SourPop1004: Hey there! Here's chapter 13! I'll see you all at the bottom. Enjoy~3

Ps. The season finale of Alias… sigh…anyway, I've got awesome little things to stick into my story from the show. I hope it'll bring more… interesting spices to the story. Hehe…

Pps. I WATCHED MATRIX!!! AWESOME MOVIE! Anyway, I'll be inspired further more with my fight scenes. Hehe… anyway, go and read.

Ppps. I have one last thing to say about recent events.

Pppps. Sorry. haha…this is the last one. Read the bottom for some news regarding TSD.

The Salsa Dancer

By: Guess who?

The flashing red number was counting down. Syaoran wiped the sweat off his brows and focused between a purple wire and a white one. 00:03:21…

"Syaoran, how many more wires to go?" Sakura asking peering over his shoulders.

"Four…" He sliced through the purple wire with the sharp edge of the knife. Nothing happened. The two released a sigh of relief. All of the sudden, the red light stopped. The bomb had stopped ticking.

"Did you finish already?" Sakura asked confused.

"No. It just… stopped…" Syaoran spoke in bewilderment. He examined the open box with wires poking out wildly. There was a tiny red light blinking in the corner of the box. "Why didn't I see this before? This thing has a remote detonator. Someone can blow it anytime." He turned his head and looked up at Sakura.

"Remote controlled or not, we need to stop it." Sakura gave him a nod, and Syaoran snipped away the last wires. He finally stood up and stretched his back.

"Ok, since that's out of the way, we have to figure out if the owner of this… toy…is onboard or not." Syaoran picked up the jacket off from the metal sink he had taken off earlier. Sakura nodded again.

The two exited the bathroom. Syaoran took a deep breath of the fresh air outside the bathroom.

"Airplane air ain't exactly fresh but hey, whatever floats your boat." Sakura commented with a smile.

Just then, they heard a scream come from the end of the plane. Sakura looked at Syaoran. "I think we can say that our mystery bomb-man has been found." She replied sarcastically.

"Yeah… but careful. It might be Fang's men." Syaoran warned as he looked on into the next part of the plane. He saw a glimpse of a man with a gun yelling.

Sakura reached around to her back and felt nothing. "Forgot a gun… got one handy anywhere?" She spoke to him without looking.

"In the bag. I'll go get it. Don't go running into the middle of it. We're lucky they didn't see us yet." Syaoran turned around and started off towards his seat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tomoyo was back downstairs in the kitchen. The clean white countertop flashed from the thunder striking the dark sky outside. She breathed in and out, repeating the patterns of breathing to herself. She pulled out the chair from the kitchen table and sat down watching the steam rise from the fresh cups of tea.

Eriol walked into the room.

"Is the tea done?"

Tomoyo jumped out of her chair in surprise. She tried to cool herself but that was impossible. She slowly backed up towards the counter.

"Y-yeah…th-the tea's done." Tomoyo stammered in part fear and in part sorrow.

Eriol approached her with a questioning look. "Are you all right? You look a bit shaken." Every step he took towards her, Tomoyo backed away until she hit the counter. Thunder struck again, flashing a silhouette of Eriol. He was only a foot away from her. "Is something wrong?" He asked again concerned.

Tomoyo stared into his dark blue eyes with her violet ones. She felt her right hand creep up the side of the counter and on top in search of something, anything. "I'm fine. I'm just…a little rattled from the storm. That's all." She reassured him with a small smile. "You're teas getting cold." She suggested as she looked towards the table. Her hand had come across a knife. She had been using a little earlier to cut some lemons for the tea. To her great displeasure, he put a hand over hers, the one clutching the knife, while still staring right into her eyes. Tomoyo felt the tension rising. Not even thinking, she whipped around and to her relief, the cutting board was in front of her with the half lemon rolling around. "So, do you want some more lemons in your tea?"

"No… I'm fine." He answered calmly in an eerie tone.

"Oh, ok." She quickly took the slices she had chopped up hastily to the table. She dumped the pieces into her hot cup. The tea flowed barely over the edge of the rim. She watched as Eriol sat across from her with his own cup. He watched her intently as she picked up her cup. Anyone would have thought it to be normal but his keen sight caught the shake in her grip. She looked up when he spoke.

"For the past couple of years as I've worked with Nade, I've learned many new things. One of them was observation. I've been all over the world and have met many people of diverse places. As different as they all were, one thing was always the same. One emotion that seemed to be the most intriguing to me. One that could be spotted no matter where you stand on the earth…" He paused. "Fear." Dark shadows seemed to dance in his eyes. He sipped his tea with a quiet-cool that seemed to say so much more.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Syaoran had returned with a gun in one hand and another in the other hand. He handed her one.

"I'll take the front end of the plane, you take the back." Syaoran instructed in a whisper.

"Right." Sakura nodded and they were off.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'll ask only once more. Why are you acting this way?" Eriol spoke calmly, but with a malice of it's own.

Tomoyo looked down at her cup. She set the half-empty tea down on the table and stared straight ahead. "Don't ask me anything ever like that. It's very much unappreciated. And for your information, I'm perfectly fine." Tomoyo got up with her head high and walked out of the room. Her training had finally decided to kick in and she was able to control herself. How did Sakura handle this everyday? She was sure Sakura was always up against the worst but how did she ever stay calm in uncomfortable situations?

Eriol looked up from his tea at the staircase as Tomoyo climbed to the top and disappear. He thought deeply. Maybe she had heard something.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sakura tucked the gun in the back of her waistband to hide the weapon. She adjusted her skirt and made it look like she had just come from the restroom with absolute no idea of the happenings currently. She spotted an empty seat near the back and aimed her direction that way. She walked fast but was stopped by a man with a gun. He grabbed her around her neck and pointed the gun threateningly.

"What are you doing up out of your seat?!" He barked out outraged.

"I-I was… I just came from the bathroom…Please don't hurt me. Please…" Sakura whimpered.

"Go sit down over there you bitch!" He shoved her towards the empty seat. Sakura fell over but scrambled up and sat down. "Now listen up people! No movements. No talking. No nothing. So just sit down and enjoy the ride. Oh, and please, deposit all your valuables into this bag." The man laughed out cruelly at the petrified passengers as he threw one man in the front a large bag. Sakura wanted to glare but she held back. Her time would come when she would be allowed to pound the man's face into the ground.

Syaoran waited behind the curtains as he peeked through a small opening. There were apparently a man or two in the cockpit and two others in the front seats. One had a small machine gun strapped around him while the other had a handgun. He put the gun into the inner pocket of his jacket and went through the curtains. Deciding to play the same card as Sakura, he tried to look as confused as possible.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tomoyo sat down on her plush quilted bed. She had locked her door and was now deep in thought. Unintentionally, her hand ran over the soft bed cover, feeling every stitch and bump on the fine quilt. The large clear windows stained with rain were wide open. Harsh winds and knife like rain blasted into the room. Tomoyo found herself falling into her mind. Just like when her father had left her and her mother.

It was around the time she and Sakura were best friends. Her father and mother had decided to get a divorce. And that day he finally left, she had sat in her room alone with the winds rushing in and out of the room, sucking her sane life away.

The same feeling at the pit of stomach had seemed to return from so many years ago. At least then he had Sakura to help her get through it, but now she was alone. How, who would she explain this to? The madness and deception? Sakura and Syaoran were still gone. Who would understand? When she had chosen to become a CIA, she knew there would be a sacrifice of sanity and a real life, but had she never thought of something like this. The whole thing was too big of a mess to even be comprehended. Her mind seemed to fall deeper and deeper into its forbidden place.

Breaking from her trance, she jumped up from the bed and treaded across the wet carpet and slammed the window shut.

Ok…ok…think Tomoyo. Do not freak out. Do not panic. You were trained to handle pressure. Tomoyo's mind paused a moment. Damn! I'm in a situation with a potential killer that once joked about raping me but there's a HIGH chance he'd kill me if he finds out I overheard some stuff. THAT IS PRESSURE!!! Tomoyo mentally screamed at herself. She cringed at her thoughts and furiously shook her head. I need to calm down. Maybe this is all a misunderstanding… She continued to argue with herself when there was a knock on the door. Her head snapped towards to the door. (Don't worry. It didn't like break or anything.)

"Y-yes?" Tomoyo replied a bit surprised.

"Tomoyo. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound so rude. Are you all right?" Eriol's mellow voice traveled through the door.

"I'm fine. I'm just a bit tired. I'd like to rest." Tomoyo answered back.

"Oh. Ok. But could I see you before you sleep? I really feel terrible about my manners." Eriol's voice softened immeasurably.

"O-Oh. A-all right." Tomoyo looked towards her suitcase. She silently ran over and rummaged through. She found the black metal object and placed it into the back of her waistband. Her oversized shirt hid the gun perfectly. Tomoyo closed her bag and opened the door.

"Took you a while there." He hinted.

"Yeah, well, I kind of looked messy. You know women…" Tomoyo trailed off into the uncomfortable silence. "So… you see me. I should really get a nap. And I think you should too." Tomoyo suggested hopefully with a smile.

She watched as Eriol drew closer to her until he was only a breath away. Her heart started to race insanely and the temperature in her body had risen. Maybe it was from the strong attraction she had for him, but something else seemed to take over, fear. Tomoyo found him reaching an arm out around her waist. His face leaned in closely so his lips were right next to her ear. She felt his breath glide across her flushed cheeks and turn her ear pink and white at the same time.

"Miss Daidouji. I believe you don't need this for a nap." Eriol reached under her large shirt and pulled out the gun from her back. Tomoyo's throat ran dry when she saw him pull it out and stare at her with dark eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Syaoran had gone through the curtains, a man pointed a gun at his head and motioned for him to sit down. Syaoran silently slid across the aisle and sat down in his empty seat. The same man gruffly spoke.

"Where's the other in the seat next to you?" he questioned suspiciously.

"I don't know. I don't follow people around." Syaoran answered lamely.

The man glared and called over another guy.

"I think we have someone roaming around. Find them." He ordered in a low voice. The other man nodded and started towards the midsection of the plane.

Sakura turned to look towards the curtains when a man walked in. She saw that he was looking for someone. She realized that this plane was a full one. And that the person that originally occupied this seat would be back looking for it. She cursed under her breath for her stupidity and was about to get up when a plump woman came nonchalantly down the aisle. Her face froze at the sight of the men with guns.

"W-What's this now? What's goin' on? And you there, what are you doin' in my seat?" The woman spoke with a heavy Texan accent. One of the men came over.

"Sit down you blimp. And you!" He turned to look at Sakura. "This ain't your seat? Answer me!" He demanded loudly. The fat woman was on the ground on the verge of tears. Another man had come and was pressing the cold barrel of the gun to the woman's head.

"I don't sit here." Sakura saw that this was her cue and swiftly got up and kicked the gun out of the man in front of her in one motion. Before the man could do anything, she threw a punch, knocking him into the man holding the fat woman hostage. The second man scrambled to get up and collect his gun. As he flung out his hand to pull the trigger of the weapon, Sakura threw a roundhouse kick, hitting him square in the jaw. The man flew towards the floor. The first man was coming back to attack. Sakura quickly bent down and swiped her leg across the lightly carpeted floor. He fell back with a thud on top of his accomplice. Sakura quickly picked up the small handgun the first man was holding. She pointed it at the two men on the floor threateningly.

"Get up." She ordered forcefully. "Get up now!" She yelled. She watched as the two men slowly rose to their feet. Sakura pushed them towards the curtains.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tomoyo stood still, stunned to silence. Eriol pulled away and examined the gun. Tomoyo's eyes seemed to be glued to him as he walked around her.

"Now, why would you have this?" He thought out loud.

"It's just a safety measure. Don't you carry one around?" She asked, hoping to put him down.

"Yes. But you? I know you are a CIA but still. It's a bit odd for someone who's going to rest. And why did it take you so long to open the door? Could it be that you were arming yourself?" Eriol looked at her from her back.

"Yes. You're right. I was arming myself. I don't feel very safe here." Tomoyo answered uncaringly.

A bit taken by surprise, Eriol recovered. "Why?"

"Because… I didn't want to tell you… but…" Tomoyo trailed off.

"Yes?"

"I saw someone. I don't know what it was but I have this bad feeling that someone followed us here. I saw them outside when you were in your office. I came to get you but I didn't want to worry you." Tomoyo answered sadly and convincingly.

He was silent. Tomoyo hoped with all her heart that he'd fall for it.

"That's why I was so shaken up downstairs. I know I trained for these kinds of things but still. I can't help that I'm still scared." She confessed with a whisper.

"It's all right. If you saw someone, we should definitely check it out."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sakura had tied up the two men securely, very securely with a roll of duct tape she had found in one of the drawers in the maintenance area. She had shoved the two bodies into the bathroom (without the bomb) and had rolled a heavy food cart in front of the door so they couldn't get out. Sakura quietly peeked through the curtain to see what was going on. There was one man in the front part of the plane. She figured another or two were in the cockpit.

Sakura saw Syaoran turn around for moment to check the curtain. When she caught his eyes, Sakura nodded. Syaoran turned back.

Along the next thirty seconds, Syaoran got up, knocked the man with the gun unconscious, and received a round of applaud from the rest of the passengers. Sakura came through the curtains and walked towards Syaoran, who had his gun ready.

"Now what?" Sakura asked. She seemed to be asking that a lot these days.

"Cockpit." Syaoran answered curtly.

"Before we go off and do our little good deed, we have some issues to review over. Quickly. One, if we manage to save the day, they'll be asking questions. Two, you're not supposed to be on this plane. Three, how do we explain what we did. That we're some passengers with extreme loves for martial arts? Four, I don't think they'll like it if they find me. I'm kind of wanted all over the nation if you know what I mean. Five, we need to call Tomoyo and let them know what's happening. Six, there's no way to get out without being interrogated. Seven- Should I continue or do you see my point?" Sakura whispered shooting Syaoran a serious look.

"Well, yeah to numbers one through six, but what can we do? We can't exactly save these people half way. And plus, it's my duty to keep the civilians safe." Syaoran replied, irritated with the situation.

"Yeah, but if we get caught, the WHOLE nation of civilians will NOT be safe. Last time I checked, we still have a crazy nut, whom I even helped, running around with nuclear weapons. I'm all for this, long as we get out." Sakura was equally irritated and pissed off. Things were getting a bit, what can she say, COMPLICATING?!

"Ok. I get the point. We'll deal with it later. Now, we need to save these people. Ok? Game plan: save people first, deal with complications later." Syaoran ended the converstaion. Sakura was about to retort but stopped. Since Syaoran was turned around facing her, his back was to the nose of the plane. A man had emerged from the cockpit and looked surprised. He quickly got out his gun and was about to shoot.

"MOVE!" Sakura shoved Syaoran to the side, pushing him away from the gunpoint. She quickly drew her gun and pulled the trigger. The bullet blasted out and sailed through the air. It pierced through the man's chest, splattering blood all over.

Syaoran was getting up from the sea of people scrunched into tight balls and shivering. He whipped around to see the other man lying on the floor. He turned around to look at Sakura.

The all too familiar pain struck through her left shoulder. Sakura's right hand dropped the gun and instinctively went to her shoulder. She felt the hole in her jacket and blouse. When she withdrew her hand, it was drenched with the red liquid that she had seen so many times on others. The hot sticky fluid dripped from her hand to the carpet, creating small dots of red in random patterns. Her hand snapped back to her shoulder when the numbness disappeared all too soon. She grimaced but managed to keep in the moan. She heard Syaoran's voice.

"You ok? Let me see it." He looked worried. His flawless face truly looked worried. It was a new expression to Sakura. She had seen worried faces before, but never something like this one. She snapped out from her thought and shook her head.

"I'm fine. I'm fine. I just need to…" Sakura trailed off as she prepared herself for what she was about to do next. She grabbed her shoulder and pressed hard with all her might. This time, a pressured scream escaped her lips. She kept on pressing and pressing until she felt the intense pain blur away and was replaced with numbness. She was used to it. When she was out on missions, out there on the field, she had to get through all obstacles. If she was hurt, she had to either suck it up and go on or be left to die. She understood that the brutality of that philosophy was partly responsible for her emotionless strength.

The first time she had realized "the code" was on a mission where she had to infiltrate a warehouse in Germany a few years ago. She had been shot in the leg during the extraction and was panting and screaming in the middle of the warehouse floor. If she had moved any seconds slower, she would have been dead. That was the most terrifying moment in her life other than the time of her father's death. She had already learned to stop crying but that moment when she sat there clutching her thigh, she knew there would never be tears again. Ever. What brought her to her senses of life and death was when one of the men assisting her in the mission turned around and shouted at her to get up. For that kindness, she witnessed his body get battered by continuous bullets. Other than the sickening fact that she had to suck it in and go, another revelation dawned on her.

If you hesitate, if you even stop to care about anything or anyone, you died. It was either them or you. (I know 'them and you' is grammatically incorrect but who cares? ^ ^)

From that day on, she was invincible. Or so she believed for all these years.

"Are you sure you'll be all right?" Syaroan asked again to make sure.

Sakura was silent. She picked up her gun from the floor with her bloodied hand. "My arm won't stay numb forever." With those simple words, she walked down the aisle towards the cockpit. On her way, she kicked the dead body out of the way. With her gun still at her side, pointing down, she pulled the trigger once more. The body under the gun jerked and more blood seemed to spew from his chest. Sakura's icy behavior had surfaced again. The mercilessness had returned.

Syaoran followed silently with his gun in a tight grip.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tomoyo and Eriol went downstairs to the kitchen. He asked her to show him where she saw the shadowy figure. Tomoyo's mind raced as she tried to figure out her cover story. She had a nagging feeling that Eriol knew what was going on. How long would he choose to lead her on? How long before he killed her possibly?

SourPop1004: Hey there people. I know, this was indeed a dark chapter. Next chapter, I'll be bringing back some people and try to lighten the mood a bit. So hold tight, and I'll see you all next chapter.

Now, I'm sure all of you know what happened, but I'm glad that the problem is solved. Thank you so much for sticking by me fellow readers. Well, please read my bio for my one last update on this problem (solved). Thank you so much again. Through this experience I found out how loyal all of you are. I'm grateful. (^_^)

Ok. After this chapter (13) I will be taking a break. I'm apparently having a MAJOR HUGE writer's block and my mood isn't helping me either. I've been feeling really…off…I guess you could say. As for chapter 14, I've already started but I have no idea which direction the story's going to go. So, during my break I will be doing the same thing I did for The Intern. Just like Snow I'm writing a one shot to get away from TSD. To those who had their hopes high for a sequel…sorry. Not quite. But I do have some ideas rolling around in my head for the sequel. Anyway, thank you so far for all your reviews and comments.

I hope all of you look forward to my next one shot story. I don't know what the title's going to be but I have "My Song" in mind but I'll just have to write what I feel and see. Thanks again. I'll see you in my next story. (then I'll see you at chapter 14.) ~Ja ne