Hey it's me!!!!!! I'm soo happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I finished this chapter in one week!!!!!!! That like, has got to be a record!!!!!!!! (well for me anyway), I'm just sooooo proud of myself, haha.

ATTENTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAVE BEEN DOING SOME ARTWORK LATELY (IT'S NOT THE BEST…BUT I TRIED) OF MY STORY AND CCS STUFF, THEN YOU CAN COME TO MY WEB PAGE

To hear from me and see my artwork, you can subscribe to my web page it's on my profile, I'll be informing all of you guys on my updates and stuff like that. And you can write comments to me and other people who read my story.

Sakura and Paul will NOT get together, I mean…they will NOT marry. Just to let you all know so that you don't start worrying too much over that issue. Sakura and Syaoran WILL get together eventually but I have to have other things happen before SS can happen, so PLEASE bear with me, I know personally from being a reader that it's really hard to be patient, especially if you like the story a lot, but as a reader, I'm going to have to ask you all to be patient, cause I have school and other stuff I have to do. But I'm trying, I got this chapter out pretty quickly, and I'm working on chapter 14 right now…and it'll contain more SS action in it, I promise…maybe I'll even have them do something.

Remember, SS will get together, the Forbidden Games part of my title implies that something forbidden (ex: Sakura gets together with a slave, a.k.a. Syaoran…) I'm just reassuring you guys so you don't freak, haha.

Personal Notes to Reviewers:

Lily Cherry Blossom Angel: Thank you!!! I know, I hadn't updated in a while, but this chapter should make up for it

Heheangel kisses: Yeah, Sakura knows Syaoran is there, I'm sorry, I know that cliffhangers are evil. I read enough stories with tons of cliffhangers and those movies where you don't feel satisfied are really annoying too. Fighting is exciting isn't it?! The other chapters have just been sort of fillers, I guess

Final Fantasy Princess: I know!!!!! Pasta rules!!!!!! Haha, don't worry; I love it when my readers are happy and excited. Thanks, I did think it was sort of a climax too, and I kinda left it at a cliffhanger. Thanks for the encouragement

SS43v3r: Haha, I know, my story is a little bit off…I've never been a person for stories that are perfectly historically accurate. Those are rather boring to me.

Odango Amata-chan: I know!!!! I'll have more SS action in the next chapter, I hope. I'm still trying to make Syaoran harder (colder and stuff), like more player-ish, if you get what I'm saying. As the writer, I'm still learning my characters myself. I'm playing around a bit I guess right now, and I have to figure out how to get Sakura and Syaoran together. I know!!! I can't stand it when the hero is just "okay looking" and "not really handsome, but he stands out", I have to have him stand out a lot (I mean, HOT!!!!!!) haha

Scarletskies: I'm not going to tell you if he gets hurt or not…you can read my story to find out!!!

Cookiekrumble: Yeah, they really didn't have pasta, they ate dormice, and pigs, and olives, and stuff like that, but I just HAD to add pasta in there (cause it's my favorite!!!)

Avelyn Lauren: Sakura is softhearted, but she won't deprive the people of their entertainment (it's not her country). I don't even know if this is what you were talking about…hehe, I have short term memory (I have to read the whole story over every time I start a new chapter…it sucks…cause I forget all the tiny details that come back to haunt me later)

Dreamschemer: Yup, I'm a Latin geek!! I thought Latin was pretty cool, and since I can't roll my 'r' and all that stuff, I decided Spanish and Italian wouldn't be the language for me. And Latin is pretty much like English…well…sorta…so I sort of figured I should just take it, I'm sorry if my story does go off the truth (I can't really help it, I just love myths and fantasy and all that kinda crap, and I just LOVE pasta!!! Haha)

Lil-asian-gurl: I won't let Syaoran die; honestly who do you think I am? Haha, he's my favorite hero!!!!!! I'll never let him die!!!! At least, not until he and Sakura get together. I know, nobody's comfortable with Sakura being with Paul, but I've already told all you guys that this is a Syaoran and Sakura story, Paul is just a guy…he's a fill in character…he's in the story too thicken the plot…I think…haha

Dreamer: Well…here it is!!!!!!

Melon-heart: Thank you, you should be really happy with this chapter then since you're looking forward to the fight!!!!

Katana-hime: Yeah, it is how you say it, I looked it up, it does sound pretty cool doesn't it. I sort of made gladiators like the movie stars of today, except they actually fight and kill each other…hehe…and they're slaves…or Romans who gave up their citizenship to fight and stuff like that. But I really like gladiators too!!

White-LK: I know…even though we all know who the winner is going to be…obviously…everyone loves seeing Syaoran fighting (especially with his shirt off…six pack!!! And all those muscles!!!! Haha)

MewMewPower389: I'm still deciding on the SS part…on how they're going to get together. It's going to take me a while…but I promise some action between the two

Chai: Blush thanks; I know what you mean by "weird" fics. I usually like the ones that are longer, like the one by KayJuli, The Power of Two Hearts, I love that fic. It's the best. I don't really like short fics, even though mine would probably be classified as one, haha. Yeah, it always seems that way…but guys are strong!!!! That's why is stereotypically the guy who suffers in these types of novels, even though there are some girls who suffer too. Paul is just a character to thicken the plot, I can't tell you too much about him (even though you can probably already figure things out)

AnimeObsessionFantasy: Yup, even though everyone knows who the winner will be…

Lil Mari: Haha, I did dance when I updated (jk), I was sooo happy, cause it had been what, two months since my last update?? Well no more!!! Here's my other chapter in less than two weeks!!!

Amano-Hikari LJ: Yay!!!! New reader!!!!!!!! Haha, I'm sorry if my story kept you up, I didn't think it'd be that good, there are stories that I can read over and over again and never tire of them. Yeah, it is rather annoying but I PROMISE that Paul will leave…sometime…you have to admit though, most authors use "the other guy" in their stories…

Sakura.cherryblossom.kinomoto: They've met, but not for a very long time…they had lunch together remember?

MzJae: I hope this is soon enough (I'm starting on the next chapter…I think I'm halfway there…) I'm trying to go faster without leaving parts out, I want my chapters to be longer too…so it takes me a while…but I actually finished chapter 13 pretty quickly, which totally surprised me

Charice: Haha, thanks, I tried to make it different, it's really hard though, especially when my imagination is so limited. Actually I thought my story is sort of predictable…but then again, I'm the author…so maybe it's just me…hehe

Synchrogirl: I'm sorry if I sounded like facts aren't important, I know they are…but I only think they are important in stuff like papers and all that crap (I suck at facts, I can never get them straight…that's probably why my story has hardly any fact in it). Yeah, from Japan, they had to go south and around Africa, so it's a pretty long journey once you think about it, they had to go all the way around Africa and into the Mediterranean, which takes a pretty long time, considering the time period they are living in. In the Odyssey, it took Odysseus 20 years to get form Troy back to Greece, was it? But then again, he had obstacles…so, I didn't think it would be accurate to say they got to Rome in about three months or seven…so I decided on a year and a half. But I'm still happy that you like my story

Mecha-Griever: Haha, yeah it is my "baby", it's the first story that a lot of people have actually like (I don't know about the other ones, not a lot of people reviewed, so I'm assuming they didn't). I still like comments though; it helps let me know what I can improve on (keeping it factual is the most common advice I've gotten so far). Nobody likes Paul, haha, I'm so sorry, I didn't want everyone to hate him…but I don't really like him that much either…

JB: Yeah, but too many clichés do get old…that one was my favorite too, I try to make it into an ending/cliffhanger at the same time…well maybe not really a cliffhanger, but something that makes the reader what to read the next chapter

Akai-Akegata: Yeah, I took Japanese once, and I still had a dictionary, so I was like "Why not use some Japanese in here?" but then after the first sentence, I got so confused and was like, "This is soooo hard!" so I decided to do the rest in English (I'm talking about Sakura's letter to Touya, if you don't know). I'm Chinese, and since Japanese is so much like Chinese, I got confused and decided I should take another language…which led me to Latin. Thanks for the comments!

Cherry Princess Sakura: Really? That's awesome!! (about the phrase) Yeah, I had a short little chapter on gladiators in my Latin book, so I looked in there

Carlacuata: Thank you!!! Wow, I didn't think that my story would be that good to have you read all 12 chapters in one day, hehe. Can't tell you what's going to happen to Syaoran (it's a secret and if I did tell you then you wouldn't read my story anymore). And no Paul and Sakura are not going to get a lovey dovey and stuff like that, they're just gonna become…close. And no, Syaoran will not die (he can't die, I love him too much!!!!!, hehe)

The Amber Eyed Gladiator: Forbidden Games

By: Sakuratenshi89

Chapter Thirteen

The Colosseum, Rome, Italy, 87 A.D.

Syaoran's eyes were narrowed, focusing on his opponent. He stared at his opponent warily, measuring him up in his mind. He was around five foot ten and compared to his own six foot two, he (Syaoran) had the advantage. And he wouldn't say that his opponent had an advantage from being "small". Though he was a bit shorter, his opponent was by no means "short" on muscle. The man was powerfully built, muscles rippled throughout his body, bulging with just one small move. He had a rather thick neck and powerful looking arms; Syaoran guessed the man could crush his neck with one clamp of that arm.

One look at that man and Syaoran was painfully aware of his lean body. It wasn't that he had no muscles, he was very built, and of that he was aware. It was just that he wasn't as built as the man (A/N: which is really good, cause I hate men who look like Arnold S—whatever his last name is); he just was not as big as him. He was somewhat glad of that too, because it meant he also had the advantage speed wise. Since the man was so built, he was also bulkier, which made him heavier than Syaoran. Therefore, Syaoran was much lighter and speedier than his opponent.

"I will win," growled the man after Syaoran finished his assessment.

"Over my dead body," Syaoran hissed, fully aware of the irony of his statement.

The man smiled nastily, he was not known as The Beast for nothing, "Well then, prepare to die, cause you aren't leaving this arena alive."

Syaoran just smirked and he circled his opponent.

The Beast (A/N: I'm gonna call him that from now on) narrowed his beady eyes at Syaoran. He was not known for his patience. Syaoran had been circling him slowly for quite some time now.

"Kill him, kill him!" the crowd chanted.

Sakura watched with bated breath, that was Syaoran Li out there! She hadn't recognized him at first with his armor on, but she recognized those eyes of his. They had haunted her day and night ever since the day she met him. Not once had they left her memory, his intense, burning amber eyes were forever engraved in her memory and she would never forget them.

"I do believe The Beast and the people are getting rather impatient," Paul murmured, his eyes never straying from the fight.

"How long will this take?" asked Sakura.

"As long as they need," Paul said. "Or as long as the people will give them, but I do believe that The Beast is favored by the people, so this match could take a while. The people look forward to seeing his matches."

Sakura grimaced, she could not stand to watch this, but she felt she had to. She wanted to see. She needed to see what would become of the amber-eyed gladiator. Her eyes were once again focused on Syaoran. She gasped when The Beast, having finally used up all his patience, charged at him, not wanting to wait any longer. He was so fast and he had done that out of nowhere. Her eyes widened when Syaoran quickly moved to the side and The Beast, having charged too quickly, was not able to stop in time to change course.

"That was brilliant," Paul said, commenting on Syaoran's fast, last move. The Beast had slowed down and his face was bright red as he turned around to face Syaoran.

"He's angry," Sakura said worriedly.

"Yes, he is, he doesn't like it when others outsmart him."

"You seem to know him well," Sakura said.

"He's been performing in the arena for at least three years," said Paul. "So I've known him for quite some time, I know all his moves, other gladiators do too, but they're so intimidated by his presence, they forget all that they all end up losing to him."

"Do you think that Sy-the other gladiator will win?" asked Sakura, praying that Paul would not notice her slip-up.

"He might," Paul replied absently.

Sakura sighed, he hadn't noticed. She also was glad that Syaoran might have a chance to win. She hoped he would win.

"But I highly doubt it."

Sakura's eyes widened as The Beast struck out at Syaoran, she held her breath and let it back out quickly, for Syaoran had deflected his blow with ease. She didn't need to worry; Syaoran could take care of himself. She knew he could, he had been practicing for the past few weeks, he was prepared, she hoped.

Syaoran blocked blow after blow. He could tell that The Beast was growing tired, as his blows came slower and were less accurate. This was his tactic, be on the defense until his opponent grows tired, then go on offense. He smirked at The Beast, signaling him to keep on delivering the strikes, succeeding in infuriating the man even further. He dodged each blow The Beast threw at him.

Half the crowd was now cheering him on; they saw his potential after seeing him dodge all the attacks The Beast sent his way. The other half of the crowd was of course, cheering The Beast on, they were still faithful to him, refusing to see Syaoran's potential. Of course, most of them probably placed heavy bets on The Beast; they were confidant that he would win the first game. They were just too proud to admit that he could actually lose to this newcomer.

The Beast was furious; he could not actually believe that this amateur was getting the best of him. He was able to dodge and escape all his moves without a single scratch. He had to win; his life was on the line if he didn't. He narrowed his eyes and prepared himself for the next attack.

Syaoran stay tensed, ready to move at any second as he waited cautiously for The Beast's next move. During that time, he took notice of The Beast's armor. It was normal, made of animal hide for easy movement and metal in some areas for more protection. What really caught his eyes was the symbol written onto the man's arm. Syaoran was not able to make out what was written, but from what he assumed, it was probably his name, The Beast. But it was not the word itself that stood out, but the color it was written in: green.

Green, that was the color of her eyes. She was so beautiful, but it was impossible for them to be together, even as friends. It was just forbidden and unspoken of, it was wrong, to even think of it was a sin.

'Concentrate Syaoran,' he chided himself. 'Prepare yourself, stop think about her.'

But he couldn't. Syaoran just had to know if she was here watching, if she saw his every move, if she was cheering for him. He grew red at the thought that her beautiful green eyes would be following his every movement.

The Beast saw, as Syaoran seemed to lose focus and took this as a sign for him to go. He charged at Syaoran with great speed, smirking, this was his chance; he was going to end this once and for all. This was where this vexing amateur would see his downfall. And he, The Beast, would be the all time champion; he would live on as a legend, remaining undefeated in battle.

By the time Syaoran moved, it was too late, The Beast had struck, and left his mark on Syaoran. Syaoran fell to the ground slowly and painfully. The crowd watched nervously and with bated breath, the women gasping.

Paul shook his head, it was such a pity, and the young man had been doing so well, he wondered what could have caught him off guard.

'Must have been thinking about his family,' Paul thought, as the young man lay on the ground, motionless.

Sakura gasped. She could feel his weak green aura fading; he was probably not going to make it, unbeknownst to her, her aura reached out to Syaoran. She knew that the fading aura was a sign of death.

"Are you okay Sakura?" asked Paul worriedly as his fiancé turned pale.

Sakura nodded imperceptibly. "I'm fine." Her voice sounded faint and dull. "I'll be okay, but do you think he will?"

"Don't worry about him," Paul said offhandedly. "He's not the first to have died after all. It's just one of the many sacrifices in the gladiatorial games. This happens all the time, many men have died in this arena. You'll get used to it. I understand how you're feeling, this is the first game you've ever watched, but I'll become normal as you watch more games, that is, if you decide to come again."

"I don't think he's dead Paul," Sakura said after Paul's long, tiring tirade.

Paul turned back to the game and his eyes widened as he saw the young man get up, not showing any indication of having been hurt. It was impossible; all the others had died with one strike. This was just unbelievable. This man was much stronger than he thought.

'Maybe he'll be the one to finally defeat The Beast,' Paul thought. 'That'll be the day, no man has ever beaten The Beast, and I highly doubt this gladiator will.'

"Kill him! Kill him!" the people chanted excitedly.

"This is not a good sign," Paul muttered. "The people want The Beast to finish the young man off. That means that this man will probably end up dead, unless he finds a way to turn the whole match around and make The Beast the victim. But it was a good match, I really enjoyed it, he was a really worthy adversary."

Sakura turned even whiter. 'No! You can't!'

Syaoran felt a warm pink aura covering his body. He winced at the hurt, but he tried not to show it as he had been brought up to do. Showing emotions was a sign of weakness, he couldn't show the people he was hurting, that would only make him weaker than he already seemed and felt. He felt the blood rushing through his veins, giving him the energy to stand up and face his opponent who was watching in disbelief. His green aura flared up with life, though no one else but Sakura those with magic were able to see it.

"It's not possible," stammered The Beast, his dark eyes wide.

"You missed," Syaoran smirked, staring at his wound.

"You should be dead," accused his adversary.

"A small cut like this doesn't hurt me," Syaoran said, staring at the open wound embedded on his side.

"Well then, I'll just have to make it deeper so that it does," growled The Beast, holding out his sword. "You're one pain in the ass to get rid of."

"Right back at you," Syaoran murmured.

"You haven't even tried to get rid of me yet," laughed The Beast."

"Exactly," Syaoran said.

The Beast was confused, if one is to win, shouldn't they try to attack? So far all this amateur had done was dodge and receive, never once taking the offense.

Syaoran laughed inwardly at the confused look on his opponents face. For a fellow who fought for a living, he sure was dense and oblivious to what was going on with his opponent. He had absolutely no clue was he (Syaoran) was about to do. And it wouldn't be pretty when he finally figured it out. Syaoran could tell that The Beast was tired; he could see that The Beast was taking heavier breaths; he could see that he was panting. This was good; it meant that he wouldn't need to take as long to get rid of this nuisance.

"Get ready to die," Syaoran muttered as he got into a fighting stance.

The Beast yelled with rage and charged once again at Syaoran, but Syaoran was not going to lose his concentration this time around.

"I WILL win!" he roared.

Syaoran just smirked patiently as the Beast charged at him. He waited until The Beast had almost reached him and dodged his sword, plunging his own into the heart of The Beast.

The crowd gasped as, almost in slow motion, The Beast fell to the ground, the look on his face one of pure shock and utter rage. The Beast had been put in his place; he had been put to rest. The Beast was no more.

Syaoran fell to his knees, using his sword for support and let the realization that he had won take over his body.

"The winner is The Wolf!" yelled the referee.

The Wolf had been the name that Gaius had given him to keep his real name a secret.

All around, the arena was quiet, and then came a deafening roar.

"Wolf, Wolf!" the people chanted, he was their new hero.

Syaoran smiled weakly, he looked towards the royal stands and saw them rise and clap for him. All around the arena, the people were following the royalty, standing up and clapping for him. He was the gladiator who defeated the undefeated Beast.

Sakura smiled happily as Syaoran was declared the victor. He deserved it.

"That was a good match wasn't it?" Paul asked.

"It was okay," Sakura said shrugging; she wasn't about to admit that she was on the edge of her seat the whole time. "Will he be taken care of?"

"You mean his wound?"

Sakura nodded.

"Yes he will," Paul said. "Gaius will get him help, see?"

Paul pointed to the middle of the field where Gaius was directing the men to carry out The Beast's dead body. He called two other men to help Syaoran walk out of the arena. Sakura sighed inwardly in relief. He was going to be okay.

"You know, I was thinking that I could invite him over for your ball," Paul murmured into Sakura's ear. "What do you think?"

"No," Sakura said quietly. "I don't want any fighting at my ball. Please, Paul? Promise me you won't invite anyone for entertainment."

Paul sighed. "I promise."

"He can still come though," Sakura said. "Anyone can come, as long as there is no entertainment of that sort. Gladiatorial games will stay in the Colosseum and nowhere else. That is what the Colosseum was built for. We will have food, dancing, and games at my ball, no killing though."

"Very well, I do believe that I told Gaius he could bring some of his students, did I not?"

"Yes you did Paul, my you're forgetting already?" Sakura teased.

"I'm growing old, didn't you know?" Paul laughed.

"Shh, let's watch your father give the honors," Sakura said, she wanted to see him again.

The couple watched as Syaoran/Wolf was given the traditional crown of leaves (A/N: I don't know what it's called). Then Syaoran was helped out of the arena to treat his wound. The next two were called into the center of the field and the horns were blown, signaling for their game to begin.

"Paul, I think I've had enough for one day," said Sakura softly. "I wish to go home."

Paul reluctantly looked away from the match that was just beginning; Sakura could tell he was reluctant to leave.

"You can stay here of course," Sakura said.

"No, I'm your fiancé, I should go with you."

"It's fine," Tomoyo interrupted, showing up behind Sakura, scaring Paul half to death. "Eriol and I will take her back to the palace. You can stay here and watch the games, we'll take care of her, don't worry."

"Thanks," said Paul. "I owe you two one."

"No you don't," whispered Tomoyo as Sakura and Paul exchanged their goodbyes, which consisted of a hug and a kiss on the cheek from Paul (A/N; I'll save the lip-locking action for later when SS get together, okay? Just to keep ya'll happy!). "Staying here and letting Sakura come with me and Eriol is good enough for me. You have no idea what is going on Paul."

"Ready to go Tomoyo?" asked Sakura. "Where's Eriol?"

"He's already outside waiting," Tomoyo said, grabbing Sakura's arm and leading her down the back stairs and out the entrance. "We're going to go visit someone on our way back."

"Who?" asked Sakura, completely clueless.

"An old friend, someone you know," Tomoyo said slyly.

"Oh god Tomoyo, please don't tell me…"

"Yes it is," Tomoyo smirked.

"I'm engaged Tomoyo!" Sakura exclaimed. "You can't go around trying to set me up with other men! Especially men who are under the control of my fiancé! Do you have any idea what will happen to us when Paul finds out?!"

"Yes I do, but it's a risk I'm willing to take," Tomoyo said firmly but quietly. "I know you don't love Paul. There isn't that spark between you two like there is between you and Syaoran. I know you two aren't meant to be. And I've dedicated myself to helping you find the one who you're meant to spend the rest of your life with. I'm not giving up until you are happily married to your soulmate."

Sakura sighed, "Please Tomoyo…I don't want to do this…"

"Sakura, I thought you liked him," Tomoyo said putting her puppy dog eyes on, knowing Sakura couldn't resist. "Besides, he's hurt and god knows he needs some good company right now. And I know he found you interesting. Please, just one visit?"

"All right," Sakura said, she couldn't say no to her best friend, "But just this once. You can't do this anymore after this time okay?"

"Sure Sakura," Tomoyo said happily, crossing her fingers behind her back. 'But knowing after this meeting, you won't be able to stay away from him. You two are going to fall in love, I just know it. I know that you and Syaoran are meant to be, that first look you two exchanged said it all. Plus, having my fiancé be the reincarnation of Clow Reed isn't that bad either. He comes with his advantages…he knows too.'

"Are you ladies ready to go?" asked Eriol as soon as Sakura and Tomoyo reached him.

"Yes!" Tomoyo exclaimed happily as she took hold of Eriol's arm.

'This is going to lead to something horrible,' Sakura thought, she could feel it. 'I do want to see him, but I can't see him, I know what will happen if I continue to see him…I'll fall in love. I can't risk it. There would be too many consequences. I can't fall in love…not when I'm engaged to the future most powerful man in the world. I can't put everyone else on the line for my own feelings…I'll just see him and get it over with…we'll just be acquaintances…that'll work…nothing else…'

Tomoyo and Eriol could practically see the inner battle that was going on inside of Sakura. They knew that she had a huge crush on the amber-eyed gladiator; they knew that she wouldn't be able to deny her feelings any longer.

After all, love at first sight…is just love at first sight, and is as strong as love that is built on a strong foundation of friendship.

A/N: when I said 'he knows too" I meant that Eriol also knows that Syaoran and Sakura are meant to be together. And I'm going to say that I don't really know that if love at first sight is really that strong, but let's just say it is, I mean come on, it is Sakura and Syaoran. And then what about all those books where the guy says, "I fell in love with you the moment I saw you," ????? Mothers fall in love with their children the moment they first lay eyes on them. And I'm proud (and somewhat embarrassed) to admit that I've "fallen in love" at first sight. Actually I've fallen into a deep crush is more like it, but hey, it's close enough I guess.