"" = talking, '' = thinking. Please review. Thank you.
For Syaoran, the rest of the battle passed in a blur. He was vaguely aware that Ryuu had protected him while Sakura tried to keep him awake. But most of his attention was on the fact that his limbs felt like lead, he could barely breathe, and the sticky wet stuff he was lying in was his own blood.
While he was in a daze, the others continued fighting, Syaoran's friends trying to get to him. Kurogane suddenly looked up to see what appeared to be a flying castle. "What the hell? How can there be a flying castle?!"
The soldiers seemed to have the same thoughts and panicked, retreating frantically and without order, dragging Aguni's dying body with them away from her lost fight with Yasha.
"Grandajra, the flying castle of Lady Kendappa." Soma explained. "She's like Lord Yasha's sister even though they have no true relation. She is also my master." The last was said with a hint of pride.
"But why here? Is she on your side?" Kurogane asked turning to Soma.
"Yes. No doubt she's come to help us. But she's risking a lot doing so. Come, we must get inside before the army comes back."
"How are we gonna do that" Mokona asked from Sakura's shoulder. "Especially with Syaoran this hurt!" Its ears were drooping, but when a thought occurred to it, its ears perked up. "Are we gonna get beamed up like the aliens on Yuuko's picture box?"
"Aliens?" Ryuu's face just exuded an almost comic look of confusion from his place standing next to Sakura. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"No." Soma answered Mokona, ignoring Ryuu's question. "Grandajra will land and we can go aboard. It's controlled by Lady Kendappa's will."
Sure enough, the castle slowly descended near where they were, crushing trees like twigs. Kurogane carefully picked up Syaoran, with a softened glance at Sakura, and followed Soma, Yasha, Karura and Fai into the castle. Sakura clutched Mokona to her and fought back tears, the image of Syaoran's bloody body still in her mind. She jumped at the touch of a small hand on her elbow. She looked down to see Ashura.
"Don't worry. He's strong; he'll survive." Ashura's tone was reassuring.
"How do you know? Are you sure?" Sakura asked, almost too quietly to be heard.
"Because he is strong, and he won't die because of me, or anyone else." He smiled at her, took her hand and led her into the castle with Ryuu walking casually behind.
Inside, Soma led the others to Lady Kendappa's throne room and Kurogane's jaw dropped. Sitting on a cushy chair was a pale woman with black hair, shining blue eyes and a gold hair ornament. She wore blue pants and shawl over a white shirt. In her hand was a large curved harp.
"Empress Ameterasu?! What… why...you… oh forget it!" Kurogane was flustered and finally forced himself to shut up. Fai and Karura stared at him while Yasha studiously ignored him and walked up to Kendappa, trying very hard to explain the situation. Soma, meanwhile, motioned Kurogane to follow her to a large bedroom and lay Syaoran on the bed. Without saying a word, she shooed him back out while she tended Syaoran.
Back in the throne room, Kurogane walked in just in time to see Yasha get whacked with Lady Kendappa's harp with an audible 'Thunk!' Kurogane headed towards the back where Fai and Sakura were.
"So, Kurggy, who is it that you mistake lady Kendappa for? You seemed to think you knew her well." Fai asked with a smile.
Kurogane sighed. "Empress Ameterasu. Princess Tomoyo's older sister, imperial ruler of Japan, and the bane of my existence. Thankfully, I'm Tomoyo's servant and not hers. She's just as violent as that Lady Kendappa, but she'll hit people with larger, heavier objects and/or her incredibly large sword." He shuddered involuntarily. "She's the only woman who can actually intimidate me which is why I usually disobey her."
Fai smirked. "She probably did that because you had a crush on her precious little sister. She's just being a protective big sister." He dodged a swipe from Kuro-puu and took off, the ninja right behind him. Mokona cheered Fai on.
Sakura giggle and turned back to the others. They seemed used to something similar and ignored them in favor of talking to Kendappa. Sakura noticed Soma had returned. She slipped past the darker woman and wandered down the hall, looking in a couple of rooms till she found Syaoran. She felt sudden apprehension to enter the dark, quiet room.
Syaoran lay on the bed, the covers over his lower half He shirt had been removed, revealing his slender frame and muscles. Bandages spanned from his shoulder to beneath the covers, leaving very little doubt of how far the injuries extended. Sakura hesitantly entered and sat next to him on the large bed.
"I'm sorry, Syaoran." She whispered. "You keep getting hurt because of me." A tear fell down her cheek onto his.
In Syaoran's forced dream, the tear seemed to have a ripple effect, and he heard a small faint chime and looked around. He was floating in a dark void, no light, no sound apart from the chime. He suddenly felt a presence behind him. Syaoran turned and saw himself in what looked like a mirror. But it wasn't the exact same. The mirror image had an eye patch over his left eye and wore a black robe that bore a red emblem on his chest. Syaoran felt his left hand rise to meet the others right, meeting as if against a glass pane. 'What's going on? I've seen him before, but he was just a kid then, now he's the same as me.'
Back in the real world, Syaoran's face scrunched in pain. Sakura frowned in worry and carefully laid a hand against his cheek. She remembered something her father told her years ago, and gently lifted his head and cradled it against her chest, right against her heart.
"What are you doing?" Sakura heard Ryuu's voice from the doorway and didn't turn around.
"My father told me, when I was young, that someone trapped in a nightmare can't escape on their own." Sakura explained as Ryuu crossed to the other side of the bed. "But if they hear and feel another person, they can find their way back to the waking world. And hearing another's heartbeat is the best way." Ryuu blinked at her and cocked his head to the side but didn't say anything.
Back in the dream, Syaoran tore himself away from the mirror image when he heard a loud booming noise. The noise changed to the sound of crying. His mirror vanished.
"Sakura!" His voice echoed in the expanse.
"Princess, where are you?!" He only answer was the continued sound of crying. 'I have to find her. She's somewhere, I know it.'
Syaoran kept turning, scanning the darkness for any sign of the princess. When he'd turned completely around, he saw a bright light and ran towards it.
--
"Princess!" Syaoran came awake and bolted up right, not seeing Sakura above him. Sudden pain flared in his torso and he winced, putting a hand to his chest. Strong arms wrapped around his shoulders and held him still.
"Whoa, take it easy. Soma just fixed you, so doing open your wounds." Syaoran's vision was slightly burred but when it cleared he saw who was talking to him.
"Ryuu? What happened?" His eyes widened and he gripped Ryuu's arm. "Where's Sakura? Is she safe, what happened to her?"
"Calm down, man." Ryuu was slightly overwhelmed. "She's fine. Look behind you." He lowered Syaoran back into Sakura's lap, looking relieved, until he saw the blood seeping through the bandages. "And I'm right as usual. I'll go find Soma." He left the room, leaving Syaoran and Sakura alone.
Sakura broke the silence. "Are you feeling better, Syaoran?"
"I'm okay. But I had a weird dream. I heard a loud noise, like a drum being hit. Then it sounded like a little child crying. For some reason, I thought the child was you and I was worried, Princess."
Sakura smiled sadly down at him. "You're always getting hurt because of me." She took his scarred and injured hand in hers and brought it up to look closely. "I'm so sorry." She tenderly kissed the delicate skin of his inner wrist. She immediately blushed, put his hand down, and looked away.
They were saved from an embarrassing awkward silence by Ryuu returning with Soma. Ryuu took one look at Sakura's pink face and the dusty rose of Syaoran's cheeks and turned around, grinning, and walked out whistling, leaving Soma to her work. He barely took three steps in to Lady Kendappa's throne room before chaos erupted around him. Kendappa was lecturing Yasha, occasionally whacking with her harp for good measure. Karura was trying to calm her down, Ashura was asking awkward questions. Kurogane was chasing Fain and Mokona, shouting something about 'ridiculous nicknames.' Mokona hoped out of the chase and onto Ryuu's head, trying to get to safety.
"Uh, what's going on that I think I just got involved in?" Ryuu asked, looking up at the puff-ball.
"Kuro-puu's being mean to Mokona and Fai." Ryuu picked the little creature off his head and walked over towards Karura, never taking his eyes off Kurogane and Fai.
"Uh, what's happening?"
"They're just having a childish argument like you and Ashura do." Karura told him.
Ryuu glared at her. "Hmph! Whatever. Have we got a plan for what we're gonna do now?"
"You're all going to rest here for a day or two." Kendappa said, getting the attention of Kurogane and Fai. "When that young man is strong enough to walk, you will all depart before Taishakuten's forces find you. In the meantime, I wish to be informed of the purpose of your journey." The last was directed at Fai and Kurogane. Kurogane scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest, Fai just kept grinning broadly.
"Defiantly like Ameterasu." Kuro muttered before Fai elbowed him in the ribs.
"We'd be happy to explain it to you. Lady Kendappa." Fai stepped forward and bowed from the waist with is hands together. And from there he and Mokona explained their purpose with Kurogane occasionally adding what he though important. When they'd concluded, it was already sunset and Lady Kendappa sent them all off the rooms her servants had prepared.
End chapter 2. Painfully short but I will update in a few days so never fear.