DISCLAIMER: As everyone before me has stated, Sakura and Syaoran belong to
CLAMP, and not me. All other characters, however, are of my own creation
and belong to me.
Author's note: Well, I went through and changed a couple things, so this is the second draft of this chapter (or maybe the third. ^-^). I changed things that don't really affect the story, such as him being the king of England to a fictional place. It just made it a little easier.
****
Sakura awoke with a groan. She winced as the sound echoed throughout the small dungeon she was trapped in. Her headache, which had dulled only moments before, re-awoke with a fierce passion.
Pulling her wrists as far from the wall as the chains will allow, she attempted to find a weakness in the chains, but to no avail. Sighing, she dropped her head.
'I can't believe this. What an idiotic king. He's only fifteen and yet they trust him with such an important task as being in charge of all of Aleka!! And then there's my father. If he had only been more diplomatic, he might have saved me from this. Stupid men! They always take it out on women. . . someone does you wrong, what do you do? Blame it on a woman.'
Her eyes throbbed with a fierce light as the thoughts flow rapidly through her brain. She snorted with anger. The snort echoed, the same as before. Only this time it brought a laugh with it.
"Going crazy already are we, my little cherry blossom?" spoke a light voice. A smirk is hidden within the words. "It's a bit early for that. You haven't even met the king yet."
Sakura flattened her back against the wall in fear. Her green eyes grew large, and her face went pale.
'It's a ghost!!'
Again the laughter echoed throughout the dungeon. "I am not a ghost, my little cherry blossom. I am very much alive."
Footsteps sound, growing slowly closer. Sakura recognized the sound of soldier boots. Acting quickly, she let her head droop again, feigning unconsciousness.
A click sounds, followed by the slow creaking of an un-oiled door. The boots finally appeared in her line of vision. She sees six pairs. Three men. The smirk grew wider then disappears as a man gently tilted her head into the light. Sakura concentrates on keeping her face from moving.
'If they think I am unconscious, perhaps they will leave me unguarded and I can run away.'
The man laughed and dropped her head. "She's still asleep. I gotta tell you. . . they sure do make women weaker these days."
If it hadn't been so dark, they might have seen Sakura's fists balled tightly. She took a silent breath and calmed herself.
The man appeared to be the leader of the other two. He stepped back, making way for the other two. "Unlock her. The king will see her now."
Sakura heard a gentle whisper in her ear. "Mmm, my dear cherry blossom, tread lightly indeed. The king is a dangerous man. While most men may be cowed by your beauty, this king has seen many a pretty face. And slapped many too. . ."
Sakura seized up in fright, giving away her unconscious role. The two men gasped and the commander stepped forward. Grabbing Sakura's face, he lowered his face so he can look into her eyes.
"So you thought you could play unconscious? The king will not forgive something like that. He will punish you, wench."
With a vicious snarl, he spat into her face. He watched Sakura straining herself, trying to attack him. She was no match for the two soldiers holding her arms, and eventually was forced to sink backwards.
Seeing her give up, the commander stepped out of the dungeon and upwards into a large maze of hallways. Sakura lost track of the route and let her mind wonder.
'Will he kill me? No. He needs me. I know he does. I am a token to ensure my father does not attack him, but it works both ways. If I die, my father's trust does too. He's not that stupid. . . but who's to say he won't make life painful?'
****
Sakura ears heard a faint "come in". Her eyes watched as the heavy doors were forced open.
A room filled with rich colors knocked her breath from her lungs. Her eyes were assaulted with the rich hues of crimson, orange, pinks, blues, and every imaginable color. She zeroed in particularly on three colors grouped together. A green robe topped by chocolate eyes and amber hair.
Sakura's eyes were locked instantly on this man's, and his on hers. A hard push by one of the soldiers brought her out of her reverie. He pushed her harshly to the ground, forcing her to bow. She grunted, pushing weakly against the soldier's grasp. He squeezed her arm, causing her to stop her squirming.
The man made a motion and all the men excepting the commander left in a blurred vision of shoes. The commander stepped forward.
"Your highness, this woman was trying to trick me and my men by pretending she was sleeping." His voice dripped with self- congratulation.
"And were you fooled?" quipped the king.
The commander's voice now changed to surprise. "No, she jumped suddenly."
"Then you were fooled. The fact that she failed was of her own undoing, was it not? In which case you should not be congratulating yourself for your genius, but rather thanking luck for her mistake." The sound of dismissal was heavy in the air. Sakura heard a polite grunt.
With the loud sound of the heavy door shutting, Sakura found herself alone with the green king. He let out a guarded laugh and Sakura's cheeks were overcome with a blush. She realized she was still bowing and hurriedly raised herself to her full height, smoothing her gown, which was already beyond repair.
The man's eyes met her own and he slowly rose from his chair.
"You dare stand in the presence of the king?" His voice bounced against the walls. Sakura, though having already heard him speak, felt slightly taken aback at the deepness of his voice when it was directed to her.
'Such a deep voice accompanies him well'.
Realizing she was gazing stupidly, she snapped herself out of her thoughts, planting a scowl firmly on her lips.
"Would you have me return my forehead to the floor again? Because if you require it, you might as well return me to my cell. I will not bow unless forced." She stuck her chin out defiantly and was answered with a slight twinkle in the king's eyes.
"You will not be returned to your cell, my lady, for you are a guest--"
"I am a prisoner."
"-and shall be treated as one. You will have your own room, and one servant. The gardens are yours to explore except the one by the west pavilion."
Sakura knew she was being dismissed, but could not keep herself from asking, "Why must you keep me? I am a woman. And more trouble than I am worth. Why do you feel so threatened?" She added the last sentence because some part of her wanted to see him lose his cool. She was satisfied.
"I am not threatened by you, woman. Your father is not a threat. He could easily be overcome. But wars are costly and annoying. I want my reign to be peaceful," he answered with a slight hinge in his voice.
"And peaceful is holding a fifteen-year old girl prisoner?" Her voice dripped with sarcasm.
"If it keeps us from war."
He clapped his hands and a servant appeared before she could respond.
"Take the lady to her room and assign a woman to her." The king returned to his seat, without another look towards Sakura.
The servant started to lead the way, but Sakura lingered for a moment. Dropping her smirk, she asked earnestly, "What can I call you? Your Highness, My King, they are all too formal. And, after all, I will be here for a while."
The servant gasped at her stupidity. The king's eyes narrowed. For the first time, Sakura was scared. "You will address me as protocol demands, whether it is too formal for your tongue or not. You are just a woman, my lady Sakura, and your words, though amusing at times, carry no weight. Address me as you are told to, for you are not important. Now leave."
Sakura's anger boiled into the top of her head, but her tongue was paralyzed. Unable to respond, she turned and stormed from the room.
****
Author's note: Mmm, don't really need one, but. . . okay. ^_^ HEY!
Author's note: Well, I went through and changed a couple things, so this is the second draft of this chapter (or maybe the third. ^-^). I changed things that don't really affect the story, such as him being the king of England to a fictional place. It just made it a little easier.
****
Sakura awoke with a groan. She winced as the sound echoed throughout the small dungeon she was trapped in. Her headache, which had dulled only moments before, re-awoke with a fierce passion.
Pulling her wrists as far from the wall as the chains will allow, she attempted to find a weakness in the chains, but to no avail. Sighing, she dropped her head.
'I can't believe this. What an idiotic king. He's only fifteen and yet they trust him with such an important task as being in charge of all of Aleka!! And then there's my father. If he had only been more diplomatic, he might have saved me from this. Stupid men! They always take it out on women. . . someone does you wrong, what do you do? Blame it on a woman.'
Her eyes throbbed with a fierce light as the thoughts flow rapidly through her brain. She snorted with anger. The snort echoed, the same as before. Only this time it brought a laugh with it.
"Going crazy already are we, my little cherry blossom?" spoke a light voice. A smirk is hidden within the words. "It's a bit early for that. You haven't even met the king yet."
Sakura flattened her back against the wall in fear. Her green eyes grew large, and her face went pale.
'It's a ghost!!'
Again the laughter echoed throughout the dungeon. "I am not a ghost, my little cherry blossom. I am very much alive."
Footsteps sound, growing slowly closer. Sakura recognized the sound of soldier boots. Acting quickly, she let her head droop again, feigning unconsciousness.
A click sounds, followed by the slow creaking of an un-oiled door. The boots finally appeared in her line of vision. She sees six pairs. Three men. The smirk grew wider then disappears as a man gently tilted her head into the light. Sakura concentrates on keeping her face from moving.
'If they think I am unconscious, perhaps they will leave me unguarded and I can run away.'
The man laughed and dropped her head. "She's still asleep. I gotta tell you. . . they sure do make women weaker these days."
If it hadn't been so dark, they might have seen Sakura's fists balled tightly. She took a silent breath and calmed herself.
The man appeared to be the leader of the other two. He stepped back, making way for the other two. "Unlock her. The king will see her now."
Sakura heard a gentle whisper in her ear. "Mmm, my dear cherry blossom, tread lightly indeed. The king is a dangerous man. While most men may be cowed by your beauty, this king has seen many a pretty face. And slapped many too. . ."
Sakura seized up in fright, giving away her unconscious role. The two men gasped and the commander stepped forward. Grabbing Sakura's face, he lowered his face so he can look into her eyes.
"So you thought you could play unconscious? The king will not forgive something like that. He will punish you, wench."
With a vicious snarl, he spat into her face. He watched Sakura straining herself, trying to attack him. She was no match for the two soldiers holding her arms, and eventually was forced to sink backwards.
Seeing her give up, the commander stepped out of the dungeon and upwards into a large maze of hallways. Sakura lost track of the route and let her mind wonder.
'Will he kill me? No. He needs me. I know he does. I am a token to ensure my father does not attack him, but it works both ways. If I die, my father's trust does too. He's not that stupid. . . but who's to say he won't make life painful?'
****
Sakura ears heard a faint "come in". Her eyes watched as the heavy doors were forced open.
A room filled with rich colors knocked her breath from her lungs. Her eyes were assaulted with the rich hues of crimson, orange, pinks, blues, and every imaginable color. She zeroed in particularly on three colors grouped together. A green robe topped by chocolate eyes and amber hair.
Sakura's eyes were locked instantly on this man's, and his on hers. A hard push by one of the soldiers brought her out of her reverie. He pushed her harshly to the ground, forcing her to bow. She grunted, pushing weakly against the soldier's grasp. He squeezed her arm, causing her to stop her squirming.
The man made a motion and all the men excepting the commander left in a blurred vision of shoes. The commander stepped forward.
"Your highness, this woman was trying to trick me and my men by pretending she was sleeping." His voice dripped with self- congratulation.
"And were you fooled?" quipped the king.
The commander's voice now changed to surprise. "No, she jumped suddenly."
"Then you were fooled. The fact that she failed was of her own undoing, was it not? In which case you should not be congratulating yourself for your genius, but rather thanking luck for her mistake." The sound of dismissal was heavy in the air. Sakura heard a polite grunt.
With the loud sound of the heavy door shutting, Sakura found herself alone with the green king. He let out a guarded laugh and Sakura's cheeks were overcome with a blush. She realized she was still bowing and hurriedly raised herself to her full height, smoothing her gown, which was already beyond repair.
The man's eyes met her own and he slowly rose from his chair.
"You dare stand in the presence of the king?" His voice bounced against the walls. Sakura, though having already heard him speak, felt slightly taken aback at the deepness of his voice when it was directed to her.
'Such a deep voice accompanies him well'.
Realizing she was gazing stupidly, she snapped herself out of her thoughts, planting a scowl firmly on her lips.
"Would you have me return my forehead to the floor again? Because if you require it, you might as well return me to my cell. I will not bow unless forced." She stuck her chin out defiantly and was answered with a slight twinkle in the king's eyes.
"You will not be returned to your cell, my lady, for you are a guest--"
"I am a prisoner."
"-and shall be treated as one. You will have your own room, and one servant. The gardens are yours to explore except the one by the west pavilion."
Sakura knew she was being dismissed, but could not keep herself from asking, "Why must you keep me? I am a woman. And more trouble than I am worth. Why do you feel so threatened?" She added the last sentence because some part of her wanted to see him lose his cool. She was satisfied.
"I am not threatened by you, woman. Your father is not a threat. He could easily be overcome. But wars are costly and annoying. I want my reign to be peaceful," he answered with a slight hinge in his voice.
"And peaceful is holding a fifteen-year old girl prisoner?" Her voice dripped with sarcasm.
"If it keeps us from war."
He clapped his hands and a servant appeared before she could respond.
"Take the lady to her room and assign a woman to her." The king returned to his seat, without another look towards Sakura.
The servant started to lead the way, but Sakura lingered for a moment. Dropping her smirk, she asked earnestly, "What can I call you? Your Highness, My King, they are all too formal. And, after all, I will be here for a while."
The servant gasped at her stupidity. The king's eyes narrowed. For the first time, Sakura was scared. "You will address me as protocol demands, whether it is too formal for your tongue or not. You are just a woman, my lady Sakura, and your words, though amusing at times, carry no weight. Address me as you are told to, for you are not important. Now leave."
Sakura's anger boiled into the top of her head, but her tongue was paralyzed. Unable to respond, she turned and stormed from the room.
****
Author's note: Mmm, don't really need one, but. . . okay. ^_^ HEY!
