I had slowed down the plot a little to insert some sweet fluff in the story, but I think it's ok to insert a bit more of the action sequence in this chapter. I was going to finish it up last night, but I got bogged down with studying for finals… I got one more to go, but I decided I'd work on this chap first. A little background information before we get on with the story, so my reviewers don't die of suspense. Kudos points if you know where I got all my references from. .
It wasn't real. She knew she was dreaming, but Sakura couldn't bring herself to wake up. It was like she was strapped to her chair and forced to watch… It was the same 13 year old girl in the white sundress, frilled from top to bottom with a pink satin ribbon, a matching straw hat flopped over her head, her hair streaming down as she laughed, backpedaling out of someone's grasp.
Onii-chan, catch me if you can!
Her laughter was light, tinkling like crystals in the spring air. Sakura squeezed her eyes tighter. She could almost see him… she could almost see his face…
Onii-chan! … Onii-chan! But it was growing darker, until her brother no longer had a semblance of a human… Black feathers flew up in front of her, hiding his face… No! She was so close! If only she could part the sea of feathers… She stretched out her hand, calling to him…
Onii-chan! Onii-chan!
"Onii-chan!" Sakura screamed as she sat up suddenly in her bed, her body glowing with perspiration. She breathed heavily, her palm pressed against her thudding heart before realizing she was in her bed. She shivered despite her sweat soaking her thin tank top she used to sleep in, hugging her knees as she rocked herself back and forth… The same dreams plagued her… They varied in characters, each night featuring another close friend or family member who disappeared suddenly from her in a cloud of raven feathers.
Outside her balcony, Syaoran leaned against the tree trunk, his legs stretched out comfortably on the branch. The dense foliage was enough to hide him during the warmer months, but around fall and winter when the leaves browned and crumbled away, like now, he had to exercise more care to not be seen. He let his wings out, the dark silhouette blending in with the night sky.
"So much suffering…" he muttered to himself guiltily. He had seen her have the same nightmares every night since he had been hired to watch over her 5 years ago, told only to protect her from "an ultimate evil." He wasn't sure how he was found, or how the benefactor had even known about him…
Syaoran had lived the first 13 years of his life happily with his parents on Earth in China. His father was leader of the powerful Li clan, his mother the model wife who entertained guests in the Li estates. He was trained to perfection in every aspect, excelling in several forms of martial arts, acing all the exams at his private academy, and behaved as expected of a son of nobility. Servants attended their every whim. Until the day of the revolution.
He remembered the event as a blur. The Chinese citizens were suddenly possessed by anger and revolted against the Li clan.
"Why are they so powerful, while we starve? They own what is rightfully ours!" the peasants had cried as they battered the doors, a mob having formed, armed with torches and wild fury.
A loyal servant that Syaoran had looked up to as a mentor had whisked him away from the calamity, but the boy had pressed back, looking for his father and mother.
"Wei, where are they? If you say it's as dangerous as it is, I'm not leaving until they are safe with me as well." At such a tender age, he was already stubbornly heroic.
Wei, stressed with the ever-nearing voices of the mob, grabbed Syaoran roughly by the shoulders, a steely look replacing the kind one that Syaoran had grown to associate with Wei.
"Go to the Sakura Park you are fond of, young Master," he whispered as he pressed a small flat stone into his palm. It was burned with a red seashell marking. "Drop this into the reflecting pond, and you will know everything."
That was the last time Syaoran had seen Wei alive. Wei had shoved him into the dumbwaiter that the servants used to carry up loads of fresh sheets throughout the vast Li mansion. Just before Wei shut the door of the miniature elevator, shrouding him in darkness, Li heard the bloodthirsty voices of the peasants…
Syaoran had never been so frightened in his life. Dumbly, he could only run to the Sakura Park, knowing that Wei's life would not be spared… He must at least obey his last wishes. He started to run in the dark night, the voices shrinking in the distance. He was blinded by tears, but his feet knew the moonlit path. He tripped over a rock, and cried out as he slid against the dirt path by the pond. The small pebble flew out of his grasp and splashed into the pool.
Almost immediately, the dark waters bubbled. Syaoran's tears were silenced as he watched in wonder, a bright golden light emerging from the depths of the lake. He fell back as he witnessed a large pink seashell erupt from the white foam, and gasped softly as it began to open…
A beautiful woman was lying in the heart of the shell, resting over the pink tongue of the gigantic clam. She was naked, but shielded by her long, fiery red hair. Syaoran sensed the powerful aura even as her eyes only began to flutter open.
"I am Kaho."
The sound entered his mind, but her lips did not move. He did not say anything, but she continued to speak through his thoughts.
"You are not human as you may think you are. God has plans for you."
Syaoran glared at her. "I don't really care about God right now. I want to know if my parents are safe."
But she was deaf to his words. She continued to plunge forward, as if she were merely a recording. "Your father was the head Demon of Discord, Bacchi, your mother the high Archangel Yelan. God has plans for all of us, but our free will twists and warps our fate. Even He did not see that they would fall in love."
Syaoran was mute for a moment before he broke gritting his teeth, his voice strained as he struggled to control his temper. "You've got your wires crossed, lady. My parents are XiaoHu and Yelan Li, the royalty of the Li clan, which has a legacy over 450 years, and a dynasty—"
"All are lies," she interrupted him. "Heaven and Hell rejected their marriage, and they were sent to Earth to live the rest of their mortal lives."
His breath clouded in the air as he tried to comprehend the madness. Just the day before, he was eating dinner with his parents, discussing how much he had improved in jujitsu moves with his trainer who could only glow with admiration for the young Master…
"Open the locket, and eat the seed, Syaoran."
He glanced up, his thoughts broken by her clear voice in his mind. A golden locket had appeared in his palms in a shimmering glow of light. Shaking lightly, he opened the locket, and pulled out the small golden bauble, glancing up to Kaho before he swallowed it. He gasped as the chill shot through him.
"What is this? What is happening?" he choked.
"It is Knowledge. You will know everything, Syaoran," her voice bubbled faintly away.
Syaoran wheezed, trying to breathe, merely watching the gigantic seashell dip back beneath the waters as a cloud of light began to envelop his mind, shutting out his thoughts, slowly slipping away... The dark sky glimmered over the soon placid surface, as if sealing away any evidence that Kaho had ever been there…
When Syaoran woke up, he knew. He understood himself, the history, and knew what Kaho had said was true. He stretched out his wings, large, dark feathered structures that disappeared with a thought, and appeared when he needed to fly. And now… he had somewhere to go.
But Heaven and Hell's gates had barred him from entering either place.
"Your father was a demon. You can not enter here," St. Peter told him gravely as he toyed with the Golden Keys to the Gates.
"Your mother was an angel. You can not enter here," Cerberus had growled, each of the three heads foaming at the mouth.
Syaoran realized that he was struck with the same situation his parents had faced when they needed a place to live. Earth was his only option. In Heaven or Hell, he would live forever; on Earth, the world's characteristic would affect him, and would die as a mortal. But that was no matter. Only 13, he had lost both his parents, not to the jealous villagers, but to the evil that had possessed their hearts and slaughtered the members of the Li clan.
And being a poor orphan, none had wanted to hire the youth. ("Scram, you ragamuffin!" cried the baker as he chased him away from his freshly baked loaves. "You're scaring away my customers with your filth!") He was left weak, and hungry, living off the streets and forced to depend on others' charity, a blow to his pride.
Then…
"You must fight this evil, Syaoran."
The voice had echoed from the shadows. Syaoran could only see the crisp navy slacks, the lean legs crossed elegantly over each other, the black polished shoes glimmering slightly from the light that shone overhead.
"I am hiring you. You will have no need, no want. Work for me Syaoran."
It was easy to sell his soul to the mysterious figure who had one of his attendants open a suitcase full of crisp green bills. Another attendant opened a case packed with foam, cut away to fit a small white board, and a black silk necklace with a marbled green orb as a pendant. There was a small black cat that approached him, neatly tucking a picture in his mouth as it dropped it in front of him.
It was a girl with honey blonde hair… and the greenest eyes he had ever seen…
"Protect her. No matter what the cost."
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
"The same nightmare, Sakura-chan?"
Rika's voice sounded so comforting, even though it was laced with a hint of sleepiness.
"I'm sorry Rika-chan… it's 2 am… I didn't realize…" Sakura was apologetic, trying to hold back her sniffles as she talked to one of the backup dancers in the Lounge, one of her closest friends.
"Iie… It's nothing… I just came back from the club anyway. But I'm worried about you. Can I come over?"
"Of course!"
Sakura's reply was immediate, smiling softly to realize that in a cold, bitter world, she at least had a friend she could count on… well, and Syaoran…
"All right, give me a minute to get dressed…" Rika let out another huge yawn before she hung up.
Sakura listened to the soft beep of the phone for a few moments before hanging up. She hugged her knees and sighed deeply… waiting for Rika.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
It was an ultimate faceoff. Syaoran could taste the dawn approaching, but the night was still far from over. He reached into his black suit jacket, and withdrew a small white board, detailed with blue Chinese characters drawn artistically over the decal. A bright blue sphere glowing in the center shot out a single beam, pointing straight out in front of him. The azure light pierced the girl standing in front of Syaoran, but she merely stood, the breeze sliding her short dark brown locks around her expressionless face. He smiled, but his amber eyes were narrowed, and glared with all the ferocity of a lion's, a Li trademark. His grip tightened on the sword, the hilt wrapped with a green ribbon, a golden decorative tassel hanging from it as he pointed it at the girl in front of him. Her eyes were dark and lifeless.
"I'm giving you one more chance. Get out of here, and I'll spare you the pleasure of tasting the end of my sword." Syaoran was in no mood to play games tonight.
She did not answer, and merely moved closer to him. Syaoran toed one foot in front of the other, assuming his fighting stance easily despite being dressed in black slacks and dress shirt. She chuckled softly, and leaned closer, sliding her hands along her firm breasts, accentuated by the thin white halter top she wore, and played with the waistband of her black miniskirt.
"You're so cute… did you really think you were any match for me?" she whispered sweetly, the dark gleam in her eyes wicked as she continued to paw herself, biting her lower lip as she let out a soft moan. "Why not put away your grownup toys and show me what a man you are… in bed?"
Hearing no response from him, she assumed it was safe to creep closer, licking her lips all the while, her heels clicking on the asphalt pavement as she reached up behind her neck, as if to untie her halter top in the middle of the street, hips swiveling as she neared him, almost within arm's reach…
Syaoran kept his composure, ignoring the way her hands were sliding up under her skirt, sweeping along the sweet flesh of her upper inner thighs… well, ignoring somewhat. He was a guy after all. He gripped his sword and charged, raising the blade close to the side of his head as he released a battle cry, eyes glowing golden yellow as he attacked.
"Yaaaaagghhh!"
The girl barely dodged out of the way, her hands snapping back away from her legs, done with the temptation routine. She growled and began to change, glowing an unsightly color of purple, the light emitting from her eyes and her open mouth as she tilted her head back in a silent scream, her palms extended as she let the evil overtake her body. When the transformation was complete, she jerked her head to him, soulless eyes glittering black as coal, her voice a demonic rasp, "Foolish mortal!"
She leapt into the air with inhuman strength, her long purple nails growing out suddenly, extending three feet to slash at him. He drew back, but winced; she got a piece of his clothes, the fabric tearing in neat strips.
"Ooh, my how those biceps bulge… better used for other things, Syaoran," she managed to purr as he slashed at her again, her nails a strong enough steel to defend herself before leaping away.
Syaoran did not bother to retort, unleashing a furious series of slashes, and sensing his opponent grow short of breath as she could merely dodge, he threw a yellow strip of paper, marked with angry red kanji, up into the sky and slapped his sword on it.
"Raiden—"
He stopped, his eyes frozen as he watched the girl jump 7 floors, and into a very familiar balcony…
"Sakura!" he swore before he let his wings out in a flurry of black raven feathers, chasing after the possessed girl into Sakura's apartment through the balcony.
"Rika—is that you?" came an uncertain voice.
Shit. Of all the nights for her to be home. Syaoran swore in his mind. This had to be over with quick before…
Syaoran grabbed the ofuda and pierced the sword through it, not wasting any time to jab it into her stomach. It was a shallow cut, but it was enough. The purple fog enveloping the girl dissipated, and soon, there was only a girl there, bleeding from the wound, choked gasps escaping her as she gripped the end of the sword, unable to summon the strength to pull it out.
"Rika?" The voice was behind him. Syaoran didn't dare turn around.
"Rika!" Sakura shrieked, finally recognizing her friend lying on the floor.
Syaoran tapped his green pendant on his neck and the sword dissolved into a shimmering green mist back into it. The moonlight bathed him invitingly. He knew Sakura would not see him well in the darkened room. His silhouette would be enough. He prayed to God that she wouldn't recognize him… Without another thought, he spread his wings, and took to the night sky again, shutting his eyes and pretending he couldn't hear Sakura's pained cries as she cradled Rika's head, stroking her hair as she died.