Memories

Witch-mistress-animaru

A/N: I seriously need my writing flare and my sanity back.

10: Return

Syaoran rarely panicked. And yet, as he paced the arrival area of the Tokyo International Airport, he can't help but wonder if he had lost his mind.

I can't be buying this crap. My wife, who has been missing for more than two years, can't turn out suddenly alive, could she?

"Settle down, Syaoran. Her flight is bound to arrive any moment," Yelan said, coolly composed despite the turmoil raging inside her.

"I don't believe this," he muttered reluctantly. "Somehow, you must have managed to find a dead-ringer to present to me now."

"Believe what you will," this time, it was Fujitaka who spoke up. "But you and that Wang girl are not taking another step to the altar once we've proven that she is, indeed, my long-lost daughter and your legal wife."

"This is a waste of time," he countered. "True wife or not, it hardly matters. I will simply divorce her if she is, indeed, my wife," he added the last words sarcastically.

Touya, who had been sitting quietly in a corner, stood up and held Syaoran by the collar so fast no one was able to stop him.

"One more word, gaki, and I swear I'll make you regret the day you schemed to marry my sister."

"Touya!" Fujitaka's voice commanded, but he pretended not to hear.

"For years, I put up with your arrogance. Now that she's coming back, can't you at least appear glad that she's safe? God, she never deserved someone like you!"

"Oh, yeah? Well, let me tell you this. I seriously regretted my actions ever since, especially now that I'm planning to get married for real with Yana!"

"That's enough!" Yelan said sharply. "It will do no good to squabble over the past. It is done. What matters, of course, is the future." She looked away. "Dissolving the marriage at this point is out of the question, Xiao Lang. Not especially, given her delicate condition."

"So she doesn't remember a thing," he said bitterly. "How convenient for her. But I, on the other hand, remember everything quite clearly, which is why I want to pursue the divorce," he added, sounding disgusted.

"Oi—!"

"I said enough!" Yelan stood up, glaring at the two grown men acting like children before her. "Xiao Lang, sit down! Your shouting will change nothing. Sakura is coming back and I will make sure that she stays for good."

Syaoran opened his mouth to argue, but thought better of it and closed his mouth shut.

"Good," Yelan huffed before turning away.

---

The plane finally came to a stop, indicating the end of her nightmarish experience.

She steadied herself as she got up, slightly trembling. All her doubts resurfaced — she didn't know what to expect upon her arrival. What if it were all lies?

But she trusted Jared and Rand. She'd trust them with her life, for if what they say is true, she owes it to them.

And yet, why? Why did they tell her she was Venice? They robbed her of something precious — her memories. Was she supposed to be glad or otherwise?

She'd find out soon enough, though. And she's afraid of what she'd find. Until now, she has no recollections to prove that she indeed was this Li Sakura, and not Venice Niels.

What if there was a mistake? What if she wasn't who Red and Rand said she was? She'd die of embarrassment. She'd not want to bother them longer than necessary…

She lugged her baggage behind her, not knowing where to go. She looked around, and to her surprise, she found she could actually read the Japanese characters on the posters held by those waiting at the airport.

お帰りなさい – okaeri nasai, welcome home, one sign said.

But there was no sign for her. She looked around, her fear overtaking her.

---

"There she is!" Yelan was the first to see her. She looked the same, although her eyes held uncertainty, fear and insecurity which would never have showed in the old Sakura's face.

But she is a girl robbed of her past, her memories, and somehow, the frightened expression on her face made her looks so fragile, so many years younger.

Naïveté was never a trait she associated with her daughter-in-law, but the woman standing several meters from where they stood, hidden, appeared exactly that.

Beside her, Touya and Fujitaka had stood up. She could see that the latter's fists shaking as they clenched ever so tightly.

"It really is her, otousan," Touya breathed, unable to believe his eyes. Before they could stop him, Touya strode out of the room and hurried towards Sakura.

"Oi, Touya, you cannot…do not startle her! She does not remember you…" But Fujitaka's warnings were moot, as Touya had already left the room.

Alive…I had lost all hope that she is alive. I had lost her more than once, my dearest daughter, all because of my misguided notions of happiness.

I swear, kami-sama, now that she's returned, I'll never lose her again.

---

She looked around, still unable to get past her fear. The crowds suffocated her; every sign she read made her head ache. She wanted nothing but to return to Dover and the safety of Red and Rand's company.

And yet…beneath her dark fear, there was something that pulled her back. Despite the alienation she felt, the place still seemed familiar. She felt like she was coming home after a long, tiring vacation.

She turned around in time to see a dark-haired man striding purposefully towards her. Instinct told her to bolt away, but once more, she remained rooted there, as if being pulled back by some invisible force.

She lifted her gaze and was met by solid grey eyes. His purposefully grim features should have scared her, but instead, they made her feel safe and warm inside. His eyes made her think of home, of playful arguments and some strange annoyance.

Home.

I know this man.

He stopped within a few feet from her, not saying anything, just looking at her.

For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then it came to her, so easily she might add.

"Oniichan," she whispered. She didn't know why, or how, but she remembered this man as her brother. His name didn't come to her, just as her own name sounded so foreign inside her mind.

He looked taken aback, as if he didn't expect the recognition.

"You…remember me?" His voice was gruff and rough, and she could see moisture forming behind his eyes, which he quickly shuttered away.

"I don't understand it myself," she said slowly. "I don't…remember your name. But…you are Saku…my brother, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am Touya, your brother. I…I…never thought we'd see you again, kaijuu," his voice trembled a bit. "I thought…we thought…" He did not finish his sentence. Instead, he crossed the distance between them and engulfed her in a hug.

Surprised as she was by the move, she couldn't belie the emotion behind it. She stood there, unsure of what to do.

Then, something wet fell down her hands. She held her hands to her face and realized she was crying. Why, she did not know. All she knew was that she wanted the hug to last forever.

Touya.

Flashes of memories erupted inside her mind… her brother riding a bike, and she was trying to keep up in her rollerblades. Her brother, eating her share of breakfast, calling her "kaijuu," as he did just now, teasing her about being late.

They were all too quick to remember everything, though, and all it did was make her head ache.

"Are you okay?" Touya let go of her abruptly, alarmed at her sudden pain.

"It…it's okay. I…just…" she shook her head to indicate she was unhurt. "I think I remembered something just now. It's never happened before…but maybe that's because…"

"Because…?"

"Because I thought I was Venice…Jared Niels' sister. They told me her life story…and I never once questioned it as not mine. She really looks like me." She added when Touya looked puzzled.

"W…where are the others?" Her memories frightened her, and she didn't want to think how she'll react to the other people she knew before.

"Come with me," Touya held her hand and led her to the room where everyone else waited with bated breath as they witnessed the scene between the two.

---

Syaoran couldn't believe it. She was indeed Sakura. Although two years had passed, he could not mistake his wife for anyone else.

And yet he still couldn't believe it. How could he be wrong?

"Did she remember at last? Did Touya trigger her memories?" Fujitaka asked, pacing about.

"It seems like that…but she still looked like she was looking at a stranger when she looked at her brother."

The minutes passed like hours, until finally the door swung open and revealed the two siblings.

TBC