Legend:
Italics- thoughts
""- Words being spoken
------- —change of POV
Bold Italic- flashback
Asterisk () – censorship of er (sweatdrop)—words that require mature audiences only...
Chapter two: The day after yesterday
Pure Poison
Sakura awakened with a start.
'What the—?' Sonomi was busy preparing breakfast.
"Hurry up, Sakura, glad you are awake...best be up, school's gonna be in an hour..."
"Hai, auntie..."
Sakura's eyes were red from crying the previous night, and Tomoyo can't help but stare at her curiously.
"Sakura, whatever happened to your eyes?"
"Ummm—sore eyes, yes, that's it, Tomoyo, it's sore eyes!"
Sonomi cleared her throat loudly.
"Ahem! I believe, Sakura, that I had made myself clear yesterday... Looks like somebody wasn't listening last night...and it isn't me, Sakura...I wonder who it is, then..."
Sakura reddened in embarrassment.
"Oh, gomen ne, Auntie..." She raised her hands in frustration.
"Alright...I cried last night! Happy...?"
Sonomi smiled joyfully.
"That's my girl! Now you better go to school, or you'll be late..."
Sakura didn't even bother to wash and hurried up to school, with Tomoyo following her uneasily.
They dashed towards the gates, now nearly empty, when the guard stopped them. He gestured towards a paper pasted on the wall.
Sakura stared avidly at the paper, and then read the paper, which turned out to be a national ordinance issued by the Crowned Prince.
Sakura groaned inwardly.
This doesn't look good...Dammit!
"An Ordinance issued by Prince Syaoran to all of Japan," Sakura read loudly.
"That states that all students who attend school shall be in decent clothing. If otherwise, they are expected to drop school sooner or later, for no such rag-clothed kid could enter any school grounds." Sakura stared unbelievingly at the ordinance, then muttered loudly,
"Oh, shit..." Causing everyone to stare at the girl, who blushed crimson.
At that moment, their teacher, Mr. Terada, stepped out of the gates.
"Hello, girls..." He muttered gravely. "I see you've read the new laws..."
Sakura nodded, her eyes nearly betraying her.
"Sir, we ought to go now..." She said sadly.
"No, not yet, I have here..." He pulled out an old but respectable blouse with a skirt, and handed them over.
"I am sorry that I only have these clothes to share you. W-ell, I guess that one of you has to give way..."
Sakura immediately stepped back.
"You take it, Tomoyo. I'd go back to Aunt Sonomi to help her find a job."
"B-but, Sakura..."
"No buts, Tomoyo, just do as I tell you. Ciao!" Sakura said before running away.
Tomoyo stared at the gate for awhile, then changed her clothes in a nearby booth.
Sakura's eyes were streaming with tears. She ran fast, but stopped when she thought of visiting her brother in jail. She cried a lot more when she remembered that day...
Touya came bursting to their door.
"Oniichan, why are you running? Did you get us any food?" Sakura, then 13, asked anxiously to her brother. Touya didn't answer... instead he...
Touya looked around and several officers were after him.
All went blurred after that. The officers explained to Sakura that her brother was caught stealing food, in the most uncompassionate manner. Then Touya tried to get himself free, but to no avail. Sakura watched helplessly as her brother was forcefully led out of their own house.
Several months after the incident, Sakura lost all her father's possessions and was forced to move in with her then struggling Aunt Sonomi. Weeks later, though, taxes went up to such a large amount that Sonomi can no longer afford to keep the rather large house. They settled upon that place that was recently burned to ashes.
Sakura kept running that she didn't see the Royal Coach approaching the school.
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Syaoran stared dully outside the window. Whimsy little kids, fing bastards, dim-witted students, stupid men and women and flirty sluts, whores, bitches and prostitutes (A/N: This is Syaoran's way of calling his commoners and peasants...) were bowing on their way, but he merely ignored them.
Stupid kids...and sluts! Evils of the society! He thought angrily.
Why do I always have to put up with them? He added sarcastically.
His eyes were caught, yet again, by the same girl from the previous night, the one who had made last night sleepless. She was running fast, and her eyes were gleaming with tears. She ran towards the town jail and was soon out of sight.
Oh, well...
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Eriol can't help but wonder what Syaoran was staring at. He smirked slightly when he saw that his brother was staring at the same girl yesterday.
He fell in love with a Cinderella, eh? Let's just see about that...
Then he remembered that he had the same case, with the amethyst-eyed girl.
Oh, yeah... Eriol stopped is thoughts abruptly and tried to get some peace of mind.
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Sakura dried her tears immediately after entering the jail's door.
"Ohayou Gozaimasu," She greeted the jail guard nervously.
"Ohayou," he said disinterestedly.
"I am here to see my brother, Kinomoto Touya."
"Okay, cell no. 7, he's with a certain Yukito."
"Yukito what?" She asked interestedly.
The guard, obviously annoyed, answered sharply.
"Just Yukito! Are you going in or not?" He shouted loudly.
"O-Okay, sir, it's just that I don't know any Yukito..."
The guard didn't listen, and repeated his question.
"Are you coming or not?"
Sakura nodded before searching for cell no. 7. It turned out to be in the farthest side of the corridor she was in.
"Oniichan, this is Sakura..."
There was crashing inside the cells, and she heard her brother's familiar tone.
"Sakura? Is that really you?"
"What was that?" She asked, abashed.
"Oh, I broke the cup I brought here with me...I was kinda surprised, yah know..."
"Oh, gomen about that..."
"Sakura... are you Touya's sister?" a voice spoke behind Touya.
Touya cleared his throat. "Yes, Yukito... Sakura, by the way, this is Yukito..."
Sakura looked at the silver-haired man that was her brother's inmate.
"Oh, what is your case, Yukito-san?"
Touya answered grimly. "Just like me...everyone here is here because of empty stomachs." He said rather bitterly.
"Oh..."
"Yes, Sakura... 'Oh.' We have no future in this damned country." His fists were clenched in controlled anger.
Sakura didn't answer.
"Anyway, why aren't you in school?"
Sakura told her brother about the new rule.
"Damn that good-for-nothing sonofabitch! Was it not enough that he ruined our lives? Why did he have to ruin our dream?"
"And that's not all, brother..." She told him about the burning of her aunt's home.
"Fucking bastard! He's got hell to pay for...Fuck!"
Sakura grimaced at her brother's words.
" Go wash your mouth, brother."
"Sorry about that! I can't help it...he's no fit to be a prince..."
Sakura sighed. "But unfortunately, he is, so I think we should bear with him..."
"No thanks, I'd rather spend my lifetime here if that bastard is gonna rule our place off." Touya muttered coldly, stubbornly to Sakura before turning his back on her.
"Suit yourself..." She said just as coldly.
There was an awkward pause.
"Well, if that's all, I'll be going. Bye, Yukito, some people just can't understand. So hard-headed and stubborn to the point of stupidity." She shouted before starting to walk away.
"Hey!" Touya shouted behind her. She turned abruptly.
"Yes? Had I knocked some sense to your depressed thoughts?" She muttered drastically, rather sarcastic.
"Ha-ha, very funny. Watch your tone on me, young lady. I'm still your big brother, Sakura."
"Well, you're not acting like one."
"Brat!"
"Who's being brat now?" she challenged.
Yukito stopped them. "Stop your bickering, you two, you just met and all you do is squabble with each other."
They both stopped.
"Alright. I just wanted to give you this. Father left it in my possession, just before—before the incident that caused his death. It's once mother's."
She smiled before taking the suitcase.
"I checked on that, I think you can go to school, or go elsewhere...there's money beneath the dresses. Ciao, Sakura." He said before turning away.
Yukito smiled at her.
"Let him be, he's just feeling—you know, awkward, embarrassed, talking to you... he kinda misses you, to be honest. He barely shuts up about you when we are alone..."
"Yukito!" Shouted Touya, going red in the face.
Sakura sniggered, before turning away and saying thank you.
Maybe the day isn't a waste after all... She thought while running towards the corner that they currently consider home.
A/N: So how was it? Was it boring... cute perhaps? How about 'good enough'? Ha-Ha...I'm so mean, so busy, perhaps... I just love writing! Bye guys, till next chappy! I have loads of other stories for SS pairings... See "My Husband's Wedding," okay?