Disclaimer: I don't own CCS, coz CLAMPS owns it.
I'll like to thank the following peoples 4 reviewing ch 2 & ch 3! *^-^*
animemistress419, Sapphire Melody, AnimeObsessionFantasy, S+S-fan, Toadzg1, Angel with luck, sweet-captor, Dragonstar03, Jade-Rain-Star, Endlesslove, Summerheat, Star Cherry, Twilight-star1, Sakura_li. Ok, I want to thank these following peoples for reviewing the last chapter: Durian, Avelyn Lauren, Sakume Nohara, Sweet-captor, Kawaiitenshisakura, Dragonstar03, Sakura_li, S+S-fan, Animemistress419, Toadzg1, Sakura, Blossom12, Sapphire Melody Ok on with the story! *^-^* ~*~[[Chapter 3: Understandings of Life]]~*~
Sunlight filtered through the wooden pane window. The Kinomotos used a type of sturdy straw to make the window. They would prop the window on two sticks to let fresh air into the room. Li stirred, and awoken, to find himself in an unfamiliar place.
'Where am I?' he mentally asked himself. Then he remembered the events of yesterday. The war, the battle, and a young green-eyed beauty. 'My army! Are they alright? My mother must have heard about my disappearance. Did Zhung Ting invade this city?' Li panicked. 'I need to get out of here!'
Li tried to sit up, but to no avail. He was injured pretty badly, and it would take at least 3 months to get better. Li sighed to himself, and hated this feeling of dread and hopelessness. He couldn't even protect his country, or his people, or his family. 'I'm hopeless, I shouldn't be the Emperor of China.' Li was so deep in thought that he didn't hear the door creak open to reveal the green-eyed beauty.
"Good morning Li! How are you feeling?" greeted Sakura.
"Good morning Sakura. I'm fine, just aching," replied Li.
"You'll get better soon. Anyways, I brought breakfast for you, it's not a lot, but should be enough," said Sakura, while setting down the tray, and picking up a bowl of congee, and bringing it to Li.
"It's not what you would eat at home. But we're not exactly wealthy, so this is what we eat. If you're not use to it, I could get-" Sakura babbled.
Li interrupted Sakura. "It's fine Sakura. I'm getting sick of what I eat at home anyways."
"Really? Are you sure, because my mother can fix something else."
"It's fine, I'm not fussy. Don't worry Sakura, you're helping me this much already," said Li, showing her all his bandages.
"It was nothing. Anyone in my place would do the same," said Sakura, smiling.
"Here, I'll feed you. You shouldn't move too much, or your wounds will open more."
"Ok," said Li, uncertainly. Li hasn't really be fed anything by anyone, besides when he was a little kid. Sakura smiled, and brought a spoonful of congee in front of her, and blew on it, to cool it down.
"Open up," she said. Once Li opened his mouth, she popped the spoon into his mouth, and fed him the contents. She did the same thing to every spoonful of hot congee, until the whole bowl was finished.
"That wasn't so hard, was it?" asked Sakura.
"Nope. I wouldn't mind anymore, if you fed me each time," said Li cheekily.
Sakura was placing everything on the tray, and turned her back to Li and blushed. "You're a grown man Li. I'll continue to feed you like a little child until your wounds have healed. After that, you're feeding yourself!" retorted Sakura. And with that said, she left.
Li smiled to himself, and then frowned. 'What am I doing? I shouldn't get use to this, because I'll leave soon enough. Once I'm well that is. But I'll remind myself to help this family once this whole issue is out of the way.'
Li could only think about his stay at the Kinomotos'. Sakura was a nice young lady, unlike those snobby princesses that the Emperor always meets. She was caring, and considerate. The princesses will only look after him because they want the title of the Empress. They only saw the wealth and title, but Sakura doesn't judge people by their appearance. 'She will do a nice Empress,' Li thought, smiling. And with such a comforting thought, he fell into a peaceful slumber.
Sakura leaned against the door to Li's room. [[A.N: temporary room I should say.]] She was still holding the tray, and had a flushed look on her face. 'I can't believe he said that to me. Did he really mean it?' Sakura thought.
She sighed, and went to wash the bowl, and spoon. She saw her mother in the kitchen, holding a piece of paper. Nadeshiko looked up and saw her daughter. She motioned her daughter to sit on the bench beside her. Sakura looked at her mother rather confused, and set the tray down in front of her.
"What's wrong mother?" Sakura asked.
Her mother sighed, and showed her the piece of paper she was holding. It had a drawn picture of Li, and a reward for finding him. It was the Queen's order, and she wanted to find her son.
Sakura's hands started to shake. "H-he's t-t-the EMPEROR!" Sakura said/shouted.
"Yes Sakura. Do calm down," said Nadeshiko, while holding her daughter's hand.
"We cannot let him know, that we know. Sakura, I'm going to ask you to do something for me."
"What is it mother? I promise to do whatever you tell me to," said Sakura looking at her mother. Her mother had a faraway look in her eyes.
"You need to take the Emperor back to the capitol."
"I need to WHAT?!" exclaimed Sakura. "You can't be serious! It's so far away! It'll take months to get there. Why me? Can't Eriol and Takashi take him there?"
"Sakura, I need to tell you something. I kept this from you long enough," started Nadeshiko.
"What is it mother?" asked Sakura.
"You're a princess Sakura. I never did tell you the truth why we became so poor. You were too young to understand, but now you're old enough to be told," said Nadeshiko, looking sadly at Sakura. Nadeshiko took a deep breath and sighed.
Sakura looked surprised, and then laughed. "Mother you're joking right? Me a princess? Come on, stop joking around!" Sakura looked at her mother, and saw the expression on her face, and stopped laughing immediately.
"You're not joking are you mother?"
"Why would I start joking about such a serious matter Sakura? It's more serious than you think. Now listen carefully to each word I say. I want you to remember and never forget."
Sakura gulped and listened intently to her mother. "Your father's family was very rich, and possess some magic. They were related to the powerful magician Clow Reed. Clow Reed made cards called Clow Cards. They are quite powerful, and cannot land in the wrong hands. Your grandmother took great care of them, and made sure they were hidden in a safe place. But somehow, information about the Clow Cards leaked, and many people tried to steal them. Your father was quite young and didn't know why people want to go to their house and steal cards. He didn't understand the power of the cards.
One peaceful night, people with strong magic attacked your father's house. Your aunties and uncles tried to fight off their attackers, but to no avail. They died in the process of trying to stop their attackers. Your grandparents took your father to a secret trap door, and gave him the deck of cards. They told him to protect the cards, and let nobody know about the cards. Your grandparents told him not to come out no matter what. Your father was scared and listened to his parents. He stayed in the secret compartment for two days without food or water. He came out to find his whole family had died.
He was quite shocked, he mourned for months on end. My family visits them once a year. We went to visit them to find the place a wreck, and my parents only found your father alive. He buried them with his bare hands, and kneeled in front of the graves for days.
My parents and I stayed at his house for quite a while. My mother nurtured him back to health, and I tried to make him happy. It was quite painful to see such a young boy carry so much burden upon his shoulders. He use to stay in his room, unless he had to eat or something. He finally accepted the deaths of his family, and vowed in front of the graves to protect the cards, and pass the cards onto his children, as well as to be happy.
He grew up happy and healthy, and we eventually fell in love," said Nadeshiko, and she had a dreamy look in her eyes, when she said the last few words of the sentence.
"Father had such a painful childhood! It's such a sad story," said Sakura. Her eyes grew misty. 'I could never live if my whole family died!' Sakura thought.
Nadeshiko stood up and brought out the deck of cards, including a tiny key. "You have to change the cards to Sakura cards. You are their new mistress," said Nadeshiko. Sakura look through the deck, and looked at the key. The key looked like any other normal key, except, on the top of the key, it had a circle with a star in the middle, and wings on the circle itself.
The cards suddenly glowed and surrounded Sakura. She concentrated on the cards for a while, and then a blinding flash appeared. Nadeshiko closed her eyes, and after the blinding flash disappeared, she found the Clow Cards had turned pink.
Sakura opened her eyes to find the cards had turned to a different colour, and are now floating back into a neat pile, on the wooden table. "I suppose they are Sakura cards?" said Sakura rather confused.
"Yes I suppose they are too. Well, you have them to protect you, so you don't have to worry. I still have to teach you how to use your magic," stated Nadeshiko.
Nadeshiko took her daughter outside, and taught her everything she knew. She taught Sakura the incantation to activate the staff, and how to use the cards. Sakura was quite tired in the afternoon.
"I have to bring Li lunch," said Sakura.
"Yes, it's lunch time. I'll go cook some more food. I ran out of ginger though. Can you go to the Hiiragazawa and ask them for some please?" asked Nadeshiko. [[A.N: Is that how you spell Eriol's last name?]]
"Of course mother," smiled Sakura. Then she frowned, "Mother what about Li when he wakes up?"
"I'll watch over him. He'll be fine," reassured Nadeshiko.
"Ok, thanks mother," smiled Sakura.
"No worries," was her reply.
Sakura walked over to the Hiiragazawa's house, and knocked on their gate. Eriol came to the door. He greeted her with a smile and a hug.
"Sakura, what brings you here?" he asked.
"My mother wants to borrow some ginger to cook lunch," said Sakura.
"Ah, ginger. Yes we have some. Just wait please. If you want to talk to Tomoyo, she's in her room," smiled Eriol, as he walked off to get ginger for Sakura.
"Ok, thanks," said Sakura, as she walked into the house. It was quite dim, as they didn't have any opening in the roof.
"Tomoyo?"
Sakura walked into Tomoyo's room, to find her sitting up in bed, doing embroidery. "Sakura!" greeted Tomoyo, as she was trying to get up.
"Tomoyo don't move!" said Sakura sternly.
"I'm fine. Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I'm that fragile!"
"I know, but still," protested Sakura.
Sakura walked over to her childhood friend and hugged her. "How are you Tomoyo?" inquired Sakura.
"Quite fine. I'm nearly dued. Can't wait to see what the baby looks like," smiled Tomoyo, while rubbing her belly affectionately.
"The baby will be absolutely beautiful. If it's a girl, she'll be beautiful like her mother. And if it's a boy, it'll be handsome," smile Sakura.
Tomoyo laughed. "I hope so Sakura. I really hope so!"
Eriol went into Tomoyo's room to find the two girls chatting away happily. Eriol smiled. 'The baby is going to be beautiful, because the baby's mother is absolutely beautiful. It doesn't matter to me if we have a daughter or a son. The baby will be a angel,' thought Eriol.
"Sorry to interrupt ladies. Sakura I have the ginger you asked for. Now I'll leave you two."
Sakura stood up. "It's ok Eriol. I have to leave anyways. I'll talk to you later Tomoyo. My mother wants her ginger as soon as possible. It is very nice to see you both again," said Sakura, while hugging both Tomoyo and Eriol.
"Thanks Eriol!" said Sakura.
"No worries, my pleasure as always," smiled Eriol, while bowing. Both girls laughed at Eriol's gesture.
"Bye!" waved Sakura.
"Bye!" said Tomoyo and Eriol.
Sakura went back home, and her mother cooked lunch. Sakura brought lunch to Li, as he was still weak. He was grateful that Sakura and her mother are looking after him. He understood the life they were living. They worked hard for their money, and they are still happy. They are content with what they have, and won't ask for more. He wished he lived this life.
'At least I won't have so much pressure,' he thought and sighed. 'My journey isn't over yet, it just begun. I can't stay here forever. I have no money to start a new life, and I can't work. I thought it over. This country needs someone to govern it, and I'll do my job. I have to go back no matter what.'
Another chapter done! *^-^* Why does Li change his mind so quickly? Well China needs an Emperor & he can't pretend to be dead. His mother will hunt him down. *gulps* Well, I wonder if Li & Sakura are going to have a tough journey? Want to find out? Well keep reading! Sakura still has her cards.
P.S Special thanks to Avelyn for suggesting ideas 2 solve my font prob! *^- ^* & to Star Cherry 2! Also, I'm having uploading probs! *cries* Oh wells.=( I'll answer S+S-fan's question: zai zheng means bye in mando.
I'll like to thank the following peoples 4 reviewing ch 2 & ch 3! *^-^*
animemistress419, Sapphire Melody, AnimeObsessionFantasy, S+S-fan, Toadzg1, Angel with luck, sweet-captor, Dragonstar03, Jade-Rain-Star, Endlesslove, Summerheat, Star Cherry, Twilight-star1, Sakura_li. Ok, I want to thank these following peoples for reviewing the last chapter: Durian, Avelyn Lauren, Sakume Nohara, Sweet-captor, Kawaiitenshisakura, Dragonstar03, Sakura_li, S+S-fan, Animemistress419, Toadzg1, Sakura, Blossom12, Sapphire Melody Ok on with the story! *^-^* ~*~[[Chapter 3: Understandings of Life]]~*~
Sunlight filtered through the wooden pane window. The Kinomotos used a type of sturdy straw to make the window. They would prop the window on two sticks to let fresh air into the room. Li stirred, and awoken, to find himself in an unfamiliar place.
'Where am I?' he mentally asked himself. Then he remembered the events of yesterday. The war, the battle, and a young green-eyed beauty. 'My army! Are they alright? My mother must have heard about my disappearance. Did Zhung Ting invade this city?' Li panicked. 'I need to get out of here!'
Li tried to sit up, but to no avail. He was injured pretty badly, and it would take at least 3 months to get better. Li sighed to himself, and hated this feeling of dread and hopelessness. He couldn't even protect his country, or his people, or his family. 'I'm hopeless, I shouldn't be the Emperor of China.' Li was so deep in thought that he didn't hear the door creak open to reveal the green-eyed beauty.
"Good morning Li! How are you feeling?" greeted Sakura.
"Good morning Sakura. I'm fine, just aching," replied Li.
"You'll get better soon. Anyways, I brought breakfast for you, it's not a lot, but should be enough," said Sakura, while setting down the tray, and picking up a bowl of congee, and bringing it to Li.
"It's not what you would eat at home. But we're not exactly wealthy, so this is what we eat. If you're not use to it, I could get-" Sakura babbled.
Li interrupted Sakura. "It's fine Sakura. I'm getting sick of what I eat at home anyways."
"Really? Are you sure, because my mother can fix something else."
"It's fine, I'm not fussy. Don't worry Sakura, you're helping me this much already," said Li, showing her all his bandages.
"It was nothing. Anyone in my place would do the same," said Sakura, smiling.
"Here, I'll feed you. You shouldn't move too much, or your wounds will open more."
"Ok," said Li, uncertainly. Li hasn't really be fed anything by anyone, besides when he was a little kid. Sakura smiled, and brought a spoonful of congee in front of her, and blew on it, to cool it down.
"Open up," she said. Once Li opened his mouth, she popped the spoon into his mouth, and fed him the contents. She did the same thing to every spoonful of hot congee, until the whole bowl was finished.
"That wasn't so hard, was it?" asked Sakura.
"Nope. I wouldn't mind anymore, if you fed me each time," said Li cheekily.
Sakura was placing everything on the tray, and turned her back to Li and blushed. "You're a grown man Li. I'll continue to feed you like a little child until your wounds have healed. After that, you're feeding yourself!" retorted Sakura. And with that said, she left.
Li smiled to himself, and then frowned. 'What am I doing? I shouldn't get use to this, because I'll leave soon enough. Once I'm well that is. But I'll remind myself to help this family once this whole issue is out of the way.'
Li could only think about his stay at the Kinomotos'. Sakura was a nice young lady, unlike those snobby princesses that the Emperor always meets. She was caring, and considerate. The princesses will only look after him because they want the title of the Empress. They only saw the wealth and title, but Sakura doesn't judge people by their appearance. 'She will do a nice Empress,' Li thought, smiling. And with such a comforting thought, he fell into a peaceful slumber.
Sakura leaned against the door to Li's room. [[A.N: temporary room I should say.]] She was still holding the tray, and had a flushed look on her face. 'I can't believe he said that to me. Did he really mean it?' Sakura thought.
She sighed, and went to wash the bowl, and spoon. She saw her mother in the kitchen, holding a piece of paper. Nadeshiko looked up and saw her daughter. She motioned her daughter to sit on the bench beside her. Sakura looked at her mother rather confused, and set the tray down in front of her.
"What's wrong mother?" Sakura asked.
Her mother sighed, and showed her the piece of paper she was holding. It had a drawn picture of Li, and a reward for finding him. It was the Queen's order, and she wanted to find her son.
Sakura's hands started to shake. "H-he's t-t-the EMPEROR!" Sakura said/shouted.
"Yes Sakura. Do calm down," said Nadeshiko, while holding her daughter's hand.
"We cannot let him know, that we know. Sakura, I'm going to ask you to do something for me."
"What is it mother? I promise to do whatever you tell me to," said Sakura looking at her mother. Her mother had a faraway look in her eyes.
"You need to take the Emperor back to the capitol."
"I need to WHAT?!" exclaimed Sakura. "You can't be serious! It's so far away! It'll take months to get there. Why me? Can't Eriol and Takashi take him there?"
"Sakura, I need to tell you something. I kept this from you long enough," started Nadeshiko.
"What is it mother?" asked Sakura.
"You're a princess Sakura. I never did tell you the truth why we became so poor. You were too young to understand, but now you're old enough to be told," said Nadeshiko, looking sadly at Sakura. Nadeshiko took a deep breath and sighed.
Sakura looked surprised, and then laughed. "Mother you're joking right? Me a princess? Come on, stop joking around!" Sakura looked at her mother, and saw the expression on her face, and stopped laughing immediately.
"You're not joking are you mother?"
"Why would I start joking about such a serious matter Sakura? It's more serious than you think. Now listen carefully to each word I say. I want you to remember and never forget."
Sakura gulped and listened intently to her mother. "Your father's family was very rich, and possess some magic. They were related to the powerful magician Clow Reed. Clow Reed made cards called Clow Cards. They are quite powerful, and cannot land in the wrong hands. Your grandmother took great care of them, and made sure they were hidden in a safe place. But somehow, information about the Clow Cards leaked, and many people tried to steal them. Your father was quite young and didn't know why people want to go to their house and steal cards. He didn't understand the power of the cards.
One peaceful night, people with strong magic attacked your father's house. Your aunties and uncles tried to fight off their attackers, but to no avail. They died in the process of trying to stop their attackers. Your grandparents took your father to a secret trap door, and gave him the deck of cards. They told him to protect the cards, and let nobody know about the cards. Your grandparents told him not to come out no matter what. Your father was scared and listened to his parents. He stayed in the secret compartment for two days without food or water. He came out to find his whole family had died.
He was quite shocked, he mourned for months on end. My family visits them once a year. We went to visit them to find the place a wreck, and my parents only found your father alive. He buried them with his bare hands, and kneeled in front of the graves for days.
My parents and I stayed at his house for quite a while. My mother nurtured him back to health, and I tried to make him happy. It was quite painful to see such a young boy carry so much burden upon his shoulders. He use to stay in his room, unless he had to eat or something. He finally accepted the deaths of his family, and vowed in front of the graves to protect the cards, and pass the cards onto his children, as well as to be happy.
He grew up happy and healthy, and we eventually fell in love," said Nadeshiko, and she had a dreamy look in her eyes, when she said the last few words of the sentence.
"Father had such a painful childhood! It's such a sad story," said Sakura. Her eyes grew misty. 'I could never live if my whole family died!' Sakura thought.
Nadeshiko stood up and brought out the deck of cards, including a tiny key. "You have to change the cards to Sakura cards. You are their new mistress," said Nadeshiko. Sakura look through the deck, and looked at the key. The key looked like any other normal key, except, on the top of the key, it had a circle with a star in the middle, and wings on the circle itself.
The cards suddenly glowed and surrounded Sakura. She concentrated on the cards for a while, and then a blinding flash appeared. Nadeshiko closed her eyes, and after the blinding flash disappeared, she found the Clow Cards had turned pink.
Sakura opened her eyes to find the cards had turned to a different colour, and are now floating back into a neat pile, on the wooden table. "I suppose they are Sakura cards?" said Sakura rather confused.
"Yes I suppose they are too. Well, you have them to protect you, so you don't have to worry. I still have to teach you how to use your magic," stated Nadeshiko.
Nadeshiko took her daughter outside, and taught her everything she knew. She taught Sakura the incantation to activate the staff, and how to use the cards. Sakura was quite tired in the afternoon.
"I have to bring Li lunch," said Sakura.
"Yes, it's lunch time. I'll go cook some more food. I ran out of ginger though. Can you go to the Hiiragazawa and ask them for some please?" asked Nadeshiko. [[A.N: Is that how you spell Eriol's last name?]]
"Of course mother," smiled Sakura. Then she frowned, "Mother what about Li when he wakes up?"
"I'll watch over him. He'll be fine," reassured Nadeshiko.
"Ok, thanks mother," smiled Sakura.
"No worries," was her reply.
Sakura walked over to the Hiiragazawa's house, and knocked on their gate. Eriol came to the door. He greeted her with a smile and a hug.
"Sakura, what brings you here?" he asked.
"My mother wants to borrow some ginger to cook lunch," said Sakura.
"Ah, ginger. Yes we have some. Just wait please. If you want to talk to Tomoyo, she's in her room," smiled Eriol, as he walked off to get ginger for Sakura.
"Ok, thanks," said Sakura, as she walked into the house. It was quite dim, as they didn't have any opening in the roof.
"Tomoyo?"
Sakura walked into Tomoyo's room, to find her sitting up in bed, doing embroidery. "Sakura!" greeted Tomoyo, as she was trying to get up.
"Tomoyo don't move!" said Sakura sternly.
"I'm fine. Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I'm that fragile!"
"I know, but still," protested Sakura.
Sakura walked over to her childhood friend and hugged her. "How are you Tomoyo?" inquired Sakura.
"Quite fine. I'm nearly dued. Can't wait to see what the baby looks like," smiled Tomoyo, while rubbing her belly affectionately.
"The baby will be absolutely beautiful. If it's a girl, she'll be beautiful like her mother. And if it's a boy, it'll be handsome," smile Sakura.
Tomoyo laughed. "I hope so Sakura. I really hope so!"
Eriol went into Tomoyo's room to find the two girls chatting away happily. Eriol smiled. 'The baby is going to be beautiful, because the baby's mother is absolutely beautiful. It doesn't matter to me if we have a daughter or a son. The baby will be a angel,' thought Eriol.
"Sorry to interrupt ladies. Sakura I have the ginger you asked for. Now I'll leave you two."
Sakura stood up. "It's ok Eriol. I have to leave anyways. I'll talk to you later Tomoyo. My mother wants her ginger as soon as possible. It is very nice to see you both again," said Sakura, while hugging both Tomoyo and Eriol.
"Thanks Eriol!" said Sakura.
"No worries, my pleasure as always," smiled Eriol, while bowing. Both girls laughed at Eriol's gesture.
"Bye!" waved Sakura.
"Bye!" said Tomoyo and Eriol.
Sakura went back home, and her mother cooked lunch. Sakura brought lunch to Li, as he was still weak. He was grateful that Sakura and her mother are looking after him. He understood the life they were living. They worked hard for their money, and they are still happy. They are content with what they have, and won't ask for more. He wished he lived this life.
'At least I won't have so much pressure,' he thought and sighed. 'My journey isn't over yet, it just begun. I can't stay here forever. I have no money to start a new life, and I can't work. I thought it over. This country needs someone to govern it, and I'll do my job. I have to go back no matter what.'
Another chapter done! *^-^* Why does Li change his mind so quickly? Well China needs an Emperor & he can't pretend to be dead. His mother will hunt him down. *gulps* Well, I wonder if Li & Sakura are going to have a tough journey? Want to find out? Well keep reading! Sakura still has her cards.
P.S Special thanks to Avelyn for suggesting ideas 2 solve my font prob! *^- ^* & to Star Cherry 2! Also, I'm having uploading probs! *cries* Oh wells.=( I'll answer S+S-fan's question: zai zheng means bye in mando.