For the people who wanted Sakura to be more "headstrong" or wanting her to have something to say to the prince, she can't. She's just a servant, and the prince could do anything he wants to her. If he fired her, she would fail her mission.
Two
Sakura's arms ached as she scrubbed furiously at the dirty floors. The mop was heavy and no matter how hard she tried, the floor remained speckled with dirt.
The head maid glared down at her in disapproval. She was older than most of the others, and had served many years in the castle. She liked to order people around, while she herself rarely did anything. Sakura had never seen her smile once. Instead, her mouth was set into a thin turned-down line and her wrinkles bunched her face, though she couldn't be older than her early forties.
Sakura raised the mop handle and lowered the mop into the bucket of cold water, but because the mop was too heavy for her, she accidentally tipped the bucket over, sending water running all over the floor.
She could feel the fury radiating from the maid. The maid marched over to her. "Idiotic girl!" she spat. She raised and hand and smacked Sakura across the cheek, the same cheek that the prince had slapped.
"Clean the mess up!" she ordered. "And you will get no dinner or breakfast."
As Sakura worked to mop up all the water, the maid smirked to herself. How she loathed that girl. She had worked at the castle for over ten years and received the same treatment. That girl, Sakura, had been here a day and already she was being favoured by the prince himself, as if she was better than all the rest of them.
Sakura groaned as the first rays of sunlight hit her eyes. She didn't want to wake up yet, but she knew the prince wouldn't tolerate tardiness. She winced as the felt the spot on the cheek twitched in pain. Looking into the small mirror in her room, she could see a bruise the disgusting colour of purplish-black. She gingerly touched her cheek, and was surprised to feel stinging in her hands. She turned her palms over to see ugly red blisters.
She had no time to check over the rest of her body, as she was going to be late. She quickly ran to the kitchens and breathed in the aroma of fresh-baked bread and smoked meat.
The maid smiled mockingly at Sakura as she loaded the breakfast tray. "Don't you dare sneak any."
Sakura hurried down the halls, the tray held up by the burning fingers. She balanced the tray on one hand as she raised the other to knock on the prince's door. He still looked as surly as he did the day before, and slightly amused as he watched her struggling not to drop the tray.
"Next time, you don't have to knock."
"Yes, your Highness."
"Is that all you can say? Yes, your Highness," said the prince mockingly. He glared at her. "It's like you know I'm better than you. Call me Syaoran."
Call him Syaoran? She could easily get locked up just for doing that without permission! It was highly unlikely any royal would allow anyone except close friends and other royals to call them by the names, least of all a servant.
Sakura gently set down the tray on the table and tried not to look longingly at the food. She hadn't eaten in almost twenty-four hours and she was starving.
"What's wrong with your cheek?"
Sakura glanced up at Syaoran's words. "N-nothing."
He crossed the room and studied her bruise. Sakura felt uncomfortable at his close proximity. Syaoran drew a small bottle from his robes and passed in to Sakura. "Put that on your cheek every twelve hours until it heals," he said icily.
Sakura glanced down at the bottle in her hands, instantly recognizing what it was. A mixture of fifteen different herbs, all extremely rare. The herbs were grounded into a paste that took three months at the least to prepare. And here was the cold prince, offering it to her, a servant, like it was nothing.
"Thank you."
Syaoran sat down at the table and began to eat. Sakura's stomach growled in protest to her lack of food. Syaoran glanced up abruptly. "When was the last time you ate?"
"Today," she lied smoothly.
His amber eyes narrowed in distaste and anger. "Don't you fucking lie to me."
"Yesterday morning."
"Come here," Syaoran growled.
Sakura slowly walked towards him and closed her eyes, bracing for another slap or at least a good yelling. It never came.
"Sit."
She opened her eyes to see him pointing at a chair. She obeyed him and was surprised as he shoved food at her.
Syaoran looked more annoyed. "When someone gives you food, you eat it, not stare at it."
A smile touched Sakura's lips. "Thank you."
He grunted in response.
"Why are you being nice to me?" Sakura regretted asking immediately. She knew it was wrong to question a royal, but something had made the words just slip out.
Syaoran laughed bitterly. "Nice?" He shook his head. "I've been called lots of things, but nice, never heard that one before." He laughed again. It sounded unnatural coming from him, which Sakura supposed it was.
He looked at her, his face resuming the stoic expression. "I can't have my personal servant look bad."
Of course…what else had she expected? A sinking, disappointed feeling settled in her stomach, from what, she didn't know. She stood up, cleaning up the table. When she reached the room, she paused, and turned around to thank him again.
Syaoran felt disgusted with himself as Sakura left the room.
"Why are you being nice to me?" Nice. He didn't want to be nice. Nice was for pathetic losers who did things for other people, and never expected anything in return.
He didn't know why he had treated her as if he cared. He didn't. She was just another servant. And like all the rest, she would eventually turn from him in hate. They were all the same, all vying for his attention like sick dogs, only to be turned away by his harsh manner. As if he would ever fall for a servant. The thought disgusted him beyond anything.
He had been called many things in his life. Handsome, strong, powerful. Words were meaningless. But nice… When those words left her lips, he had been warmth rising in the chest. That too, made him feel uneasy. The praise of a servant making him feel warm…he almost shuddered thinking about it.
He threw open the door. "Get the head maid," he commanded to a servant standing nearby.
She arrived, smiling sickingly at him. "Yes, your Highness?"
"Did you slap my personal servant and not feed her?"
The maid's smile fell off her face as it turned into fear. "Please, your Highness-"
His voice did not rise, but it sounded angrier, deadlier. "Yes or no?"
"Yes, but-"
"Get out, you're fired."
The maid's mouth fell open in shock before she fell on her knees, pleading.
Syaoran glared down coldly at her, unmoved. "Leave now before I throw you in the dungeons."
The maid drew herself up and stomped away, passing Sakura who was pressed against the wall. "Bitch."
Sakura didn't reply. It wasn't her fault.
"You didn't have to do that," she said softly.
"I can do whatever I want. I don't want my servants all starving of death."
"Yes, but you couldn't just made her a bathroom cleaner or something. Now she will be out of a job and unable to feed her family."
Syaoran drew himself to full height. "Are you questioning what I do?"
Sakura cursed herself as she once again forgot her place. It was hard. She was used to being a princess, not a servant. She looked down in shame. "I am sorry. It won't happen again."
"I have training. Go clean up my room."
Sakura hid her smile as she did what she was told. She would be alone in the prince's room. Perhaps she could find some information in there…
She made sure the prince was long gone before going through his things. She knew she was taking a big risk because if caught…she could be killed. In the first drawer, she found nothing but writing materials. The second drawer caught her attention. It was filled with books. She opened them, and was disappointed to see they were all blank.
She went through his room and found nothing of interest to her. She wondered if there was a secret hiding place in his room, like a hole in the wall or something. It was possible. Her own room back in the Kinomoto castle had a hidden room behind a bookcase.
Bookcase…of course! Why hadn't she thought of it… The library. It was sure to have info, but the only problem was she didn't know where the library was. The castle was big, with four wings. And she being a servant was not allowed to be in the library.
It was a risk she was going to have to take…
"Excuse me," she said to the first servant passing her by. "Where is the library? I'm supposed to clean it."
"Turn left, walk past the kitchen, turn left again and it's the fifth door to the right."
Sakura followed the directions and opened the door to the library. It was huge, with two stories. How was she going to find anything? Luckily for her, there were labels on the shelves.
Suddenly, she felt warmth enclosing her and looked into the smirking face of a man who looked like Syaoran, except he had dark blue eyes.
The man looked her up and down, smiling cruelly at what he saw. Without warning, he pulled her close to him and leaned down towards her, still with that haunting smile and…
At that same moment, the prince walked by.
Don't really like the way it's going. Turning out like all my other fics...but I'll continue.
