Hello boys and girls. I'd like to tell a story.

I am very appreciative of those who have read and reviewed this story, both on this site and on tumblr. Thank you.

Here's the next chapter.


Chapter 3: Amaryllis

In Japanese, the amaryllis represents shyness. In Victorian England, it means pride.

Some may say that Syaoran Li was as confident as they come. As the only son of the powerful and mystical Li family, it fell on him to bring honor to the family. At the age of five, he was trained in the martial arts: especially Moi Fah and Li Jia. By the age of six, he learned swordplay and was taught how to create ofuda to channel elemental magic. At seven, he was taught how to sense magic using his compass. By nine, he could speak fluent Mandarin, English, and Japanese (though admittedly the kanji gave him some trouble as his brain would see it in his native tongue first). And when he was sent to Japan by his mother to find the Clow Cards at the age of ten, he felt more than ready to take on the task of retrieving his family's legacy.

When he first arrived in Tomoeda, Syaoran wasn't originally bothered by the fact that there was someone else trying to collect the Clow Cards. In fact, it actually intrigued him. He had known no other magic users other than his mother, so it would be interesting to see how he stacked against someone else. But when he watched from the rooftop at the person using the pink staff to capture the Silent card, he wasn't that impressed. Syaoran dedicated his young life to honing his magic while this girl looked like she was having fun, dressing up in a weird costume and struggling to capture such a simple card. It galled him. Why should this girl be allowed to handle his family's legacy?

That's why Syaoran demanded the Clow Cards from Sakura. There was no reason why she should refuse. They were his family's, not hers. Plus, he'd be doing her a favor. She could get back to her normal life while he did the hard work and return the rest of the Cards in the book. But she refused. She actually refused.

Fine then.

If she wasn't going to give up the cards under her own volition, then he was going to prove that he was the better magic user.

At least, that was the plan. But the more Syaoran helped Sakura to return Clow's powers into card form, the more he began to respect her. Sure, she never had the training he had but she made up for it enthusiasm and determination. The more he spent time with her, the more he started to change. Instead of being prideful that he was knowledgeable in certain magical areas, he started to give her advice on how to better herself. He would help her out on occasions and even encourage her when she was frightened (like what happened with the Erase Card).

Soon after, Syaoran's pride had disappeared for the most part. Instead, it had been replaced with something else. Soon, whenever he was in Sakura's presence, he found himself tongue-tied. When she smiled at him, his face burst into flames. When she grabbed his hand, his brain would shut down. All of his confidence was gone, replaced with something he had never felt before.

Shyness

It wasn't helped by the fact that there was a new kid in school, vying for Sakura's attention. That Hiiragizawa made him angry. He could easily talk to Sakura whereas Syaoran could rarely form coherent thoughts when her earnest attention was on him. It also didn't help that Sakura was still pining for Yukito.

It wasn't until all the Clow Cards had transformed that he was able to (mostly) overcome his shyness and confess his feelings to Sakura. Syaoran knew that it wasn't fair to her that he was confessing as he was packing to return home but he wanted her to know his feelings before he left, even if that meant that he wouldn't see her again. He would have thought that she would return his feelings. When Syaoran received tthe bear, no words could describe how he felt. But if he had to choose one, it would be complete. It was as if he never knew that he was half a person until Sakura. Now he was whole.

it was painful to leave Sakura now that she returned his feelings. But he took comfort in the fact that she promised to wait for him. Until then, Syaoran had to be satisfied with calls and letters.

You would think that confessing his feelings for Sakura would make his shyness go away, and while there was significant improvement, there were times he would become tongue-tied. Like their date to the aquarium. After the confrontation with her brother, Syaoran wanted to ask her something but as he stared into her green eyes, but the words refused to leave his mouth. Sadly all thoughts of returning to the question were quashed when the Clear Card appeared and she disappeared in a torrent of water.

As Sakura's magic grew, Syaoran couldn't help but worry. His mother told him that excessive power can lead to unhappiness . Her magic outstripped his by leaps and bounds. He found it hard to catch up. A part of him wanted to tell Sakura about her growing magical powers but he couldn't bring himself to do so. He knew that she would internalize her failure to keep her magic in check. More than anything, he wanted her to be happy. It hurt to keep this secret. But for the girl who was his number one favorite person, he would do anything.

He would not let her be unhappy.


And that's the end of this chapter. I have to admit that I'm not as proud of this chapter as the previous two.

Liked it? Hated it? Have no opinion one way or the other? Leave me a review. I'd love to hear from you.

Until next time,

A. Angel