Takarin

Summary: Sakura and her family live in the Takarin, where it is dangerous after sunset. One night, after the disappearance of her friend, Sakura's leaves to go on a journey to seek out the danger and destroy it once and for all, and she even gets some help along the way.

Disclaimer: Alright, let's get down to the facts now. As much as I wish that I owned CCS, I don't. And if I did I wouldn't be typing this fic now would I...

A/N: Hi, this is my second fic and I hope that it has better results than my first one. Please, I'd be very happy both read and review... Anyways, in this fic Sakura is 16, Tomoyo is also 16, and Toya is 23, and Shaoran/Li is 18.

Japanese Words Used In This Chapter:

Hai- yes

Gomen nasai- I'm sorryOuta-san- Father

Kaiju- monsterOkaa-san- Mother

Baka- idiotNi-san- (older) brother

Gaki- bratIkkimasho- let's go

Domo arigato- thank you

Chan, Kun, San- Japanese honorifics used after a person's name

Introduction: Sakura Kinomoto is the youngest child of Nadeshiko and Fujitaka Kinomoto. She lives with her father and brother in a desert-like place called Takarin. Her family owns a small restaurant with an inn above it and a stream flowing behind it, but they are still very poor. Sakura helps her father and brother to run the restaurant and inn. Sakura's mother had disappeared one night and so had other people from the desert, so now no one ever goes out past sunset, except in the case of an absolute emergeny.

Chapter 1: Danger in the Night

"Father! I'm back!" shouted the girl with honey brown hair and eyes that glittered like diamonds and were the color of the grass that grows in the best of fertile areas.

"Welcome back, Sakura. I hope that you were able to get the groceries that I need," said Fujitaka.

"Hai. I came back as quickly as possible so that I would be back before the sun sets," Sakura proudly said.

"I'm glad. It's dangerous for anyone to be out after dark, especially for sixteen year old girls," said Fujitaka in a serious voice.

"Yeah, we wouldn't wanna lose the kaiju, now would we," said Toya while he was busy peeling a potato for that night's supper.

"Ahh! I AM NOT A KAIJU! Not a kaiju, baka ni-san," Sakura angrily shouted and then ran towards Toya with her fists out.

Toya held out one hand and pressed it on Sakura's forehead and laughed while she tried to get close enough to punch him.

"Now cut it out you two. Or I'll have you both sent to bed tonight without supper," scolded Fujitaka.

"Gomen nasai, outa-san," both Sakura and Toya said at once. They both knew that they were very poor and so if forced to do so their father would carry out his threat and that they would have the food that they didn't eat that night for another night's supper.

Just as they started to eat the sun started to sink into the desert.

"Isn't it so pretty," Sakura dreamily said. And indeed it was pretty, but what was prettier was Sakura's eyes that were glistening in the sunset. "I wish that it weren't so dangerous at night. Then I could go and dance in the setting sun as it sinks into the desert and casts the last of its beautiful upon the desert for the day."

Fujitaka heard the longing in his daughter's voice, but he knew that he couldn't let her out to dance with the setting sun. Strange and mysterious things happened in the night, it had always been that way in the Takarin. Fujitaka rose and pulled the blinds down over the window after the sun had finished setting. "Alright, let's finish eating Toya's good stew now," he said.

"Alright," Sakura happily responded as she poured some stew into her bowl.

Later, after Sakura had finished washing the dishes, she was helping Toya to sweep the floor when she heard a knock on the door. Toya quickly sent Sakura to put the brooms behind the counter and looked through the peephole in the door. After seeing who it was he instantly opened the door and pulled the girl with raven black hair that was standing outside through the door and then shut the door. "Tomoyo-san, what the heck were you doing out there! You know that it's dangerous to be outside after the sun sets!"

"I'm sorry to bother you so late, but Okaa-san is very sick and I didn't know what to do! We don't have anymore medicine and all of the stores are closed now, so I came to you. Please help her, please I beg you," Tomoyo pleaded in a small and panicked voice that reached barely above a whisper.

Fujitaka walked over and grabbed a bag that had medicine in it. "Tomoyo-san, Toya-kun and I will go over and see your mother, you should stay here with Sakura-chan. Sakura-chan, you watch Tomoyo-san and get her a room to stay in for tonight and open up the restaurant and inn tomorrow morning. Stay safe, and good night."

Sakura watched as Toya and her father ran out of the door and headed towards Tomoyo's house, and then she went and closed the door and latched it. "Ikkimasho, Tomoyo-chan. I'll prepare a room for you to stay in for tonight, unless you would like to sleep in my room with me."

"I'll stay in your room for tonight," Tomoyo said. She looked at Sakura and truly wished that her father and brother would be able to make it to her house safely and be able to help her mother. "Domo arigato, Sakura-chan."

The next morning Sakura got up and started to finish the sweeping that she had been working on with Toya before Tomoyo had came. After she finished sweeping she opened up the windows to let some sunshine and fresh air into the room. "Hmm, I wonder what I should make for breakfast? I wish that I could make something really special for Tomoyo, but that would cost too much, and she is also poor and may feel indebted to us for taking care of her mom, and this would make her feel even more indebted, even thought we are good friends. Well, I guess that I could make some rice pudding. Yeah! That's what I'll do, it won't be super fancy and nice, but it will be better that what we usually both have, and I can give any extras to outa-san, ni-san and Tomoyo-chan's mom," Sakura thought to herself while she washed off the tables. She then started to make some rice pudding. By the time that she had finished making the pudding, Tomoyo was up and dressed. "Tomoyo-chan, I made some rice pudding for our breakfast, and once you're done eating, you can go over to see you mom and take some to her, ni-san and outa-san!" exclaimed Sakura, who was overly happy at the time.

"Alright," agreed Tomoyo who wanted to go and see her mother more than anything at the time. "And I'll see if Toya-kun can come home and stay with you if your father plans to stay for a bit longer."

"Thank you ever so much Tomoyo-chan, you're the best!" exclaimed Sakura. "Here, now eat up," said Sakura happily while handing Tomoyo a bowl of rice.

After she ate Tomoyo headed out the door back to her house.

"Hello," Tomoyo said as she walked into her house.

"Good morning, Tomoyo-san," Toya said. He didn't sound like he was very happy, actually he sounded quite stressed.

"How's mother? Is she alright?" Tomoyo asked.

"Yeah, she's fine. I took care of her after we got here," Toya said. "Go and tell Sakura that dad and I can't come home, and ask her to close the restaurant and inn and come over here immediately."

Tomoyo then ran out of the door as fast as she could. She wanted to know exactly had made Toya stressed and uneasy, and why he wasn't going to be coming home right away, and why he needed Sakura-chan. "Sakura-chan!" Tomoyo shouted as she got to the door. Sakura opened the door and Tomoyo hurried in. "Sakura-chan, Toya said that he wanted you to close up the restaurant and inn for now and to go over to my house immediately that he and your father wouldn't be able to come home right away," Tomoyo said in a rush, not stopping to breath in-between her sentences and now was taking some time to catch her breath as Sakura quickly closed up everything and put a closed sign on the door as she ran out.

Sakura ran faster and faster. She had a very uneasy feeling about all of this. Soon she was running thorough the door and ran into Toya. "Toya, what's wrong!? What happened?" she worriedly asked.

"It's father. On the way here someone attacked, but we couldn't see his face. He hurt father, but I managed to get in enough of an attack to scare him away. Father is upstairs lying down and he would like to see you. Afterwards, go home and get his bed ready for him, I'll bring him over then," Toya said in a steady voice. Sakura knew that he was trying his best to be calm and brave, but she was smart enough to see the stressed look on his face and his desperate attempt to calm down as she ran through the door.

"Alright," whispered Sakura as she quietly walked up the stairs to the room that her dad was lying down in. She wanted to cry, but she held back tears. She just had to be strong for her dad, she couldn't cry now. Later, later she would cry, after she was out of the sight of her father. "Outa-san, are you alright? I came over as quick as I could," said Sakura letting her voice raise only slightly above a whisper.

"Ahh, Sakura-chan, I'm glad you came," Fujitaka said to his daughter. He was in pain, but just seeing his daughter made him forget about it. She looked so much like her mother.

After she visited her father for a while Sakura ran home and made her father's bed, tidied up his room a bit and then dusted and swept the floor. "Poor outa-san. I wish that I could somehow make him feel better."

Shortly afterwards Toya walked in and was helping their dad to walk to his bed. "Thanks, kaiju, for all of the help," Toya whispered to Sakura quietly.

"I am not a kaiju!" Sakura sternly whispered to Toya. "Baka ni-san..."

Later that day, close to supper time, Sakura walked over to Tomoyo's house. "Tomoyo-chan, how's your mom? Is she alright?" she asked, after all, Tomoyo's mom was like a mother to her.

"Yes, thanks to your brother," Tomoyo answered. "Please Sakura-chan, would you join us for supper tonight?"

Sakura thought for a moment. She knew that she would have to be back before sunset, but if she ate quickly she could manage it. "Sure, I'd love to if it wouldn't be too much trouble."

"Great!" exclaimed Tomoyo.

Sakura ate quickly and then started to walk home, she only had a few minutes before the sun would set. She stopped suddenly because she thought that she had seen someone running in the shadows.

"Sakura-chan!" came a shout from in the distance. Sakura jumped up and spun around in the air just to see that it was Tomoyo that was behind her. "You forgot your coat at my house and I came to bring it to you."

"Thanks Tomoyo-chan," Sakura said and then the two parted, the both of them heading in their separate ways. Sakura was almost home when the sun set.

Tomoyo was running home, trying to get back to her house before sunset. She looked to the west and saw that the sun was starting set. She was about halfway to her house when the sun finished setting. She started to run faster then, afraid of what lay in the dark. Someone jumped out in front of her. She screamed as loud as she could, but noone came to her aid. "Help! Okaa-san! Sakura-chan! Someone!"

A/N: Hi, how did you like the first chapter. You'll need to read the next chapter to find out what happens next, he he. Please review and tell me how you like my story so far. If you can see that little purple box in the lower left hand corner that says, Submit Review, just press the Go button beside it and type a few words, noting fancy, just let me know that you read this chapter that's all, I would like it if you would at least include any suggestions and/or comments and tell me what you wanna see in this fic.