The Heart's Hitsuzen
Chapter Eight: Sakura's Story
By: Eviltiger
Author's Note: I don't own anything. Chapter EIGHT! It's an amazing moment… Let's hope I keep this story running before it dies out on me… Please pretty, pretty, pretty please review! THANK YA ASTRID01!
ARIGATOOOOOO!
"Syaoran."
The man stiffened, and the crew went deathly silent. Turning slowly, the Captain lifted his eyes to look at the person in front of him, Syaoran's back exposed now to the crew. The peanut gallery's eyes widened, taking in the brand, almost like a tattoo on their Captain's back. It was a huge skull with crossbones, taking up most of Syaoran's back. A brand meant as a punishment. Steady amber met flashing green as Syaoran looked at the maiden if front of him straight in the eyes.
"Sakura."
Even the ship herself seemed to suddenly quiet down, everyone's attention focused on the two people near the stairs of the ship. None of the crew dared to make a move, sensing the vast amount of tension and intensity in the air. The jade-eyed maiden, Sakura as Syaoran had called her, met the Captain's gaze steadily and finally broke the silence.
"I suppose I should thank you for rescuing me." Her voice held no warmth, and the crew wasn't sure, but they almost could agree that they had heard a touch of bitterness and irony as well. Syaoran tensed, and then bowed very formally.
"Anyone would have done the same." He returned the same winter chill in his tone. Straightening up stiffly, the man made a seemingly innocent comment.
"The dimension of Japan is our next destination." Sakura smiled frostily and replied.
"That's sounds like quite a lovely dimension; I can't wait to see what splendors it could hold." It seemed like such a polite and formal conversation, but the crew knew better. "You're getting off at the dimension of Japan." "Wonderful, please hurry with it." It was needless to say there was some mutual feeling of hatred that the two shared. Then, after a little silence, Sakura spoke again.
"I feel a little tired, if you will excuse me, I will retire to the guest room. Good day." Giving a frigid curtsy, Sakura proceeded to walk down the stairs to below deck. After she was out of sight Syaoran walked up the small flight of stairs to his private quarters, and locked the door. The crew finally broke their silence.
"Cripes, ya feel that air? Was getting' cold just listenin' ta them!" Yui remarked, rubbing his arms to emphasize the point. Fai shook his head and whistled slowly.
"I'll be damned, those two hate each other! Wonder what happened between them?" The blonde with one blue eye remarked. The blonde turned to look at Kurogane, who simply shrugged.
"For once, your guess would probably be as good as mine." The tan man rumbled. The two turned upon hearing a noise from Tomoyo. The woman had a deep frown on her face, and was marching towards the stairs leading to below deck.
"Er… Tomoyo? What might ya be doin?" Yui asked anxiously. The woman stopped and turned around impatiently.
"I'm tired of the secrets. As much as I respect the Captain's and Ms. Ka-er Sakura's privacy I believe we have a right to a few answers." Ignoring Sôma's protest, Tomoyo carried on. "There's no harm in trying to ask politely, and besides, I need to check on my patient." With that the woman whirled around and disappeared below deck. Fai shook his head while watching her go, while smiling softly.
"That woman's nerve never ceases to amaze me." The blonde said. Sôma shook her head while replying,
"She'll never cease to astound anyone with that nerve of hers! And she almost makes it sound as if she is doing nothing wrong with the way she chooses her words!"
The brave crusader (Tomoyo) knocked softly on the door of the guest room on the Tsubasa. A muffled 'come in' was heard, and the ivory hands opened the wooden door. Sakura was sitting primly on the bed inside the room, looking at Tomoyo.
"Sorry for bothering. I just wanted to see if you were all right." The healer said. "Any dizziness or general mental discomfort?" Sakura smiled and shook her head.
"No, nothing of the sort." A small silence filled the room, before Tomoyo spoke once more.
"I never knew there was a brand on the Captain's back." The woman remarked. Sakura's eyes darkened, and this time when she smiled, it held a slightly bitter and sorrowful look.
"I suppose you would like to know what's going on." The auburn-haired woman said, looking at Tomoyo. Without missing a beat the healer nodded.
"Yes, I think we all would like to." Tomoyo replied. Sakura nodded, curtly this time.
"Right. I'm assuming this is a tale no one would want to miss. Do you want to go get the rest of the crew?" At this Tomoyo chuckled.
"No need to fetch them Miss." Tomoyo said with a twinkle in her eye. Getting up, she walked towards the door silently, before yanking it open quickly. Two blondes fell on the floor immediately while one tall tan man a little ways from the door looked slightly guilty but not the least bit ashamed. "They're already here." She finished. Sakura giggled, and then motioned for everyone to come into the room.
Once everyone was settled down, the light-hearted atmosphere quickly faded (it was replaced with something a lot heavier) and Sakura sat down in a way to face everyone in the room. After taking a deep breath, the woman lifted her eyes up, and began her story.
"My name is Sakura. I grew up on the planet Mokona, with a sweet amber-eyed boy with a heart as big as the sun. He is now your Captain. Your Captain hates me, and I can tell you why." Pausing, the woman thought for a few moments and then began to speak again.
"I guess it all started a long time ago. As you know, sky pirates are usually considered a great evil. The country of Mokona simply happened to regard your kind even more harshly than most. Particularly in the town I lived in. We had always received the worst treatment from pirates, be it sky or sea. A man had been in charge of capturing and punishing all pirates. That man had a daughter who fancied a young orphaned boy. That man was my father. He was a very kind person, and didn't discriminate simply because of social status, in fact the only kind of person he really could not accept were pirates. So he allowed his daughter to play and become friends with that boy. Now, that boy held an interest in the sky and sea, land was never really his favorite. But only his friend knew, and she promised she would keep it a secret forever." Sakura took a breath before continuing. The whole room was completely silent; no one wanted to interrupt her.
"After years went by, that young boy grew into a handsome teen, while the girl continued to be a friend to him and yes, fancy him. One day, I found Syaoran at the sky port, talking to a band of pirates. Even soliciting with pirates was considered a crime back then, and I confronted him later that day about it. It appears that those men had known his father, and Syaoran, desperate for knowledge, talked it out of them. He told me it would be only once, and I knew he was speaking the truth. I swore I would never tell anyone, especially not my father. However-" Sakura broke off, her eyes narrowing with anger.
"However, someone else had seen everything. A servant of my father's household, his name Kimihiro Watanuki, always had a nasty habit of following me around. I should have been more careful. The rat immediately went to my father, and told him everything. Kimihiro never liked Syaoran. I was too late to intervene. I found out all of this only after I saw my father walking towards me, demanding where Syaoran was, and Kimihiro behind him, his grin too wide for his face. It wasn't too hard to find Syaoran. He didn't suspect a thing after all… And then…" This time when Sakura stopped it was pain that flashed through her eyes, the memory apparently reliving itself. Taking a deep breath, the maiden continued.
"First they officially banned him from our town. Then they marked him with the brand of a pirate: skull and crossbones. Last were the fifty lashes. I was there. I watched him the whole time. Every single lash he looked me straight in the eye for at least a moment. Every single lash 'why?' was whispered, screamed, shouted, or mouthed. Every... Single... Lash." Sakura looked at the ground, not meeting any of the crew members' gazes. Retelling the story brought back to the surface the memories she so desperately wanted to forget.
The town square was packed with people, watching the poor boy with helpless pity. Everyone had liked the boy, he had never done anyone harm. But one girl in particular was affected the most. Every lash the auburn-haired girl winced, as if she was taking the blow instead of him. An iron grip on her shoulder yielded no comfort, and the silent sniggering next to the man also known as her father angered her beyond reason.
The worst pain, however, was still Syaoran. Every lash Sakura felt as her own, wishing she could stop it all. Syaoran had stopped screaming now, but if Sakura looked hard enough, she could still see his mouth moving with each hit. Why? Why? Why? Sakura had forgotten how to close her eyes, forced to watch the gruesome scene in front of her. Salt rivers ran their course that day, never ceasing until the heaviness of sleep consumed the jade-eyed maiden.
Yui jerked the woman out of her memories, his voice sending her back to reality. Accompanied by reality, however, was the sharp reminder of how that was only one part of the tale. Sakura narrowed her eyes in pain, fresh waves assaulting her, but this time for a different reason. So caught up was she in her emotions, Sakura nearly missed what the blue-eyed blonde had said.
"Er… Ms. Sakura, I-I know was wrong an all for the Captain to judge ya, but if ya jus tell him the truth… I mean, ya don't have ta be so cold…" Sakura stood up suddenly, startling everyone. Then, as if she seemed to calm herself, the young woman spoke in a steady voice.
"If it had only been at that I would have long ago forgiven him and it would have been me apologizing." Sakura said softly.
"But?" Kurogane had been brave enough to ask the question that was now eating at the crewmembers. Sakura's eyes flashed and this time when she spoke, emotions lay barely concealed.
"But that man did something unforgivable. Twice. I will never forgive him!" The maiden said, her voice rising ever so slightly. Sensing that Sakura would probably not reveal much more and any more prying would do more harm than good Tomoyo stood up quickly, shooting a look at the others.
"I think it's high time we let Ms. Sakura rest. She has had a long day, and such events can be very tiring. We bid you good night, Ms. Sakura." Ignoring the questioning looks Tomoyo ushered the group out of the room.
"Thank you, good night." Sakura replied tiredly, and the crew saw just how much of a toll the day had taken on the normally energetic young lady. Smiling Tomoyo nodded, and gently closed the door once all of the crew had left. The deafening silence in the room made Sakura begin to think back once more, her memories swirling around her. One particular event came up in her mind. One of smoke and fire, screams rising around her, and terror. Great terror. Shutting her eyes quickly, Sakura prayed that she would fall asleep soon, although some part of her knew that escaping to the dream world would be of no help, the memories would follow her anyway.
The crew all filed one by one out into the hallway quietly, thinking over the information their guest had just revealed to them. One by one they all headed into their separate or shared quarters, and one by one they all fell into a deep sleep. If any of them had been paying better attention, however, they would have noticed the quick movement that had taken place before Tomoyo had opened the door, and that the broom closet next to Sakura's room had its door slightly ajar. If they had been paying any attention at all, they would have seen a tuft of chocolate brown hair in the closet due to the ray of light the crack let in, and the rapid pounding of their Captain's heart.
End of Chapter Eight.
Many thanks to Astrid01! I wrote this one as fast as I could for you, hope the wait was worth it! THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR GETTING ME THIS FAR! And thank you everyone else who have been reading this, if all you hiding out there would only review, well, that would make things complete. Tried to stretch this one out, but it still be kinda short...
NOTE: I may not be able to write for two weeks or not, although that probably won't matter what with my unreliable writing schedule… Eh heh…
