Starrie: *sniff* I can't believe another fic is coming to an end *sniff*
Evil Starrie: yeah well, all great things always have to come to an end *pats starrie on the shoulder*
Starrie: b-b-but…*pout* I don't wanna!!!!!!
Evil Starrie: who cares!!! Everyone wants you to end it already and plus you've planned to end it like this from the very beginning!!!
Starrie: *bursts into tears* but it's just that…this fic is my baby!!!!!!! This was my first fic to reach 100 reviews and I'll never forget that!! plus it's one of my most successful fics and because of this fic, more people have started to read my other fics and and…I love this fic!!!
Evil Starrie: *smirk* and to think that you were hesitant to writing it on the first place
Starrie: *smile* I know…but I'm just glad that a really good friend changed my mind, and so the following message is for her:

Dedication: I dedicate this fic to really good friend of mine, whose believed in me, even when I didn't believe in myself. she's convinced me not to quit and to always do my best. And to tell you the truth, if it weren't for her and the words she told me, I probably would've never have done this fic. I told her I was hesitant and didn't want to do it, but she told me that I could do anything if put my mind into it and to never give up. well, I followed her advice and made this fic and ever since then, I've had nothing but positive feedback from all my reviewers. I'll never forget the words she said to me one day during winter vacation. They'll always stay in my mind even after years from now. And they were, "never compare yourselves to others. sure they might be better then you but that's just cuz they're older and might have more experience. But you're special in your own way and it's your originality that people love."

So with that, I would like to dedicate this fic, "Love Of A Cherry Blossom" to my good friend Mei-Fong (Mei-chan). Thank you for always believing in me Mei-chan and for always, no matter how sucky they were, reading all my fics. You believed that I'd reach 100 reviews when I didn't, and then you believed that I would reach 200, 300, 400, 500, and 600!! ^-^ so again, *huggelz* thanxs for being a great friend and for believing in lil' ol' Starrie. I dedicate this entire fic to you Mei-Chan!! ^.~

Evil Starrie: *sniff* *wipes tear away* and now that we're done with that heartfelt dedication, on with Part 1 of Chapter fifteen, the last chapter for "love of a cherry blossom"
Starrie: please read and review everyone! ^-^

oh yeah, before we start off, another author from ff.net (SweetCard) who reviewed last chapter; asked me a question that i just feel that i have to answer ^^; she said if while writing this fic, was i watching beauty and the beast and the answer is...no! hahaha...i'm kidding. well, i was watching "Anastasia" (one of my favorite disney movies) and then i thought "hey...it'd be kewl to make a fic based on S+S where sakura's a princess and syaoran's not" but i decided to add my own little twists here and there and i also used some ideas from beauty and the beast (kinda like the whole, 'take me instead' thing) and i combined that with my own ideas to make this fic! so yeah, Anastasia was actually my inspiration. plus i've always been a sucker for fairytales ^^

Love Of A Cherry Blossom
By: Starrie

Chapter 15, Part 1

"S-S-Syaoran…you don't remember…anything?"
Yelan said with a look of surprise on her face. Syaoran looked at her for a few more minutes in confusion…
"M-M-Mother!!!"
he said as memories came flooding back into his mind. The confusion, anxiety and a whole bunch of other emotions had mixed in together and had caused him to blank out for a minute. (SN: HAHAHAHA!! Fooled ya didn't I? you all actually thought he had gotten amnesia!!!! *jumps around happily cuz she fooled everyone*) Yelan smiled and hugged Syaoran.
"I-I-I'm at the Kinomoto Estate right?"
He asked once he saw the castle walls.
"yes, we're at the kinomoto estate right now, we all didn't know if you would make it, thank goodness that Princess Tomoyo found you in time, what if something worse had happened to you and…"
"what? Tomoyo found me?"
Syaoran asked. Yelan nodded,.
"She was heading towards her kingdom and somehow she headed into the woods, and there you were, and…"
Yelan stopped in mid-sentence as her bottom lip began to tremble again. Her eyes suddenly filled with tears.
"S-S-Syaoran"
She said as she embraced him tightly once again.
"it's alright mom, everything will be fine, I'm here"
Syaoran reassured her as he hugged her back tightly.
"I thought I had lost you again…I-I-I thought I had lost you."
Yelan sobbed against Syaoran's shirt. Syaoran then separated from the hug and looked into his mother's dark colored eyes.
"Mother, where's Sakura"
he asked, anxious to see his cherry blossom. Yelan put her head down, so Syaoran wouldn't see her forming tears. Immediately, Syaoran knew something was wrong.
"Mother, what happened to Sakura!? where is she!?"
Yelan looked up as small streams of tears fell from each corner of her eyes.
"We were hoping that…you could tell us"
Yelan answered softly. Syaoran looked at her with confusion in his eyes.
"But mother, I…"
Memories then flood his thoughts. He saw her…in the cold dark room. She was worried about him…the deal! She had made a deal!. Syaoran then looked at his mom with alert in his eyes.
"I have to rescue her…I have to get her out of there!"
He said as he let go of her and headed towards the door.
"Syaoran, what are you talking about!? You have to rescue Sakura of what!? Do you know where she is? If you do, you have to tell her family, the Kinomoto's are distressed with Sakura's disappearance and…"
"Eriol…I have to find Eriol…mother send a messenger to go and get Eriol"
Syaoran called out as he made his way out of the room.
"Syaoran!? what's going on, what are you talking about? And where are you going you're not yet fully healed! You could…"
Yelan was left in mid-sentence when she saw Syaoran leave the room in a hurry. Yelan led out a long sigh and took a seat on the bed.
"Stubborn as your father"
she muttered to herself she then stood up and met up with a smiling Naomi at the door. She seemed equally happy that Syaoran was alright once again.
"Naomi, could you please do me a favor and do what my son asked? I want to go ask him what he's up to"
"Sure my queen"
Naomi said as she bowed respectively and excited the room. Yelan smiled at the elderly woman with gratitude and then exited the room…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So now we're sure it's them…now to only find a way to get to them"
Eriol said once Syaoran finished telling him and the rest all he knew. King Fujitaka along with Kero, Touya, Tomoyo, and Yelan all sat in the grand library discussing on what to do about the enemy.
"Do you know what they're going to do to Sakura?"
Syaoran pleaded as he turned to look at Eriol. Eriol let out a long sigh.
"I'm not 100% positive but…they might make her sign the marriage contract. That's the only way they'll have absolute power over the cards."
"But Sakura would never sign it right? She knows what'll happen if she does"
"Syaoran, even we don't know what's going to happen now. We had a suspicion you weren't dead. We were thinking that maybe they were going to use you as a bribe to make Sakura sign the papers…but it seems we were wrong"
"but you were right in some ways. Sakura gave into Evelyn and Allen in order to save me, now she's in their hands."
"Yes but now that you're not there, what are they going to use to make Sakura sign the papers? The reason Evelyn and Allen dumped you in the middle of nowhere was because they had high hopes that you would never survive. And if Tomoyo hadn't been there, you probably would've never made it."
"we have to find a way to get to Sakura!!"
Syaoran shouted out desperately. Eriol calmly rearranged his glasses and nodded.
"I agree with you but we have no way of knowing in what sort of dimension they're hiding in. Plus its dangerous. Some dimensions lead into worlds where once you're trapped inside; there's no way out."
"Isn't there any way we can distinguish one dimension from another? A symbol? A specific color of the entrance way?"
Eriol had a pensive look on his face while he thought about what Fujitaka had just said.
"There…might…be—Syaoran, you were stuck inside that dimension for more then a week right?"
Syaoran looked at Eriol and shook his head in a confused manner.
"Yes"
"Well, each dimension has an aura surrounding it. The aura of the dimension you were in is probably still lingering on the cloths you were wearing at the time."
"So you might find a way to get in?"
"I can't guarantee you anything but…yes, I think I might be able to"
Eriol said uncertainly.
"Well then what are we still standing here for!?"
Syaoran answered impatiently. He then ran back to the room that he had been in and looked around.
'Where is it where is it?'
He asked himself impatiently as he rummaged through the drawers and everything else inside the room.
He then looked under the bed and sure enough, there he spotted the torn pieces of clothing.
"Here it is!"
Syaoran said as he rushed back to the library and threw the shirt at Eriol.
"How fast will you be able to work?"
He asked breathlessly. Eriol looked at the shirt and then at Syaoran.
"Right now if you want"
"Alright, lets go into the…"
"Syaoran, you're not healed completely. You could get really hurt"
Yelan interrupted. Worry for her son's well being was present in her dark eyes.
"Mother, I have to do this. Sakura risked her life for mine, I have to try and save her. I've lost my father to them, I won't lose her now"
Yelan nodded and shedded a tear.
"You're right…you've lost too much already…."
Syaoran hugged his mother one last time,
"I'll be back, and this time with Sakura"
he said with a smile on his face. Yelan nodded and smiled,
"good luck Syaoran"
she said as she watched her son walk out of the room…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Syaoran stood quietly as he heard Eriol murmur a very long spell which seemed to be in Latin.
"good luck Syaoran"
Tomoyo said whispered as she quietly came up from behind him. Syaoran jumped at her voice and immediatlly turned around. He smiled and let out a sigh when he realized it was Tomoyo.
"thank you for what you've done for me, I don't know how I'll ever repay you"
"rescue Sakura. that's all I want. I want both you and her back here safe and sound"
Tomoyo said as she watched her fiancee repeat a spell over and over again. Worry was present in her eyes and she looked like she was about to cry. she knew that the powers of her fiancée were limited and if he tired himself out too soon, there could be major repercussions for not only Sakura and Syaoran but also Eriol himself. Death was a possibility and it scared her.
"it's going to be alright, Eriol's strong, I'm sure he'll be alright"
Syaoran said as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Tomoyo turned to look at him and gave him a small smile.
"you're right, I have to trust him and his powers…please take care Syaoran"
Tomoyo said as she hugged him. Syaoran smiled and hugged Tomoyo back.
"I will, and I promise you that I'll bring Sakura back with me. stay here and make sure that Eriol will be fine. He needs you and your encouragment to go on"
Syaoran said as he separated from the hug. Tomoyo looked up at him and nodded.
"Syaoran, now!"
Eriol yelled out over the loud noise vacuum-like black swirl that was in front of him. Syaoran nodded and walked forward.
"I'll try to keep it open as long as I can, you have to hurry though! Good luck Syaoran!"
Syaoran nodded and smiled at Eriol. he then jumped into the portal and felt himself being sucked in…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Syaoran was thrown out of the portal and fell to the ground. He picked himself up and looked around but to no avail since the whole place was pitch black. He called on one of his elemental cards and used the light that the small flame emitted to guide himself through the large black maze that he seemed to be in.
'okay, I'll just sense for Sakura's aura'
he thought to himself as he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on her warm, gentle aura but wasn't able to. His eyes snapped open in alert when he was able to sense her aura but it wasn't like he had imagined. Her aura was weak, and he could tell that she had gone through so much pain by the cry for help that it seemed to emit. He hid his aura in case Evelyn or Allen was anywhere to be found. He sprinted forward and began to speed up until he was running at full speed. He immediately came to a stop when he heard footsteps ahead and stopped. He threw the elemental card and extinguished it with shoe and looked around, trying to find a place to hide. He found a small corner and was able to slip into it just in time.

"are you sure you heard noises around here?"
a soldier dressed in black asked the other one dressed in red.
"yes, running. I'm positive"
"you better be right or else I'll…"
the soldier in black suddenly stopped when he felt something underneath his foot and bent down to pick it up. he looked at Syaoran's elemental card and eyed it suspiciously.
"go and warn the other guards that there's an intruder"
"should I go tell Ms. Evelyn and Mr. Allen?"
"No, there's no reason to bother them"
"but sir, it's an intruder and they specifically said that…"
"I don't give a damn what they said so you better listen to me!"
the one dressed in black said as he violently pushed the younger-looking one against the wall.
"now either listen to me or I'll kill you right now! There's no need to worry them, they're in the middle of a deal that could change all of our lives and we no longer will have to be living in this hell hole, so you better not ruin anything!!"
"Y-Y-Yes sir"
the young one dressed in red said as he automatically walked away…
Syaoran looked on as the younger one disappeared into the darkness. He waited and held his breath, hoping that the one dressed in black would leave also but he didn't move from his spot. Instead, he lighted up a torch that was hanging on the wall and then looked at Syaoran's hiding spot.
"I know you're in there…come out and fight"
he said with a melacious smile on his lips. He was hungry for killing. Syaoran, knowing that he was found, stepped out of his hiding area and glared at the soldier in front of him.
"this is where it all ends"
the soldier said. Syaoran took out his sword and smirked,
"you're right, this is where it all ends for YOU!"
he then ran forward and slashed at the soldiers stomach but the man quickly dodged back. a sword materialized in his hands and he pushed Syaoran's blade away with one quick; rapid move. He aimed for Syaoran's right but Syaoran moved out of the way. "fire attack!" the man dressed in black called out. Syaoran then suddenly found himself surrounded by flames. The flames were closing in on him and were getting taller. Taking in a deep breath, Syaoran sumersaulted and landed away from the flames. He let out a sigh of relief and turned back to face his opponent. "lightning!" Syaoran called out as he removed an elemental card. Ligtning then emitted from the card and headed straight towards it's target. It hit the man and he winced in pain. The man then looked up at Syaoran and gave a low menacing growl.
"you're going to pay for that you brat"
he then charged towards Syaoran and syaoran barely dodged his attack, but the blade of his opponents sword lightly grazed his shoulder. Syaoran felt the warm blood trickle out of his wound and stain his shirt. He ignored the pain and went back to fightning. after a while, Syaoran felt exhausted but he realized that his opponent seemed unaffected by all of his attacks.
'he must have a weakness…but what is it!?'
Syaoran said to himself in frustration.
'wait a minute…the other time, the soldiers had a black skull in their body….maybe this guy, does too'
with his new plan on his mind, Syaoran ran forward and scanned his oponnents body as he continued to fight. After a few seconds, he noticed at small portion of the black skull at the back of the neck of his opponent.
'got you'
he said with a satisfied smile on his lips. He stepped back and the man in front of him smirked.
"what's the matter kid, starting to get tired?"
Syaoran glared at him and suddenly jumped in the air and landed in back of his opponent. He stabbed him at the back of his neck and watched as his opponent got reduced to ashes.
"I told you this is where it'll all end for you"
Syaoran said as he picked up the outfit that the soldier had been wearing and wrapped it around himself. This way, it'd be easier to walk around and not be noticed to so quickly…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Kill her already will you!? she's such a damn nuisance!!"
Evelyn yelled out in frustration at Allen. Allen just shook his head calmly and walked up to Sakura.
"I'm asking you once again…sign the contract"
Sakura barely able to stay concious, look up at him and gave him an icy glare.
"never…I'll never sign that contract!"
Allen let out a smirk and then turned to look at the side. he then suddenly brought his right hand forward and smacked Sakura. sakura let out a whimper as her head was thrown to the right. she bit her lip to keep back from crying and looked up at Allen.
"hit me all you ass, but I WONT sign that contract"
"listen here bitch, I'm sick and tired of your insolence! Either sign the contract or I'll reduce your kingdom and your family to a pile of ashes!!"
"I'm not signing that contract!!"
"fine, be that way. by tonight you won't have a home or a family"
Allen said with a smirk on his face.
"I mean it Sakura…I can easily out number your whole damn kingdom, by the time I'm done, there wont be a single soul alive."
Sakura stayed quiet and looked down at the ground. Tears were filling her eyes and she didn't know what to do.
'should I give him the cards? What if he means it this time…I don't want my family to suffer because of me'
"Now I ask you one last time, sign the contract!!"
Allen yelled out as he roughly brought her head up so she would look at him in the eye. A single tear slid down Sakura's cheek as she nodded her head slowly. Allen smiled and pulled the contract out of his pocket.
"see, that wasn't so hard"
he said with a smirk on his face. He untied Sakura's right hand and materialized a pen in his hand. Evelyn glared at Sakura, watching her every move. Sakura locked eyes with her for a second and felt a chill go up and down her spine. She could see the thirst for blood that Evelyn's eyes held. More exactly, the thirst for HER blood. She was positive the Evelyn would go to extremes to make sure that Sakura died.
'Syaoran…I'll be with you soon'
Sakura said as she bit her lip in order to keep back from crying. she figured that if Syaoran hadn't come to rescue her yet, that probably meant he hadn't survived. her heart still wished to believe that he was alive but her mind told her something different. Her heart thought with love while her mind thought with logic. Sakura was about to sign the contract when they all suddenly heard the dungeon door creak open. all eyes looked up to meet up to a person with a large hood over his head. Evelyn let out a frustrated sigh and walked up to the hooded man.
"what the hell is wrong with you, don't you know how to follow instructions!? It's been made clear that this place is strictly forbidden and…"
Evelyn let out a yelp of surprise as she got pushed back and landed on a pile of debris.
"who the hell do you think you are!?"
Allen yelled out angrily as he suddenly seemed to forget about Sakura and hurriedly rushed towards the man with the hood over his head. Before he could even come close, a strong wind attack knocked him off his feet and sent him flying backwards. Sakura's eyes widened in recognition.
"that aura…I know that aura!! it's…"
"thought you got rid of me didn't you!?"
Syaoran yelled out as he removed his hood and glared at Allen's direction. He then immediately turned to Sakura and he rushed to her side.
"Syaoran…i-i-it's really you. but I thought that you….you…"
Syaoran looked at Sakura and gave her a gentle smile as he untied her hands and set her free. He embraced her tightly, happy to have his cherry blossom back in his arms.
"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner"
he whispered into her hair. Sakura let out a content sigh as she savored the moment.
"I love you so much…I—Syaoran watch out!!"
Sakura yelled out as she quickly pushed Syaoran out of the way and a wind attack threw her back against the wall. She let out a grunt as she fell to the ground.
"Sakura!!"
Syaoran yelled out in alarm as he scrambled off the floor and rushed to her side. she had a small cut on her cheek and blood was slowly seeping out.
"I've had enough of you. You've been nothing but an annoyance. This all ends right here, right now"
Allen growled in a low voice as he glared at Syaoran. Syaoran stepped in front of Sakura and glared back at Allen.
"alright…but this fight is just between you and me so don't even think of going near Sakura"
Allen smiled evilly and nodded.
"your little girlfriend will be safe…for now. But once I'm done with you, you can bet that she's next"
"who said you're going to make it past me?"
Syaoran asked the over-confident Allen. Allen smirked and pulled out a sword that was hanging on the wall.
"well, we shall see now won't we?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Eriol let out a grunt as he felt a jolt of electricity go through his body. That was a warning, a warning that he was starting to become weak.
'hurry up Syaoran….i don't know how much longer I can keep this up'
he thought as he slowed his transfer of energy a bit. No matter what he had to keep the portal open for as long as he could, even if it meant sacrificing his life…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sakura watched helplessly as Syaoran and Allen engaged into an intense sword fight. Neither seemed to be winning and both were equally matched. But she could clearly see that Syaoran was starting to tire out while Allen didn't even seem the little bit winded. She wanted to so badly help out Syaoran but she knew that in her condition, she wouldn't be able to help much and instead, she might make matters worse for Syaoran.
'please be careful Syaoran…I don't know what I'd do if I lose you'
Sakura thought as she continued to watch from her spot. She failed to notice the black shadow that was slowly moving towards her. a chill went up and down her spine and Sakura shivered. She turned around but at the same time, received a blow on the side of her head that sent her sprawling on the ground. She looked up and saw Evelyn standing above her with a malicious smile on her lips.
"Allen promised he wouldn't lay one finger on you…but I didn't"
she hissed out as she roughly picked Sakura up by her arm. She pulled her forward and got ready to deliver another punch but Sakura quickly ducked and with all her might, punched Evelyn's stomach. Evelyn let out a gasp as she was caught off guard. She let go of Sakura and crouched down in pain. She let out a low menacing growl and looked up at Sakura.
"you're going to pay for that bitch!!"
she screamed out as she attacked Sakura to the ground. Evelyn grabbed a fistful of Sakura's hair and started to pull while Sakura clawed at Evelyn's arms. Her nails dug into her flesh and left long painful marks while Evelyn gave up on trying to pull on Sakura's hair and instead decided to choke her to death. Sakura began to struggle while Evelyn pressed down on her windpipe.
"this is where you die!!"
Evelyn said as a smile of contentment rested on her lips. Sakura began to panic from the lack of oxygen and started to violently try to shake Evelyn off her. Evelyn just pressed tighter on Sakura's windpipe, watching with eyes of satisfaction as she saw the cherry blossom wilting in her hands…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Syaoran, who had heard Sakura's panic-filled movements, took his eyes off his oponnent for a second and turned to look at Sakura. the sight before his eyes shocked him and he was about to run to her rescue when he felt the sharp blade of Allen's sword graze his arm.
"you're fighting me…don't forget that"
Allen hissed out as he glared at Syaoran.
"you said you wouldn't hurt her! tell Evelyn to stop!!"
Syaoran yelled out angrily. Allen just let out a sinister laugh,
"I said I wouldn't hurt her…I never said Evelyn couldn't"
Syaoran felt like punching Allen but at the moment, something way more important to him was at stake. He ignored Allen and rushed towards where Sakura and Evelyn were but Allen's sword stopped him on his tracks.
"your fight is with me!"
"yeah well, I don't give a damn!"
Syaoran said as he pushed the sword aside and started on his way but then Allen tackled him to the floor. Because of the sudden surprise attack, Syaoran's sword flew out of his hands and went flying in the air. Then suddenly, time seemed to go still. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as they all watched in horror…

Two pairs of emerald-green eyes met as the sword traveled through the air and then came down and pierced into the heart of one of the females. The other one watched as the woman in front of her; slowly closed her green eyes forever and slumped down to the ground, dead.

Syaoran watched speechless as the events took place in front of his eyes. It had all been an accident, he hadn't meant for that to happen. Allen in the other hand, was the first one to react.
"you ruined it all!!"
he yelled out angrily as he glared down at the shocked Syaoran…
~*To Be Continued*~

Starrie: *sniff* *sniff* my last cliffy!!!!!!!!!!!! *bursts into tears*
Evil Starrie: *sniff* it's okay…they'll be more cliffy's for other fics…it's…*sniff*…o…kay…*bursts into tears also* NOOOOOO!!! Our last cliffy for this fic!!!!!!!!
Starrie: *while sniffling* well, that's part one, please review and tell me what you think. Next will be part 2 of chapter 15 and that's the….the….
Evil Starrie: *sniffle* end…
Starrie: well, 'till next chapter, bye!! Evil Starrie and I are going to go and shed more tears ^-^;;