AN: Hello to all of you people out there. I'm back with the chapter you've all been waiting for...THE BALL!! First I'd like to thank Chette Teng, Twisted Rose, Christiana, Enchantress101, SAKURAnTOKYO, and all of you wonderful people who reviewed and weren't mentioned. You will be in the next chapter. As always thanks to my B.F. FascinatingSpecimen! And yes she really is as weird as she sounds. (j/k! You can take a joke, right Ash?)
Disclaimer: If you think I own CCS or CC(which I don't) then you really need to stay away from drugs and alcohol because you can't afford to lose anymore brain cells! Without further ado...
Getting Back to the Basics...or Not
Chapter 4: Part 2: THE BALL
By: AnimePrincess
*** Sakura's Hallway
"Wow Sakura you look amazing." Kero whispered, causing a tiny smile to appear on Sakura's face. She has yet to achieve a genuine Sakura smile.
The dress Madison made was absolutely gorgeous. The fact that Sakura was wearing it, made her even more stunning. The dress complimented Sakura, instead of Sakura complimenting the dress. The dress was a pale pink, so pale it was almost white. It was just bright enough to contrast with Sakura's skin. The dress was held up by two thin straps. It hugged her curves until the top of her hips, then it flowed freely to the ground. It was not so long that it would drag behind her, but it would barely stroke the ground. The neck was cut square, low enough to show a little cleavage and high enough to keep her looking pure and innocent.
Madison circled Sakura to make sure everything fit right. After a few seconds of silence, Madison squealed and jumped up in the air, scaring Kero and Sakura.
"It looks perfect on you Sakura! I am such a genius!" Madison continued praising herself, while Kero and Sakura walked off. A few minutes later Madison realized they were gone, shrugged it off, and went to change into her gown.
"Madison are you ready yet?" Sakura called from the bathroom door.
Madison walked out in the gown she designed herself. It was a deep, sparkly, lavender. The shape of the dress looked a lot like Sakura's, except Madison's had no straps.
"Madison you look gorgeous." Sakura exclaimed with real enthusiasm, which made Madison's smile even brighter.
After fifteen minutes of hair and make-up, Madison's driver came to whisk them to the ball.
"Bye Dad! Bye Tori! See you tomorrow." Sakura called on her way out the door.
*** In the limo
"Sakura, I almost forgot! There's one more accessory I made for us." Madison reached into her bag and pulled out two feathered, glittery face masks. One was pink and the other lavender. Madison handed the pink one to Sakura and put on the lavender one.
"There, now we're complete." Madison concluded and enjoyed the quiet ride to the ball.
*** Japan
"Li, hurry up we have to leave soon if we want to be on time!" Meilin yelled from her room in their three bedroom apartment.
"Yeah, yeah! I hate cummerbunds! The guy who invented these should suffer a slow and painful death." Li grumbled from his room, which was across the hall from Meilin's.
Meilin walked out into the hall wearing her deep red Chinese style dress. The dress looked like it wrapped around her waist. All over the dress was gold Chinese dragon designs. The outfit was completed by a red and gold feathered mask.
"I'm done now! You happy?" Li asked in a very sarcastic voice.
He stepped out into the hall in front of Meilin for inspection. He was wearing a tuxedo so deep green, it looked black. He wore a simple white mask. (Think of Tuxedo Mask's mask from Sailor Moon).
"Can we go now?" Li asked impatiently as Meilin finished her inspection.
"Lets rock and roll." Meilin replied and they both left the apartment and hopped into Li's green convertible.
"Hey Li, do you actually own anything in another color? Like maybe a nice orange?" Meilin asked, Li's silence and cold stare in front of him answered her question.
"I didn't think so." Meilin said more to herself, than to him.
*** The BALL
*~* Sakura
We arrived at the charity ball with a few minutes to spare. Madison and I immediately went back stage to prepare for our performance. We practiced a little by ourselves to make sure we had it perfect. Then we had five minutes before we went on to perform.
"Sakura, you ready?" Madison whispered to me. I didn't feel like speaking so I nodded my head in response.
*~* Author
"Welcome to the Annual Charity Ball for the Underprivileged Children of Asia. We are thrilled that every generous contributor is represented here tonight. All proceeds will of course go to benefit the children who need help the most throughout Asia. All of our performers are performing by voluntary choice and each will be wearing a different outfit than they actually arrived in and no mask. Without further ado here are our first performers: Sakura Avalon and Madison Taylor!" The audience applauded as the two girls made their way to the stage.
*~* Li
We finally arrived, just in time to see the M.C. (Master/Mistress of Commissions) to start her speech. Meilin and I found a table near the stage, at her strange insistence, and sat down to listen to the speech. I glanced around, there were two magical auras in the building that I couldn't shake. One felt so familiar, maybe it's.. No, it's not and I shouldn't get my hopes up. The other was pure black magic and I didn't like the feel of it. There was nothing I could do now, for the presence wasn't dangerous or threatening. It was a code of honor that all sorcerers and sorceresses abide by. The sudden applause of the crowd brought me back from my thoughts.
Two girls now stood on stage, obviously preparing to perform. Both looked oddly familiar. The girl to my left was a bit taller than the other. She was wearing her long dark violet-black hair down so it flowed down the length of her back. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of amethyst and were wide with excitement. She was wearing a long light blue dress that touched the stage floor. It complimented her pale skin beautifully.
The other girl was absolutely breath-taking. Her golden-auburn hair was no where near as long as the other girl's, but only reached about the middle of her back. She too wore her hair down. The dress she wore was the exact same as her friend's except it was a pastel green. The green dress seemed to add depth to her emerald eyes. Her creamy complexion was brightened, due to the stage lights.
I looked over to Meilin to see if she had caught their names, but she looked as if she had seen a ghost. I gave her a questioning glance, but she was too busy staring. Suddenly a beautiful, yet lonely melody drifted through the room. I let the music help me relax and decided my questions could wait until later. Right now I just wanted to listen to the melodiousness of the song.
*~* Sakura
The music began and I forced myself to smile at the audience. This was the first time I sang in public and nervous didn't come close to describing how I felt. I let the music flow inside me and sweep me away. When I sang or just listened to music I got lost. I was no longer Sakura Avalon, the girl whose heart was in Hong Kong, China. I was whoever the song wanted me to be. I experienced the emotions of the person I was portraying. This song however left me to be myself, for it was I who I was singing about. My cue came all too soon, still I sang, my heart poured into every word.
Sakura: Every night I sit in my room
And wonder why
After all that we promised, all that we shared
You let me cry
Sakura&
Madison:You promised you'd stay
Promised you cared
Promised your love
And promised you'd always be there
When you left my world shattered
You left my heart torn and tattered
You turned your back on my heart
Leaving behind you, promises torn apart
Madison: How can you leave me casually
So easily
We promised each other we would always love
Eternally
Sakura&
Madison: You promised you'd stay
Promised you cared
Promised your love
And promised you'd always be there
When you left my world shattered
You left my heart torn and tattered
You turned your back on my heart
Leaving behind you, promises torn apart
Sakura: You promised you'd stay
Promised you cared
Madison: Promised your love
Sakura&
Madison: And promised you'd always be there
*~* Author
The last notes of the song drifted before the crowed erupted and gave the girls a standing ovation. The two girls bowed at the gracious audience. Madison smiled and walked up to the microphone. Sakura looked at her in bewilderment.
"Lets give another round of applause to Sakura Avalon who wrote the lyrics and music herself." The crowd again clapped and cheered for a very red Sakura. The two girls gave a final bow and exited the stage.
Back stage they changed back into the gowns they arrived in and waited for the other acts to finish before going out to mingle with everyone else.
They found a table and sat down. Sakura was observing everything around her. As she glanced around she felt two powerful magic auras around. One was very close and very familiar almost as if it was... 'No it's not him. He's in Hong Kong and probably doesn't remember me.' The other aura was full of evil but very powerful magic. She didn't worry too much about it since it didn't feel as if it was there to cause any trouble. 'Still I better keep my eyes open.'
"Sakura there's a guy heading this way. I think he's going to ask you to dance." Madison whispered, bringing Sakura back to reality. Sure enough there was a tall man with short blonde hair heading their way. (You all thought it was Li didn't you?)
"Would you like to dance?" he held his hand out to Sakura. She didn't really want to dance, but she was to dazed from her daydream to reject him.
*~* Madison
I watched Sakura and Damion dance around the dance floor. They looked so cute together. There's probably only one person who would look cuter with her, but he was hopeless. I swear I gave up on him a long time ago. I just wish Sakura wasn't so stubborn. Li was and probably still is the best person in the world for my best friend, but he is also the blindest person in the world. If he can't see how much Sakura loves him and he loves Sakura then maybe he isn't worth the effort. Still I got to wonder, is he as blind as he seems? I mean maybe there's a good reason why he decides to ignore all the feelings they both have. Yea, I have a new mystery to solve and I'll solve it starting tomorrow. Now I've got to concentrate on a way to get Sakura to get her mind off of Li and on to other people.
*~* Meilin
I can't believe who was just on stage. And they both sang so well. If I had known they would be here I would have contacted Madison and had her help me get Li and Sakura together. Now it's too late. I asked one of my friends here so she could help me get Li's mind off of Sakura. Oh no, Li! What if he heard them say Madison and Sakura's names? Or what if he recognized them? My plan would be ruined and Li will never be back to normal. Why didn't he find out from Madison herself that she and Sakura were coming? I know that he still contacts Madison because the family won't let him contact Sakura herself. There's something going on here. Li knows something and that is why he's keeping his distance. I'm going to figure this one out and I'm going to get help. And I know just who to ask.
*~* Sakura
After I gained back enough awareness to know fully what was going on, I waited until the song was over and thanked the man for the dance.
"Thank you, Mister.."
"Just call me Damion."
"Okay, thank you Damion for the dance."
I walked off of the dance floor and something suddenly hit me! The evil presence was gone! Somehow I knew the person that possessed that presence hadn't left, but just suppressed his aura. That didn't thrill me either. Why would he do that if he didn't plan to do something? I needed to do something, but I couldn't do it alone. I needed someone to help me and right then I wished that Li was with me. I decided to tell Madison what was up and see what she suggested.
*~* Li
I sat there completely still and not moving as the acts continued. That song seemed to be talking about me. But that didn't make sense, right? I mean who would know about the situation besides me, Sakura, Madison, and Meilin? I was suddenly jolted into a different train of thought. That dark power, it's..it's.. gone! Wait! I can trace a hint of it so it's not really gone, the person who owns it is just suppressing it. In that case I need to act. If this guy's hiding his energy then that can be counted as a threatening action. But what can I do without starting a panic? I better find Meilin and tell her what I found out and then we'll take things from there.
*~* Author
As both cardcaptors searched for their friends, they didn't know their friends had discovered each other's identity. Madison and Meilin began to hatch plans and discuss behaviors. Unbeknownst to those two something was about to happen that would make their plans the only thing between the world and oblivion.
AN: So what did ya think? This one was a lot longer than the others. That song that Madison and Sakura sang was actually written by me! So don't trash it too bad! I will finish up the ball in the next episode. Here's where the readers have some say in what happens: do you think the "evil" person should be guy or girl? The sooner I get the reviews the sooner you get another chapter. I will try and get one more chapter out before I go on a special school program to Santa Cruz. If not then it'll be another seven weeks until the next chapter. I'll be checking e-mail while I'm gone and might be doing short one-shot stories, depending on the spare time I have. E-mail me at PrincessMeatballhead2003@yahoo.com! Don't forget to R&R!
Disclaimer: If you think I own CCS or CC(which I don't) then you really need to stay away from drugs and alcohol because you can't afford to lose anymore brain cells! Without further ado...
Getting Back to the Basics...or Not
Chapter 4: Part 2: THE BALL
By: AnimePrincess
*** Sakura's Hallway
"Wow Sakura you look amazing." Kero whispered, causing a tiny smile to appear on Sakura's face. She has yet to achieve a genuine Sakura smile.
The dress Madison made was absolutely gorgeous. The fact that Sakura was wearing it, made her even more stunning. The dress complimented Sakura, instead of Sakura complimenting the dress. The dress was a pale pink, so pale it was almost white. It was just bright enough to contrast with Sakura's skin. The dress was held up by two thin straps. It hugged her curves until the top of her hips, then it flowed freely to the ground. It was not so long that it would drag behind her, but it would barely stroke the ground. The neck was cut square, low enough to show a little cleavage and high enough to keep her looking pure and innocent.
Madison circled Sakura to make sure everything fit right. After a few seconds of silence, Madison squealed and jumped up in the air, scaring Kero and Sakura.
"It looks perfect on you Sakura! I am such a genius!" Madison continued praising herself, while Kero and Sakura walked off. A few minutes later Madison realized they were gone, shrugged it off, and went to change into her gown.
"Madison are you ready yet?" Sakura called from the bathroom door.
Madison walked out in the gown she designed herself. It was a deep, sparkly, lavender. The shape of the dress looked a lot like Sakura's, except Madison's had no straps.
"Madison you look gorgeous." Sakura exclaimed with real enthusiasm, which made Madison's smile even brighter.
After fifteen minutes of hair and make-up, Madison's driver came to whisk them to the ball.
"Bye Dad! Bye Tori! See you tomorrow." Sakura called on her way out the door.
*** In the limo
"Sakura, I almost forgot! There's one more accessory I made for us." Madison reached into her bag and pulled out two feathered, glittery face masks. One was pink and the other lavender. Madison handed the pink one to Sakura and put on the lavender one.
"There, now we're complete." Madison concluded and enjoyed the quiet ride to the ball.
*** Japan
"Li, hurry up we have to leave soon if we want to be on time!" Meilin yelled from her room in their three bedroom apartment.
"Yeah, yeah! I hate cummerbunds! The guy who invented these should suffer a slow and painful death." Li grumbled from his room, which was across the hall from Meilin's.
Meilin walked out into the hall wearing her deep red Chinese style dress. The dress looked like it wrapped around her waist. All over the dress was gold Chinese dragon designs. The outfit was completed by a red and gold feathered mask.
"I'm done now! You happy?" Li asked in a very sarcastic voice.
He stepped out into the hall in front of Meilin for inspection. He was wearing a tuxedo so deep green, it looked black. He wore a simple white mask. (Think of Tuxedo Mask's mask from Sailor Moon).
"Can we go now?" Li asked impatiently as Meilin finished her inspection.
"Lets rock and roll." Meilin replied and they both left the apartment and hopped into Li's green convertible.
"Hey Li, do you actually own anything in another color? Like maybe a nice orange?" Meilin asked, Li's silence and cold stare in front of him answered her question.
"I didn't think so." Meilin said more to herself, than to him.
*** The BALL
*~* Sakura
We arrived at the charity ball with a few minutes to spare. Madison and I immediately went back stage to prepare for our performance. We practiced a little by ourselves to make sure we had it perfect. Then we had five minutes before we went on to perform.
"Sakura, you ready?" Madison whispered to me. I didn't feel like speaking so I nodded my head in response.
*~* Author
"Welcome to the Annual Charity Ball for the Underprivileged Children of Asia. We are thrilled that every generous contributor is represented here tonight. All proceeds will of course go to benefit the children who need help the most throughout Asia. All of our performers are performing by voluntary choice and each will be wearing a different outfit than they actually arrived in and no mask. Without further ado here are our first performers: Sakura Avalon and Madison Taylor!" The audience applauded as the two girls made their way to the stage.
*~* Li
We finally arrived, just in time to see the M.C. (Master/Mistress of Commissions) to start her speech. Meilin and I found a table near the stage, at her strange insistence, and sat down to listen to the speech. I glanced around, there were two magical auras in the building that I couldn't shake. One felt so familiar, maybe it's.. No, it's not and I shouldn't get my hopes up. The other was pure black magic and I didn't like the feel of it. There was nothing I could do now, for the presence wasn't dangerous or threatening. It was a code of honor that all sorcerers and sorceresses abide by. The sudden applause of the crowd brought me back from my thoughts.
Two girls now stood on stage, obviously preparing to perform. Both looked oddly familiar. The girl to my left was a bit taller than the other. She was wearing her long dark violet-black hair down so it flowed down the length of her back. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of amethyst and were wide with excitement. She was wearing a long light blue dress that touched the stage floor. It complimented her pale skin beautifully.
The other girl was absolutely breath-taking. Her golden-auburn hair was no where near as long as the other girl's, but only reached about the middle of her back. She too wore her hair down. The dress she wore was the exact same as her friend's except it was a pastel green. The green dress seemed to add depth to her emerald eyes. Her creamy complexion was brightened, due to the stage lights.
I looked over to Meilin to see if she had caught their names, but she looked as if she had seen a ghost. I gave her a questioning glance, but she was too busy staring. Suddenly a beautiful, yet lonely melody drifted through the room. I let the music help me relax and decided my questions could wait until later. Right now I just wanted to listen to the melodiousness of the song.
*~* Sakura
The music began and I forced myself to smile at the audience. This was the first time I sang in public and nervous didn't come close to describing how I felt. I let the music flow inside me and sweep me away. When I sang or just listened to music I got lost. I was no longer Sakura Avalon, the girl whose heart was in Hong Kong, China. I was whoever the song wanted me to be. I experienced the emotions of the person I was portraying. This song however left me to be myself, for it was I who I was singing about. My cue came all too soon, still I sang, my heart poured into every word.
Sakura: Every night I sit in my room
And wonder why
After all that we promised, all that we shared
You let me cry
Sakura&
Madison:You promised you'd stay
Promised you cared
Promised your love
And promised you'd always be there
When you left my world shattered
You left my heart torn and tattered
You turned your back on my heart
Leaving behind you, promises torn apart
Madison: How can you leave me casually
So easily
We promised each other we would always love
Eternally
Sakura&
Madison: You promised you'd stay
Promised you cared
Promised your love
And promised you'd always be there
When you left my world shattered
You left my heart torn and tattered
You turned your back on my heart
Leaving behind you, promises torn apart
Sakura: You promised you'd stay
Promised you cared
Madison: Promised your love
Sakura&
Madison: And promised you'd always be there
*~* Author
The last notes of the song drifted before the crowed erupted and gave the girls a standing ovation. The two girls bowed at the gracious audience. Madison smiled and walked up to the microphone. Sakura looked at her in bewilderment.
"Lets give another round of applause to Sakura Avalon who wrote the lyrics and music herself." The crowd again clapped and cheered for a very red Sakura. The two girls gave a final bow and exited the stage.
Back stage they changed back into the gowns they arrived in and waited for the other acts to finish before going out to mingle with everyone else.
They found a table and sat down. Sakura was observing everything around her. As she glanced around she felt two powerful magic auras around. One was very close and very familiar almost as if it was... 'No it's not him. He's in Hong Kong and probably doesn't remember me.' The other aura was full of evil but very powerful magic. She didn't worry too much about it since it didn't feel as if it was there to cause any trouble. 'Still I better keep my eyes open.'
"Sakura there's a guy heading this way. I think he's going to ask you to dance." Madison whispered, bringing Sakura back to reality. Sure enough there was a tall man with short blonde hair heading their way. (You all thought it was Li didn't you?)
"Would you like to dance?" he held his hand out to Sakura. She didn't really want to dance, but she was to dazed from her daydream to reject him.
*~* Madison
I watched Sakura and Damion dance around the dance floor. They looked so cute together. There's probably only one person who would look cuter with her, but he was hopeless. I swear I gave up on him a long time ago. I just wish Sakura wasn't so stubborn. Li was and probably still is the best person in the world for my best friend, but he is also the blindest person in the world. If he can't see how much Sakura loves him and he loves Sakura then maybe he isn't worth the effort. Still I got to wonder, is he as blind as he seems? I mean maybe there's a good reason why he decides to ignore all the feelings they both have. Yea, I have a new mystery to solve and I'll solve it starting tomorrow. Now I've got to concentrate on a way to get Sakura to get her mind off of Li and on to other people.
*~* Meilin
I can't believe who was just on stage. And they both sang so well. If I had known they would be here I would have contacted Madison and had her help me get Li and Sakura together. Now it's too late. I asked one of my friends here so she could help me get Li's mind off of Sakura. Oh no, Li! What if he heard them say Madison and Sakura's names? Or what if he recognized them? My plan would be ruined and Li will never be back to normal. Why didn't he find out from Madison herself that she and Sakura were coming? I know that he still contacts Madison because the family won't let him contact Sakura herself. There's something going on here. Li knows something and that is why he's keeping his distance. I'm going to figure this one out and I'm going to get help. And I know just who to ask.
*~* Sakura
After I gained back enough awareness to know fully what was going on, I waited until the song was over and thanked the man for the dance.
"Thank you, Mister.."
"Just call me Damion."
"Okay, thank you Damion for the dance."
I walked off of the dance floor and something suddenly hit me! The evil presence was gone! Somehow I knew the person that possessed that presence hadn't left, but just suppressed his aura. That didn't thrill me either. Why would he do that if he didn't plan to do something? I needed to do something, but I couldn't do it alone. I needed someone to help me and right then I wished that Li was with me. I decided to tell Madison what was up and see what she suggested.
*~* Li
I sat there completely still and not moving as the acts continued. That song seemed to be talking about me. But that didn't make sense, right? I mean who would know about the situation besides me, Sakura, Madison, and Meilin? I was suddenly jolted into a different train of thought. That dark power, it's..it's.. gone! Wait! I can trace a hint of it so it's not really gone, the person who owns it is just suppressing it. In that case I need to act. If this guy's hiding his energy then that can be counted as a threatening action. But what can I do without starting a panic? I better find Meilin and tell her what I found out and then we'll take things from there.
*~* Author
As both cardcaptors searched for their friends, they didn't know their friends had discovered each other's identity. Madison and Meilin began to hatch plans and discuss behaviors. Unbeknownst to those two something was about to happen that would make their plans the only thing between the world and oblivion.
AN: So what did ya think? This one was a lot longer than the others. That song that Madison and Sakura sang was actually written by me! So don't trash it too bad! I will finish up the ball in the next episode. Here's where the readers have some say in what happens: do you think the "evil" person should be guy or girl? The sooner I get the reviews the sooner you get another chapter. I will try and get one more chapter out before I go on a special school program to Santa Cruz. If not then it'll be another seven weeks until the next chapter. I'll be checking e-mail while I'm gone and might be doing short one-shot stories, depending on the spare time I have. E-mail me at PrincessMeatballhead2003@yahoo.com! Don't forget to R&R!