Chapter 22
After the End
"Yukito-san seemed surprised when I arrived home without someone named 'Syaoran' in tow," the image of the girl Mokona projected on the wall stated with a soft laugh. "I tried to get him to tell me what it was he saw in his prophecies, but he just laughed it off, saying that apparently since they weren't true they didn't need to be heard. But I talked to Yuuko-san and she told me anyway."
"And what did she say?" the young man asked, sitting on the footboard of a bed.
"Well, she said that originally she and Clow Reed-san foresaw that this whole adventure would end with you coming back here with me," Princess Sakura said, smiling slightly. "But something went slightly awry..."
Syaoran returned the look. "Kinomoto?"
"How did you know?"
"Her heart... has already skewed one prophecy. Originally, in this world, she was to be in love with... our Yukito - and Yue along with him. And then I happened."
"And changing the end of that prophecy is what changed this one. Had things gone according to Clow Reed-san's foresight... you'd be here."
"What of... him? My other self?"
The princess sighed. "They foresaw him as well, apparently. He was... supposed to..." She frowned. "I'm not sure how to explain it. He was supposed to... attune... my heart...? I'm sorry, I don't know how Yuuko-san explained it, but it made perfect sense."
"Sort of lay a foundation?" Syaoran asked in response, and the princess nodded.
"Something like that. Though... in their prophecy... it wasn't you that killed him... he was apparently supposed to sacrifice himself to save me from Fei Wong's attack."
The young man sighed.
"Don't, Syaoran-kun. What happened, happened, and you did what you thought needed to be done at the time. I... I don't think he could've gone back to his senses, no matter how hard I tried. But it's nice to hope, right?"
He gave her a somewhat uncomfortable smile. "Without hope, man would drown in his despair."
"The interesting part is, no one expected the other Sakura to be there for that final battle. In fact..." She trailed off with a sigh. "She was supposed to die in that original fight that you and Eriol-san had with Fei Wong. But, according to Yuuko-san, someone, and she wouldn't tell me who, paid a price so she would be transported to another world before the event occurred."
"I suppose I owe that person thanks..."
"Yuuko said don't worry about thanking the person. She already knew what you were going to say."
"Am I that predictable?"
"Sometimes, Syaoran-kun," and she smiled again, this time it was broad and truly happy. It was so warm, in fact, it brought an equally large smile to his face.
A knock at the door, and the Master of the Clow poked her head in the door. "Dinner's almost ready... and... oh! Hello, Princess!"
The princess smiled in response. "Good evening. How are you doing?"
The other Sakura blinked, then tilted her head. "Nnn... not too badly." She stood upright and walked into the room, leaning heavily on one crutch as her left leg still apparently needed assistance.
Princess Sakura couldn't help herself, she winced, at the leg, at the deep pink scars that ran from hairline to cheek along the younger girl's face, at the pink scar tissue still evident on her wrists.
"I know, they're ugly," the Card Captor stated cheerfully.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare," the princess replied suddenly, turning slightly pink with embarrassment.
"Don't worry about it! I'm used to it by now. I don't think I'd be able to stop myself from staring, either," the retort came. And then she blinked suddenly, and tilted from side to side, as though trying to see around the princess.
The other Sakura blinked, then stepped slightly to the side. "Something behind me?"
"Wow... you really are royalty... that room is huge!"
"I am indeed. It's actually quite unnecessarily large, there's not many people living here, and way too much space for them."
"Hanyaaa... I've always wanted to live in a big castle... but my brother always said I'd be too clumsy and dumb to be a princess..."
"The next time Toya says that, tell him in another world, and another time, you are a princess who lives in a giant castle. And if he doubts you or makes fun of you, have him talk to me."
The card captor flashed her other self a thumbs-up. "Nn! Will do! In fact, it might be worth it to do just to see the look on his face."
"I thought you got over your wanting to live in a giant house when you had to capture the Little Card," Syaoran said, looking at her, and she frowned.
"Well, I did... but meeting the princess sort of made me change my mind again."
"It's not as great as you think, castles are overly romanticized," the princess explained. "Most of the time the distance needed to walk from any one place to another is a bother."
"Ah, before I forget..." And the younger Sakura reached into her pocket and pulled out one of the Princess' feathers. "Thanks for letting me hold on to this... I'd like to give it back to you if I could..."
"Don't worry about it. It's safer with you than it is with me. Completing those wings would just make more problems..."
"Will you be alright without it?" Syaoran asked, crossing his arms and leaning back a little farther.
She nodded. "I'll be fine without it- I didn't need any more feathers than the two I got in Infinity, and even then, I would've been fine without them, I just needed them to make sure everyone would survive."
The other Sakura blinked, tilted her head slightly in confusion, but decided against asking and nodded. "Alright. Well... if you do find yourself needing it ever..." She looked down to the watch she wore and jumped straight up. "Hoooeeeee! I need to go check the oven! Nice talking to you, princess! Sorry, I've gotta go!" She hobbled quickly to the door and out, closing it behind her.
Syaoran, smiling, shook his head.
"I envy her carefree lifestyle... though after all that's happened, I think she needs a break," the princess said, sighing.
"I think we all deserve one..."
"I can't. I'm a princess. I have... many things I need to do... It's not all fun and games like when I was a kid anymore. My brother put me in charge of overseeing what was left of the excavation of the ruins. I'm not going to tell him I already know what they're for."
"What were they for...?"
"It's a portal. A base, if you will, of transport. Between the power of my wings and those ruins, I could transport anyone and anything across dimensions, space and time, and call them back to that exact spot as needed."
"Without a need to pay a price?"
"The price is me..."
Syaoran blinked. "What?"
"I would become sort of a magical sacrifice to those ruins. I would merge with them and work sort of like a generator. They would, in turn, channel my magical power for the ability to cross space and time."
"Then I suppose it's good we kept a feather... However, not everyone may know that- they may think your wings are whole again and try to come after you."
She nodded. "I know this. Toya's already upped security around me dramatically."
"No sneaking out to play commoner again?"
"Ho-... No, nevermind. I think I know, but I can't think about it." She sighed shakily, and looked down.
Syaoran stood from his position and walked over to circle glowing against the wall. He placed his hand against it, flat palmed, fingers spread slightly, and the princess mirrored his action, placing her own hand in the same place as his. He leaned forward, pressing his forehead on it, and she followed suit. "Will you be alright, Princess?"
She closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath, then releasing it slowly. "I... I don't know. For once... I'm completely unsure."
Syaoran nodded slightly. "It's alright not to know. Knowing too much can be a burden as much as a boon. Just remember, it's alright to get frustrated or angry, or even to get very sad. The important thing is to keep moving forward, through all of those negative emotions. If anything happens you know Kurogane's in his world, your other half in this world and I... we'll be ready and willing to help you through anything. However..." He brought his hand up slowly, pressing it against where the princess' heart was. "The pain and loneliness you feel here... that's up to you, and you alone to deal with."
She took a deep breath, then slowly backed away from the circle. "Well, I've kept you from your dinner for too long. And I've got to get back to the dig site, they're about to open what they think is a big, important chamber."
He mimicked her action, backing away himself. "Alright..."
"Oh. What will become of Mokona?"
Syaoran looked at the sleeping little creature. "I do believe Yuuko will let us keep it. So all that time it took you and the priest to reach its magical signature to communicate won't be in vain. So if you want or need to talk, don't hesitate to call."
She nodded. "Well, another time then, Syaoran-kun."
He returned the gesture. "We'll talk again, Sakura-hime."
They both turned about, walking toward the exit of their respective rooms, neither turning to look at the other, even after the magical portal closed and Mokona bounced awake, jumping onto Syaoran's arm and climbing up to his shoulder.
"It's dinner time?"
"Yeah," he replied, smiling sadly and patting it on the head. "Let's go eat."
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A/n: Ahrem. I think y'all can understand why I changed the ending the way I did - this takes on a huge CCS slant as opposed to a Tsubasa slant. In any case, it's still angsty- Kinomoto is permanently disfigured, the princess is all alone, and Syaoran's still in love with them both! My work is done here. Now. I'm going to go write fluff until my brain bleeds from the cuteness.
And maybe that random crossover oneshot that's been poking my brain for a while. Until next time, everyone!