Chapter One: When sleep won't come
By Trulie Hope
If things didn't turn around soon, if she had to spend one more night awake and tossing while the world slept, she would go insane.
She'd grown to hate her room. The pinkness of everything drew on her nerves: walls, bedspread, pictures, all lace and frill. It pressed in on the teen, suffocating her already exhausted mind. She'd spent too many sleepless hours in this prison and escape was necessary
This had been going on for days, her bout with insomnia, and it didn't seem to be going away any time soon. Nothing had worked to cure it, god knew she tried it all: sleeping medicine, herbs, charms, hot baths. Even a temple visit and long devotion had brought around nothing.
Sakura stumbled to the window and pulled it open. Early morning air flowed in with refreshing fierceness, washing over her body and tousling her hair mercilessly. A sigh escaped her lips, she fell to rest on the sill with head in hands. In the world outside, her town was shrouded by pre-dawn gloom.
The sun was beginning to rise, proof of how early it was. She'd never seen the sunrise before this week and, under the current circumstances, she hoped to never see it again. But it was beautiful.
What is my problem? Why can't I sleep…
A hint of magic floated on the wind, tickling her aura as it passed. She recognized the signature, black and consuming like the sleep she wanted desperately to lose herself in. The touch was Eriol's, tentative and gentle like his attitude towards her, wrapping her in a type of magical embrace.
"Thanks, Eriol-kun," she mouthed to the breeze, smiling as the sun peaked over the horizon and bathed the rooftops below in golden light. Today was a new day.
Sakura pulled herself away from the window, breeze turning up her pajama shirt as she walked away. She could still feel the taint of Eriol's magic shifting and swirling with her own. It reminded her distinctly of her father and the way he pressed a damp cloth to her head when she was sick.
The clock numbers began to shift. Six thirty-one popped into view and the alarm went off, intending to wake a sleeping girl; but she had no need of waking and reached out to shut off the device.
On the other side of the room a dresser drawer popped open, releasing a flying creature into the room. "Sakura-chan, rise and shine!" he greeted cheerfully. The smile dropped, replaced by a frown of concern. His mistress was already awake, standing before her made bed.
"Morning Kero," she returned with a huge grin, switching the machine to off.
He hovered near her shoulder and landed on her extended hand. "Did you get any sleep last night?" he wondered.
She shook her head. "No, not much. I'm going to get ready for school now." Sakura gave him another smile, pulling clothes from a drawer before walking out of the room.
A hot shower made her feel better but did nothing to increase her energy level. After dressing, she gathered her school things and went downstairs to greet her father and brother, both men looked up as she walked in. They were seated around the kitchen table, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper in silence.
"Another hard night, Sakura-chan?"
She glanced up with worn green eyes, smiling cheerfully at her father. "Not really, I think it's going away," her voice chirped as she helped herself to a basket of muffins.
"So how much sleep did you get last night, monster?" Touya was watching his sister carefully over his coffee cup. She'd grown up, from a child to a beautiful young woman of sixteen. He'd grown more sheltering of her too, concerning himself now with protecting his precious sister from the opposite sex. He knew how boys that age thought, he was sixteen once, and felt he had to protect Sakura from their corrupt minds. Now, his mission was saving her from herself and that damn cheerful front.
Nibbling at her muffin, the emerald-eyed teen looked slightly nervous. "Oh at least six hours. And I'm not a monster," she threw some muffin in his direction.
"I see," he replied, catching the flying morsel and popping it into his mouth. "then I think you should go back to kindergarten. I walked by your room at nine, eleven, one, three, and five; your light was on the whole time."
"Sorry," she mumbled as her face flushed. Sakura looked down, feeling ashamed that she'd lied to her family, "I didn't want you to worry."
"Don't worry about us, this seems to be getting serious. Should I make a doctor's appointment?" Fujitaka wondered, hand resting gently on his daughter's head.
"Okay, I guess," sighing, Sakura took her plate to the sink and rinsed it. "I guess I'll head to school now," she said, waving good-bye to her father and brother before picking up her school things and heading for the door. "I'm leaving now!"
School didn't start for a while, but a desperate need to be free of her house surrounded her. Her family was concerned, she realized, but even their worry seemed to press in on her like her room had. No doubt lack of sleep was making her irritable, she considered as she trudged the familiar path to high school. Exhaustion filled her form, but she could do nothing.
Today Sakura arrived at school earlier than she ever had before, so early that the grounds were deserted. There was nothing better to do and her limbs were crying out for relief, so she sat down on the grass beneath a leafy tree. She rested her head against the trunk and closed her eyes, willing sleep to come. Beneath a tree would be a strange place to fall asleep, but some sleep was better than no sleep at all.
I have a geometry test today she thought. The revelation made her grown. Yes, she'd had hours of time because of her sleeplessness but she still managed to put off studying. I could now, though. It wouldn't help to look at those Theorems we learned.
Her valiant effort didn't last long. After two minutes of examining her textbook, Sakura's head was spinning and she felt more confused than before. "Hoe… how could anyone understand this?" she demanded, speaking to the air around her. Again she rested her head against the tree trunk, frustrated with herself for being so dense. The teen let her eyes wander and as she examined the green foliage above her head. She found a pair of eyes starring back down.
"Syaoran-kun!! How long have you been up there?"
Caught, the man in the tree slide gracefully from his perch. A slight blush tinted his cheeks as he landed before her with a soft thump. "I'm usually here early, it helps if I meditate before school," he replied. "I didn't realize you were down here until I heard your little outburst. But you're here awfully early."
"Yes, I am," Sakura laughed nervously. Syaoran didn't know about her sleeping problems, not even Tomoyo knew the full extent of the issue. "Kero-chan was hungry this morning and woke me up early so I could get him some food. Touya was being mean, calling me a monster and everything, so I decided to go to school." It bothered her that she was lying to Syaoran, the one person who'd always been completely honest with her.
He examined her critically. "Are you feeling okay? You look a little under the weather, maybe you're getting sick. There's been something different about you, you haven't been yourself lately."
"That's not very nice, just because I'm not late for school…"
"Something's wrong, what?"
I should have known I couldn't evade his questions. "It's nothing, really," she protested, "I'm just a little tired. I didn't get that much sleep last night."
His eyes narrowed slightly as his mouth set into a line. "Last night or all most of this week?"
"M… most of this week too." How could he have known that? Maybe Tomoyo had talked to Touya, who'd explained it her, and he'd told, and she thought it a good idea to tell the brown-haried boy…
Syaoran's heaved a sigh and she glanced up. His face was pinched into a scowl as he took a seat beside her and folded his legs underneath. Something was worrying him. "I've been having the same problem," he commented bitterly.
Sakura could see the proof in his face. His gaze wasn't quite as sharp, the amber of his eyes dulled and small dark patched sagged beneath. Even his posture was different, shoulders sagging beneath the fabric of his uniform. The signs weren't that hard to miss, she might have noticed if she'd taken the time to look.
"When did this start, for you?"
"Monday night."
He nodded. "It could be a very large coincidence, but I doubt it," Syaoran commented darkly as he crossed his arms over his chest.
She met his frown with a puzzled gaze of her own as her fingers strayed to the start key tied around her neck. "Do you think magic is causing this? Like a Clow Card? But I thought we caught them all…"
"Magic yes, Clow Card, no," he corrected. "You're right. To my knowledge all the existing cards are safely in your book. They're all Sakura cards now."
"Then how would you explain this?"
"A number of things, actually. We need to figure it out soon so we can get some sleep." As an afterthought he asked, "lie down for a second, would you?"
"Huh?" His request seemed bizarre, but she knew he wouldn't ask something like that of her without having a reason. She complied, lowering herself to the grass and looking up at him questioningly.
Syaoran looked around quickly and, noting that they were alone, called out his sword. It appeared in his hands, blazing, and a slight wind picked up as he chanted a spell. The tip of the weapon began to glow and he touched it gently to her skin, shoulders forehead and stomach, in the for navigational points, chanting all the while.
She could feel something clinging to her. Somehow she knew it hadn't been brought on by Syaoran's spell but had been there before, clinging to her like a second layer of skin. It was strong and black, very similar too…
The feeling disappeared and Syaoran's knees collapsed, only his sword saved him from plummeting to the ground. Exhaustion lined his face as he leaned against the sword hilt. "Just as I thought," he commented, banishing the object and sitting next to her again. Sakura struggled to her feet and looked at him encouragingly. "It's magic of some sort. The spell on you is the same one that's on me. But I don't know what it is."
"Kero might," she suggested, "and don't you have a ton of books at your apartment? After school I could run and get him. Then we could research at your apartment and try to find out exactly what's going on, if that's okay."
He looked a redder than normal. "Okay," he agreed. "You look horrible, you should have stayed home today."
"I could say the same thing for you," she returned with a shrug.
Syaoran was looking passed her, face set in a grimace. "I think Daidouji is here," he commented in a dry whisper, pointing to a blinking red light in the bushes.
Sakura's face turned to match the light. "Tomoyo-chan!!"
Third block geometry was notable for being boring and this afternoon didn't seem to e an exception. The class was scheduled for a test, which they would commence after the drawling teacher stepped away from the overhead.
"…things are different for the 45, 45, 90. Remember the legs, then you'll be able to…"
Syaoran thought reviews were tedious and pointless. He knew the material and last minute instruction wouldn't help test scores. That was why his gaze continued to drift away from the lecture. He was watching Sakura.
Math was her least favorite subject, but that didn't excuse the sick look passing over her face. She was paler than normal, her head resting on folded arms. Her attempt to focus was valiant, but her drooping eyelids proved she was losing the battle. The lack of sleep was kicking in.
"…to find any leg, take the square toot or multiply by…"
A muffled thump shook the classroom, startling the lecture. All students were looking towards the back of the room and a hushed chatter broke out. Sakura was laying in the isle, unmoving. Of course, Tomoyo was at her side in seconds, attempting to wake the sleeping girl. She received a slight glare of amber, suggesting she leave the other alone. Complying with a sigh, she pillowed her friend's head in her lap and watched Syaoran shove his way to the front of the room.
"Shueisha-san."
The middle-aged teacher turned towards his student with a flustered expression. Syaoran met his eyes calmly. "Kinomoto hasn't had much sleep lately, she's been suffering from insomnia. I think it would be best not to wake her, I can call her father. Her family knows me."
"Of course, Li, thank-you," the teacher replied gratefully. "And tell Kinomoto she startled us all."
Syaoran bowed his thanks and walked back to join Tomoyo.
"Shueisha-san agreed that we shouldn't wake her. I was going to take her outside and call her father."
"Good idea, Li-kun," she agreed, patting him on the head childishly. A secret smile stole over her face. "No be nice to Sakura-chan."
He grumbled a the gesture as he scoped Sakura's limp form into his arms. The whispers in the class increased as he slung his bag ant the bag of his companion over his shoulder, walking from the room.
Outside, the hallways were deserted. Syaoran paused near a bench to lay Sakura down before retrieving his cell-phone. As he dialed a number saved on his phone, he felt overcome by nerves. He had this number in case of emergency, but he did o feel comfortable calling her father's cell.
The older man answered on the third ring. "Professor Kinomoto."
"Kinomoto-san, this is Li Syaoran."
"Li-san? Is there a problem?" he wondered, sounding worried.
"Sakura fell asleep in class," Syaoran replied. "I know she hasn't been sleeping well, so I asked the teacher not to wake her. She's still asleep now."
"I see. Thank-you for your concern, Li-san, but I'm afraid I can't come pick her up."
"I could bring her home," he volunteered with burning checks.
"There's no one home, I'd be concerned is she were there alone. Besides, I believe the house is locked," he sighed, smiling to himself/ "I trust your judgement, Li-san. Take care of my little girl."
The line clicked and Syaoran starred at the telephone, in a state of shock. There seemed to be only one solution and his face was on fire at the thought.
To be continued… please review, keeps me going!
