AN: I know many people have been getting worried that this story is getting too dark, that Sakura and Syaoran are failing too much. I'll tell you now that this is as bad as it's going to get. And this is pretty bad. Big revelations. Props to anyone who predicted the twist at the end, after all, I kept the clues rather oblique. I warn you now, that this chapter contains adult situations, and bad things. It is nothing compared to my other active story 'Lover and Tormentor', but considering the audience this series is aimed at, it's pretty bad. The bright side is that it can only go up... or at minimum horizontal, from here.

Chapter 18: Revenge

Syaoran swallowed the pill he'd taken from Akila's tongue with a sigh of relief. The ones he had gotten earlier had begun to wear off. A heavy, stomping step echoed through the hallways. He turned, along with everyone nearby to see Sakura slowly and deliberately heading towards him. Her brows were furrowed and her eyes narrowed in a glare that made his own usual glare look like the sorrowful eyes of a lost puppy.

"Li Xiao Lang..." Her fists were clenched so hard that her knuckles were white. She spat out his name like poison, her lips pulled back to bare her teeth in a snarl. Her body radiated an aura of magic so dark that Syaoran felt like he was suffocating. He tried to step away from her, but bumped into Akila. "How dare you..."

"Sakura... It's not what you think!" He had to struggle not to stammer in fear.

"You don't know what I think. How many times? How much are you going to betray me?" Sakura took another step towards him. Akila took a step away from him, as did anyone else who thought they were close enough to get caught in the crossfire.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about! I love you. I would never do anything to-"

"Then perhaps I should remind you! You think I didn't know? Do I look blind? How little do you think of me?" She grabbed the key hanging around her neck.

"Wait! Don't..." Syaoran was petrified. He had never seen Sakura act like this. Sakura would run away and cry, she would blame herself, or the drugs. She would not get angry. There was only one time he could remember that Sakura had acted anything like this. When she had been split by the balance, her dark half... "You're not yourself..."

"Key that hides the powers of my star, reveal your true form to me! Sakura commands it under the contract, RELEASE!"

The key of the star began to glow brightly. Gasps escaped the crowd. Syaoran could spare the time to think of them at the moment. The magical winds swirled around, gathering into the key, elongating it into the wand.

"Show me Syaoran. Show me how you betrayed me." She took out a card and held it up. "Return card, discard your former power and draw upon a new strength then show us the scenes of his betrayal!"

"There are people,"

"What's going on?"

"There's something-"

Protests were cut short when a hole opened up in the fabric of reality and Sakura and Syaoran were sucked through it.

Inky blackness extended in all directions.

"Do you understand your obligations?" a Li operative asked.

"I understand," Jade replied. She had no choice but to understand. Her duties were clear. Serve the Li clan with her life, or lose it.

"Then your first mission is to return to protect Fujitaka Kinomoto. We suspect that things are happening that will endanger his life if he is not protected."

"Protected from whom?" Jade asked.

"The emperor. He is plotting something, though we do not have any details at this time. Your actions have caused a great deal of turmoil, but he has allowed you to return anyway."

"I understand."

"Remember, you are always being watched. Return every day for reports and continued training. Do not tell anyone, not the Americans, nor the other students. If you need anything, you know where to find us."

"Yes, sir." Jade turned and withdrew a pendant. She focused her magic and it extended to form a pudao. It was unusual, but not unheard of for Li weapons to take the shape when formed.

"Yu mo gui gwaai fie di jao!" Jade chanted. The weapon glowed green and tugged in a direction. Jade walked, allowing her spell to lead her towards Alex O'Connell. It seemed like hours before she came to a door. Passing through it, she found herself in the broom closet of the research building. She reverted her weapon to its pendant state and closed the door to the void. When she opened it again she found the hallway that she had not seen since the expedition had left for their first visit to the Forbidden City. She headed towards the lab, passing by Furiya who gave her a disdainful look.

Syaoran found himself in his own room. A slightly younger version of himself was laying on the bed, completely out of it because of the drugs.

"This is it, isn't it? The day you stopped taking my calls." Sakura grabbed onto his arm. Her voice was cold, full of malice that sent shivers down his spine.

"Stop this. You don't want to do this," Syaoran said, trying not to wince in pain from her fingernails digging into his arm.

"No, you don't want me to do this. What is it you're afraid of? You wouldn't betray me twice would you?"

Syaoran shuddered.

"And there comes Meiling," Sakura stated, "I should have brought her along as well."

"Why... This should never have happened. Just leave it in the past. No one wants to remember this." She squeezed Syaoran's arm. His arm was filled with a sharp pain and went limp. She was squeezing one of his pressure points.

Meiling was carrying a bowl of water and a cloth. She placed it on a bedside table and sat next to him. She moistened the cloth in the cool water then wiped the sweat from his face.

"Isn't that sweet," Sakura said, "Look at how much she cared for you."

"Please stop this," Syaoran said.

"Don't be afraid. No matter what happens, I'll still love you," Sakura promised, "And you'll love me. If you don't or if you betray me..." She squeezed his arm again, pulling hard enough to send a jolt of pain through him from his shoulder.

"I'm not the only one who's not myself," Syaoran said through gritted teeth.

"Who else would I be?"

Meiling suddenly slammed the cloth down into the bowl, shattering it and sending a spray of water across the room.

"This can't go on!" Meiling said sadly and began searching the room. "You're not supposed to be like this. You're the future leader of the Li clan, not some weak willed drug junkie. You're supposed to be stronger than this."

Syaoran winced when he heard this.

"Sorry but this is for your own good." Meiling took the pills she had found and marched into the bathroom.

"Let's go see what happens, shall we?"

Syaoran placed his own body in front of Sakura to block her way.

The past Syaoran was now feeling for his pills. Not finding them, he got up. Meiling was just visible, pouring the contents of the medicine bottle into the bowl of the toilet. The past Syaoran's eyebrows arched downwards angrily and he ran into the bathroom, hitting the door on his way through and sending it smashing into the wall. A couple pieces of porcelain tile fell to the floor.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" the past Syaoran demanded.

"I think this is going to be the good part." Sakura pushed on Syaoran's shoulder forcing him into the washroom.

"What I should have done a long time ago!" Meiling replied to the past Syaoran defiantly. She purposefully pushed on the lever, flushing the toilet and sending Syaoran's pills spiraling down the drain.

The past Syaoran stared for several moments as if he couldn't believe that she had done that. "Fucking bitch!" he finally exclaimed. His fist flew out, catching Meiling by surprise. She collapsed backwards, falling into the bathtub. Her head bounced off of the metal faucet.

Syaoran turned away from the scene, attempting to block Sakura's view.

"Watch!" Sakura commanded, squeezing his shoulder and forcing him to turn.

Syaoran cried out in pain and was forced to do what she told him.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." he began whimpering.

"Not yet, you're not."

The past Syaoran climbed into the tub, leaning down on Meiling's neck with his good arm.

"I don't want to do this, but I don't have a choice," he said, "You hurt me. You know that. I need those pills. It hurts so much."

Meiling tried to respond, but could only choke. She struggled. Syaoran loosened his hold on her neck. She tried to sit up but Syaoran slammed her down, stunning her again.

"I can't stand it, Meiling, I have to do something... anything. I just want the pain to go away."

Meiling groaned.

"I heard some things. It's like a drug. It will take away the pain, at least a little." Syaoran reached underneath Meiling's skirt, pulling her panties up her thighs.

"Don't..." Meiling groaned. A small trickle of blood was running across the clean white of the tub by Meiling's head.

"No! You don't! Don't talk back to me. This is what you've always wanted, isn't it?" Syaoran slapped her. "You want me to do this don't you? You want to help me!" Syaoran grabbed the front of her shirt, pulling down and tearing the garment to her navel and ripping her bra. He reached in and grabbed her breast, squeezing until she cried out in pain.

"What happened Syaoran? Tell me why?" Sakura said, squeezing his shoulder until he echoed Meiling's cry. "You know that all you had to do was send a jet and I would have come. I would have given myself to you. You could have done anything you wanted with me and I would have begged for more. Instead you do this. What happened to the love you promised to share with me?"

The past Syaoran brought out his penis and shoved it mercilessly into Meiling.

"I didn't want to do it. I'm sorry. I couldn't control myself..." Syaoran said shamefully, "I didn't want this to happen."

"If you didn't want to, then it wouldn't have happened. How many Syaoran? All those girls who fawn over you, you can't say that you never-"

"This was the first time. I was saving myself for you!" Syaoran yelled, "It was a mistake, a stupid, selfish, mistake that I would never have made if I hadn't been so messed up."

The past Syaoran pulled back. There was a trace of blood on his shaft. He thrust into her again and her body was pushed up the back of the tub. Her shoulder slammed into the spout which pulled back from the wall a bit. Meiling struggled some more. Syaoran punched her in the gut.

"That doesn't look like a mistake!" Sakura yelled angrily at him, squeezing harder and harder on his injury as the scene progressed.

"Are you okay?" Alex asked, "We were told that you got mugged in the park."

"I'm fine now," Jade replied, "I'm just upset that I lost to him."

"Strong mugger?"

"Stronger than me at least, I couldn't even touch him. How are things here?"

"Great actually, I found some pretty interesting stuff." Alex replied, "You wouldn't believe the amount of Egyptian hieroglyphics there are in the artifacts. Did you want to help me? I know you didn't get anything yourself."

"Yeah... I didn't get anything," Jade laughed nervously, "I heard there was some trouble, someone stole something from the city before we were sent home. Do you think we'll be allowed back?"

"You didn't know? We're going this weekend and staying an extra day. I'm hoping I can find whatever the link was to ancient Egypt. That would be an interesting discovery, but that will probably involve going through court records."

"I'll help. I am an expert at research. I have quite a bit of experience and I can read Chinese."

"And I can read Egyptian. We'd make a good couple."

"Team." Jade corrected, ignoring his tacky pick up lines as usual.

"Does Kinomoto-sensei know you're back?" Alex asked, not phased at all by Jade's casual dismissal. He'd been known to tactically retreat when the situation called for it, but giving up was not something he did often.

"No, I was going to see him next. Think you can teach me some of those manners so that I can actually get into the city this time?" Jade responded, tucking some stray hairs behind her ears.

"Sure, as soon as you do some translations for me."

The past Syaoran got up, leaving Meiling lying in the tub, exposed to anyone who could wander in. Her head had been hit too many times and she had become unconscious before Syaoran had finished with her. Her body was bruised in many places and except for one wound to her head, she did not appear to be bleeding anywhere.

Sakura let go of Syaoran and he collapsed onto the floor, clutching his shoulder. She kicked him.

"I'm sorry," he groaned. He hadn't stopped apologizing throughout the entire scene. "I don't want to hurt you... I didn't want to hurt her. I needed.... I shouldn't... I'm sorry."

"You're pitiful. You're weak. You're a failure. You can't even keep a simple promise. What the hell is wrong with me? What didn't I do for you?"

"It's all my fault. I'm sorry. I love you. I mean it. Please?"

"Like a stray dog, doing as you please whenever I am not looking."

The scene changed. Yelan was sitting at a desk in a room Sakura had never seen.

"There's more?" Sakura asked, her anger continuing to rise.

"I didn't. That's my father's office. I haven't even been there since he died..." Syaoran swore, bracing himself, waiting for her to hurt him again. It didn't happen. Meiling entered the room. She was freshly bandaged up.

"Please sit," Yelan said stiffly, agitated.

"You wanted to see me?" Meiling asked. She sat down on the carve wooden chair that was sitting opposite of Yelan. The walls were green. The ceiling was made of dark wooden panels, set on top of crown molding. The floor was a matching hardwood. The dark colors of the floor and ceiling contrasted the brighter red stain of the desk.

"I want you to leave." Yelan said.

"It wasn't my fault!" Meiling protested, "I didn't-"

"I know, but it can't ever happen. This is the only way to be sure."

"Why am I being sent away?"

"For the same reason that I could never allow you to be with Syaoran. If you were anyone else, I could have allowed it. I worked so hard to find someone else that he would let into his heart, someone that the elders would approve of."

"Why?"

"Your father, the man you knew as your father, was sterile. He couldn't have children. My husband was never sexually attracted to me when I was pregnant. He would even sleep in a different room. We would have used contraceptives if it was not his duty to provide heirs. We produced four girls. Then for a few years, nothing. Then I became pregnant with Syaoran.

"Xun, as usual, lost interest in me while I was pregnant. Your mother took advantage of him. She looked so much like me that it wasn't hard for her to convince him. It only took one night together to get her pregnant with you.

"You are not Syaoran's cousin. You are his sister..."

This was news to both Sakura and Syaoran.

"Sister! I... That's...." Syaoran stuttered.

"You...." Sakura was at a loss for words, blinking rapidly as she tried to digest the new information.

"He can't ever find out." Yelan said.

"I don't believe it. Why? I am just a proof of what he did, but you always treated me so well..."

"You are my husband's daughter, and as far as I am concerned, that makes you my daughter. Despite his faults I loved Li Xun with all of my heart. I was angry for a little while, but when I saw him smiling at Syaoran, holding him so tenderly, I couldn't help but forgive him."

"I think you're right. I need to leave," Meiling said, "I can't trouble you anymore."

"No one else knows what really happened. As far as anyone knows, you just fought. Sakura and Syaoran can never learn the truth."

"Syaoran... Are you okay?" Sakura asked, helping him get back to his feet. Her attitude had made an abrupt shift.

"I can't believe it. Why didn't I know!"

"I'm sorry," Sakura said. She hugged him tightly and cried into his chest, "I didn't mean to hurt you. I don't know what happened."

"I am the one who is sorry. I wish that it had never happened. Are you alright? I never wanted you to have to know about this."

"I knew. When Meiling first told me the story, the way she acted, I knew. I didn't want to see this. I didn't want to make you relive this. I know it wasn't your fault."

"You should be angry at me. I deserve it. I've been an idiot. I never should have let the drugs control me."

"I'll find a way to stop it. I promise."

"Sakura..."

"Everything will be alright. I'll find another way to take away the pain."

"Sakura, all I want is you. I'll be fine as long as you're by my side. That was the third time she gave me pills. I shouldn't have listened. I should have gotten rid of the first ones she gave me. I am an idiot."

"I was the one who hurt you. I even attacked your injury. How am I any worse?"

"You couldn't help it. When you merged with your other half, I don't think you fully merged. It wasn't you who hurt me. It was her. She was the one who did it. That's not the Sakura I know."

"But the card put me back."

"You were dead. You can't revive the dead without a sacrifice. There has never been a way. I think that what happened is that when you got angry at me, your other half took control and you died. When we found out about Meiling, you were shocked back to normal, or at least more normal. It will probably happen every time you get angry unless you sacrifice someone else to restore yourself."

"So it's either live with a split personality, or kill someone to save myself."

"I can't think of any other option."

"I can't do it."

"It will be fine."

"No, it won't I was going to kill you. I hated you for what you did to me... to Meiling."

The Return sent them back to the school. Meiling was waiting there for them.