Identity's Past
by AlterEthereal
Syaoran returned to find his princess, but discovered she has been missing in action for years. Now, a mysterious, distant girl has arrived in the city... could his princess be right under his nose?
Well hey there! I was lucky and managed to work out and edit another chapter before all insanity sank in (actually, I just got hit by a truck-like muse and couldn't stop writing, even if I had to blow off everything else I was supposed to do...). Anyway, I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed me so far (I LOVE YOU GUYS!)!!!! I couldn't help but notice that I didn't get any for Ch. 3, though… *pouts* So here's the deal: since I will be leaving for PA soon, unable to update, get like 10 reviews up here and I'll pull some strings and get a 5th chapter up before I go (I've already got the plot in my head… just gotta type it out..). Yes, this IS a bribe!! Aren't I sneaky? ^_^
Alter-chan/Althea: hi um...
Leif: *licks ice cream cone* geez... i saw this one coming from a mile away...
Zuri: *licks her own ice cream cone* the sad thing is, we still couldn't prevent it...
So: *she and Anaru having returned* where's Ave when you need her?
Anaru: better go get the butterfly nets...
Zuri: ...cause we've got a half-dragon, half-etherean deity to catch!!
*all but the assimilated Alter-chan/Althea run off with butterfly nets to go capture Ave*
Alter-chan/Althea: well, while they're gone, at least you reviewers can read in peace... DISCLAIMER: I only own AlterEthereal, the sapphire-eyed kid, and the creepy old guy in bright robes from the story. CCS and all its characters belong to CLAMP. Thank you.
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Chapter 4: Evasions
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Artemis. Such a pretty name it was. She wondered to herself when she was alone, which was most of the time, if she should keep it. She could begin a new life, live it the way she wanted to, without a history of mistakes.
She stared at the lake from her haven beneath the dead oak, daring to return to the town and allow Syaoran to have her company, for whatever it was worth. She also remembered the time she spent in the caves, and the person who had met her upon waters like these. Perhaps her life there was better than it would be here. Remembering Syaoran, she cursed herself for thinking this way. After everything she'd gone through, and all her anticipations, how could she think that?
She sat with her head on her knees and her knees in her arms for upwards of an hour, before she fell completely asleep, the sun setting quickly over the water and the clouds.
"Sakura… Sakura, wake up!" she felt her shoulder being shaken lightly by a familiar hand. She opened her eyes wearily to see two bright, chocolate eyes, seeming to flow over with happiness. He suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace. "I knew it! I knew it was you!"
"Wha… What?" thoroughly confused and half-awake, she trailed off.
He released her slowly and stared into her tired, emerald eyes with a warm smile. "There's something I've wanted to tell you ever since I left seven years ago."
"Syaoran…"
"I…"
~*~
"Artemis… are you…"
"Syaoran…" she mumbled, eyes closed.
Syaoran? The boy suddenly stiffened, and his eyes plastered themselves open in shock. No one had called him that since he returned from Hong Kong.
"Artemis! Wake up!" he tried to shake her to consciousness, but without success. He grunted then pried one of her eyes open, but saw no iris or pupil. Night had fallen, causing the temperature to drop to unsafe levels, especially for an adolescent girl sleeping in the grass. He resumed shaking. "Artemis!"
~*~
Artemis…such a pretty name it is… wait! That name belongs to me! Her eyes opened quickly and she bolted upright, her head suddenly colliding with someone else's. Both figures yelped in pain and shock, and the girl embarrassedly realized who sat before her, rubbing his forehead with a slightly anguished expression.
"Oh! Li! I'm sorry, are you--" She fumbled, her flustered countenance immediately adopting a reddish tint.
The anguished expression he bore slowly morphed into one of assurance. "I'm fine. You have a hard head."
A sigh and smile of relief escaped her, and it soon struck her that it was night. The cloudless sky was dark and revealed all it's splendors in small, but bright specks of light. She had never noticed just how many stars there were before, and allowed herself to be sucked into the vacuum of her own contemplations.
Syaoran looked at her questioningly for a few moments, then let his body topple over into the grass beside her. He folded his hands behind his head, and he too, was still.
They remained as such for a long time, until the pale girl began to shiver unconsciously.
"You're cold."
"No… I'm alright."
"Yes, you are."
"I'm alright?"
"No, you're cold."
"Wait, I'm getting confused."
The boy rose without ease from his dent in the grass and stared defiantly at the creature before him. "Follow me now."
The creature did not stir, nor respond. It merely returned the gaze given to it.
"Do I have to carry you?"
"You wouldn't touch me."
He smiled.
"You're right. You seem to know quite a bit about me for being here all of one week."
After a long pause and quiet stare, the girl reached out and snatched his arm. Pulling herself up, not surprised in the least by the strength of her lever, she smirked gently. "There. Now you won't have to."
Suddenly, yet hesitantly, the boy's arms wrapped around her waist, and she could feel a chill run through her spine at their touch. She gingerly permitted her hands to drift toward his neck and return the sweet and unexpected embrace. She rested her chin on his shoulder nervously, at first, but then relaxed, feeling his warm breath on hers. She felt his soft, satisfied heartbeat against her own pounding one. Her squeeze became tighter.
This is what I want. Arigatou.
~*~
The walk back to the city was long and cold. Artemis followed submissively behind, wearing his coat. Syaoran gave a backward glance, then fell satisfied with the scene. He thought back to the lake, when he tried to wake her up. She said his name, didn't she? Or perhaps it was a different Syaoran--sure, it the possiblity was a bit farfetched, but there was no way to be certain.
He now knew, though, that when she was caught off-guard, she showed a completely different personality. One more sensitive and concerned.
"Oh! Li! I'm sorry, are you…"
During those few moments, genuine emotion peeked out through her eyelids, like fire uncovered from beneath snow. Even her short smile revealed warmth behind that exterior. He understood that this fire wasn't something she let burn often; it was something precious, hidden, as a secret would be. He just hoped he could persuade her to show that caring side more often, without receiving any lumps on the head.
They once again approached the rural neighborhood, but Artemis cooperated this time around. As they passed a run-down park whose centerpiece seemed to be a large blue penguin, she shivered again.
"Are you still cold?"
"No… not really."
"Then is something wrong?"
She paused for a moment, seeming to try to think of a way to evade the question.
"Where are we going?"
He rolled his eyes and silently scoffed at her lack-luster response, almost expecting something a bit more valid. "We're close. You'll see." He constructed his own evasion, wondering why she was so set on avoiding the neighborhood.
They had walked a few more blocks and turned a corner when Syaoran once again glanced back at her to see her green eyes dulled and solemn. He knew he wouldn't get a statement from her regarding her discomfort and didn't want to agitate it. For a brief moment, he almost had the urge to turn back, just to see her eyes brighten as whatever burden the trip imposed was lifted from her pale shoulders. He couldn't do that, though. If he did, he would never find out what made her squirm about this place, and, more importantly, if she had a former connection to any of it.
They ascended the walk leading up to a small, white, two-story house with a light on in one of the floor-level rooms, and he could faintly hear her suppress a sigh. Though the house was in the best condition of all the rest on the street, it still looked unkempt and gloomy.* He rang the doorbell.
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* I really don't remember what Sakura's house looked like. I haven't gotten to watch CCS in a while, so please forgive me if the description is a bit off. Aside from the "unkempt and gloomy"ness. That's supposed to be there.
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Alter-chan/Althea: once again, BEWARE THE RABID CLIFFHANGERS!! *sniff* aww... wasn't the part where they hugged sweet? *looks around for kleenex (i don't own Kleenex, either, by the way), but can't find one* oh well. whatever. well, i'm gonna chill out here until the others come back with everyone's favorite Guardian Goddess of Dragons--how they'll fit her into those little butterfly nets is beyond me... *shrugs* anyway, remember those 10 reviews! thanx! ^_^