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

To all those who read the last chapter, thank you.

Here's chapter six.


Chapter 6: Lotus

In Japanese, the lotus represents being far from the one you love.

When Sakura first opened her eyes, she found that a formless nothing surrounded her. It's hard to explain what she felt. She was neither comforted nor uneasy where she was.

"Where am I," she asked herself.

As if to answer her question, glass shards started coming towards her. Sakura put up her hands to protect herself. However, the glass avoided her completely. Instead, it surrounded her. Slowly and surely, she found herself enveloped in the glass as it made a cylindrical tube around her. Sakura placed her hand on the glass and found that it was both solid and cold to the touch.

"What's going on?"

The closer she got towards the end, the clearer she could see her reflection in the glass. What she saw shocked her. It was both Sakura and not Sakura at the same time. The Sakura that was staring back in her reflection was older and taller than she was in the real world. She was wearing a white silk-like dress adorned with a gold necklace. This Sakura looked like a sort of princess.

"Am I dreaming?"

She felt like she was dreaming but this was different than any other dream she has had. Was this one of her prophetic dreams, premonitions of a future that lies ahead? Or was this a simple dream born of her imagination. Either way, this was starting to unnerve her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw more glass shards forming outside of her own tube. It formed a connecting tube beside her. She wondered what this could mean. And then, meaning didn't matter anymore when she saw what was in the tube next to hers. Or rather, who was in the tube.

"Syaoran-kun?"

Indeed, the person in the other tube looked like Syaoran-kun. He had the same chestnut hair and amber eyes. But just like her, he was taller and looked older. This Syaoran looked more like a traveler than the Syaoran she knew. He was wearing some tattered green cloak, black shirt, and white trousers.

It would have been nice to know that there was a familiar face in her dream but something about this dream was unnerving her. The Syaoran in the other tube started banging on the dividing barrier keeping them apart. But no matter how hard he hit it, it didn't break. She could almost make out him saying her name, but no sound reached her.

Suddenly, she could feel a wetness on her cheek. Touching it, she found that she was crying. Why was she crying? Why did she feel this immense sadness?

"Syaoran-kun? Syaoran-kun? Can you hear me?"

Sakura pressed her hands to the divider. Syaoran did the same. Neither of them could feel the other. Despair permeated her entire body. Why was this happening? Why couldn't she go to Syaoran?


Sakura woke up with a start. No longer was she in that glass tube. Instead, she was in her room, sleeping in her bed. Kero-chan was next to her, sleeping in his bed. She went to her mirror and was a bit relieved that the reflection staring back at her was her own familiar one.

"What was that dream," she thought aloud. "Was it a prophetic dream?"

Just thinking about the dream made her sad. Being separated from Syaoran, even as he was so close to her, frightened Sakura.

Sakura looked at the clock. It read 12:10. She had another seven more hours before she had to wake up for the day. But a part of her didn't want to go back to sleep. She was worried she would dream that same thing again.

"I have to tell someone."

She considered waking up Kero-chan but she thought better of it. Kero-chan may not know the answer and it would cause unnecessary worry. She thought about calling Tomoyo-chan but she was most likely asleep. Sakura didn't want to wake her either. Then there was Syaoran-kun. But she dismissed him as well for the same reasons.

The sound of her phone buzzing broke her out of her thoughts. She went over to check why it buzzed. There was a message from Syaoran-kun.

Are you okay?

"Does he know I'm awake?" Sakura began typing a message of her own.

I had a bad dream.

Sakura waited for the reply.

Do you want to talk about it?

She really did want to tell someone, but Sakura didn't want to burden him with her problems. On the other hand, the green-eyed girl has been telling Syaoran that he shouldn't keep his problems to himself, to let her know if he was struggling. It would make her a hypocrite if she didn't take her own advice.

Can we meet up?

Sakura wanted to meet Syaoran in person, in part because she didn't want to wake up the other occupants in the house but mostly because she needed to see that he was okay.

Penguin Park. Meet you in 10 mins.

Sakura nodded and got dressed.

When Sakura arrived at Penguin Park, she found Syaoran sitting on one of the benches, staring at the starry sky. A wave of relief washed over her. This was the same Syaoran-kun that she knew, not the taller, older one.

"Syaoran-kun," She called softly to him.

Syaoran turned around and smiled. He made a motion for her to sit next to him. She took his offer gladly.

"Tell me about your dream," he asked.

Sakura told him everything. She told him about the older Sakura that she felt and became, being trapped in a glass tube, seeing an older Syaoran on the other side of the tube, and being unable to reach out to him. Syaoran said nothing, absorbing what she had said without speaking. After she was done, he looked up into the night sky.

"I had the same dream."

The admission floored Sakura. "Really?"

Syaoran nodded. "I dreamed that I was an older me, unable to reach an older you. And no matter how much I hit the glass, I couldn't reach you."

Sakura looked down at her shoes, unable to process this revelation.

"When I woke up, I wondered if you had the same dream. That's when I texted you." Syaoran placed a comforting hand on Sakura's shoulder.

Sakura took a deep breath. "Is this a prophetic dream?"

"I don't think so," Syaoran admitted. "At least, none that I've had."

Sakura unconsciously scooched closer to Syaoran, reveling in his comforting warmth.

"I have an idea what it might be." Syaoran looked into Sakura's eyes, as if trying to ascertain that he wasn't dreaming. "Mother once told me that there are other different worlds than this one. People can be born in one world with one set of experiences and live in other worlds with different experiences. The souls stay the same though."

Sakura nodded. "Then I hope all the Sakuras in the different worlds find all of the Syaoran-kuns of the different worlds." The admission made her blush but it was the truth.

Syaoran smiled and intertwined his hand with hers. "Me too."

They stood in a comfortable silence, basking in each other's presence.

Sakura was the first to break the silence. "Do you think it's possible that the Sakura and Syaoran-kum in our dreams are suffering?"

Syaoran gave the idea some thought. "It's possible."

"Then we have to help them." There was resolution in her voice. "There must be a way."

Syaoran wasn't sure that was possible. It takes extremely high levels of magic to affect other dimensions. He didn't want to get Sakura's hope up only to fail. But when he looked into her green eyes filled with determination, Syaoran started to believe that she could really do it. Her magic was getting stronger. Maybe the two of then working together could help the Sakura and Syaoran in the glass tube.

"Perhaps we can if we put our minds together."

Sakura smiled and leaned her head into Syaoran's shoulder. "Then let's start tomorrow."

Syaoran leaned his head onto hers, agreeing to help.

Both of them knew that they should probably return to bed. And soon, they would. But for right now, Sakura and Syaoran needed to feel the other's warmth, to know that they weren't far from the one they loved.


And that's the end of that chapter.

This was the chapter I was most excited to write. My favorite manga is Tsubasa Chronicles and I've been meaning to make a story for it. Thus this idea sprang. In chapter 216 or 17 of the TRC manga, Sakura Kinomoto means her alternate self Sakura Li and gives her the Star Wand. This is my little headcanon on how Sakura came to decision to do this.

Anyway, 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