"You look shocked Mr. Kent. Is it because your government captured and tortured me for a year or because Kal asked me to marry him moments after meeting me without knowing a single thing about me?"
It is a bit of both. Truthfully, the government actions aren't surprising to Clark, especially if it is Cadmus. Clark gives her a wry grin.
"A bit of both I guess. No one wants to believe that the country they live in is capable of such things." She nods accepting his answer. "So then you just agreed to marry a man you didn't even know?"
Her eyes drift off as if she is lost in memory. It looks to be a pleasant one, and it frustrates Clark to no end that he knows nothing of her life with Kal-El. "Not exactly."
Sakura stares at the man for a moment debating whether or not he is serious. When his facial expression doesn't change even slightly, she laughs. She laughs so hard that she misses the anger on his face and the red glow in his eyes.
"He told me later that he almost killed me then. He thought I was laughing at the thought of me marrying someone like him."
"But you weren't?"
"Of course not. Although, later I could see why Kal thought that way. Have you ever seen a dingo?"
Clark blinks at the sudden turn of conversation. He stares at her puzzled, but she merely waits for his answer. "I have."
"Dingo pups are adorable, but dingoes are deadly. Kal was the same. He was beautiful, but he was deadly as well. It would be a well-known fact that any woman that chose to stay at his side would have a significant probability of being destroyed by that beauty."
"And yet you risked it. Why?"
"I didn't know any better. Besides, I like to think that I'm capable of taking care of myself."
"You thought you could save yourself from a man who had the world on its knees?"
She raises her hand and runs it through her hair. She intends to smooth her hair out, but because she has so much of it on her head it only tangles further. She doesn't fix it. Clark wants to. It is bothering him.
"I'm good at staying alive Mr. Kent. It's what I do."
"Why in the world," Sakura says between giggles, "would I marry a man I don't know?"
When Sakura is finally able to focus, his lips once again quirk slightly.
"My proposal amuses you?"
"I don't even know your name!"
"Then let me introduce myself. My name is Kal-El."
Sakura smiles for some unknown reason slightly charmed. "I'm Sakura Haruno. And if I may be frank, I'd like to know why you thought I'd agree to marry you."
He slightly inclines his head letting Sakura know that he agrees with this line of conversation. Sakura thinks even the slight gesture makes him look otherworldly. It makes absolutely no sense, but she feels a pull toward the man. She knows her mind should be on the escape she now has the chance to make instead of the blue of his eyes and how compelling they are.
"You do know that I rule this world." Sakura pauses wondering if he rules this world, is he the one behind her previous interrogation. Something tells her he isn't, but she isn't exactly sure of that. Or maybe her reawakening libido is clouding her mind.
"I've been informed of that, yes."
"There are not many things that I am unable to attain if I wish it."
Sakura lips curl slightly in distaste. "That sounds terribly arrogant."
"Not arrogance Sakura Haruno, but the truth."
Sakura takes in his words and admits that given what little she knew of him that he could be right. She murmurs, "They call you a dictator."
He doesn't deny it. She expects him to give some spiel about how he only wants the best for the world. He can toss in how he is making it a safer place for people. However, he provides none of that. It makes Sakura believe that he is content in his role as dictator. He doesn't believe it to be something derogatory.
"And do you know how that benefits you?" Sakura looks at Kal-El in puzzlement, so he clarifies. "It means that I will never let anyone hurt you again. It means that if you wish it, I will destroy those who already have."
"You know what they did to me." Sakura's voice is cold and hard as ice. She is ready to attack and destroy the man for the pain he has caused-
"Specific details? No. As long as the people of this world obey my commands, I have no desire to look any further into their actions. But I see what they did when I look in your eyes. There's something feral there, which is not something you observe in a person who has lived an ordinary life. Nor is it something you have hidden. For some reason, it calls to me. So I offer you marriage. At my side, there is no need to fear anything."
"Does that include you? Do I not have to fear you?"
"I am no liar. I will not say that I will never hurt you. However, I will say that the pain you endure at my side will never be physical."
"After that, he uttered a phrase in Kryptonian and refused to tell me what it meant."
Clark perks up. "Do you remember what he said?" Clark sees something shift in her eyes, but she utters the phrase in flawless Kryptonian regardless.
"Kal gave me several incorrect translations like 'you'll be my slave for life,' 'you're a sucker if you believe that,' and my personal favorite was 'dogs roll in manure so that man won't have to.'"
Clark snorts before he can control himself. "That makes no sense."
She bows her head slightly chuckling. "I know, but that was Kal. He often made very little sense."
"Do you…know now what the phrase meant?"
She looks at him sadly. Her moods shift like the waves of the sea. Clark feels slightly guilty for pressing for this interview, but in a way, it seems like she needs to talk. "Yes. It meant 'you will be my beloved and I will cherish you forever.'"
Clark uncomfortably notes that she is correct. Although he does wonder why the Dictator Kal-El supposedly took one look at the woman, and kept her at his side for five years.
Odd images begin to flash in Clark's mind that he tries to shake away. They make his headache which is unusual for a man who isn't accustomed to aches and pains. If he didn't know any better, he would say that the woman had painted a perfect image of the scene of their first meeting in his brain. He can see her standing in front of him her feet bare and her hair flowing free. Defiance and rage sit on her shoulders as she stands before him waiting to see what he would do next…
He stalks closer to her. He knows she can't hear his footsteps and yet later she will tell them they reverberated in her brain. He waits to see if she will back away from him, but she doesn't. Her face grows solemn opposed to her earlier amusement. Instead, she stares at him, apparently trying to figure out what he is doing and what he wants. He can hear her heart hammering wildly in her chest.
Is she afraid? Yes, she is. Will she run? He can see her eyes dart side to side searching for a way out, but she doesn't make a move. She stands her ground, and a surge of desire runs through him because of her actions. When he gets close enough, he slides an arm around her waist and pulls her close. She raises her hands and places them on his chest as if trying to keep some distance between them.
He almost chuckles at the ridiculous endeavor.
"Close your eyes." He expects a fight, but her eyes flutter closed, and for some reason, he wants to pull her closer, but it isn't physically possible. Her body trembles in his arms and he leans his head down and smells her hair.
It is his turn to close his eyes as her scent washes over him.
"Take a deep breath." He feels the rise and fall of her chest. Her breasts brush against his chest, and his pupils dilate in desire, but he maintains control. He wonders at this trust she is giving him. From where does it come? Does she not know who he is? Does she not realize what he could do to her? Or has she already experienced so much worse that she doesn't care whether or not she dies?
Kal-El's jaw clenches. He decides he will not punish her for her trust. He will reward it.
"Now hold on." Seconds after her arms wrap around him he shoots up in the air the sonic boom of his flight sounding behind them. She lets out an initial scream before he slows slightly and she can look around. Her dazzling green eyes take in the blue skies and the damp clouds that surround them. Amazement fills her eyes, and she looks at him as if he is some kind of wonderful.
She throws her head back and laughs in delight. The melody of her voice moves something within him. He wraps his dark cape around her body because where they are going, she will need it. She continues to cling to him but pleasure dances on her lips. Their eyes meet and what he sees in her visage is something he'd be willing to kill millions to keep on her face. It hadn't been there when they first brought her to him. But he swears it will remain there until he takes his very last breath-and beyond.
Happiness.