Sakura cocked her head to one side. "I don't think he likes me very much." She said to no one in particular.

Sakura stood there. Her brow unknowingly furrowed as she wondered what it is she did or wasn't doing that upset the Li prince so. They knew next to nothing about one another, yet it seemed his mind was made up that she would never be his favorite person under the sun.

She took a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth. "Everything will definitely be alright," the princess told herself under her breath.

"Do you need help back to your quarters, Princess?"

Sakura's eyes snapped up as her body unintentionally jumped in surprise. "Hoe! Gomenasai…"

It was Wei; Li's butler and attendant. He stood before her with a polite smile, gesturing towards the entryway from which she and Li came.

"I would appreciate that very much, thank you. I'm still finding my way through these halls." Sakura said with a smile and a small head bow.

With that Wei began to lead them back to Sakura's guest chambers. He walked gracefully in time with Sakura. Wei had this air of calm that surrounded him. It quelled some of the bubbling anxieties our princess held. She felt comfortable in his presence.

"Wei-san, may I ask how long you've been with the Li family?" Sakura asked, hoping to get to know this figure better.

A small smile danced onto Wei's lips. "I have been with them since I was a boy. I was a companion to the late King Li throughout my youth and younger years. When Prince Syaoran was born, I became his attendant. Now here we are, present day."

Sakura smiled brightly. "You're a part of the family then!" Wei turned his head to her and gave her that same small smile. As they got closer to her room, Wei gave a response to her earlier rhetorical question.

"I pray you don't let the Prince's coldness dim your light, Princess. Each winter melts." With that, he bowed and left Sakura at her door before she could inquire further.

Each winter melts… she thought to herself as she opened the door. A blur of yellow immediately obscured her line of sight.

"Neh, Sakura-chan I'm STARVING what's a guardian got to do to get some GRUB AROUND HERE!" Kero yelled as he dramatically fell against Sakura's chest.

"How'd it go? You show that southern gaki what a Cardcaptor's made of or what?" Her guardian asked as she laughed at his usual antics, another source of comfort for the princess in this new reality.

"We're having lunch in Prince Li's study, I'm sure there will be plenty to go around." Sakura started as she made her way to the wardrobe where Tomoyo's creations were hanging. She chose a simple blush pink gown from the options her cousin had packed her. It was her favorite color and the thought of Tomoyo brought a smile to Sakura's face. The princess laid the garment out on her bed while she went to quickly rinse off the sweat and dust from earlier.

As Sakura wet a cloth she called out to Kero. "I couldn't use the Sword card, so I was on my own out there. I think I did okay, considering I haven't sparred with Touya in eons."

"I wanna come to watch tomorrow. See the look on that gaki's face when you hit 'em where it hurts." Kero mimed some punches as he took far too much pleasure in imagining Sakura douse Syaoran's lights.

Feeling refreshed with her hair now down, Sakura made her way out to get dressed, smiling and shaking her head at her guardian.

As she began undressing from her sparring clothes she told him "You can come if you stay hidden and don't make any noise. His whole royal guard is out there and I don't know how familiar they are with the guardian of the seal…"

Kero scoffed at this, "They should be familiar!" he started with muffled grumbles trailing.

Sakura smoothed out her gown's skirt, putting her leather belt with the packs for her cards as well as Kero around her waist. She then did a double-take at the large clock by the doorway. "Eep! We've got to get going Kero-chan!"

The princess jumped as she tried to put on her day slippers while moving towards the door. She was going to be late! As if she needed to give Prince Li another reason to loathe her.

Kero jumped into his satchel as Sakura made to open the door. On the other side about to knock was Rika-chan, the pretty girl with short dark hair Sakura had met briefly the day prior.

"Ah! Rika-chan! I'm so glad you're here! Is there any miracle you could show me to the Prince's study again?" Sakura asked with a smile although it was clear she was scared of being late

Rika smiled in return "Of course, your highness! Right this way." Rika and Sakura walked together at a brisk pace towards Syaoran's study.

"Thank you so very much Rika-chan, you're a lifesaver! Also please, I don't think I got a chance to say it yesterday, call me Sakura!"

This would have shocked Rika if she and Naoko had not talked at great lengths about how refreshingly unconventional the Kinomoto princess was.

"Hai, Sakura-san, I will try," Rika responded with a genuine smile. Hearing Rika call her by her name made Sakura glow with happiness. She was so thankful to be finding friendship in this new space.

The pair arrived at the looming door Sakura remembered well from the night before. "Thank you again, Rika-chan. I owe you one!"

"It is absolutely no problem, your highn- I'm sorry, Sakura-san. It's a hard habit to break." Rika told her with a curtsy.

"It's okay, we'll get there! I hope to see you soon!" Sakura returned the curtsy and waved as Rika made her leave with a smile.

Now alone, aside from Kero, the princess took a deep breath much like the one she had on the sparring grounds. She raised her small fist up to the big mahogany doors and knocked three times.

A few seconds later, the now-familiar gruffness of Li's voice sounded from the inside. "Come in."

As the princess opened the door, she barely had it shut behind her when the Prince said: "You're 6 minutes late."

With this Sakura leaned against the door so it shut with a click. "I know, I apologize, your highness." She stepped forward with a curtsy.

"Don't let it happen again." Syaoran stated plainly. Sakura nodded in response, but the prince did not see for he had not yet risen his gaze from his work.

This situation played out for several beats. Sakura, looking at Syaoran and around the room unsure of what to do. Syaoran, refusing to look at anything that was not his quill on what she assumed to be important papers. This lasted until a knock sounded at the door.

"Your lunch, your highnesses." Was heard on the other side. Sakura turned and opened it, allowing the string of servants to come in with carts of delicious smelling food. The last of which turned and went to thank Sakura for opening the door.

"Thank you very much for the door your highness, it was very kind of you. We can absolutely get it the next time though so you - wow…" The kitchen staff began his gratitude while bowing, but as he came up and met Sakura's gaze he fell under a spell that was becoming all too familiar to the men of the Li castle.

This odd pause was enough to get the prince to finally raise his head from his desk, enough to see his blushing servant and the cause of his blushing. Li cleared his throat, and this was enough to snap the young man out of his reverie.

"F-forgive my rudeness, your highnesses. Please, enjoy your lunch." The red-haired staff member stammered as he bowed and made his leave with the other two staff members.

Sakura smiled and mouthed "don't worry, you're fine" as she closed the door behind them. All three staff members smiled back at her from the hallway.

Turning to face the Prince and the now deposited carts, Sakura found Li once again enraptured in his work.

She bit her lip. "Would you like me to bring you over some dishes and tea, Prince Li? Or would you prefer to have lunch at the table?" Sakura asked as she looked at the table by the window. With a view of the expansive Li gardens, it looked rather inviting.

"I will have my meal here. There is far too much work to be done." He said without skipping a beat in his scribbling.

Again, Sakura nodded to an audience of none. She first brought a teacup and pot over, gently pouring him a cup and placing it next to him, out of the way of his papers. The princess was careful not to spill a drop, and nearly let out a sigh of relief when the cup was safely placed on the desk.

Sakura then grabbed one of the covered plates and the accompanying cutlery. In the same somewhat cleared space she went to set the plate and cutlery bundle down. Fate was against her, however, because as she leaned forward the chopsticks, forks, knife, and spoon tumbled from their green napkin home, clattering noisily onto Prince Li's workspace. She immediately tensed; Syaoran's head whipped up from his work.

"Are you so daft?" He asked, his voice gravelly with frustration at the interruption.

Sakura's mouth made a shape to start an apology, but her throat suddenly had a small lump and her eyes betrayed her as they became wet from the harshness of his tone. She was just trying to help. Doing what she could while life as she knew it was pulled out from under her.

Before Sakura could croak out an apology the third entity in the room burst from the satchel at Sakura's side, ready to share a piece of his mind.

"Why I oughta-" was all Kero could get out before Sakura grabbed him from the air and put a hand over his mouth, muting his rant.

Sakura cleared her throat so her voice wouldn't give away how her heart felt at that moment. "I'm very sorry for interrupting, Prince Li. Do you want a different set of cutlery? You could have mine if you'd like, I'll just go ask the staff for another set…"

Sakura started towards the carts to do just as she said, still holding on to a squirming Kero. The princess was in part desperate to get out of Syaoran's line of sight so she could let out the tears she had been holding in since she arrived at the Li kingdom. She was not so lucky.

"Do not bother. I will use these. Learn to be more careful." Was all he said before taking a sip of tea and resuming his work.

Sakura pursed her lips and nodded solemnly "Hai…"

She then turned her attention to Kero, whispering in his ear "Please let it go, Kero-chan. He's just busy, plus, look at all the desserts they brought."

At this last note, Kero's squirming ceased so he could float over to the desserts and inspect the handiwork of the Li castle's kitchen.

Sakura smiled as he reveled in the cart of sweets, wasting no time to start hoarding his favorites. She walked over and grabbed her own meal and fixings. The princess set them down on the table by the window before returning for tea and beckoning Kero to come to join her.

Sakura lifted the silver container from her plate. A gorgeous meal of omurice sat before her, and she smiled, excited to eat. She let out a soft "Itadakimasu" before starting. Once she had a bite, the Princess let out an unintentional "Mmmmm!" It was just so tasty and delicate.

The noise caused Prince Li to shoot her a look from his seat, which immediately caused Sakura's eyes to widen as she bent her head and swallowed. "Gomenasai…" she said mostly to the ground.

They sat like this for quite some time. Li at his desk, picking occasionally at his meal. Sakura at the window, eating and stifling laughs at Kero's dessert coma. Her mighty guardian lay there gently snoring with a full belly on the table.

She would get caught up in staring out at the gardens. From where she sat, the variety of flowers was endless, and the breeze would rustle them ever so gently. It gave her some peace.

Sakura collected her dishes and returned them to the cart. She took a small breath and gathered up some bravery to bring the teapot back over to the prince.

Stepping gently, she asked, "Would you like any more tea, Prince Li?"

He gave her an affirmative grunt in response.

As she filled his cup, Sakura asked "Is there anything I can do to help? It looks like you've got a mighty lot to do. I could take on some of the more trivial tasks if you'd like, or-"

"The most helpful thing you can do is to let me be and be quiet." Syaoran interrupted her.

Sakura swallowed and nodded at this, placing the now full teacup down. She walked back to the window she had claimed as her post. Holding her arms she gave herself a kind of hug. Determined not to let his harshness affect her. She thought of the words Wei had given her earlier. Don't let the Prince's coldness dim your light, Princess.

Suddenly, from the bushes of the garden that abutted the woods, a doe appeared. Sakura's eyes lit up and her mouth spread open with a wide smile. A few seconds later, a baby deer stumbled out from the brush as well. Sakura gasped, "Prince Li! Come look, there are the most beautiful deer in the garden!" She totally forgot that this was probably the last thing her company wanted to hear.

Li looked up from his work, quick to shut the princess down, but his sentiments never left his mind. She stood there, glowing in the early afternoon light with a smile so pure he felt his heart pound against his chest wall in longing to understand. To his and her surprise, he got up from his desk for the first time that afternoon and joined her by the window.

Sakura looked over her shoulder at his approaching form, "Look! Just there, by the stream…" she said pointing.

The woodland mother and child pair were bent over having a drink from the garden's water. They were gorgeous.

Sakura turned again to see his reaction. He wasn't smiling, as she subconsciously hoped to see, but the normal scowl on his face was replaced with a calm gaze. She had grown so used to seeing his eyes blazing with disdain, this looked like a new man beside her.

The princess turned her attention back to the deer, where she was amazed to see a blue butterfly had landed on the baby deer's ear. She let out a laugh of sheer joy and disbelief at the sight.

Sakura did not see this, her gaze being completely transfixed by the small moment of magic, but behind the princess our prince let the smallest of smiles grace his lips for a brief second.

They stood there in silence for an unknown amount of time until the deer finished their drinking and turned back towards the woods.

Syaoran then cleared his throat to get the princess's attention.

"Perhaps, if we are able to complete the necessary work for today, would you like to go for a walk through the garden, Princess Kinomoto?" Syaoran asked.

There was a new light source in the room. Sakura was absolutely beaming at the thought, her smile glistened in her emerald eyes.

"I would love that, Prince Li! The flowers look unbelievable…"

Syaoran granted her a single nod, although he felt some heat rising from his neck. The prince gestured her to follow him behind his desk. Once there, Li began shuffling stacks of papers, explaining what Sakura was to do with each. She nodded in understanding at each new instruction, desperately trying to listen and learn. Thus far, none of it required maths, so the princess felt confident. Her eyes conveyed the feeling of determination as she gave the Prince one last nod and wandered over to the couches and low table at the center of the room.

To the prince's surprise, Sakura sat on the floor at the tea table, beginning to sort the stacks.

Feeling his gaze, Sakura looked up to meet his amber eyes. She sensed the question in his look.

"I'm more productive this way. I always do my paperwork duties like this at home." She explains with a small smile.

The Prince shook his head wordlessly at Sakura's continued antics.

They sat like this for several hours, their hands becoming smudged with ink. On two occasions Sakura approached Syaoran's desk with questions on what to write in particular circumstances. To her surprise, he answered them without any snarkiness. To be fair, he answered them curtly. But he didn't call her daft, so she counted that as a tiny victory.

Sakura would wordlessly fill their respective teacups when they started to get low. On one such occasion, Sakura brought over a plate of chocolates from the dessert cart with the tea. She would later note that he ate those truffles more quickly than anything else that afternoon. Kero flitted about, pulling various books from the shelves to be met with Syaoran's piercing gaze of disapproval.

Eventually, the kitchen staff came back to collect the dirty dishes and to provide two plates of fresh sliced fruit. Sakura thanked them all from her perch on the floor. They bowed with smiles as they exited the room.

The fruit was incredible, and there were several pieces she had never had. They must have been native to the south.

"Prince Li, what's this? It's absolutely delicious!" Sakura held up a slice in the hand that did not hold a quill.

"An orange slice. Do you not have them in the Kinomoto kingdom?" Syaoran asked after looking up briefly.

"We don't, but I will have to bring some home with me. Mama, our chef, would absolutely love them! Maybe we could make a dessert with them…" Sakura trailed off as she got back to writing.

It was not long after this discussion that our royal pair finished their work, in quick succession. Sakura dropped the completed stacks next to the prince's own.

"Shall we?" she asked smiling.


hi all! got some time on my hands with quarantine! hope this lil chappy was worth the wait lol see u soon probs!