The Ward

Disclaimer: I don't own CCS, just wish I did :(

A/N: Thanks for to everyone who encouraged me to continue! As per your requests, I'm attempting to finish the story. Yay!

Chapter 10: Don't Give Up

"I can't believe this!" Syaoran yelled, his eyes flashing dangerously. "After all that, she's gone again! Just like that..." He stood quietly, his hands curled into a tight fist.

Niyara approached him and put a hand on his shoulder, her eyes brimming with tears and sympathy. "You got her back once, Syaoran… you can do it again, can't you?"

He slumped to the floor and buried his face in his hands, letting out a heart-wrenching moan. "How can I, Niyara? This isn't just Tomoeda's dinky little psychiatry office, this is the FBI! Wherever they're keeping her, we can assume that the security will be top notch, especially for Sakura."

Niyara gulped, attempting to hide the hopeless expression that had crossed her face. "It's still possible… why don't you sleep on it? I'm sure a good night's rest will clear your mind."

Syaoran didn't say anything, nor did he move from his spot. If he hadn't taken her from the ward, she would at least be safe from the hands of the FBI. What had he done?

Meilin and Tomoyo scampered around Tomoyo's house, trying to gather everything for Sakura's coming-home party. Eriol and Kieren sat on the couch, watching as the two girls giggled like little schoolgirls.

Kieren leaned back and smiled, folding his hands behind his head. "Well they sure do look cute when they're runnin' around like that, don't they?"

Eriol smiled faintly and nodded as he turned to look at Tomoyo, his bright eyes sparkling even more. "It was nice of you to bring Meilin over."

"Well after she talked to your little girlfriend over there, she couldn't wait to get out of that hospital. So I just offered to bring her here," Kieren said casually. There was no way he could tell them that Sakura wouldn't be there when they got to Syaoran's place, so he'd just have to watch it play out. He'd even suggested that they call first to let Syaoran know about it, but Meilin objected.

"This is just as much a surprise for him as it is for Sakura! Well, maybe not JUST as much, but you know what I mean." And at that, she hobbled off once more.

He almost felt bad – well, he did feel bad, he admitted to himself. But this was his job, and Meilin was just a girl, and these people – well they were no different from any other people he'd dealt with in his line of work. Except for that magical girl. He wasn't even sure if he believed all the hype that surrounded the girl.

"You seem a bit preoccupied," Eriol's said intuitively, his inquisitive eyes boring into Kieren's.

Kieren quickly masked his expression and looked straight ahead. "Ah, just a long morning. You know how it is," he replied vaguely, giving him a half-hearted smile.

Eriol was about to respond when Tomoyo ran over. "Alright, boys! We're ready to leave! Be a dear and take all those bags out to the limo for me, will you?"

Sakura woke up feeling groggy and weak to her knees. They had given her a pill last night to quiet down her antics, and she couldn't remember anything that had happened. She was on an uncomfortably flat bed, held down by steel cuffs at her arms and feet. She looked around in fear, hoping to spot something, anything, that would be familiar – but there was nothing. A man and a woman, both in white coats and surgical masks stood across from her, their arms folded while staring at her intently.

"Kinimoto-san, you've awaken," the man said, walking over to her. "We just want you to know, there's no reason to be afraid. We're here to help you, and we might even be able to make you normal again," he said, his eyes curling up into what appeared to be a smile. "You won't have any visitors for a while, so get used to talking to us. It'll help you, you'll see. I'm Dr. Bane, and my partner there is Dr. Arannsen."

"Go away… leave me alone," she said, turning away.

"Please Sakura. We need your full cooperation in order for this to work. We don't want to have to force you do anything… but we will, if that's what it comes down to," Dr. Arannsen said threateningly, holding a large needle in her hand. "This is the first of your treatments. Now be a good girl and hold still, this won't hurt a bit…" she lied smugly.

"No! Get away from me!" she shouted, struggling to get out of the cuffs that bound her to the bed.

"Now, now, Kinimoto. What did we say about these little tantrums?" Bane asked threateningly. He covered her eyes with his hand, and Sakura felt the needle in her arm as she screamed; then everything went black once more.

Syaoran heard a loud knock on his door, but didn't move to open it. He had stayed in the same spot all night, pouring over every angle of escape he could think of, yet he'd come up with nothing. Niyara placed a cup of tea and a platter of toast in front of him, and moved towards the door. She'd spent the night there only to make sure he would be okay.

"Who is it?" she asked.

"Meilin and Tomoyo," Meilin answered, recognizing the voice instantly. She stared at Niyara as the door swung open. "What are you doing here, Niyara? What's wrong with Syaoran?"

Niyara stared back sadly, unable to find the right words. "It's Sakura…she…"

"What about Sakura? Where is she? We're throwing a party for her!" Tomoyo exclaimed, walking into the room with about 30 balloons.

"She's gone," Syaoran said, his voice revealing no emotion.

"What do you mean she's gone?" Meilin asked incredulously.

"They took her, Meilin… the FBI came for her last night," Niyara answered.

"WHAT? You're kidding. There's no way… How did they find out!"

"Perhaps you grew careless," Kieren interjected in a casual tone.

Meilin gave him a quick glare and turned to Syaoran, bending down to hug him. "I'm so sorry, Syaoran. We're going to do something about this, aren't we? We can't let her go like this, not that easily."

"What are we supposed to do? There's nothing we can do," he said, his once fiery amber eyes now dull and hopeless.

Tomoyo bent down next to him. "We keep trying. That's what we do. This isn't the Syaoran that I know. The Syaoran that I know would already be one step ahead of us. He would do anything, anything, for Sakura. And that means you can't give up. She's depending on you, Syaoran; she's depending on us. You can't give up on her," Tomoyo said softly, staring straight into his eyes.

A small glimmer of hope shone in his sad eyes. "You're right, Tomoyo… I can't give up on her. I won't fail her again," he said with a newfound determination.

Kieren looked at him skeptically. He was going to try to get her out again? The fool would never learn his lesson if he kept listening to the silly babble of the girls. The boss had to hear about this. "Would someone mind showing me where the bathroom is?" he asked.

Meilin pointed down the hall. "It's down there, first door to your left."

He nodded and walked off in the direction, flipping out his cellphone as he entered the bathroom. He quickly dialed the boss's number and held his breath as it rang.

"What is it?" the voice on the line asked.

"They're planning to get the girl again, sir. It's almost ridiculous, but I just thought you should know."

"Those kids are becoming a menace. Find out what they're planning and report back to me; we might have to take some measures to get them out of our way."

"But there's no real way for them to get this Sakura out, right? It should be a futile effort; this is the FBI, after all."

"You never know with sorcery, kid. And I don't trust them. Listen, I got some business to attend to. Let me know what happens."

"Will do, sir," Kieren replied, putting away his cellphone and turning to leave.

Meilin stood at the doorway of the bathroom with toilet paper in her hand, her eyes brimming with tears. He had been so engrossed in the conversation he hadn't even heard the door open. "Who are you, you sick bastard?"

ooh, a cliffy already :) Hope you all enjoyed the chapter - don't forget to review ;)