Sakura woke up the next morning to find Ryo already dressed and moving about the room.
"How are you feeling?" Ryo asked when he noticed she was awake.
"Fine." She replied sitting up and looking at him.
"Have any more nightmares?" he asked gently. Sakura lowered her gaze and turned her head to stare at her hands in her lap.
"No," she replied softly. Ryo walked over and sat on her side of the bed, taking her hand in his.
"You okay? That nightmare seemed to have scared you pretty bad." He said sympathetically rubbing her hands with his thumb. Sakura looked up at him and gave him a weak smile.
"I'm fine, it was just a nightmare. Everyone gets them once in a while. It's no big deal." She said not wanting Ryo to worry. Ryo patted her hands and stood up.
"Coming downstairs with me?" he asked.
Sakura nodded. "As soon as I get dressed." Ryo nodded and went down stairs. Sakura made a move to get out off bed, but stopped and lifted her fingers to touch the silver locket still hanging around her neck, next to her mother's crystal.
'That dream seemed so real. But it couldn't be Kanna…I haven't seen her since…' Sakura shook her head to clear her thoughts.
It was just a dream and that was all there was too it. With that thought, Sakura got up, dressed and went downstairs.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The Illusionist smiled happily as his appearance shifted back to his normal ragged appearance. Things were going perfectly. After a few more nights of this, he would be able to start making demands, and once he got there; she would open the door. All that they needed now was time. The Illusionist turned around just as Seriyu entered the room.
"Are things going as planned? Seriyu asked.
The Illusionist nodded. "Yes, all things are going as planned. She has taken the bait and she will soon open the door."
"But how much longer will it take?" Seriyu asked impatiently.
"Patience, patience." Seriyu said consolingly. "You have waited this long to get through that door, a few more days won't make much of a difference." Seriyu nodded as he and The Illusionist left the room, waiting for Sakura to sleep again.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Sakura went downstairs to find everyone except Sage, Kento, and Cye at the breakfast table.
"Where are Sage, Kento and Cye?" Sakura asked as she sat down and helped herself to some breakfast.
"They went somewhere with Sage, said he needed their help with something." Dais explained.
"Yeah, Sage figured we had enough yesterday and decided to let us off." Ryo muttered to Rowen. Rowen choked down a laugh as the conversation moved on to other topics.
"Hey, Sakura, I heard you yelling something last night. What was that all about?" Alanna asked curiously. Sakura stopped what she was doing as her eyes darted around the room, gauging everyone's reaction to Alanna's innocent question. The warlords exchanged glances as the others looked at her curiously. The warlords had heard her yelling Kanna's name as well, but they had planned to wait till later to approach her about it.
"It was just a nightmare." Sakura said shrugging it off, hoping the others would lose interest.
"Seemed like a pretty bad one." Mia commented as she got up to clear the table.
"No," Sakura said shaking her head. "It was just a nightmare and nothing more." Ryo looked at her, but chose to save his comment for later. It was more than a nightmare to her. Something about seeing her old friend, Kanna, affected her in a weird way and he was determined to find out why. Rowen was about to ask another question when Sakura stood up suddenly.
"I'm going to go to the city to get some things. I'll be back later." She said in explanation as she walked calmly out the door, followed by Kero.
"Well, that was sudden." Rowen commented.
"Yeah, what was that all about?" Mia asked looking to Ryo for answers. Ryo shrugged apologetically.
"I, for once, am as mystified as you guys. She won't tell me anything."
"She seems to be so mysterious lately." Alanna complained. "She never tells us everything like she used to." Mia nodded as she turned to face the warlords.
"You guys have any idea what's bugging her. I mean, you have all been around her longer than we have." The warlords once again exchanged nervous glances. They did know something, but they had a feeling that Sakura would be awfully angry if they said anything.
"I'm afraid that if you want to know what is bugging her, you need to ask her yourself." Dais said finally.
"So something is bugging her." Ryo pressed.
"We aren't at liberty to tell." Sehkmet answered as the warlords excused themselves to follow Sakura. It was time to have a little talk about Kanna.