Meant to Be
Chapter 3: Shadows of the Past
by OrchidAngel
Author's Note: Mei, Ying, Master Hung, and Hu-Li all belong to me! Yay! Clamp owns all other characters. ^_^
BTW, please R&R, since this is my first fanfic. If I get enough response, I'll continue to keep writing.
Synopsis: Syaoran has decided to give up Sakura because he wants her to be happy.
Symbols:
"~~~" Scene change
"" Character's thoughts
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura knew instinctively that she was in the past. She had experienced these dreams before, those glimpses of the past that gave hints to the future. When and where, though, she still did not know.
She walked through the garden, finally noticing the pavilion. A young man was seated under it, his head down, his concentration focused on the scrolls on the table before him. He was, however, garbed in ancient Chinese robes, his hair tied behind in a short pony-tail.
She walked around from behind him, tiptoeing, though she knew he could not hear her anyway, trying to see what he looked like, and who he was.
He looked up all of a sudden and smiled, "Ah, there you are, about time..."
Sakura gasped, thinking he could hear her, but then turned at a noise behind. Two young ladies were entering the pavilion, also dressed in flowing Chinese robes, one in white embroidered with red roses who had red hair and dark brown eyes. The other, though--Sakura gasped again when she saw her. She was in a delicate pink robe with pale blossoms and brilliant green leaves all over her dress, but what stunned Sakura most was her face. She looked just like Sakura, with long flowing auburn hair and brilliant green eyes.
The two were obviously sisters, from their faces, but it could be seen that their personalities were distinctly different. The red-haired girl was clearly dominant and confidently swept over to the man's side. The younger sister, however, stood to the side, smiling shyly. Sakura turned back to the young man.
Then she recognized him.
How could she not? He was the man that had brought about all those changes in her life. His work had wrought the magic cards that she, the Card Mistress, had been destined to recapture. It was Clow Reed, a younger Clow Reed, of course, but Clow Reed, nonetheless. He did not have his monocle, but his smile was just as reassuring as it would be later.
"Brother Clow..." the older sister whined, tugging on Clow's sleeves. "Come on, you've been studying all day. It's time for tea..."
"All right, Ying, I'm coming." he smiled at the younger sister again. "Mei, I heard you had another dream last night."
"Yes, I did, brother Clow." Mei smiled shyly again.
"What did you see this time?" He stood up to join her by the doorway, leaving Ying still clinging on to his arm, looking annoyed.
"That's what father wants to discuss with you, brother Clow, so please come join us for tea."
"All right, let's go." Clow looped his other arm around Mei's, and they made their way out of the pavilion, with Sakura trailing curiously behind.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The tea was simple and ritual, with no one touching a thing until Mei and Ying's father had the first sip. He was a tall and regal-looking man, with a full gray beard, and eyes full of wisdom.
"Master Hung," Clow began. "Mei said that you wanted to talk to me."
"Yes, Clow, I do." Master Hung nodded. "Mei has had a dream predicting that you will be soon leaving us. Have you had any such thoughts?"
Ying gasped and looked shocked.
Looking at Mei, Clow nodded, "Yes, Master Hung, I wish to travel to Europe so that I can learn from their magic traditions and maybe link it to what I have learned here with you. There is power there that has never been tested before; maybe I can make it work with our magic."
"I see. So you have thought through this then?"
"I have, Master Hung." Clow cleared his throat. "And there is one thing I would like to ask of you."
"Other than my blessings?" Master Hung smiled.
"Yes, Master. I would like to take sister Mei with me to be my wife."
Ying choked and ran out of the room, tears streaming from her eyes, while Mei sat quietly with her head looking down.
"Clow, you have been my greatest disciple, and I agree with you that you are ready to leave, but I am not ready to give up Mei, the blossom of my heart. She is far too young, and you have seen how Ying has reacted. Ying had loved you all the time, and this will break her heart, both the parting and the rejection."
"I understand, Master." Clow looked down disappointed.
"Clow, you are only 18, and Mei is only 16, so I will say this. You have my blessings to go to Europe. Mei, however, will stay here for two more years. When you are ready, you will come back to receive her for your bride. Do you agree?"
Clow jumped up. "Th-th-thank you, sir. I will do as you have suggested."
"That is good. It will give both me and Ying time to adjust. Perhaps time will soothe her pain."
"I am sorry for the pain I have caused her, sir. Please give her my regards. I will leave immediately, so that I do not have to hurt her further."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scene faded, but Sakura soon found herself in the same room still. Mei sat at a table, reading a letter:
~...I am so glad that our two years separation is half over. I have found here a power that, if combined with what your father has taught me, will be so powerful that it would take an even more powerful being to control. I hope to do this and, thus, prove myself to Master Hung...Give my regards to your father and to Ying. Tell her I wish her the best in her wedding to brother Pai-Lang. I wish her only joy...counting the days...yours, Clow Reed~
Ying walked into the room, older, as well, but seemingly more angry. "So, he has written again?"
Mei stood up, and handed her the letter. "He wishes you the best in your marriage."
Ying snorted. "Of course, he would. Then he can come back in peace without feeling sorry for me. Ha! It's all your fault Mei! You stole him from me! You were always everyone's favorite, especially father's! Just because I could not master his magic, and you always awed everyone with your stupid dreams! You have ruined everything!"
She ripped up the letter and tossed the pieces at Mei's feet, storming from the room.
Mei gathered up the pieces and held them to her heart, tears coursing from her eyes, her head shaking sadly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was raining now, and someone approached the door. As he came closer, Sakura could see that it was Clow Reed, now dressed in formal European clothes and wearing glasses.
The door opened, and Sakura saw that it was Ying, dressed all in white, a sign of mourning. Her eyes opened at the recognition of Clow, but soon narrowed again to glare at him.
"What do you want?"
"Ying! How are you? How is everyone? Where's Mei and Master Hung?" He looked through the door, trying to see what was beyond.
Ying pushed him back. "Get out of here. You've done all this. Get out!"
Bewildered, Clow stared at her. "Done what? Tell me, what's going on. Why are you in mourning?"
Ying laughed. "More than you could ever believe. Ha! Mei said that she could never marry you, and so she left one day and never came back. Father was so distraught at her leaving that he became ill. He died yesterday. It's all your fault!"
"What? How? I'm so sorry about Master Hung, Ying. May I come in and pay my tribute?"
"No, get out! He loved you and Mei best anyway. It was always you two. Do you know, even when he was dying, he asked for Mei? Not me, the faithful daughter who stayed by him, but Mei, the one who had brought him so much pain. She was always the flower of his heart. Ha! Just because I could not do magic. Do you know how I feel? Can you ever take away my pain?"
"No, I'm sorry, Ying, I'm sorry for all the pain I have caused. I do not know how to fix things for you."
"You can't! So get out! You broke my heart, and I will make you and Mei pay for it one day!"
"Did Mei leave anything? Any note or anything?"
"Here, take the stupid letter." She thrust an envelope in his hands and then slammed the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~Dear Clow, I am sorry to not say anything to you, but I could not do it. I hope this will not hurt you, but I know we cannot marry. We just are not meant to be. Please take care of my father for me, and Ying as well. Understand that she has been through so much. We found out that Pai-Lang had been hurting her, even when she was with child. He died soon after she gave birth to a girl, Ling, due to drowning in the river after drinking too much. She has not been the same since. Please take good care of her; she needs your love more than I do. She has always loved you with her whole heart, and it would help her so much if you would care for her, too. I am gone now, no longer in the way, so please do not worry about me. Do not try to find me. I know it is better this way; we just are not meant to be. Yours, Mei.~
Clow slowly folded the letter again, his eyes sorrowful, then got up from the ground where he had been sitting. He picked up his briefcase and walked away.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura found herself in a familiar place now. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized where she was--it was Tomoeda, an old Tomoeda!
She saw an older Clow coming out of a house and saying good-bye to another man. As he turned and walked away, he halted at what he saw in front of him. A woman was walking down the street towards him, the hand of a small girl's in hers. She carried a basket in the other arm as she looked down, speaking to the little girl.
"Lan, did you have fun at school?"
"Yes, mommy, we drew pictures today, and I drew a picture of you and daddy!"
As she approached Clow, she glanced up and froze, her basket falling from her grasp, and eggs splattering all over the ground.
There was a silence between the two, until the girl tugged at her mother's clothes, "Mommy, what's the matter? Who's this person?"
"Mei? Is it really you? Can it be?"
"Clow, it's you... Why are you here?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clow and Mei now sat in the living room of a large house, sipping tea. Mei had tears in her eyes, as Clow told her all that had happened after she had left.
"Mei, I came here because there was something strange happening. There had been a disturbance in the magic of the world, as though a dark being is growing ever stronger. Have you sensed it?"
"Yes, I have, in fact, ever since I felt it, I have felt a pain in my chest, jabbing at me ceaselessly. I do not tell my husband, though; he has enough to worry about."
"Well, I came here to visit Master Sono, he is the leading force here in Japan. I had no idea I would find you here. He is trying to help me isolate this force. But what are you saying about the pain? I sense no pain. Mei, what's wrong?" he rushed to help her as she doubled over.
"It hurts, oh, it hurts so badly, like a sword puncturing my heart..." She sought hard to hide the tears.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clow and Mei faced the shadowed figure, arms held in fighting stances. "Don't just stand there you demon! Fight!"
"Hahaha," the figure laughed and stepped forward.
Sakura saw that it was Ying. She was dressed in black, her red hair done neatly in a bun, her eyes tinged with red as well.
Clow and Mei dropped their arms in shock.
"You didn't expect it, did you? Not you Mei, nor Clow. You didn't think I had any powers, huh? Well, it's amazing the things you learn when you travel, isn't it? Did you like my gift, sister?" Ying pulled out a doll with a large needle in the chest. It was in the likeness of Mei.
"Ying, what do you want? Why are you hurting Mei like this?"
"Oh, it's too late now for that. I just want you to suffer, and to know who finally beat you both. Ha! You can't beat me now!"
"Ying, please don't do this. Leave brother Clow alone!"
"Oh, I won't, dear sister. You get to watch brother Clow die! He's the one who caused all my pain, and I want you to suffer as much as I did!" She raised her arm and pointed them at Clow. A black ball of energy issued forth, and Clow quickly moved out of the way. The blast of the energy against the tree, however, knocked him over.
Ying raised her arm again for the final blow, and even as the energy came towards the helpless Clow, Mei ran into the full force of the blow, knocking herself over.
Clow leapt up and ran towards her, holding her weak body in his arms. "Mei! Why did you do that? Why?"
Mei touched his cheeks, "Clow, we're not meant to be in this life, but I wanted to help you as much as I could. You must stop her, Clow, but don't hurt her. She was good once, but she let her anger and jealousy take over her. Just stop her, please. Use those powers you told me about, and this." She pulled a small key out from around her neck.
"The Key of the Hung family! But Mei, how? Why?"
"Father wanted you to have this, but he told me to keep it safe. Take it now, and defeat her. Use your power and my power combined. I will put my power in it, so that you can overcome her. But please don't hurt her. And..." she gasped, her words starting to trail off. "...don't tell my family. Erase their memories, make them think I died in an accident, so that they can live in peace. Pass the Key onto someone who is worthy, I know you can do that."
She started to cough more violently, and soon blood came from her mouth. "I love you, Clow, and, though it is not meant to be, I will wait for you for eternity..." Her hand dropped, and her breathing slowed and stopped.
Clow brushed the tears out of his eyes and then laid her body gently down.
"Ying, let us settle this." He held the Key up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clow stood over the conquered Ying, his eyes sad and angry. "I promised Mei I would not hurt you, and so I won't, but I take your evil powers from you now and seal them away. You can keep a little, but not enough to hurt others. Only if you are ever able to wrench away Mei and my power from me or my heirs will you ever gain them back. And that will never happen, for our descendants and heirs will guard it. Go now. Go take care of your daughter. Be a good mother to her."
Ying stood up, glaring still, "You think you have done me a favor, but you should have killed me. I will get revenge one way or another. Just you watch!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura blinked in the brightness, still taking in what she had seen.
"SAKURA!" Kero's face popped out in front of her.
"Aaaahhh!!!" She screamed.
"You're late again! What happened?"
"I had a strange dream last night. I'll tell you later. Got to go!"
Kero watched as she dashed out the door, still throwing on clothes. She has seen the past now.
*********************************************
Yay! I finally got around to writing the next chapter. Though it seems really weird since it's like it has nothing to do with the story, it sets the background information for what happens later. Don't worry we'll come back to more S+S later. Please R&R!
^_^ OrchidAngel
Next Chapter: The Vixen Arrives--the past is brought to life, but will it repeat itself? And what does all this have to do with Sakura and her problem? Find out next!
Chapter 3: Shadows of the Past
by OrchidAngel
Author's Note: Mei, Ying, Master Hung, and Hu-Li all belong to me! Yay! Clamp owns all other characters. ^_^
BTW, please R&R, since this is my first fanfic. If I get enough response, I'll continue to keep writing.
Synopsis: Syaoran has decided to give up Sakura because he wants her to be happy.
Symbols:
"~~~" Scene change
"" Character's thoughts
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura knew instinctively that she was in the past. She had experienced these dreams before, those glimpses of the past that gave hints to the future. When and where, though, she still did not know.
She walked through the garden, finally noticing the pavilion. A young man was seated under it, his head down, his concentration focused on the scrolls on the table before him. He was, however, garbed in ancient Chinese robes, his hair tied behind in a short pony-tail.
She walked around from behind him, tiptoeing, though she knew he could not hear her anyway, trying to see what he looked like, and who he was.
He looked up all of a sudden and smiled, "Ah, there you are, about time..."
Sakura gasped, thinking he could hear her, but then turned at a noise behind. Two young ladies were entering the pavilion, also dressed in flowing Chinese robes, one in white embroidered with red roses who had red hair and dark brown eyes. The other, though--Sakura gasped again when she saw her. She was in a delicate pink robe with pale blossoms and brilliant green leaves all over her dress, but what stunned Sakura most was her face. She looked just like Sakura, with long flowing auburn hair and brilliant green eyes.
The two were obviously sisters, from their faces, but it could be seen that their personalities were distinctly different. The red-haired girl was clearly dominant and confidently swept over to the man's side. The younger sister, however, stood to the side, smiling shyly. Sakura turned back to the young man.
Then she recognized him.
How could she not? He was the man that had brought about all those changes in her life. His work had wrought the magic cards that she, the Card Mistress, had been destined to recapture. It was Clow Reed, a younger Clow Reed, of course, but Clow Reed, nonetheless. He did not have his monocle, but his smile was just as reassuring as it would be later.
"Brother Clow..." the older sister whined, tugging on Clow's sleeves. "Come on, you've been studying all day. It's time for tea..."
"All right, Ying, I'm coming." he smiled at the younger sister again. "Mei, I heard you had another dream last night."
"Yes, I did, brother Clow." Mei smiled shyly again.
"What did you see this time?" He stood up to join her by the doorway, leaving Ying still clinging on to his arm, looking annoyed.
"That's what father wants to discuss with you, brother Clow, so please come join us for tea."
"All right, let's go." Clow looped his other arm around Mei's, and they made their way out of the pavilion, with Sakura trailing curiously behind.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The tea was simple and ritual, with no one touching a thing until Mei and Ying's father had the first sip. He was a tall and regal-looking man, with a full gray beard, and eyes full of wisdom.
"Master Hung," Clow began. "Mei said that you wanted to talk to me."
"Yes, Clow, I do." Master Hung nodded. "Mei has had a dream predicting that you will be soon leaving us. Have you had any such thoughts?"
Ying gasped and looked shocked.
Looking at Mei, Clow nodded, "Yes, Master Hung, I wish to travel to Europe so that I can learn from their magic traditions and maybe link it to what I have learned here with you. There is power there that has never been tested before; maybe I can make it work with our magic."
"I see. So you have thought through this then?"
"I have, Master Hung." Clow cleared his throat. "And there is one thing I would like to ask of you."
"Other than my blessings?" Master Hung smiled.
"Yes, Master. I would like to take sister Mei with me to be my wife."
Ying choked and ran out of the room, tears streaming from her eyes, while Mei sat quietly with her head looking down.
"Clow, you have been my greatest disciple, and I agree with you that you are ready to leave, but I am not ready to give up Mei, the blossom of my heart. She is far too young, and you have seen how Ying has reacted. Ying had loved you all the time, and this will break her heart, both the parting and the rejection."
"I understand, Master." Clow looked down disappointed.
"Clow, you are only 18, and Mei is only 16, so I will say this. You have my blessings to go to Europe. Mei, however, will stay here for two more years. When you are ready, you will come back to receive her for your bride. Do you agree?"
Clow jumped up. "Th-th-thank you, sir. I will do as you have suggested."
"That is good. It will give both me and Ying time to adjust. Perhaps time will soothe her pain."
"I am sorry for the pain I have caused her, sir. Please give her my regards. I will leave immediately, so that I do not have to hurt her further."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scene faded, but Sakura soon found herself in the same room still. Mei sat at a table, reading a letter:
~...I am so glad that our two years separation is half over. I have found here a power that, if combined with what your father has taught me, will be so powerful that it would take an even more powerful being to control. I hope to do this and, thus, prove myself to Master Hung...Give my regards to your father and to Ying. Tell her I wish her the best in her wedding to brother Pai-Lang. I wish her only joy...counting the days...yours, Clow Reed~
Ying walked into the room, older, as well, but seemingly more angry. "So, he has written again?"
Mei stood up, and handed her the letter. "He wishes you the best in your marriage."
Ying snorted. "Of course, he would. Then he can come back in peace without feeling sorry for me. Ha! It's all your fault Mei! You stole him from me! You were always everyone's favorite, especially father's! Just because I could not master his magic, and you always awed everyone with your stupid dreams! You have ruined everything!"
She ripped up the letter and tossed the pieces at Mei's feet, storming from the room.
Mei gathered up the pieces and held them to her heart, tears coursing from her eyes, her head shaking sadly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was raining now, and someone approached the door. As he came closer, Sakura could see that it was Clow Reed, now dressed in formal European clothes and wearing glasses.
The door opened, and Sakura saw that it was Ying, dressed all in white, a sign of mourning. Her eyes opened at the recognition of Clow, but soon narrowed again to glare at him.
"What do you want?"
"Ying! How are you? How is everyone? Where's Mei and Master Hung?" He looked through the door, trying to see what was beyond.
Ying pushed him back. "Get out of here. You've done all this. Get out!"
Bewildered, Clow stared at her. "Done what? Tell me, what's going on. Why are you in mourning?"
Ying laughed. "More than you could ever believe. Ha! Mei said that she could never marry you, and so she left one day and never came back. Father was so distraught at her leaving that he became ill. He died yesterday. It's all your fault!"
"What? How? I'm so sorry about Master Hung, Ying. May I come in and pay my tribute?"
"No, get out! He loved you and Mei best anyway. It was always you two. Do you know, even when he was dying, he asked for Mei? Not me, the faithful daughter who stayed by him, but Mei, the one who had brought him so much pain. She was always the flower of his heart. Ha! Just because I could not do magic. Do you know how I feel? Can you ever take away my pain?"
"No, I'm sorry, Ying, I'm sorry for all the pain I have caused. I do not know how to fix things for you."
"You can't! So get out! You broke my heart, and I will make you and Mei pay for it one day!"
"Did Mei leave anything? Any note or anything?"
"Here, take the stupid letter." She thrust an envelope in his hands and then slammed the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~Dear Clow, I am sorry to not say anything to you, but I could not do it. I hope this will not hurt you, but I know we cannot marry. We just are not meant to be. Please take care of my father for me, and Ying as well. Understand that she has been through so much. We found out that Pai-Lang had been hurting her, even when she was with child. He died soon after she gave birth to a girl, Ling, due to drowning in the river after drinking too much. She has not been the same since. Please take good care of her; she needs your love more than I do. She has always loved you with her whole heart, and it would help her so much if you would care for her, too. I am gone now, no longer in the way, so please do not worry about me. Do not try to find me. I know it is better this way; we just are not meant to be. Yours, Mei.~
Clow slowly folded the letter again, his eyes sorrowful, then got up from the ground where he had been sitting. He picked up his briefcase and walked away.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura found herself in a familiar place now. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized where she was--it was Tomoeda, an old Tomoeda!
She saw an older Clow coming out of a house and saying good-bye to another man. As he turned and walked away, he halted at what he saw in front of him. A woman was walking down the street towards him, the hand of a small girl's in hers. She carried a basket in the other arm as she looked down, speaking to the little girl.
"Lan, did you have fun at school?"
"Yes, mommy, we drew pictures today, and I drew a picture of you and daddy!"
As she approached Clow, she glanced up and froze, her basket falling from her grasp, and eggs splattering all over the ground.
There was a silence between the two, until the girl tugged at her mother's clothes, "Mommy, what's the matter? Who's this person?"
"Mei? Is it really you? Can it be?"
"Clow, it's you... Why are you here?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clow and Mei now sat in the living room of a large house, sipping tea. Mei had tears in her eyes, as Clow told her all that had happened after she had left.
"Mei, I came here because there was something strange happening. There had been a disturbance in the magic of the world, as though a dark being is growing ever stronger. Have you sensed it?"
"Yes, I have, in fact, ever since I felt it, I have felt a pain in my chest, jabbing at me ceaselessly. I do not tell my husband, though; he has enough to worry about."
"Well, I came here to visit Master Sono, he is the leading force here in Japan. I had no idea I would find you here. He is trying to help me isolate this force. But what are you saying about the pain? I sense no pain. Mei, what's wrong?" he rushed to help her as she doubled over.
"It hurts, oh, it hurts so badly, like a sword puncturing my heart..." She sought hard to hide the tears.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clow and Mei faced the shadowed figure, arms held in fighting stances. "Don't just stand there you demon! Fight!"
"Hahaha," the figure laughed and stepped forward.
Sakura saw that it was Ying. She was dressed in black, her red hair done neatly in a bun, her eyes tinged with red as well.
Clow and Mei dropped their arms in shock.
"You didn't expect it, did you? Not you Mei, nor Clow. You didn't think I had any powers, huh? Well, it's amazing the things you learn when you travel, isn't it? Did you like my gift, sister?" Ying pulled out a doll with a large needle in the chest. It was in the likeness of Mei.
"Ying, what do you want? Why are you hurting Mei like this?"
"Oh, it's too late now for that. I just want you to suffer, and to know who finally beat you both. Ha! You can't beat me now!"
"Ying, please don't do this. Leave brother Clow alone!"
"Oh, I won't, dear sister. You get to watch brother Clow die! He's the one who caused all my pain, and I want you to suffer as much as I did!" She raised her arm and pointed them at Clow. A black ball of energy issued forth, and Clow quickly moved out of the way. The blast of the energy against the tree, however, knocked him over.
Ying raised her arm again for the final blow, and even as the energy came towards the helpless Clow, Mei ran into the full force of the blow, knocking herself over.
Clow leapt up and ran towards her, holding her weak body in his arms. "Mei! Why did you do that? Why?"
Mei touched his cheeks, "Clow, we're not meant to be in this life, but I wanted to help you as much as I could. You must stop her, Clow, but don't hurt her. She was good once, but she let her anger and jealousy take over her. Just stop her, please. Use those powers you told me about, and this." She pulled a small key out from around her neck.
"The Key of the Hung family! But Mei, how? Why?"
"Father wanted you to have this, but he told me to keep it safe. Take it now, and defeat her. Use your power and my power combined. I will put my power in it, so that you can overcome her. But please don't hurt her. And..." she gasped, her words starting to trail off. "...don't tell my family. Erase their memories, make them think I died in an accident, so that they can live in peace. Pass the Key onto someone who is worthy, I know you can do that."
She started to cough more violently, and soon blood came from her mouth. "I love you, Clow, and, though it is not meant to be, I will wait for you for eternity..." Her hand dropped, and her breathing slowed and stopped.
Clow brushed the tears out of his eyes and then laid her body gently down.
"Ying, let us settle this." He held the Key up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clow stood over the conquered Ying, his eyes sad and angry. "I promised Mei I would not hurt you, and so I won't, but I take your evil powers from you now and seal them away. You can keep a little, but not enough to hurt others. Only if you are ever able to wrench away Mei and my power from me or my heirs will you ever gain them back. And that will never happen, for our descendants and heirs will guard it. Go now. Go take care of your daughter. Be a good mother to her."
Ying stood up, glaring still, "You think you have done me a favor, but you should have killed me. I will get revenge one way or another. Just you watch!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura blinked in the brightness, still taking in what she had seen.
"SAKURA!" Kero's face popped out in front of her.
"Aaaahhh!!!" She screamed.
"You're late again! What happened?"
"I had a strange dream last night. I'll tell you later. Got to go!"
Kero watched as she dashed out the door, still throwing on clothes. She has seen the past now.
*********************************************
Yay! I finally got around to writing the next chapter. Though it seems really weird since it's like it has nothing to do with the story, it sets the background information for what happens later. Don't worry we'll come back to more S+S later. Please R&R!
^_^ OrchidAngel
Next Chapter: The Vixen Arrives--the past is brought to life, but will it repeat itself? And what does all this have to do with Sakura and her problem? Find out next!