A Fairy Tale Princess
Chapter 7: Mistakes
Syaoran quietly entered Sakura room. It was still early, but he had already paid for their new clothes, bought food, water, and horses, and was prepared to continue their journey to the nearest city: Ringo. Sakura was still asleep: her lips curled slightly dreaming a dream of sheer bliss, her face shining in the morning sun, her hair splayed out like the love she had for everyone. Syaoran almost regretted having to wake her up, but he gently shook her, to no avail.
¡§Sakura,¡¨ he called softly. ¡§Wake up.¡¨
¡§Syaoran-kun,¡¨ she murmured.
Syaoran leaned down to ask what she wanted, but she was still asleep. A faint blush crept along his cheeks as he thought, ¡¥Is she dreaming about¡Kme?¡¦
Moments pass as Syaoran continued to watch the little angel in her slumber. He had never watched the Princess sleep. ¡¥Poor girl, the past days must have been difficult. You must be trying so hard to forget all that pain¡K¡¦ he thought as his hand caressed the side of her face. Sakura reacted by pressing her head closer, feeling the warmth and care emanating from Syaoran¡¦s touch. Unable to contain himself, Syaoran leaned down. Her face got closer and closer. Without thinking, he pressed his lips lightly against Sakura¡¦s.
Unbeknownst to Syaoran, Sakura had woken as soon as Syaoran had touched her face. She kept her eyes closed, enjoying the morning sun and Syaoran¡¦s attention. She almost gasped aloud when he felt Syaoran kiss her. But she fought the urge to jump and continued to pretend to sleep. She did not dislike Syaoran, and the kiss was surprisingly pleasant. Sakura heard Syaoran stand up and leave her room.
Sakura opened her eyes and stared into the ceiling. ¡¥But¡K¡¦
The morning continued without incident. Both Sakura and Syaoran pretended nothing had happened and chatted of nothing in particular as they left the same town of Kuma.
¡§Syaoran-kun,¡¨ Sakura asked.
¡§Yes, Sakura?¡¨
¡§How long will the trip to Ringo take?¡¨
¡§About three days. Two, if we¡¦re fast.¡¨
Sakura sighed, ¡§Hoe~ That means we have to camp outside, doesn¡¦t it?¡¨
¡§Yes it does¡K Why? Are you afraid of ghosts?¡¨ he teased.
Fear flicked across Sakura¡¦s face. ¡§No¡Kno! Of course not! I¡K¡¨ she stammered.
Syaoran laughed: the Princess was also afraid of ghosts. ¡§I will protect you, Sakura.¡¨
Syaoran did not see Sakura smile at him in relief and gratitude.
As the sun began to slowly set, casting long shadows across the peaceful plains of Tomoeda Kingdom, Syaoran and Sakura smiled happily at each other, engrossed in a conversation about nothing in particular. Despite Syaoran¡¦s sharp instincts and years of training, the comforting atmosphere caused him to make one critical mistake. In some tall bushes, highwaymen laid in ambush. Syaoran did not notice them until it was too late.
Working together by an honor amongst thieves, the robbers quickly surrounded the two travelers. They pushed the two off their horses and began to take anything and everything valuable. Among the items of value, Sakura was grabbed by one ruffian and thrown across his shoulder. Syaoran was too busy fending himself from the armed robbers to take notice.
¡§Syaoran-kun! Syaoran-kun!¡¨ Sakura cried out, desperate for help.
Syaoran turned, letting his guard down. He gasped as Sakura was thrown over a horse and taken away. ¡§Hime-sama!¡¨ he shouted. Just then, someone hit him over the head. As his sight faded to black, he saw disappointment in Sakura¡¦s pretty face as she was taken away from him.
Syaoran woke up, stripped of his armor and sword, lying in the middle of nowhere. He surveyed the surroundings, but he had no idea where he was. Feeling an urgency to save Sakura, he began running west, ignoring the pain in his muscles and the bruise on his head.
An hour passed before Syaoran saw lights in the distance. As he approached, he saw some familiar scenery: he was near Ringo. He slowed to a halt before a large cherry blossom tree. Suppressing his memories of his Princess, he knelt down and removed a large rock lying beside the tree. Underneath, preserved for many years, was part of Syaoran¡¦s past. He fought back tears as memories resurfaced. Memories of his Princess, memories of her death, memories of his love. ¡¥What¡¦s past is past,¡¦ he told himself as he removed the contents from the chest. ¡¥The present is what is important now.¡¦
Sakura woke up, bound and gagged, thrown carelessly in a pile with some of her belongings. The robbers did not notice that she had woken up; they were busy separating the valuable items from the worthless junk. Sakura lied in the valuable section. She tried to find something to cut her binds with, but her shuffling brought the attention of the rogues.
¡§Hey Boss, she¡¦s awake.¡¨
¡§Good. Good. I was getting impatient.¡¨
The chuckles fueled Sakura¡¦s fear, as she stared at the leader of the gang. The fat man dragged her behind a large rock while struggling with his belt buckle. He could not kiss Sakura¡¦s lips without removing her gag, which would most likely cause trouble, so he settled for slobbering over her pretty face.
Sakura¡¦s tears, mixed slightly with the thick, alcohol-filled saliva of her assailant, trailed down her cheeks, as she silently pleaded for help. ¡¥Syaoran-kun¡K¡¦
Author¡¦s Note ¡V GAH, sorry about such a huge delay between this chapter and the last, but I was out of the country for a week. But, on the good side, I am back, and I intend to post new chapters as often as possible, while still working on Seven Days. I¡¦m beginning the outline for chapter 5 already, so I should be done outlining by end of July.
Cliffhanger~~~~~~~ I know. Sorry. Please tell me you know that Syaoran is going to save Sakura and that I¡¦m not going to make this into an NC-17 fic. Shall we make this lowlife die a horribly slow and excessively painful death? Yes, we shall.
More S&S coming next chapter! ^ ^-
