The Ronins and Warlords looked helplessly at the sobbing Sakura. They had no idea of how to comfort her and they were upset as well. Ryo was dead.
"He died, saving you." A small voice said behind the group. Sakura quickly looked up. The group made way as Kanna, still holding the red ball in her hands, walked up to where Sakura sat, Ryo's head in her lap.
"Kanna." Sakura said surprised.
The little girl walked up to them and knelt down, staring at Ryo's face curiously.
"I saw him." She said tilting her head to the side. "He pushed you out of the way."
Sakura nodded sadly as Kanna continued to stare at them.
"You love him, don't you?" she asked suddenly.
Sakura looked up surprised. "Yes." She answered. "I do."
"And he loves you?" Kanna pressed.
"Yes, he does." Sakura answered.
"All right then." Kanna said suddenly standing back up.
"All right what?" Kento ventured. Kanna turned to look at him.
"Then I'll give him his life back." She said. The group looked taken aback as Sakura looked hopeful.
"Can you do that?" Sakura whispered.
Kanna nodded. Suddenly the red ball in Kanna's hands glowed brightly. She tossed the ball in the air as she slowly faded from view. The ball rose in the air and made an arch. It then descended, hitting Ryo squarely in the chest. The ball sank into his chest as he was engulfed in a bright light which turned from white to red, then faded. The Ronins, Warlords and Sakura stared at Ryo, holding their breath. Ryo slowly opened his eyes.
"RYO!" Sakura gasped as she hugged him tight around the neck.
"Sakura." Ryo whispered as he returned it. The others cheered.
"Ryo, you're all right!" Sage yelled.
"Can't get rid of me that easily, too much to live for I guess." He answered as he stood up, Sakura next to him.
"What happened?" Ryo asked looking at the dead form of the Shadowrunner. The group recounted what happened to him as they left.
"Wait!" Cye called, stopping them in their tracks. "What about the Illusionist and Seriyu?"
"Well, Seriyu died, and well I guess The Illusionist ran out while we were fighting." Cye nodded as they made it back to Mia's house.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Two Days Later*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Sage where are we going?" Alanna asked as Sage guided her, blindfolded through the forest.
"You'll see when we get there." Sage answered as Alanna gave a sigh. A few minutes later, Sage took off her blindfold and flipped a switch as Alanna gave a gasp of surprise. It was the pavilion that they had worked on so long ago. He, with a little help from the others, had transformed the old dilapidated pavilion overrun with weeds into a romantic spot. He had applied it with a new coat of white paint, and fixed the broken pieces of wood with new ones. He then strung lights around the banisters. All in all it made a pretty spectacular sight.
"I know it isn't your birthday anymore." Sage started. "What with everything that happened, but I still wanted to do something special. I mean it isn't everyday that someone turns 21 and…." Alanna shushed him by putting her finger on his lips.
"This is wonderful Sage." She said. "Thank you." Sage blushed beet red at her compliment as he led her onto the pavilion.
"AWWW." Sakura said happily as she leaned onto Ryo's shoulder. The two were sitting on a blanket on a cliff that overlooked where the pavilion was.
"That is so sweet. Is that what you did all day when you left with Sage?"
"Yeah, he made me promise not to tell. He said that if I didn't that I could use the pavilion for a special day with you, but I think I like this better." Ryo said as he put his arm around her, pulling her close. Sakura hadn't left his side since Kanna had brought him back. Ryo had asked her to explain it to him, but in truth, Sakura wasn't sure what if she knew herself. The way she had it, all the dreams of Kanna and the image that she followed had been sent by the Illusionist, but the Kanna that gave Ryo his life back was the real Kanna's ghost. Either way, she was thankful. If it hadn't been for Kanna, Ryo would be dead and she didn't know what she would do without him. She sighed happily as she moved her eyes from the two on the pavilion to the starry sky.
"Thank you Kanna." She whispered.
"What?" Ryo asked. Sakura shook her head "Nothing." She said as she gave him a kiss.
"What was that for?" Ryo asked.
"Just for being you." She replied "I love you, Ryo Sanada."
"And I love you, Sakura Sanada." He responded as she snuggled closer to him. Ryo squeezed her tighter as they both became silent staring at the starry sky, reveling in each others company.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The Illusionist carefully picked his way around the vast cavern, dodging the stalagmites and debris that littered the ground from the fight with the Shadowrunner. He walked over to where the dead body of the Shadowrunner lay. He smiled as he reached out and pried off the red diamond shaped jewel on the Shadowrunners forehead. He pocketed the jewel as he left, a smile spreading over his face.
"You warriors think that you got rid of the threat by killing that Shadowrunner. But you're wrong. That Shadowrunner was only another guardian. And your miscalculations will be your undoing." He gave an evil laugh as it echoed in the vast cavern as he left.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Ok- here is where I need you guys input. I can stop the story here, or keep going. I'm not going to write it if no one is going to read it. So if I get enough reviews, then I'll continue this story, but if not then this is where it ends. Probably the last in the Ryo/Sakura series, but that can always change. I'm still trying to think up ideas so that I can write an Alanna/Sage story. I specifically didn't have Sage do anything so that I could put that in another story centered around them. Anywhoo. Please remember to review and tell me what you think. ^_^
-Vegetasgirl4eva