AN: I'm so sorry for the long absence. Looks like my university work got on top of me! Final year so it's been all hands to the deck. Here is the next instalment of recoil!

Chapter Eight

Her head ached slightly as her eyes flickered open in the softly lit room. Squeezing her eyes shut before opening them finally, she adjusted to her surroundings. The room, at the mansion she was now trapped in.

Last night.

She brought her hands to her face as she considered what had transpired last night, the events with Samaya and then Li.

His lips against hers, the musky smell of cedar wood and alcohol still invading her senses.

A hand came to her lips as she ran fingers across her peachy pout, suddenly feeling ashamed of what had happened. What had possessed them to kiss so? The alcohol? It was sure that she was little the experienced drinker, in fact, her head felt slightly sore. How strong was that stuff? How was she supposed to face him? Had she enjoyed it?

She mentally slapped herself, considering the situation she had found herself in. It dawned on her, once more, how her life had changed in this strange string of events. She had been chased, nearly killed, broken laws, nearly been sexually assaulted and now was becoming some promiscuous young thing fraternizing with gang leaders? When did she mess up so badly?

Suddenly it became hard to breathe, the enormity of the situation falling upon her shoulders like a lead weight. She had been submersed too soon, too fast, a situation too hard to handle. Hard and fast she had fallen into a world she should never be involved in. Guns, crime, men. The realisation now that she missed her house, no doubt the emptiness that would greet her when she came back without Layla's merry smile and homemade foods, but it was worth being lonely to escape this world before she became immersed into this. Before she became one of those girls hanging about gang run clubs, nothing but a cheap whore. She wanted out. She suddenly craved the normality of her life, the mundane weeks that would follow. She wanted her education, her house, her life- back. Nothing was going to stop her, because she certainly could not handle the uncertainties that she felt in this house, especially after last night.

"Tomoyo?"

"Sakura! You're out of bed! You should still be resting!"

Her mouth curved into a crooked grin as her friend addressed her, concern falling into her amethyst eyes. She looked around the room, similar to the one she'd been in. A couple of pairs of clothes were folded neatly in a pile, including her school uniform which appeared to have been repaired from whatever the crash would have inflicted upon it.

"Sit! Sit!" She was ushered to the bed, sitting down with a soft sigh as she turned to her friend, checking the door was shut.

"We need to talk."

"I know we do. What's the matter?"

"I want to go home Tomoyo. I can't stay here. I don't want to be involved in this any further, I can't face it. I don't want this life Tomoyo, it isn't suited to us. We shouldn't be hanging around with these people." Her voice slanted off to a whisper as she finished, searching the face of her friend for any hint of surprise, and found none.

"They've been good to us, Sakura, especially you and Rika. We shouldn't disrespect their hospitality… But I know what you are saying. How are we expected to leave though? You heard them yesterday; Li is the one giving the all clear for us when we can leave."

She flushed at the mention of his name, trying to ignore the slightly faster beating of her heart and the thought of last night. Why did she suddenly wish to leave? Because she was embarrassed? She sure felt she'd made a fool of herself last night, arguing with him, drinking with him… Kissing him. Then fleeing as fast as she could, which wasn't honestly very fast, after it was over with a squeaky goodnight and a burning face.

However, deep down she knew why she wanted to leave. She had enjoyed the kiss, but she didn't want to be involved with Li. He was cruel, obviously, and with a fire in her stomach she remembered how he had said they should've been left in the car wreckage. Left. To die. Why was he so incumbent on having a multiple personality? He didn't care; probably thought it was some big joke that he could have his way with her like gang people did. Got what they wanted, then left them out to dry. She was sure she knew how it worked.

"I don't think he will care Tomoyo. He made that clear before."

"What can we do? Rika came around in the early hours today, she seems alright. We need to leave together, the best I can think is that we should go tonight, let her gather a little strength. Perhaps we should stay together for a few days, if we do leave…"

Reasonable Tomoyo was the one Sakura liked the most, which was most of the time, and she was grateful for it at such a moment as she felt like she was having an internal breakdown.

"Then we leave tonight. I can call a doctor to come see her when we get home. We'll go to my house, there's just going to be me rattling around like some old spinster anyway." She giggled, and felt for the first time in days slightly free, almost giddy. She was going home.

"Just one problem…"

She looked at Tomoyo in confusion, eyebrow raised.

"Who's going to tell Li?"

"Eriol is it?" Her voice was timid, meek, and she was sure she looked like a child about to tell their mother they'd broken some priceless vase.

The man in front of her smiled, coming round to pull a chair out from under the table for her to sit on. He had a kind face, eyes that sparkled with almost unnerving wisdom.

"Sakura, how are you feeling? I am afraid I haven't had much update on your condition."

She smiled, launching into a quick rundown of how she was feeling so much better than previously, that her arm and legs were feeling in almost perfect working order. Half a lie, but hopefully it would aid her case.

"I'm glad, however, there's a reason you came to talk to me isn't there?"

She was startled, but she should have known that he would be aware she had come for a reason. She'd made it downstairs to the kitchen and had been elated to find him there. Tomoyo had said he was the most reasonable person to talk to, and with his question she was surprised to find no hint of mockery or harshness, just genuine intrigue. She had a feeling though that he already knew why she was there.

"Look… It's not… It's not you guys, you've all been really nice to us and took proper care of us, which of course if I could repay you for I would… It's just that we miss our home… This, this, it isn't… It's not what I'm used to, any of us are used to, and-"

He held a hand in the air, effectively silencing her with a wry smile.

"You sound like you're about to perform the worst break up in history. You want to go home, I understand that. I'm not offended; I don't want you to feel uncomfortable here. I have to ask Li, but I'm sure he will let you go."

Easier than I thought.

"Thank you, you don't know how much this means to us."

"You'll have your answer in an hour. I'll go talk to Li now."

She got up to leave, smiling at him jovially and felt a bubble of happiness well in her stomach as she began to leave.

"Sakura?"

She turned, an eyebrow raised.

"Just so you know, it's all been for your safety. It's a cruel world out there, and I'd hate to think by your association with us and by extension your leaving here would do you all any harm. I may not be as suspicious of people as Li, or as hard faced, but I know he was trying to keep you all safe. Don't get into any trouble if he lets you leave."

A sequence of knocks occurred at the door and instantly he knew who it was. When Eriol bothered on the off occasion, he had a certain knock that he had used to annoy him since childhood.

"I don't know why you bother knocking, because you certainly won't piss off if I say to."

He waltzed in, like a showman entering the stage, shutting the door with a flamboyant twirl and throwing himself into a chair, never taking his eyes from Syaoran.

"Well?"

"No drink? No offering of hospitality here?"

"Shove off, what do you want?"

In truth, he wasn't up for Eriol's games today. He had woken in the morning like a bear with a sore head, thoughts of a certain emerald eyed beauty plaguing his mind and how she had left last night. What had possessed him to kiss her, he wasn't sure. No, it wasn't even that which bothered him the most; the fact was that she had let him and then shied off like the little girl she evidently was. He didn't do things like that; he wasn't into the whole romancing girls. He'd had his share of the female population, he thought with a grimace, but he wasn't one for kissing in quiet rooms and starting out slow. Not for a long time he wasn't. Females had always been used as a means to make an end, and for nothing more. Usually, they liked that, which was the type of girl he'd been with. But her, no, she felt different. Why was he even thinking about this?

"Earth?"

"What?!"

"So, Sakura and the girls, they want to leave."

His eyes shot up from the piece of paper he'd been looking at to see Eriol studying him with a faraway expression.

"How do you know? What's been said?"

"Sakura came to me. Rika's awake, she's feeling better, and they want to go home. Basically forget this whole episode."

For some reason unbeknown to him, he felt anger boil through his veins. Clenching his fists slightly, he kept his demeanour cold. How dare she? Partake in whatever last night was and then run away? Embarrassment? Regret? One thing he was aware of, what this definitely was, was rejection.

Li Syaoran did not get rejected. He was not treated this way by women, and his mind became cloudy as he considered her. Running away, like the child she was. Silly little schoolgirl. Suddenly he felt not only anger, but regret at his own actions from last night. He had kissed her, not taken it further, let her weave her way in to run away and attempt to mess with his head. Good riddance.

"Let them go."

Eriol looked surprised, his eyebrows depressed into his face as he looked to his relative across the desk.

"Do you consider it a good idea? Syaoran, look what happened last time!"

"I didn't expect such a rebuttal from you Eriol. They are of no use to us; we are certainly of no use to them. Let them get back to normal life, I'm sure they'll leave them alone when they realise we have no need for an association with them. Now go, we have a meeting tonight, make sure they're gone."

Sakura smiled to herself as Tomoyo walked into the room, a large bowl of popcorn held in her hands before setting it down on the table to be promptly snatched into Sakura's lap. Rika giggled at the exchange, stretching out like a cat on the sofa next to hers.

They had been at her home for two hours, having been freed from Li's. Sakura had spent a few moments considering what Li's reaction would have been upon finding out they wanted to leave. Probably was happy about it.

Why had he been plaguing her mind all day? She had neither seen nor heard him, seldom heard him mentioned as Eriol wished them well as they left and another member dropped them at her house. She had at least, somewhere, expected him to say goodbye. But then again, what was that to expect? Should she fathom that he would wish her well, say goodbye?

She sighed and looked to the television, watching the film with her friends and listening to their giggles. After a while, the film which she was almost a hundred per cent sure they had seen a thousand times over became boring to her. She tuned out almost instinctively, and appreciated just being at her home.

"Guys.."

"Hmm?" Simultaneously her and Tomoyo answered Rika, looking toward her. She was staring up at the ceiling with a furrowed brow, contemplating something.

"What happens now?"

"We go back to normal." Tomoyo was fast as a whippet in her answer, a firm voice coming from Sakura's right where she sat.

"Do you think we'll ever see them again? Do you think we'll have any trouble?"

Her voice was small, childlike and fragile as the words hung in the air for a moment. Sakura looked to Tomoyo, who was also watching her with interest. She waited, hoping Tomoyo would answer instead of her. In all honesty, she had pondered the thought herself; especially of after their association last time had left them in such a mess.

"No, I don't think we will. In answer to both of your questions. We have nothing of use to them, any of them; things can just go back to normal."

She watched as Rika smiled slightly before expelling a deep breath.

"In a weird way, it felt like an adventure. A surreal, scary adventure, but I guess I feel like it was kind of … fun."

Sakura snorted, laughing at her friend.

"If you think nearly getting killed is fun!"

A sombre silence enveloped them, each lost in their own quiet contemplation of what had occurred over the past few days. Hopefully, things would return to how they used to be.

Two weeks later…

Sakura smiled to herself as she picked the dressing gown off the rack, the fluffy pink material feeling like sheer heaven in her hands. Picking it up, she walked over to the cashier, producing her card and paying before leaving the store.

The sun was shining, a slight breeze in the air as she walked around the outdoor shopping complex. She felt free again; her life had returned to its former normality and she was relishing in it. The first week she had felt constantly on edge, and it had not escaped her that her friends felt the same. Now, after a week and a half of looking over her shoulder, the past couple of days had allowed her to submerge herself back into the mundane repetition of her life that she now enjoyed. Rika and she were healing well, Rika being back to her normal self. Sakura had been able to drive again since two days ago, with the nod from her private healthcare provider that she just had to take it easy before throwing herself back into sports and the like. She felt free.

Crossing the street, she entered another store, looking for some new bath bubbles as she hummed to herself. A night of pampering with the girls was her future for tonight, a simple Friday of relaxation after their return to school. The school had been sombre and quiet since, the toll of the events that had shattered the routine of their education still fresh in many minds. Sakura however had vowed to put it to the back of her mind, in a place she would keep locked with the fresh memories that had occurred surrounding the event.

Walking through the aisles of glittering liquids and gossamer balls of bath bombs, she halted to browse when a chill ran down her spine. She turned around, looking for the source of her bodies' discomfort. The only presence near her was a man two aisles away, looking at what appeared to me some moisturiser. Men these days. She rolled her eyes and continued browsing, setting her discomfort down to repercussions of remembering.

Picking up her chosen item, she left the store, now setting about the next shop; a bakery a few shops further down. The pink and yellow sign danced in the sunlight as she entered with a tinkle of the bell, picking up some cupcakes with rosy frosting before setting on her way.

She had walked to the shops, something about getting her leg feeling better that the doctor had recommended. It also stopped her driving, which she was still slightly uncomfortable with doing still, maybe it was the memories of what had happened in the car chase, maybe it was her leg. She sighed, realising she was reminiscing again and carried on.

It was another three streets away, eight streets from her house that she realised her legs had begun to ache. Maybe traipsing around shops as well as walking to and fro was not a good idea. She also realised, as she became more attuned into her surroundings, that she was tense. Her body was telling her something once more.

Looking around her carefully, feigning interest in checking her bag for something, she raised her eyes to see what was wrong. Something felt out of place.

Her eyes honed in on a man walking quite a distance behind her, but she recognised him. The moisturiser man! She realised the chill in her spine from the store may not have been so misplaced. Could he be following her? Perhaps he was just going to the same place?

Searching with her eyes for another path, she saw a seldom used street that would cut across two of those that she needed. It was lined with homes, a little pathway at the end. She turned down it, checking in her bag for her telephone as she walked, keeping one eye trained behind her as she did so. Without missing a beat, the man walked the very same path as she did eyes down to the ground.

Was she being paranoid? She was not sure, but she quickened her step just the same. She carried on, holding her phone in her palm as she sent a text to Tomoyo asking her to have the gates open for when she arrived.

Two streets away from her house she could still feel his presence. She needn't turn around any longer; she knew he was there. She could hear his footsteps faintly now, closer than before as she turned the last corner down the large sweeping street that came into view. Few houses were along the street, each plot as large as the next with long sweeping drives before the house would even come into view. Stepping faster still, she could faintly see the pillars of her gates as she approached.

"Hey! You! You left something at the store!"

Sakura's heart hammered in her chest, knowing that the man was speaking to her. She did not turn around.

"Sorry must have the wrong person!"

"Hey! I'm talking to you! You ignorant bitch!"

She was shocked at his manner, the words sliding out of his mouth cruelly and she suddenly knew how much deep crap she was in.

"If I'd left something at the store I'm sure it wouldn't have taken you until my street to tell me that!"

She shouted to the wind, quickening her pace into a power walk as she did so, before she heard his footsteps falling hard to the ground behind her, closer. Running.

Feeling her legs ache beneath her, she hazarded a glance behind as she saw the man running up behind her as she pelted as fast as she could, bags hitting against her body as she neared the gate.

"Come back here!"

She screamed as she felt him near, her lungs tearing into pieces as she attempted to run and supress her fear. The pillars were in view, gates open, and she steeled herself to run a little faster, to pull away. Mentally, her mind drove her forward and spurned her on, to succeed.

Finally finding her way through the gates, she slapped her hand harshly against the switch on the gates, watching with baited breath as it closed, inch by inch… He was going to make it through…

She heard him panting as he rounded toward it, just as the gap closed just small enough to dismiss him getting through, the high gates closing and drawing a line between them as she backed up, never turning her back and refusing to break eye contact with this man… Whoever he was.

"You… Who are you…?" Her breath came out in heavy puffs as she stepped backwards, he couldn't get to her now.

"Just came to see you… Princess."

His mouth curved into a crooked smile and she suddenly realised how foul looking this creature was in front of her. His teeth were jagged and oversized for his thin lipped mouth, a pointy face and two beady eyes sallow set into his tanned face. Dark hair, which looked as though it hadn't been cleaned in a good month or two finished off his creepy demeanour.

"I don't know you, we've never met… I don't know you, what do you want with me?!"

She was becoming hysterical, having halted her steps with a sudden surge of thirst for knowledge.

"To send you some regards, Sakura."

Her chest stopped, she was sure. Her hearts hammering in her chest had surely ceased to beat as she felt her attention wane from reality. Her mind clouded… Had he just said her name?

He laughed, cutting through the enveloping silence. A cruel, sinister guffaw that only existed in horror movies and possibly psychiatric wards, which was ringing in her ears now as she studied him, cold sweat beginning to drip down her back. She never did like horror movies.

"Sending you a gift, princess. With regards, from the boss man himself."

He produced something from the bag at his side and instinctively she ducked, causing him to laugh even more. Plucking out a box, he bent and slid it under the slight gap under the fencing before blowing her a kiss and stalking off.

What the hell? What the actual hell?

She stood still, infuriated and scared. The boss man himself? Gift? She stared at the package on the floor. Was it a bomb? Doubtful, he wouldn't have kept it so close if it was. So what was it?

Looking around, she dared walk to the gate and peer through. True enough, the man had gone; the street was silent and still in the daylight as if the altercation did not occur. Stepping back and to the side, she examined the package. A brown box, medium size, simple. Nothing special. She looked around, as if waiting for something. Would she open it?

Her heart hammered once more as she kicked the lid of the box from the top and peered over. At least it didn't explode.

Looking down, she could see some pink tissue paper with a jar laid in the centre. With sudden curiosity, she reached down and picked it up, nearly dropping it as she did so.

"What are we going to do?" Tomoyo's voice was loud, shrieking in her ear. In fact, she hadn't stopped shrieking since Sakura had entered the house and recanted the events of the day to her before producing the offending item that sat on the table.

"Is it poisonous?" She asked, peering into the glass and tapping softly on it.

"Probably! Don't let it out! Oh gosh Sakura I thought we were going to be okay… We're not okay… They're coming for us! How did this happen?!"

Sakura leafed through the other item from the box. Under the jar, had sat some perfectly replicated identity cards. Sakura felt sick to her stomach looking at them; copies of their identification. Rika, Naoko, Chiharu, Tomoyo… Her. These people knew who they were, where they lived… And they obviously had grief with them.

The small animal in the jar hissed and poked out its tongue, meeting only glass due to the cramped conditions it was residing in.

Inside the jar, only tiny but almost certainly vicious, sat a tiny black snake, curled around the bottom of the jar and poking its head toward her. Taped to the inside of the jar was a note in small, neat handwriting.

A snake is a very clever thing

But tormentors should be cautious of its sting

You'll be wishing you never meddled in my plans.

Goodbye, Cherry.

AN: Quite a long one as I felt super bad. R & R guys! I bashed this out quite fast but it's me trying to move things along! Thanks & see you soon!