Hey everyone! Here's the next chapter. I'll answer some questions at the end of the chapter :)

Syaoran sighed in frustration as he recognised the signs that called Meiling to duty. He was worried about Sakura, but his duties as a god came first and he needed to ensure the village was safe.

"You look frustrated."
He looked up and met Eriol's sapphire eyes. "Eriol." He greeted.
"Is Miss Sakura alright?" Eriol asked.
"I'm not sure. Meiling was keeping an eye on her, but she was called back suddenly." Syaoran answered as he continued mixing the potion he was making.
Eriol looked confused. "Why was Meiling with her?"
"The prince invited Sakura out for dinner in such a way she couldn't refuse. Meiling was with her to make sure she'd be safe." Syaoran replied with a heavy sigh.
"Ah, I see."
"So, why are you here?" Syaoran asked. It wasn't often Eriol would pop around to see what he was up to, so he knew that there was either something wrong, or there was something he wanted.
"I wanted to ask if Tomoyo could drop around every now and again to see Sakura." Eriol answered.
Syaoran stopped for a moment and nodded. "I'm sure it would make Sakura happy. I think she misses Tomoyo."
"I'll let Tomoyo know. Thank you, by the way." Eriol replied.

Syaoran simply nodded and Eriol left him to his work.

Syaoran completed his jobs and returned home to rest and replenish his strength in preparation for Sakura's lessons the next day. She still had a long way to go, but it seemed she wasn't as tired at the end of her magic and control lessons, which was a good sign. He glanced at the tapestry hanging on his wall and frowned with concern. Was Sakura alright?

He decided to check in on her and walked over to the water basin, looking into it. The water mirror showed him an image of Sakura, who was in bed, sleeping peacefully. She looked alright, but he still held a sense of unease. He decided he'd talk with her about it tomorrow to see if anything was wrong.
Scratch that.
He knew something was wrong.

He was anxious about what might have happened with the prince. If he weren't bound by the stupid contract between himself and the village, he'd deal with him in his own way. Perhaps it would come to that-but he'd really prefer if it didn't, since it would mean that something dire would have to occur for it to come to that.

While it was true that he was not a malicious god, there were some cases which he really wanted to act on his own accord. And this was one of those annoying times.

…

Morning arrived. Syaoran went for his usual walk through the forest, taking care to ease the spirits of the forest as he waited for Sakura. She was due to arrive soon, so he hoped to greet her without keeping her waiting for too long.

Things seemed quiet, so he carefully checked the Earth for impurities. Satisfied that there were none, he headed back to the shrine.

He saw Sakura was waiting patiently when he arrived, but her posture seemed tense. He stepped out and she turned to him.
When he saw her, he thought his heart might stop: she was holding a rag to the right side of her face which seemed to be bleeding rather heavily, and some blood had dripped onto her dress.
She gave him a tense smile.

He hurried over to her and placed a hand against her back, "Come inside." He murmured, leading her through the barrier of the shrine and into his home.
He led her to a chair and helped her sit down before he gently took her hand holding that cloth to her face.
"You don't need to worry." She smiled weakly.

He gave her a pointed look and she relented, allowing him to pull her hand away to reveal some terrible bruising and a large gash down the side of her face.
He gently placed his hand against the wound and a soft glow surrounded his hand.

Sakura felt the throbbing pain start to lessen. The gash closed itself, and the bruising started to fade.
"How does that feel?" he asked, keeping his hand against her cheek.
She smiled. "It feels a lot better now. Thank you."
"Do you have any other injuries that need healing?" he asked.
She shook her head. "Just some bruises, that's it."

When he looked at her she sighed softly.

"Theres a few cuts on my arms and back." She mumbled.
"Show me."

She turned bright red. "B-but, I'd have to..." she looked away, remembering he'd already seen everything. So, why shy away when he already had?
"Alright."

Sakura stood and unbuttoned her dress, sliding it off her shoulders so it hung around her waist. She covered her bare chest with an arm while Syaoran examined the cuts on her back, healing them along with the cuts on her arms.

"Who attacked you?" Syaoran asked as Sakura dressed herself.
"It was just some of the village folk." She shrugged.
"What provoked the attack?" Syaoran then asked.

Sakura stayed silent and Syaoran looked over at her. "Sakura?"
"I think...it's because of what the prince did last night."
"What did he do, love?" he asked with increasing worry.

She looked away as she scrunched her fists in her skirt. "At the restaurant, after Meiling left... a group of angry villagers were waiting outside. The prince wanted to confront them with me at his side, and when he did, he told them he was going to marry me and..." she trailed off.

"And?" he pressed, feeling increasingly more infuriated with the prince with each passing second.
"He kissed me. In front of everyone."

Syaoran stared at her with shock, worry and what seemed like anger.
With a soft sigh, he moved to get a damp cloth and walked back over to her, gently wiping the blood away.
They were quiet for a long time until he'd finally finished.

"You can cry, if you need to." He spoke softly.

Her body shuddered, and then a sob broke free, followed by many more. He held her for a long time until she finally calmed, and even then, she didn't make a move to part from him.

"What do I do?" Sakura whispered.

Syaoran squeezed her gently. "I don't know." He spoke honestly. "I'm so sorry Sakura. I promised you you'd be safe, but you got hurt. I'm so sorry."

She shook her head. "You have your duties, and Meiling has hers. It's just the way it is." She looked up at him and smiled. "I'll be alright."

He looked into her deep emerald eyes. "Sakura..."
"I'll sort this out. I think I can."
He smiled softly. "I wish you the best of luck, Sakura."
She smiled brightly. "Thank you."
"Are you up for your lessons, today?" he asked.

Perhaps going through their usual routine would help to relieve her of some of the stress she was under, and perhaps distract her. After all, there was only so much she could handle on her own, and Syaoran needed to drive home the point that she was NOT alone anymore.

She nodded, "Of course."
"Great. Let's get started." He smiled.
She nodded and followed him outside.

As usual, training was hard. Sakura was exhausted at the end of her magic and control lessons, but she wasn't as exhausted as she had been previously. At the very least, she could still consciously think and pay attention to what was happening around her, even if she did just want to drop to the floor and fall asleep.

"You're getting better. How tired are you feeling?" Syaoran asked.
"Hmm...a bit tired. It feels like I've just done a very long run, I suppose." She replied.
He nodded, "Your endurance is getting better."

She smiled. That was good to know, and it filled her with more confidence.

"Let's move on to your next lesson. Come with me."

She followed him, and they headed into the forest. It was late afternoon, and the sun was going to set soon, which led her to wonder why they were going into the forest at such a dangerous time of day.

"Part of my work includes keeping the lands of Alyrias prosperous. In order to do that, I must constantly check the earth for impurities."
"Impurities?" she asked with some confusion.
He nodded.
"Impurities are often caused by various types of spirits or magic folk." He explained. "It's not an intentional thing. In fact, it's just another part of life, but if they build up over time, they can be dangerous to the land."

Sakura stumbled over a tree root but quickly regained herself. Syaoran looked at her with a raised brow for a moment and then shook his head.

"So, how do we find the impurities?" Sakura asked.
"Come over this way."

He led her to a meadow. Some glowing lights were lingering in the air.
"What're they?" she asked.
"Impurities left behind by magic folk." He explained.
"So.. how do you purify it?" Sakura questioned.
The sun was beginning to settle low in the sky.
"The easiest way I've found is to create an image in your mind of it gently dispersing." He explained. "Why don't you give it a try?"
"What? Me? But..."
He smiled, "It's ok, I have faith in you. I'll guide you."

She took in a deep breath and released it before nodding.

"Close your eyes and picture these impurities." He spoke softly, and Sakura did as instructed.
"Imagine a gentle force to carry it away, as if you gave them a little nudge."

Sakura thought hard. What would be good?
She remembered seeing cherry blossom petals gently carried off in the breeze once when she was still young. Sakura nibbled her lip.
A soft breeze blew against their backs and Syaoran smiled.
"That was very well done."

She opened her eyes to see the impurities were no longer around them.
Syaoran nodded his approval, "Yes...but I think you used a little too much magic. But we'll work on that."
"S-sorry..."
"It's fine, you're still learning." He said softly. "There is a way to do it a lot quicker, but you're not ready for that. Come with me."

Sakura followed him through the forest until he came to a stop, holding his hand up for her to stop as well. She stopped behind him and he pulled her close, signalling for her to stay quiet. Then, he nodded to the clearing ahead.

Up ahead were strange looking creatures scavenging for what Sakura assumed to be food. They were approximately the size of a deer and had a similar shape, but their presence felt...dangerous.
After a few moments, the creatures moved on.
Syaoran sighed heavily. He was worried they might sense them.

"What...were they?" Sakura asked.
It was well and truly dark now.
"They're creatures of the night, and are quite dangerous, even for gods to be around." He explained. "If you ever see them, it's best to stay silent and take cover."
"Alright..." she murmured. "But why? What can they do to a god or goddess that makes them so dangerous?"

Syaoran wondered how he should explain that. He sighed softly. It was best just to get straight to the point.
"Even gods and goddesses are vulnerable to death."
Sakura stared at him with a stunned expression, and he continued to explain.
"We are vulnerable to three things-the attacks of another god or goddess; those creatures; and one other thing."
"What's the other thing?" Sakura asked, increasingly more interested.
"Weapons specifically designed to slay gods." He answered. "There aren't many around these days-they were all destroyed hundreds of years ago."
"How were they created-by whom were they created? Surely humans don't have the ability to create such weapons?" Sakura asked curiously.

Syaoran smiled at her curiosity. It wasn't often that she took such an interest in something, even though she was always an attentive listener and fast learner.

"They were created by a god." He answered. "The intentions were good, but when they were given to humans to protect themselves, they became too confident, and tried to slay any and all gods. It threw off the divine balance, which became dangerous to the earth, and so we had to put a stop to the disaster."
Sakura frowned in confusion. "They were made so humans could protect themselves?"
He nodded. "Yes. Not all gods and goddesses are very passive. I've told you before that there are some who strike down humans simply because they may have done a minor mistake."
Sakura shuddered. "I remember."
"Some like minded gods got together and created the weapon so that humans could protect themselves from such disasters. Unfortunately, the outcome as you may have guessed, was total and utter chaos."

Sakura thought about the information that Syaoran had given her, but it still didn't make much sense to her.
"Syaoran, if there are only three things that are fatal to us, then how come humans can do so much damage to me?"
Syaoran watched her with an unreadable expression for a moment, and then he sighed softly.
"I said there were three things that were fatal to us. Three things that can kill us. Humans can still hurt us and cause us injury, but no amount of pain or injury they inflict can kill us. We endure it-we get through it-because we aren't human."
Sakura stared at him. She only felt more confused. "But-then why did you heal me…"
This time he smiled. "Because I can't stand seeing you in pain."

She felt her cheeks heat up, and there was an uncomfortable silence.

"I'm guessing you're also wondering how it is that those creatures of the night can harm us, too?" Syaoran diverted her attention from his comment.
She nodded, words unable to form on her lips due to feeling so flustered.
"It's because they themselves are not unlike gods themselves."

Sakura just stared at him. He could tell she still had so many questions for him, but he didn't have time to explain it all.

"I'll walk you home." Syaoran said, "You'll learn about the other creatures in time."
"How many are there?" she asked curiously, suddenly distracted.
He laughed a little. "Too many different kinds to count."
"Oh." Sakura mumbled.

They walked through the forest together, and as they were walking, Sakura spoke. It had been on her mind for a while, and she wanted Syaoran to know.

"Um...a while back, when I got home from one of my lessons, the prince was waiting for me." She confessed. "He asked me where I'd been, and I told him I was apprenticed to a medic in the forest. Sorry."
"Why are you apologising? You're not entirely wrong." Syaoran said. She was his apprentice, and he did make various medicines.
"Ah-well...last night, the prince said he wanted to meet my mentor. I don't think I'll be able to stop him from asking me questions until..."
He smiled. "It's fine. I don't mind meeting him."
"You're not going to do anything sneaky, are you?" Sakura mumbled.
"Sneaky?" he looked shocked. "No, not with the first meeting."
Sakura looked at him with confusion, but he didn't elaborate. Instead, he looked a little lost in thought.

They finally left the forest and Sakura looked to Syaoran who continued walking with her.
Sensing her question, he spoke. "I'll walk with you the rest of the way."
"You don't have to..." Sakura mumbled.

"It's fine. Let's go." Syaoran smiled.

Besides, he was still worried about Sakura, especially after what had happened to her that morning. They walked in silence down the hill and through the streets. For the most part, the streets were quiet at night, except for the few who liked to hang around at the pub. Sakura avoided the pub-she hated the memory that came with it.

"There's someone following us." Syaoran murmured.
"I'm used to it. Just keep walking... hold on, are you visible to them...?" she asked.
"Yes, for now anyway." He replied. "Is that an issue?"
"No...I don't think so, anyway." She replied. "Besides, if you just suddenly disappeared into thin air, they would probably freak out even more and the village would surely be after my head."
He nodded, and they continued down the road.

With her comment, Sakura suddenly wondered what would actually happen if she were beheaded. And sensing her unspoken question, Syaoran answered.
"I would never let that happen to you, so you don't even need to think about it."
"Oh-okay." She stammered.

Sakura came to a stop outside her house and turned to Syaoran, who was watching her with concern yet again.
"Same time tomorrow?" she asked.

"Of course. Oh-make sure you read up on chapters nine and ten. There's some interesting pieces of information about some of the magic folk in there that you should know." He added. "And if you're interested, read up on the human rebellion. You can find that information the brown leather-bound book I gave you."
She smiled brightly, "Of course. I'll do that tonight."
"Great. Stay safe."
She nodded and pushed open her door, stepping inside.

The first thing she chose to do was light a fire in the hearth so she could start cooking her dinner. As tired as she was, she still had much to do before the coming day.
She started cutting up vegetables and prepared her meal, and while she waited for it to cook, she opened the large leather-bound book Syaoran had given her and turned to chapter nine.

It seemed like an index of various magical creatures which held her interest for such a long period of time she almost let her dinner burn. Thankfully it didn't burn, but she did let it go cold due to her attention being focused entirely on the big chapter of magical creatures.
Sakura scolded herself for being careless and quickly finished her meal before reading any more of the chapter.
She wondered what more Syaoran had in store for her, and what she still had yet to learn. She was excited to find out, and she was looking forward to her lesson the next day.
But she was tired, and she needed her strength, so she placed a little piece of wool between the pages she was reading and closed the book before heading to bed for the night.

Little did she know of the brewing storm outside...

Thoughts? Is there anything you're curious about? I'm curious to know. At some point I'll go back to work on a few things in the previous chapters-just minor things, nothing major.

Alrighty, I've had some questions asking me about why I'm depressed and what's happening. It's quite complex, so I'll give a basic summary. I suffer from a chronic illness which impacts my life quite dramatically-I can't work, and I can't attend any tertiary education because I'm just too unwell. This means I'm unable to do what most people my age are doing-working, moving out... I also can't attend social functions because of my health. So, it's a pretty vicious cycle. I can't work or study, I can't function, so I feel depressed. I am being treated, but unfortunately for my chronic illness, there has been no treatment that has worked thus far. We're still looking but I've been in pain 24/7 for the last six years. I'm literally never pain free.