was why she had chosen to trust him and end up following his group.
Doc kept a close eye on Sakura's hand and redressed the wound often but it was clear that the bite was only getting worse.
"I need better medicine and real medical tools," Doc told Kaptan. "She needs to be treated or I'm afraid she'll lose that arm."
The first thing Doc did when they arrived at town was leave to search for an apothecary. Kaptan secured a small tavern at the edge of town for the group and disappeared to do his errands.
Within minutes, the group had disbanded, each going their own way to tend to their own needs. They still had some coins in their pocket from a previous successful raid.
Sakura was left alone and she decided to spend her time tending to the horses. Tiny pricks of starlight were already popping up in the sky as she approached the old wooden stable.
She lit up a glass lantern hanging by the side which cast a shadowy glow on the wood. The sweet musky smell of hay wafted up to greet her as well as the neighing of horses and stomping of hooves as she entered.
The black horse that Ifrat had been riding was now owned by Kaptan. She watered him and patted his flank. Its mane was beautifully black and its coat was shiny with health. Ifrat had gone to great pains to take care of this beauty.
She reached into her cloak pocket and pulled out some cubes of sugar. The horse munched happily in appreciation, flicking its tail to and fro.
"Isn't he something?"
Sakura jumped in shock. She had not heard Kaptan enter the stable. She did not say anything as he moved up behind her, but nodded her agreement.
"Sakura," he said, "There's something I want to talk to you about."
She busied herself with arranging the hay. "Don't call me by that name."
Kaptan sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Come sit beside me."
She took her seat beside him on the edge of the wooden fence. She could smell the comforting scent of leather and horse emanating from him. With Kaptan, she felt at peace.
"How long have you been in my group now?" Kaptan asked as he stretched lazily.
"Four years."
"Been with me since you were sixteen, have you?" He grinned and slung his arm over her shoulder, pulling her towards him.
"Yes," she whispered into his shirt. "You were only twenty then. I remember the day you found me clearly."
He laughed kindheartedly. "Yes, you were scared like a kitten, and dare I say, very bad at defending yourself in combat."
"A kitten?" Sakura protested indignantly.
"Mhmm," he murmured. "Maybe a baby tiger then?"
She pouted and he grinned. "Four years with me already, and I still don't know what happened to your family."
Sakura drew out of his hug immediately, closing up and becoming distant. "You know I don't want to talk about that," she replied coldly.
"I know all my men, head to toe," he replied. "But when it comes to you, I hardly know anything about your background. What was your life before you joined me?"
"You know enough already."
"I found you in your house, yes. I know your family was rich. I know someone killed your entire family. I also have my suspicions that you know who did it. But-"
"And that's all you need to know," she cut in. She stood up, signaling the conversation over, and was about to leave.
He grabbed her injured wrist and squeezed mercilessly. "You forget who you are talking to, Sakura." Even though he was kind to her, she would do well to keep in mind that he could be equally cruel.
She winced in pain but bit back stubbornly, "Don't call me that!"
"Your name is Sakura," he whispered. "I let you change your name because you were in pain. It has been years now and ample time enough to heal from whatever wounds the murder of your family did to you, but if you are to follow me, you will face your past and retake your name."
"You're hurting me, Kaptan…"
He eased on his grip but did not let her go.
Her green eyes stared into his blue ones defiantly. "They say time heals everything. But time never ever will heal the hatred I feel and the pain I had to go through. You will never understand it either!"
"I found out vaguely who you were before I took in into this group. Your neighbors and the surrounding villagers claimed that you were cheerful, kindhearted, and always smiling. This is not you."
"Don't tell me who I am! I am no longer that person and never will be again!"
At this time, Tor walked into the stable. He did a double take on the way Kaptan was holding Sakura's hand and grinned.
"Well, it's about time you two got together," he roared completely missing the tension between the two. "I was thinking to myself this whole time, what with Namonai being the only girl in the band and all-" He stopped, realizing something was wrong. "What's going on here?"
"From now on," Kaptan, who was equally stubborn, said without taking his eyes off her, "Her name is Sakura, not Namonai."
Tor shrugged. "I always did like Sakura better. I mean, Namonai is just such a depressing name, right lassie?"
She glared at Tor, her green eyes trying to burn holes in him for siding with Kaptan.
"What are you doing here anyway?" Kaptan asked.
Tor gave him a sheepish look. "Well… Neim escaped with the gold you gave him for that intel that got us nowhere." Tor scratched his beard. "But the scoundrel wouldn't have gotten far. Let me take Skor and Fox. We can catch up to him before night fall."
"That won't be necessary," he replied and let go of Sakura. She pulled away crossly, rubbing her wrist.
"I have a plan." There was a devious sparkle in his eye. "Sit."
Tor grabbed a seat and propped himself on the roll of hay.
"The way I see it, no one knows the princess's name or face. That's our great advantage."
Tor shook his head. "I got a bad feeling about where you're going with this."
"You won't when you hear how much gold we can get," Kaptan replied grinning from ear to ear. "See, Sakura here is perfect for the job."
"Me?" Sakura asked slightly flustered.
"Yes," Kaptan answered. "You are educated. That's a point in our favor. And no one knows anything about the princess. We know she didn't grow up here and that she never set foot in this kingdom… until this day when the king summons her back." He paused in thought. "The only ones that have seen what the princess looks likes are maybe those nuns that raised her way out in the West but that won't concern us. They're too far away to be a threat to my plan."
Tor was starting to see where Kaptan was going with this and he was liking it by the minute. He fell into silent contemplation, studying Sakura.
"Wait a minute," she protested. "You can't seriously be considering this. Let's say if it were true that no one could verify if I was the real princess, it's treason to pretend to be one. The king has a right to know his daughter has died."
"He left her to rot in the West," Kaptan countered. "He has no right as far as I'm concerned. Sakura, just imagine what we could gain from this. You'd have unlimited access to Palace grounds." He stood up and started to pace. "It'd be as simple as getting in and getting out. We'd be gone before anyone knew it."
Sakura looked doubtful.
"I have faith in you to pull it off," Kaptan said attempting to quell her doubts. "This would also mean it'd be our last raid if we do it successfully. We'd be living the rest of our lives on good food, expensive wine, and beautiful girls." He paused, catching himself. "I mean… g-good…food…and…"
"Silk clothing…" Tor supplied lamely trying to help him.
Sakura couldn't help but giggle.
"I've given this a lot of thought. Just say yes, Sakura."
She sighed and then shrugged. "Why not," she answered good-naturedly. What was her life worth now anyway? "Is that why you want me to retake my name?" She should have known Kaptan always had an ulterior motive to everything he did.
He made a face. "No one would believe us if we introduced a Princess Namonai, would they? It's a done deal then!" Kaptan smiled and he took Sakura's hand and led her to the back of the stable. "And I have a present for you."
He headed to the last stall. "Your own horse," he said as he unhitched the latch and swung the wooden door outward to give Sakura a glimpse.
The mare was a beautiful chestnut color and tall in height. It snorted and eyed Sakura. There was a pretty little white heart shape birthmark on its head and Sakura instantly fell in love with it.
Tor came up behind and voiced his agreement. "Whatcha gonna name it?"
Sakura patted its nose and answered, "Namonai." She looked at the two. "It's only fitting, right?"
Kaptan shrugged. 'Women,' he thought ruefully. Turning to Tor he said, "Gather the men. Have them shave, bathe, and wash their clothes. No exceptions."
Tor hesitated then grimaced. "Great!" he muttered and was off to carry out the order.
"You on the other hand," he said when Tor had gone. "You need to buy a dress."
Sakura protested, "I can't move in one of those long trailing dresses, lest alone fight."
Kaptan stared.
"Princess Sakura… to my knowledge, I'm pretty sure a princess brought up in the West by nuns does not know how to fight in close combat, and don't even mention handling a sword!"
"What! You're taking my swords from me?"
"I'm safe keeping them until we're done this job," Kaptan replied. "Here," he reached into his cloak and handed her a beautifully crafted dagger set with red ruby stones. "Use that for self-protection if you need it. It was given to me by my sister when I was a just a kid."
She shook her head. "I can't have my sword but I can carry a dagger under my dress?"
And she really did not want to take Kaptan's dagger. After all, his sister was dead and what if she lost it through her clumsiness?
Kaptan grinned at the imagery of her hiding stuff under her dress. "That's the idea, love. If anyone asks, your excuse is that the dagger is for decorative purposes." He clapped his hands together and made for the exit. "Now, don't forget. Buy a dress before dawn. That's your job for now."
And with that he was out the stable and gone into the night, leaving her head spinning with possibilities.
Tor was muttering curses by the second. The men were uncooperative just like he had expected them to be. None of them wanted to shave or cut their hair, and they were all whining like little girls in his opinion.
"Cut our hair? This is what makes everyone fear me!" one had shouted.
"Not gunna look like one of those high-class stuck-up fat, rich pigs," another supplied colorfully.
They were gathered in the tavern, each with their own mug of beer. Some were slightly drunk but the majority of them were indignant and angry. Half were standing and some were slouched against the wall.
"It's Kaptan's orders," Tor replied unmoved.
"Where are we supposed to take a bath? In the freezing cold river!"
"Yeah! And what's wrong with our clothes!"
"I ain't washin' no clothes, matey. Washin' is a woman's job."
"I smell fine…"
Wordlessly, Tor took out his battle axe. With one swing, he slammed it into the round wooden table, sending his cup spinning unto the floor. The room went instantly silent. Even the bartender, who was also the owner of the tavern, had fallen completely silent when seconds ago he had been loudly complaining about the rowdiness of the group.
"Now listen here, all of you," Tor said quietly, "I don't want to repeat myself. Shave, bathe, and wash your clothes."
Just then, Doc swung open the tavern doors and walked in, lugging a bag of potions. "Hi, guys," he greeted them, oblivious to the pressure in the room. "Found an apothecary. Restocked on much needed herbs at a good price too. Jolly, did take a lot of time though, more than I expected."
"Doc…" Tor said in a deadly whisper. "We're kinda in the middle of something here right now."
"Oh, a meeting," Doc exclaimed embarrassed. "I'm sorry I didn't make it on time. You see, was at the apothecary and I didn't get the memo that we were having a meeting and, you see, the man at the apothecary could talk a mile a minute-"
"Just like you!" someone called out. The room erupted into laughter. Tor looked like he was about to jump over there and strangle the doctor when Kaptan kicked open the tavern doors, and swaggered in.
He looked around the room, taking in the image of his men. All were dirty, unshaven, and looking angry.
"I take it that no one wants to be clean?" he exclaimed.
Kaptan's presence immediately silenced even the noisiest complainer of the group. That was his power. The ability to lead, even if those that were led were a bunch of cutthroats, ruffians, and thieves. He had managed to discipline them and train them to work together without killing each other.
Still no one said a thing.
Kaptan walked over to an unoccupied round table and seated himself. "Bartender!" he yelled.
The middle aged man picked himself off the ground where he had been cowering and came over, trembling a little. He kept wiping his hands with the white cloth he had.
"That's me," he replied feebly.
"My friend seems to have damaged your table a bit," Kaptan explained scratching his head.
The bartender shook his head and eyed the battle axe still sticking out of the table like an ugly statue. No doubt it'd leave a hideous mark when it was pulled out.
"N-N-No," he stuttered. "It's not damaged. G-Good as new actually!"
Kaptan slapped one hand over the man's shoulder in a friendly gesture and the man fell to the ground, misunderstanding and crying not to be killed.
Kaptan stared at the man now kneeling in front of him and sighed inwardly. "Listen carefully. I am not here to hurt you." He then looked thoughtful. "Well, unless you provoke me."
The man was now sobbing in fear and kept glancing around at the group.
And the group was intimidating.
Some twenty large and tall men all gathered in his tiny tavern. Some had scars on their faces and arms and god knows where else. All of them carried weapons that looked like it could slice through anything. All of them were rude, callous, and had a threatening glint in their eyes. Skilled in weapon-wielding and fighting, they were murderous. He had heard countless stories of bands of thieves that traveled from one small town to the next, sometimes stopping in a local tavern, and the next day the owner would be dead. Beheaded or worse. He did not want to die here.
"P-Please…" he whispered. "I-I have a f-family."
Kaptan ran a gloved hand through his hair. "Alright. I won't kill you if you follow my instructions carefully," he exclaimed exasperated. He had no thought of killing the poor man at all but it seemed that if he played along, he would actually be getting somewhere.
"A-Anything."
"There is a little helpless girl in your stable right now. I want you to take her to your wife who will then take her to the nearest clothing store to buy a beautiful dress." He paused. "Understand?"
"Y-Yes."
"Good. Now go and bring her to your wife."
The man was on his feet in a matter of seconds.
"Make sure it's the latest trending style," Kaptan called after him as the man made a dash towards the door. "And if you don't come back, I will hunt you down."
It had started to rain and Sakura was furious. She stomped out of the stable and stormed into the tavern.
"Why does the tavern keeper think you're going to kill him? And why is he trying to take me to his wife?"
She glared at the group now strangely huddled in a corner, whispering. At their center was Kaptan, barking orders and instructions in hushed tones. There was a tense excited buzz emanating from the group. All of the men were rapt with attention.
The barkeeper peeked from behind Sakura at the strange scene in front of him. Some of the men glanced Sakura's way when she entered and the barkeeper imagined that they were plotting to kill him. He shrank away, whimpering a bit.
Sakura sighed and turned again to comfort the barkeeper. She had spent around fifteen minutes in the stable trying to convince the man that no one would be dying here.
"Alright," Kaptan said and stood up. "Go and wash."
Like one collective group, the men stood up and left the tavern obediently. Tor shook his head in amazement and was about to leave too when Kaptan stopped him.
"Make sure the barkeeper finds Sakura a suitable dress."
"What? Me?" Tor protested.
Kaptan grinned and left the tavern with haste.
Tor was annoyed to be sent on a dress-buying mission but he complied. They were traveling up a dirt path towards the dressmaker's shop, the light sprinkle of rain falling gently on their clothes.
"Why me," Tor was muttering. "Does it look like I know how to pick a dress?"
Sakura smiled. She had, at least, convinced the barkeeper that she would not require his wife's taste in clothing.
The store was a shabby little wooden cottage surrounded by a fence whose paint was peeling off. However, when they entered, Sakura could see the inside was finely decorated with fabrics of all colors.
"Well hello, Jon," the plump store owner greeted the barkeeper. "Are these your friends?" she asked gesturing to Sakura and Tor.
"We're here for a dress," Tor cut in before the barkeeper could start stuttering out an answer.
The woman looked Sakura up and down and nodded. "I have just the thing, lass. Follow me."
They followed her to the back of the room where she had rows of already-made dresses hung up. "These are suitable," she said beaming at Sakura.
"We'll take one," Tor said without even glancing at them. He was just itching to leave. In his mind, dress shopping was too feminine for him.
Sakura walked up to the dresses and touched them. Just like she had expected, they were coarsely woven from cheap wool. The designs on them were simple and plain. These dresses were made for women of lower classes that could not afford anything else. They would not do for what Kaptan was planning.
"Just a second," Sakura said to Tor. She then turned to the woman and smiled sweetly. "Actually, we're looking for something more expensive."
The woman looked startled then she looked Sakura up and down again with a doubtful stare. "I don't think so, lassie," she replied finally. "What with that dull tunic ye wearing over there, these dresses will fit you just fine."
Tor bristled at the woman's tone and started to advance menacingly on her. "Are you saying we can't afford better?"
The little woman held her ground and lifted her chin. "Look at what the child is wearing. Ye expect me to think you can afford more than these dresses here?"
"G-Gladis," the barkeeper stuttered nervously. "Just show them more dresses. P-Please."
"I will not," she huffed. She crossed her arms and glared at Tor. Tor reached for his weapon and Sakura immediately stopped him.
"So you don't carry anything better than coarse wool, am I right?" Sakura asked pleasantly.
"What? Of course I do!" Gladis exclaimed jauntily.
Sakura reached into her pocket and produced a gold coin. "This convince you then?" she asked.
Shocked, the woman hesitantly gave a curt nod and speechlessly led them to another rack of clothes.
Sakura reached out and touched the fabric. These were good dresses made out of expensive fabric. Not the best but definitely better than the ones before.
There were laces and gold embroidery stitching on some of them. The designs were complicated and beautiful. Sakura smiled a bit. It had been a long time since she had shopped for anything so fine. Constantly being on the road, defending, stealing, and just trying to survive called for ugly gray tunics that were more common sense rather than beautiful.
As she was browsing, a white dress caught her eye. She pulled it out from its hanging place to get a better look.
The dress was a pure white color. It had short puff sleeves done with a patterned gauze weave. There was light gold embroidery running from the hemline all the way around the dress, trimming three rows. Around the waistline was a thick gold satin ribbon. The rest of the dress was plain and casual. Sakura immediately liked it.
"This one," she told the shopkeeper.
"This one's six silver coins."
"SIX!" Tor burst out yelling. "Are you robbing us? You see this shirt I'm wearing? It cost one small copper coin. For this white fabric you want six silver coins?" He raised his battle axe and started to wave it around. "Are you crazy?"
The woman shrank away, scared for her life. Sakura sighed.
"Tor, put down that axe."
"But…"
"Six coins for this is a fair price, trust me."
Tor still looked doubtful and enraged but he lowered his weapon. Sakura reached into her pocket and carefully handed the woman six round silver coins. "I'd like it to be tailored to fit me perfectly."
The woman looked a bit startled that Sakura would know of such language or even how buying a dress worked but she nodded in agreement. "I-I'll take your measurements now."
"And it'll be best if the dress is ready by dawn tomorrow," Sakura instructed. The woman nodded, reaching for her clothing pins. "Wait for me outside," Sakura told Tor and the barkeeper. "This won't take long."
After Tor and the barkeeper had gone outside, Sakura complimented the woman on her store attempting to ease the tension. The woman made no effort to continue the conversation and remained mute and cautious. However, after a while, her curiosity getting the best of her, she asked, "Ye a cute lass and I can tell from the way you speak that you an educated lady. What are you doing with ruffians like that?"
This time it was Sakura that made no effort to continue the conversation. The woman got the hint and did not say more. The measuring took a little over fifteen minutes. With a guarantee that the dress would be delivered before sunrise tomorrow, Sakura left the store with Tor and the barkeeper and headed back to the tavern.
She sat in her room, cross legged on the dingy hard bed trying to think the events through again. Was it smart to follow Kaptan's plan? Sure, if they were successful, and she had no great doubt that they wouldn't be, then they would be rich and well off. But she had not joined Kaptan's group to better her life. She had joined because of three reasons.
One, Kaptan greatly resembled her older brother, Touya. After losing her family to murderers, it had comforted her greatly when Kaptan had appeared. His handsome face with the grin he wore, it was as if Touya had come back from the dead.
Second, Kaptan's group offered her a great advantage. The advantage to travel under cover from those that were still seeking to finish off the last survivor of the Kinomoto family. Kaptan's group were well-trained and loyal. It would be hard for any assassin to get wind of her traveling here because they would not think the little upper-class lady would be able to handle the rough on-the-road lifestyle. And even if they could deduct she had gone in hiding with a bunch of thieves, it would be hard to kill her off.
Lastly, Kaptan's group was a wealth of information. Because of the constant need to travel, gain more knowledge on who to steal from, information was a constant. This way, she had learned more than she could ever hope to, from improving her combat and survival skills to knowing how to deal with shady characters.
But this plan to infiltrate the royal family and pose as a princess. It was the riskiest thing she had seen Kaptan lay out. It would mean that she, Sakura Kinomoto, would have to rejoin the upper class society again. What if someone recognized her face? It was true that she hadn't attended any social parties since her family was cruelly annihilated, and that she did look a bit older than four years ago, but was it enough to keep someone from recognizing her?
Sakura sighed and closed her eyes. On the other hand, rejoining society as royalty would give her a great advantage she needed: the ability to move large amounts of resources to track down the person behind the murder of her family. She clenched her fist in memory and set down her resolve.
Yes. From today on, she would be Princess Sakura of the Royal Family.
The door creaked open and interrupted her train of thoughts. Doc poked his head around the corner. "Can I come in?"
Sakura nodded and let go off the dagger she had instinctively reached for.
"Just here to check on that bite," Doc explained as he dragged himself along with his potions in.
With delicate and agile fingers, he carefully cut away the bandages with a small pair of surgical scissors. Even as he pulled away the bandages, Sakura could tell that the bite was only getting worse. Doc's brow furrowed but he did not say anything as he started uncorking bottles of different liquids.
"I'm no doctor," Sakura said. "But even I can tell that's bad."
Doc grinned, trying to reassure her. "Don't you worry about it. This Doc'll take care of it."
She must've fallen asleep a little after Doc had redressed her wound, given her some medicine and left. What had woken her though was that someone was trying to sneak in through her door.
She had travelled long enough to know not to let her guard down even when sleeping. Within seconds, she was alert and her fingers were clasped around the cold hilt of the dagger without so much as rustling her cover. Duly taking in her surroundings, she noted that the candle had burnt all the way down and that it was just about to be dawn as the sky was starting to light up.
She then concentrated her entire focus on the figure sneaking in. Calculating the distance and sizing up the intruder, without a warning, she was on her feet, her free hand slipping itself under her cover and throwing it on the offender, and her other hand holding the dagger to his throat.
"Whoa, whoa!" Kaptan whispered, raising his hands in self-defense.
She held her position for a second longer and then she sighed and let him go. "What are you doing!" she demanded in a hushed tone. "Sneaking into my room in the middle of the night!"
"Firstly," Kaptan replied, clearing his throat in embarrassment. "I let you catch me off guard or I could have thwarted that attack."
Sakura raised an eyebrow in doubt.
"And secondly, it's about to be dawn and I'm here to wake you up and deliver this." He reached down and picked up the fabric that he had dropped when Sakura had attacked him. "Your dress."
Sakura took it and suppressed a yawn. "This early? I'm still sleepy."
"We have a long way to go, and Fox has spent the night gathering as much intel as he can on this Meiling person. Now-"
He was interrupted in mid-sentence as once again Sakura's door creaked slowly open. The two froze as they saw the shadow of a man creeping in.
Kaptan immediately reached for his sword and within moments had it unsheathed and pointed at the intruder's throat.
"H-Help?" stuttered Doc in the dark, not understanding what was going on and why a sword was pointed at his throat.
"Doc!" Kaptan hissed. "I was this close to taking your life! What are you doing sneaking into Sakura's room?"
She made her way to the table and found a new candle. She lit that up and slowly the semi-dark lifted and they could see each other better.
Doc wore a mischievous grin on his face once he found out that it was Kaptan and not someone else who wanted to kill him.
"I'm sorry for intruding this early," he explained to Kaptan and Sakura. "But I wanted to see Sakura's wound before we set out. I just didn't know you were here, or else I would've come back at a more… convenient time."
"What are you saying?" Kaptan spluttered. "I just got here too. Don't you dare let your mind wander."
"N-No, no," Doc whispered back. "I didn't mean that." But he was grinning from ear to ear with a goofy I-know-what-you-did expression.
Kaptan huffed, flushing red. "Well, I was here to deliver the dress despite what you may think. There it is, and I'm off." With that he quickly left the room to avoid Doc's knowing grin.
Kaptan was so righteous and Doc was so clueless. Sakura giggled.
"Now," Doc said getting right down to business. "Let's have a look, shall we?"
She sat down on the edge of her bed and held out her arm for inspection. Doc reached into his bag and produced a pair of scissors and sniped away the bandages covering the bite.
"Now, this may look a bit nasty, but I spent the better part of the night concocting a potion that should-" He trailed off and the room became silent.
"Doc?"
Doc said nothing and Sakura pulled back her arm to have a look. It couldn't be that bad. She felt no pain and her arm hadn't bothered her the entire night.
"It can't be that bad," she said voicing her thoughts aloud to convince herself.
She looked and indeed it wasn't that bad. In fact, it wasn't bad at all. There was no wound, there were no two punctures where the spider had bitten her, and there were no angry bruises. Her arm was completely healed.
However, that was not the sole reason that had left Doc speechless. In the place of the bite was a symbol.
Small in size but pitch black in color. A very detailed design and extremely complicated to duplicate.
"Well…" Doc finally said. "Well." He could not find more to say.
"Is that what I think it is?" Sakura asked after Doc remained silent.
"I-I believe so," he replied, reaching and bringing the candle closer. "This is… this is amazing. So this is how the Mark is done. This … this is simply amazing."
They studied it more closely in the dim candlelight.
There was a weave of two budding roses reaching upward. On top of the highest rose was a tiny delicate butterfly tipping on one of the petals. On the second rose was a crown decked with onyx black gems. Both roses had abnormally long stems. The one with the butterfly sitting on it had prickly sharp thorns while the other one was completely bare of anything except a lone leaf. A thick black ribbon wrapped the roses together. Entwining them was some unidentified plant. At the bottom of the Mark were handwritten floral words that spelt out "Hime".
Doc got his spectacles on to read the letters. "It says Princess."
Sakura tensed. "So is it what I think it is?" she whispered.
Doc looked at her and then nodded. "I-I think so. No one is able to duplicate this Mark of the Royal Family with such… such precision and skill." He stood up abruptly. "We need to tell Kaptan. This is how the Royal Family passes on their Mark! It's not through childbirth or genetics; it's all about some magical spider bite!"
He sat down abruptly again. "Sounds crazy."
"Get Kaptan."
Within moments, Kaptan was called and was in her room again.
"Okay… I know that it's been some time since you ran about in a frilly dress," Kaptan exclaimed as he strode into the room. "But this is ridiculous calling for me. I can't help you get into your dress-" He paused in midsentence as he took in Sakura still sitting on her bed, still in a dull boy-ish tunic. "What's going on?"
Doc was beside himself with excitement. "We discovered something extremely fantastic!"
Kaptan raised an eyebrow and plopped himself onto the edge of the bed next to them. "I'm listening."
"You know the Royal Mark?"
"Yes," Kaptan replied as he leaned forward contemplating. "That has got me a bit worried but I've had Fox gather some information about it. Apparently, it's all kept very quiet but we can just lie through it. It's not implausible that Sakura's mark is in an indecent spot. And I doubt anyone would be honestly questioning if she was the real princess. No one's ever seen the real princess all grown up. And… are you guys listening to me!"
"I think you should have a look at this." Doc gestured and directed Kaptan's gaze to Sakura's wrist. Kaptan's mouth fell open in surprise. He scrambled across the bed and took Sakura's arm into his hands to study it intently.
"This can't be! How is this possible?"
"The spider bite healed nicely. And in its place we found the Royal Mark stamped clearly. If we're guessing correctly-"
"Then the Royal Mark does not appear because you are of the royal blood lineage," Kaptan interrupted eyes wide, "But through trickery."
Doc was nodding enthusiastically, bobbing up and down.
"You know the princess… she did mention something about this… but I didn't believe her at the time," Sakura added.
"What!"
"Shhh, if you two don't keep your voices down, everyone will be awake and running into this room," Sakura muttered.
Kaptan coughed flushing a bit and caught his composure. "Yes, stop being so loud, Doc."
"Wha-" Doc protested indignantly. It hadn't only been him who was loud.
"You really should have mentioned this, Sakura. But wow," Kaptan whispered. "What we've discovered here can essentially bring down the entire Royal Family. They've been going on and on about how the Royal Mark justifies everything because only the chosen ones receive them miraculously but…" Kaptan shook his head in amazement. "But it's just some trick…"
"Yes," Sakura said. "But how does a spider do this?"
"This is why that chest was traveling with the real princess and why it had been locked shut," Doc finally understood. "She must have been planning to receive the bite sometime before she reached the palace in order to assure everyone of her lineage and her claim to the throne."
"This Mark is unquestionable. You're right, Doc. No one would question her." Kaptan was now grinning from ear to ear.
"Oh…" Doc was finally grasping what all this meant.
"I had been worried about the Mark," Kaptan explained. "Sakura would have no Mark since she wasn't the real princess and I was planning on passing it off as it hadn't shown up yet or that it was in an inconvenient area… but this… this is handing us a golden ticket to walk right into the palace without any, and I mean, any suspicion."
Sakura stared. She couldn't believe any of this and what had the princess said? That she would have to be the princess of this kingdom? And what of this Mark? It seemed to be tattooed permanently onto her skin. How would she live in the future without being marked as "princess" because people recognized some mark on her wrist? And what was that about five years? And this spider… was this magic? No, that was ridiculous. Magic didn't exist. Then what was the explanation for this? She should have paid closer attention to the princess rather than dismissing her as a rambling sick royal pain.
Kaptan, on the other hand, did not seem worried or even remotely curious as to why or how the mark could have been made through a spider bite. He was relishing in the fact that now he knew how the Royal Families were tricking the commoners and everyone else into believing their indisputable right to the throne when secretly they were just stamping it onto whoever they wished to succeed them. He was just content that it had happened to Sakura and that all the pieces to his plan were ready to move forward.
He was up and moving. "Do not let anyone else know of this right now, and I mean it Doc." He gave Doc a patronizing stare. "No nervous chatting or drunk talking. The last thing we need is to have some sort of peasant rebellion and no gold to get." He turned to Sakura and commanded briefly, "Now get into that dress. We have a palace to head to."
And with that he had Doc dragged out of the room and the door closed.
Sakura sat on her bed for a few more moments and let out a long sigh. This is what she got from traveling with thieves that were only interested in riches, Kaptan not excluded. She ran her fingers through her tousled hair and then swung her slender legs off the side of the bed. She had a lot of work to be done if she had to appear like royalty.
Making her way to the small and cracked vanity mirror, she propped herself on the small round wooden chair. Grabbing the brush she ran it through her short brown hair until it was beautifully straight. Taking the two ribbons her brother had given her so long ago which she had not the heart to throw away, she neatly tied it on her hair and took a look at her reflection.
She did not recognize the person that stared back at her with the stunning green eyes. Her face was pale and locks of her hair were starting to grow too long and fall into her eyes. It had been a very long time since she had looked at herself in a mirror and found her reflection staring back at her so neatly. Normally, her hair was always tousled from the wind or fighting and there would be streaks of dirt on her face from being always on the move.
Standing up, she easily slipped out of the tunic and pants and threw them to the side. Taking the dress Kaptan had left for her, she started to dress herself. Within minutes, she was ready. She had specifically chosen this dress for its simplicity. Almost all the dresses required some sort of servant to help with the lacing at the back but this one was nice and simple. She thanked whatever wisdom she had had at the time for choosing this dress for she couldn't imagine the mayhem it would cause if she asked one of the men to come and help her tie up laces.
She shook her head in amusement and grabbed the golden satin ribbon and skillfully tied it around her waist. As she bent down to grab the pile of dirty dull clothes she had left behind to be packed up, she realized Kaptan had gone and found her some matching shoes.
Surprised, she picked them up. They were white comfortable slippers made out of velvet. They were as plain as the dress but clearly finely made. She wondered who he had stolen them from and slipped them on. She glanced down at the worn brown boots she had that were slightly caked in mud and dirt and grimaced. She couldn't believe she had forgotten to buy shoes. Kaptan sure knew how to be completely prepared.
The sky was just turning into splashes of red and orange when Sakura was finally ready. She opened her bedroom door and stepped out.
Kaptan and Doc were waiting outside patiently in the midst of a conversation but when they saw her, their mouths fell open.
Suddenly feeling too self-conscious, Sakura blushed. This was a bad idea, she thought.
"Hello there, what did you do with the twerp?" Kaptan joked when he found his voice.
"You're so beautiful!" Doc was spluttering. "Who would've known that the ugly duckling story was really true."
"Why, thank you, both of you!" Sakura exclaimed sourly.
Kaptan punched Doc in the shoulder. "Where are your manners, Doc?"
"Wha-" Doc protested. It wasn't only him that had joked about it.
"Good morning, Princess," Kaptan smoothly greeted her as he bowed just as gracefully.
In the better lighting, Sakura could see that he was dressed finely in a blue coat with what seemed like gold buttons at the side. Doc was also dressed up as well. He wore a red-brown cloak over a black robe with a woolen rope around the waist. She wondered if Kaptan had made everyone dress up as well. She couldn't wait to see what he had done overnight.
He took her hand and gestured with his other hand. "Your Highness, the carriage is ready and waiting for you outside."
She was surprised. "You got us a carriage?"
Doc handed her a black travelling cloak to keep the morning chill away and they made their way downstairs.
The bar was empty and Kaptan did not pause. He led her straight to the door and flung them open.
She did not think that Kaptan could surprise her anymore but he did. It took a while to have her eyes adjust to the slightly bright outside but when she did, she saw the men that had been rough and tough just last night turn into coachmen and soldiers.
They wore a similar coat to Kaptan and were all clean. Scars and barbaric weapon had all been hidden away. They now carried plain swords that were standard to the soldiers of the Escort.
When they saw Sakura, some kneeled like they were supposed to. Others stood there stiff and proud unsure of what to do, while still others gaped. Some started to chat with their neighbors about her prettiness.
Kaptan coughed. "We still have lots of work to do on the greeting and escorting. And of course, they'll have to lose the rough talk and killing jokes, but we're nearly there."
The carriage that Kaptan had managed to secure was black. However, the paint was seriously peeling off in large patches and someone, probably one of the men, had attempted to paint over it. Needless to say, that man was no painter and had made a disaster out of it.
"And," Kaptan explained a little embarrassed. "That was the best I could do with the remaining coins I had after I bought everyone a uniform." He took Sakura's hand and guided her down the steps and to the carriage.
Skor was right on cue and opened the carriage door for her and even bent over to let her step on him to use him as a stepping stone up to the carriage.
"I-I don't think that's necessary, Skor," Sakura stuttered a little overwhelmed. She could see that one of the windows of the carriage was cracked open. She wondered mildly how they were going to convince anyone that this was really the Royal Escort.
"I've heard of those stories, Sakura," Skor explained. "That's what they do for princesses."
"Princess Sakura," Kaptan corrected clubbing the lime green-haired boy lightly over the head. "And get up. Stories aren't always true."
With a sheepish grin, Skor got up and busied himself with holding the carriage door.
Sakura turned to Kaptan. "I'm not really sure about this," she said hesitantly. "Will they be able to completely change and pretend to be the Royal Escort in the time till we arrive at this Meiling person's house?"
Kaptan grinned down at her. "You of little faith." He turned to Tor and gave a curt nod.
Tor grinned and lifted his plain sword which had replaced his favourite battle axe.
Immediately, the group neatly got into formation and as if one, they kneeled and rumbled strongly with elegance, "Good morning, Princess."
"This is what a few hours of practice can do," Kaptan whispered proudly. "We can definitely do it."
Shocked, she didn't know what to say. So this was what Kaptan had accomplished just overnight.
With just a little more confidence in their plan and a small pretty smile, she replied, "Rise."
To Kaptan she gave the order, "Let's go, Captain." Then she lifted her skirt and climbed into the carriage. Skor closed the door behind her as everyone climbed atop a horse.
The impostors who acted like they were the King's Escort Soldiers set out just as the sun peeked over the horizon with a fake princess in their tow and no one the wiser.
Author's Note: More goodies to come soon and a glimpse at an obnoxious prince ;] Let me know what you think of this chapter or story in general by dropping off a review!
To be continued…
