A/N: And here is Chapter 7!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Tsubasa Chronicle.
I know, I got this up quick, right? Well, that's because of Reese's Pieces and Sprite and confidence! :D
Knock Out the Jackalope: Thank you for reviewing! :D Yes; I noticed that it's usually Syaoran being subjected to pain and fighting in most fanfics, as well. To me, the fighting part makes a lot of sense—Syaoran is, of course, strong and skilled with a sword and his body, therefore he should be the one for combat (besides, who can resist the mental image of Syaoran going up against an adversary?). But because of Sakura's desire to help do her part, she also needs to be able to "fight"—hence, the bow and arrows. While Sakura does not become physically strong in this fanfic and while she will not engage in hand-to-hand combat, I feel that she needs Something so that she won't be a complete damsel in distress. She is, after all, a living human being with wants and needs and aspirations—and, at in this fanfic, one of those aspirations is to aid her companions in every way possible.
Also, Sakura's situation got me to thinking: If all this stuff is happening to her, how can it be that there are no "side effects", if you will, for her condition other than being sleepy most of the time? I thought to myself, "Her memories got ripped out of her and the only thing she feels is sleepy?" So, while the amount of Physical pain being subjected on her is a variable, I felt that she should be experiencing much more… um… spiritual? mental? pain. Additionally, I felt that, for Sakura and Syaoran to truly be partners, then Sakura had better start pulling her own darn weight and really start to try to become stronger. And because of the aspects of her situation with having her memories taken, I believed that Sakura having a spiritual "power", if you will, would be most befitting to her.
Also, I'm not quite quite sure what you meant by "the feather issue". :) The group still has to find more feathers, but— WAIT! No! I can't tell you yet!
Astrid01: Thank you for the review! :D I'm so glad that it had such an impact on you… To know the reactions of the reader, especially when they are so profound, makes me extremely happy (and gives me a confidence boost as well). I will continue to do my best!
I realize that the last chapter mostly had just doing, acting, and happening. Most of those things will be explained in this chapter. :)
Chapter 7: Touch
They were wet—like a newborn's.
They were white—like a swan's.
They were small—like a gosling's.
They were beautiful—like Sakura.
Syaoran's heart stopped beating for a full second before springing, erratically, back to life. He stared at the two things—those two things that seemed suddenly so foreign to him. It was as if he had never seen any before. And in a way, he had not. At least, not like this. He buried his face into the back of her neck and tried to stop from shaking.
Sakura crouched panting on the floor, tears still streaming down. Her new appendages fluttered restlessly, confusedly, as if they had just been born; and in a way, they had. The fire that had swallowed her a moment before now was gone, and the girl widened her eyes in recognition that the fire had completely healed and sealed all her wounds—including the wound she had taken from Kilala. She was thankfully, blissfully, without pain, other than a dull ache in her head and betwixt her shoulder blades. Even more thankfully, she felt Syaoran's body over her own, blanketing her, yet putting no weight on her. His warm, strong body touched hers in a delightfully protective, almost possessive way; his face was pressed into the back of her neck. His breath tickled.
With a voice weak from pain and screaming, Sakura gently laughed. "Syaoran…" she breathed.
Syaoran gasped and sat straight up, staring at her for a moment. Tears glistened in his steady, warm, deep amber pools. Sakura wobbled a bit, and he took her body—being careful of her back—and set it gently in his lap. The girl gratefully rested her head on his strong chest. Syaoran let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. "Y-yes, Sakura?"
The princess was already asleep.
Syaoran smiled as he gazed at her, then wiped his tears away. She was all right. She was really all right. He looked up to his companions.
All four stared speechlessly at him and the princess.
"Is… is Sakura-chan okay?" Mokona quietly asked. "She's got…"
"I know," Syaoran replied, nodding. "I think she's all right, but she's exhausted. How she was saved only Kami knows."
Kilala's hand rested on her abdomen, where the blood was slowly drying. "Little One is far more powerful than I had originally expected." Turning around, the elf addressed the giant wall on the opposite end of the cavern. "Father Mountain, have you returned to your senses?"
The wall rumbled blue. "Yes, daughter of the forest. I thank you all for cleansing me of the feather's corruption. I have called my children back to me. I have apologized to them. And now… I will apologize to you, though I am certain that you are unable to forgive me for what I have done in my madness."
Syaoran's piercing eyes confirmed the Father Mountain's statement.
"However, I will offer you something in return for the restoration of my sanity." Out of the wall came a small, clear ball made of impeccable crystal. The offering floated gracefully to Syaoran, who only glared at it suspiciously. Kilala finally was forced to take the ball into her own hands. "I have an understanding that you are traveling the worlds in search of the princess' feathers. This sphere I am giving to you will allow you to freely return to this world, to this place, whenever you wish to, even if you are on the opposite end of the universe. I pray that—though this world has injured you and grieved you—you will come to recognize it as a safe home, a resting place for you, always welcome to you whenever you are weary."
Mokona's eyes widened. "Where did you get that?" the tiny thing demanded. "I thought the last one had been destroyed long ago!"
The Father Mountain rumbled in a chuckle. "Let us just say that I bargained for it."
The group's eyes collectively widened. "But… how much did something like this cost?" Fai asked, intensely curious.
The light in the cavern slightly dimmed. "I have lost the ability to move."
Kilala gasped and nearly dropped the sphere. Luckily, Kurogane snatched it out of her hands before that could happen. "You are unable to move? But… Father Mountain, you must be able to move! Are you truly to forever be stuck in this one place, for all time? Always?"
"Dear child, you have forgotten that I was once stationary, although that time was so long ago… I have merely reverted back to my original state."
"And what about Sakura?" demanded Syaoran. "What did you do to her?"
"I apologize for her wounds, Protector. However, at the time, it was an unavoidable occurrence," the Father Mountain replied. "Besides, through her powers, the wounds on her have healed, have they not?"
The boy scoffed. "That isn't what I was talking about. I was talking about… about these!" Syaoran pointed to the tiny appendages protruding from Sakura's back, fixing his fiery eyes on the Father Mountain's wall.
"Ah… Perhaps I can answer that question," provided Fai. Syaoran reluctantly tore his gaze from the wall of the cavern to look at his companion. "We have all witnessed Sakura's aura in this world, yes?"
Syaoran, Kurogane, and Mokona all nodded. "Yes, and the aura started when we got to this world," Mokona supplied.
"Actually, no. The aura appeared not when we came to this world, but when the feather was returned to Sakura. I believe that Sakura has in her possession special abilities, four of which we have witnessed. 1, that she has an aura that displays her emotions. 2, that, if she goes through pain, she can heal her injuries. 3, that she can steal another person's injuries, put them on herself, and then heal them. And 4, that she is able to manifest her aura, her power, into an arrow and shoot it in order to make the target explode. From what I hear of her archery training, I am almost convinced that her innate proficiency with the bow and arrow is a power unto itself." The magician paused to let this sink in. Syaoran's eyes were wide.
Then, Fai continued, "Now, why is this happening? Because the, erm, power seemed to… to escalate—" here he gestured toward the two appendages on Sakura's back "—when the feather was returned to her, I believe that the feathers are a direct link to Sakura's abilities. It is my hypothesis that, if we continue to retrieve her feathers, then her powers will increase until…"
"Until what?" Kurogane asked.
Fai's smile turned a bit apologetic. "I'm sorry. I haven't quite gotten that far."
'Damn magician,' Kurogane thought.
Syaoran sighed softly and returned his gaze to the princess. "Well… Until we can figure this out… Sakura needs to get somewhere more comfortable to sleep."
Mokona hopped over toward him. "Nuh-uh, you just want Sakura-chan all to yourself!"
Syaoran's face reddened. "What? I—No, I don—"
Mokona smiled widely. "Yes, you do! 'Cause you said you loooove her. L-O-V-E."
The boy's cheeks burned brighter and his grip on the princess tightened slightly in his embarrassment. He ducked his face to conceal his blush. "H-Hey! I-I…" Then, his face sobered. "It isn't as if she… returns my feelings."
Mokona blinked, taken a bit aback by Syaoran's sudden change in mood. However, Kilala approached the Father Mountain before the subject could be discussed further.
"Father Mountain, we will be taking our leave now. We must inform the Tree Mother of the new developments," the elf announced, bowing to the cavern wall.
The wall in turn glowed a light blue. "You are dismissed. And I thank you once again for restoring my sanity."
Kilala nodded toward the Father Mountain, then turned to her companions once more. "Let us go. The spirits are waiting for us." With that, Kilala began to walk to the doorway, making sure to pick up Sakura's bow before exiting. Mokona hopped into Fai's arms as he and Kurogane made their way out as well.
Syaoran waited a moment to compose himself before taking the princess in his arms—being careful of her new appendages—and standing. He allowed himself a brief, indulgent glance at her sleeping face before following after his companions. He wondered what Sakura was dreaming of. 'A memory, most likely,' he thought, smiling as he continued on. With a quick glance down to Sakura's face, he was certain of it: she was smiling.
But then he stopped dead in his tracks.
"Syao…ran…" the princess whispered. She snuggled closer to his warmth, reaching up a small, still bloodstained hand to grip his shirt. When she moved, her small appendages fluttered, brushing Syaoran's hand ever so slightly, like a feather. The boy realized with a slight chuckle that they were feathers.
Almost tentatively, he asked, "Yes, Sakura?"
"I want…" her voice faded out. She squirmed once more, a slightly flustered—yet cute as hell, Syaoran thought—look on her face.
"What is it, my princess?" he quietly asked, smiling at her. He trailed a bit more behind his companions.
"I want to have… have courage…"
"For what, Sakura?" he asked, a bit bemused.
She squirmed again. "To say…"
"Say what?" the bot urged.
Sakura's appendages fluttered once, and then the girl grew still, deep in slumber once more. Syaoran sighed, then caught himself. What had he been hoping for? Shaking his head, he trotted a bit—making sure not to jostle the princess—to catch up to everyone. They had reached the entrance to the mountain, and the forest spirits waited for them, as Kilala had said. The group mounted their respective spirits, and set off back toward the Tree Mother.
They had taken her in order to clean her up and wash her moon cloth clothing, and Syaoran, albeit reluctantly, had allowed them to and left in order to clean up as well.
Now he was laying back in a tree house—a smaller, plainer one than he and Sakura had stayed in before, but at least it had a soft bed—wearing freshly washed moon cloth. He had excused himself to this room after bathing on the premise that he would rest; but for some reason, he could not sleep.
The boy glanced at the clock: It had been two hours since his party's return to the forest. Two hours since he had seen, had touched, Sakura. His fingers twitched with the need to feel her soft skin under them again; his eyes longed to gaze into her own gorgeous pools; his heart throbbed to beat against her body. His face flushed as he thought about it. 'I should be ashamed for having such thoughts,' he chastised himself. However, he could not help but think about it; he loved her.
And she did not love him in return; he was almost certain of it. 'So I shouldn't even have been expecting to see her so soon… Kami, and I even… I even confessed to her. She would probably feel awkward around me… Wait, did she even hear me? She was in such pain at the time… Oh, Kami, I'm so stupid!' He rolled to his side facing the wall and clutched his head. 'How could I even say something like that to her?'
"Agh, I'm such an idiot!" he said, quite loudly, to no one in particular.
Just then, he heard the slight tap of footsteps. A small, shy, almost hesitant knock at the door made him sit up stock straight. "Um, S-Syaoran? Are you all right?"
It was Sakura. Of course it was.
'Think of an angel and she shall appear,' he guessed. He stood and went to the door, then opened it. "Y-Yes, Sakura-hime?" he said a bit gruffly, reverting back to his formal speech.
She bit her lip and turned her head away. "Sa-ku-ra. Please…?" the girl said with a small, shy glance in his direction that brought a blush to his face.
"Y-Yes, Sakura. I'm sorry. I just thought that… that maybe you would be…" his voice trailed off and he looked down. "A-anyway, please come in."
She did so, and it was only then that Syaoran realized that she was clutching her cloak around herself. Her aura was a heavy, saddened purple. The girl tentatively moved toward the bed and sat upon it.
"Can I take your cloak, Sakura?" the boy asked, concerned.
She shook her head, her face downcast. "No, I… I want to keep it."
Silence reigned for several moments before Syaoran sat beside her. "What's wrong, my princess?"
"I… I'm not human."
Syaoran blinked in surprise. "Of course you're hu—"
"I'm not!" Sakura almost yelled. Her voice broke. Syaoran's eyes widened as he realized she was crying. "I'm not human… Just look at me. Kilala told me what Fai had explained earlier. I'm stuck like this. I glow. I burn. I steal injuries. And... and I have these—these things!" She avoided the word pointedly, then broke down into sobs.
Syaoran listened to her solemnly, sadly. Then, he decided.
Gently, with a reverence, Syaoran took off Sakura's cloak to stare at her back. When she feebly resisted, he stopped her by gazing into her teary emerald pools, his own amber eyes steady, caring, smoldering. He tossed her cloak off to the side and put a hand on her shoulder softly. Her dress had been fitted to accommodate her appendages—how, Syaoran had no idea, but he was glad that the elves had done so.
They were beautiful—gorgeous was more befitting. They were small; certainly, these things could not be used for flight. Each one was approximately two feet in length if it was to be fully extended, Syaoran guessed. They came out of her back in smooth transitions that were completely natural—it was hard to believe that they had caused her such pain in emerging. Gentle white feathers smoothed their ways down, coating each appendage in a down of white. The two things had an ethereal, spiritual look about them, one that Syaoran was enchanted with.
Sakura was worried and embarrassed—though her tears had faded a bit. She felt so exposed before his steady gaze…
The boy stared at them for a long while, taking in everything about them he could with his eyes before he spoke. "Sakura… do you remember what I said to you just before you grew these?"
Sakura gasped and turned to look at him. His eyes were soft, gentle, soothing her. "Y-you mean… I didn't imagine it? You actually… you actually said that…"
"I love you, Sakura."
Her eyes widened. She could not speak for the knot that rose in her throat and the tears that fell from her eyes. She was so happy. But it ended all too soon as she realized that he could not possibly love her. "But, I'm not human… I'm a-a bird freak. A harpy. I-I'm—"
Though he had interrupted her firmly, his voice was soft. "You are kind, and sweet, and gentle, and caring. Your smile is so warm I melt into it; your eyes, I can drown in. And, although I'm fairly certain you are a human, even if you weren't, that would not change the way I feel about you, Sakura. To me, you are Sakura and Sakura only. And I love you. I'm sorry if that makes you uncomfortable…. But I can't help it. I just love you. I love you so much that it hurts." He said the last bit so simply, so tenderly, that tears once again rose to her eyes.
She struggled to speak through the flood of emotion within her. "Oh, Syaoran, I—I love you. I love you, too. I love you, Syaoran." The words were foreign on her lips, but they felt so right, so true, that she didn't mind. She said them once more, then blushed at herself.
He smiled at her warmly, serenely. His heart was breaking with the expression on her face and the happiness that plunged through him. He could have died right then and he would not have minded. He leaned forward to touch her forehead with his own, and she tentatively obliged, blushing harder. His smile turned mischievous. "You are so beautiful, my princess."
Her face got redder, and he chuckled. She seemed to be considering something. "What is it, love?" It seemed so natural to call her that that he did not notice until her cheeks started to metaphorically burn.
"So… you really don't mind if I… if I have these… things on me?"
His smiled widened. "Your wings are gorgeous, Sakura. Just like the rest of you." He paused to let this sink in and watched on with delight as her heartbeat got loud. "Can I… touch them?"
Sakura's mouth was agape for two seconds before she bit her lip and nodded, trying to look away. He touched her cheek gently with one hand and brought her gaze back to his own. His hand moved back once he was certain that she would not look away. Syaoran removed his gloves.
His eyes held her captive for five seconds before she felt pressure on one wing. She gasped quietly at the feeling, only to realize that he had sucked in a breath rather quickly as well. His face melted into a smile. He rubbed her wings gently, one caressed by each hand, and Sakura was all too shocked to discover that she was purring.
He chuckled. "They're so soft… and warm…" He stared at her for a moment, then tore his gaze away from her to bend forward. Sakura was confused for a moment, and almost made a move to stop him, but then, all of a sudden, she could not move.
He had placed a soft kiss on her wing. He felt her shiver under his hands, heard her breathing erratically.
When he came back up, she was so beautiful that he could tell he was losing it. Her face was angelic, blushing, her lips ever so slightly parted to allow faint gasps to escape. Her aura shined and sparkled a gentle pink, matching the color of her lips. Oh, her lips… so perfect. He would not be able to control himself much longer.
"S-Sakura…" he whispered.
She shyly inched toward him until her body was brushing his own. Her heart was throbbing against her chest almost painfully; it was singing with happiness. The air between them was tangible. "Syaoran…"
The boy and the girl leaned in until their lips met in a burst of electricity, warmth, and, above all things, love.
Her lips tasted sweet, like the essence of fruit and flower; they were soft, softer than clouds, softer than air, softer than even Sakura's hair. They moved against his own tentatively, easily responding to his advances, but too shy and content to make advances of their own. Her mouth conformed to his perfectly; they moved in quiet synchronization. The kiss started out slowly, explorative. This was new territory for the both of them, and they were inundated with the feelings coursing through them. Gently, Syaoran took her hand in his own, twining their fingers together, taking extra care to be gentle with her. With his free hand, he reached up to caress her cheek.
She was shivering, every nerve ending on high alert for his touch. Her breath was shaky as well, until she became so engrossed in the kiss that she forgot altogether how to breathe. All she could think about was the glory of his lips on hers, moving with hers, his tongue eventually asking for entrance into her sweet mouth. She graciously allowed, moving closer to him. With her free hand, Sakura tangled her fingers into the mess of chocolate silk on his head. She purred unknowingly.
He broke the kiss when he realized that Sakura had not breathed for quite some time. His princess gasped heavily for air for several seconds, her lips parted ever so slightly, as he gazed into her half-lidded eyes. Did she know she was driving him crazy? He released her hand only to wrap his strong arms around her body, pulling her closer to him. She responded by shyly, tentatively, crawling into his lap.
He blinked, swallowing hard. She was so close that he could feel the wondrous, soft warmth emanating from her body. He kissed her lips once more, then her cheek, then moved down to her neck. He nearly all but devoured her skin in his need to taste her, to kiss her. She gasped and arched into him, blushing ever harder—purring ever louder as well. He smiled at this development, but did not cease his onslaught on her throat.
"S-Syaoran!" she gasped. "Please…"
Needing no further encouragement, Syaoran brought his lips back to hers and clutched her closer to his body. He was holding her too tight again, but she did not mind. In fact, after a moment's self-conscious shyness, she pressed herself into him. She was pleased to find that their bodies molded together perfectly, and shivered in delight. Her wings fluttered.
Gasping, the boy moved his hands to her sides and gripped her middle, his hands shaking in his attempt to maintain his self-control. The kiss became more urgent—their tongues danced with one another, exploring, seeking, tasting. Sakura's wings quivered with the intensity of the feeling and she pressed ever closer to him, rubbing her body against his own in ways she hadn't known possible until she felt the urge to do so. She forgot to breathe and had to pull away for a moment to catch her breath.
With a soft growl, Syaoran immediately moved his lips to her throat, clutching her body in his hands desperately. "Oh, Sakura," he murmured huskily as he moved further down, kissing her collar bone.
Her heart could not settle on a steady beat. Her body was a sieve of heat and desire; her mind was a fog of love and lust. She whimper in pleasure from his attentions and found her hands taking tenacious holds of his shirt, pulling herself closer, desperate to give more of herself to him. This feeling, this love, felt so good it hurt, and she felt her eyes filling with tears. She could not take all this emotion quite yet.
Syaoran immediately sat up to stare at her, trying to quell his hunger for her. "S-Sakura? What's wrong?" His voice was still slightly husky from his need for her, but he tried—mostly in vain—to soften it. His amber eyes smoldered at her.
She shook her head, smiling through her tears. "Kiss me… Slower," Sakura said quietly, and her voice was so full of love and kindness that he could not help but oblige.
His gaze softened and he kissed her again, this time tenderly; he allowed pauses and slight spaces between their lips to appear after each gentle touch. His grip on her loosened slightly, enough so that he could trace her body with feather-light caresses. He relished the way her body shivered and moved under his hands, the way she occasionally opened her eyes to stare at him with jade pools filled with tiny tears. And though those pools reflected her almost innocent vulnerability, her untarnished love for him, her willingness to give herself away to him, he did not look away.
For she had entrusted these feelings to him. She had shown him her private feelings, given them to him, and trusted him to keep those feelings safe and nourished. He would not disappoint her. Syaoran took each emotion she showed him and stowed it away in a secret part of him, deep inside, then responded in kind to her with his own steady, warm, utterly sincere amber eyes. His heart was fit to burst with all the love he felt, with all the love she gave him.
"Princess…" he murmured quietly after approximately fifteen minutes.
She put her mouth against his own one last time, her lips softer than rose petals, more gentle than air. Sakura kept her lips there for one moment longer before pulling away somewhat regretfully. "Yes…?" she responded, her voice soft and dreamy with her happiness and exhaustion.
"Would you like to take a nap with me before dinner?" he asked, smiling, kissing her forehead before settling his gaze on her own.
She pressed herself closer to him for a moment before nodding sleepily. "Mm-hmm…"
He chuckled a bit with her cuteness. "All right, then." Syaoran, with as much care as he could possibly muster, took her in his arms and lay her down on the bed before going down to remove her small shoes. He placed them neatly on the floor beside his bed—'Our bed,' he thought proudly—and then removed his own boots. He lay beside her and wrapped his arms around her, being careful of her wings. "Are you comfortable?"
Looking at him, the girl shook her head. Upon his bemused expression, Sakura wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer, until their bodies were pressed against one another, relaxed. "Now, I'm comfortable." She brushed her lips against his own slightly, then closed her eyes.
Syaoran smiled and returned the favor, then gently began to stroke her wings. She shivered in pleasure, and he chuckled, perhaps a bit smugly, when she began to purr. "I will see you when you wake, my Sakura…" he murmured.
"I'm glad," she replied, her eyes still blissfully closed. "I love you, Syaoran…"
He watched her as her breathing began to regulate and her heartbeat decided to calm. Just before she drifted off, almost like a farewell gift meant to speed her along to sweet dreams, he whispered to her, "I love you, too, my princess…"
A/N: And there was Chapter 7! :D
Did you like it? I know, they finally got together! That was my first time writing a kissing scene… How did I do?