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Through Another Day
Written by: Shadow
Chapter 6
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"Syaoran! What the hell was that for?" Sakura exclaimed, interrupting the teacher's sentence. Sakura stood up, fuming, slamming her hands on her desk in the process. Syaoran sat opposite her, smirking and crossing his arms.
"Sakura, is there a problem?" the teacher asked. Sakura looked up at her teacher for a moment, and then glared back down at Syaoran.
"Yes actually. He threw something at me, and it hurt."
"Is this true Syaoran?" the teacher asked sternly, turning to Syaoran, who was now known as The-New-Kid-That-May-Or-May-Not-Be-Dating-Sakura thanks to Tomoyo.
"No ma'am," he said innocently, looking up at her with fake confused eyes, "I didn't throw anything at Sakura.
Sakura fumed, "Yes, he did."
Syaoran stood up, a few inches taller than Sakura, but looking at her square in the face, "Prove it!"
"How am I supposed to know what hit the back of my head bozo? Just admit you threw something at me and apologize!" Sakura yelled.
"Nope. I don't think I will," Syaoran started, "Cuz I didn't do anything."
Sakura was about to let out a colorful line of curses for Syaoran, but the teacher put a hand on her shoulder, "I think maybe you two should step outside until you learn how to stop acting like children! You're in high school, not fourth grade!"
Sakura glared at Syaoran, who was still smirking, and then mumbled something akin to, "Fine. But it's his fault."
The two teenagers stepped outside the classroom, and the teacher closed the door on them. Sakura waited a few moments, and then turned around, grinning at Syaoran, "Okay, it worked…again."
"Yeah, I told you acting like little kids would work," Syaoran said in a bored tone. "Come on, we have a spirit to catch."
It had been about a week since Syaoran had transferred to Seiju High, and Sakura had managed to catch two more spirits: Jump, who was cleverly named Caper, and Shadow, which was (rather stupidly) named Shade.
"Kero, Sora, Ryu, Sander, Caper, and Shade," Sakura thought as she and Syaoran snuck out of school for what felt like the millionth time. They had been trying to catch this particular spirit for days, but to no avail. Oddly, it always seemed to show up at the exact same time everyday. It made Sakura wonder just what this spirit was.
As they walked towards the source of the magic, a clock tower, Sakura contemplated what she had learned in the last few days:
Sander and Ryu had proven to be increasingly useful, although, getting Ryu to calm down when he saw Syaoran was hard to do. Apparently, Syaoran looked a lot like his father, the last owner of the book, who was supposed to be 'A greedy little bastard,' according to the Water Spirit.
Sakura had to agree though…Syaoran wasn't exactly the nicest guy around. More like the biggest asshole to ever enter Seiju high…except for Touya maybe…
"If Touya wasn't so overprotective, he and Syaoran would probably get along wonderfully. Oh that would be terrifying," Sakura thought, but then shook her head. She had to focus. This spirit kept avoiding them somehow…
Finally, they reached the clock tower.
"Here we go again…any brilliant plans today Syaoran?" Sakura asked sarcastically.
Last time Syaoran had attempted a full on assault of the spirit, and ended up breaking a window. The owner of the clock tower got so mad, that Syaoran had to pay for fixing it.
However, when Sakura looked at the window on this fine morning, there was no evidence that it had ever been broken, "Wait…what? How?" Sakura asked, dumbfounded. There was no way the window was fixed in less than twenty-four hours! It was impossible!
"Well," Syaoran started, "that confirms my suspicions about which spirit this is. Its Time. I don't know if he has a name."
Sakura stared at Syaoran, "Time? So…wait…does that mean today is yesterday?"
Syaoran shrugged, "Basically, yes. I never broke that window."
Sakura gaped. A spirit that could control time? Sakura wasn't sure she wanted that power really…
But then again, the fate of the world was resting on her doing this. Today, Time would be captured…
"So what's the plan then?" Sakura asked, "Obviously, attacking head-on isn't gonna work…"
Syaoran stopped to think, crossing his arms, "The only way to do this is take him by surprise and seal him away before he can use his powers…. Damn it all. This won't be easy…and the teacher is gonna have a fit if we're 'missing' again."
Sakura grimaced. The teacher having a fit she could deal with…but the rumors of her and Syaoran sneaking out of school together she couldn't deal with. The entire concept of that seemed so repulsive, she couldn't help but let out a fake gag at the thought.
"Whoa, if you're gonna puke for no reason, do it away from me," Syaoran said, backing up as Sakura gagged at the thought of her and Syaoran together. "Did you eat cafeteria food or something? I'm pretty sure cat food is healthier than that stuff," Syaoran asked sarcastically, hiding his worry. If Sakura was sick, they'd have an even more of a challenge dealing with Time than they had the last few days….
"No, but a really horrifying thought crossed my mind. If you knew what it was, you would gag too," Sakura said, standing up strait.
Syaoran raised an eyebrow doubtfully, "Well…what was it? I've seen some pretty nasty stuff….I'm sure I could handle it."
Sakura blushed, looked away, and didn't answer. Syaoran just shrugged and focused back to the problem at hand, "Okay, here's the plan…"
"Why. The. Hell. Did. I. Blush?!" Sakura scolded herself, "I just gagged at the thought. Ew, what the heck am I thinking…blushing! Bah!"
"Sakura, listen you stupid, non-attentive dork!" Syaoran yelled, frustrated.
"What did you call me?" Sakura asked, forgetting about her embarrassing thoughts.
"Good, now that you're focused, I'll say the plan again…" Syaoran trailed off and sighed. This girl was just impossible! Once again, Syaoran had to wonder just why his mother was so thrilled Sakura, of all people, found the book, and not him!
"So, I'm going to sneak into the tower, and climb up the stairs. Give me two minutes to find him. I'm gonna hide, and then you're going to appear through that window on Kero. Have him breathe fire at Time and then I'll trap him. After that, you seal him, and we go back to school. Deal?"
Sakura nodded, the plan playing out in her head and repeating itself until she felt she understood it fully.
"Okay. Two minutes," Syaoran said, and went off towards the tower.
Sakura got out The Book of Clow and flipped open Kero's page.
"So, which Spirit are we after? The same one again?" Kero asked lazily. It seemed like he just woke up from a nap or something…
"Are you okay Kero?" Sakura asked worriedly. He seemed almost as exhausted as her.
"I'm fine kiddo," he said through a yawn, "It's just that the more worn out you are, the more worn out us spirits get. We feed off of your magic. If you can't sustain us, we become tired… and we certainly can't sustain ourselves…."
Sakura looked at Kero, concerned, "Are you sure you're up for this?" she asked him. "We don't have to do this you know."
Kero laughed, "As long as you're okay, the other spirits and I should be alright."
Sakura sighed. She had already wasted time talking with Kero. Syaoran was bound to be waiting for her to make her move…
Sakura lazily held out the book, her arms feeling heavier than usual. Kero was right…this spirit catching was exhausting in an unnatural way…But she had to try.
Mustering up some stray energy from somewhere, Sakura released Kero into existence, and climbed on his back, determined as ever. With adrenaline rushing through her blood, Sakura no longer felt weary, and Kero seemed to be just as lively. Together the pair took off into the skies….
Meanwhile, Syaoran was impatiently waiting for Sakura. He could see Time right in front of him, and he had to hold back the temptation to charge in blindly like yesterday…or today you could argue.
Syaoran shook his head of the confusing thoughts, for Time had left his perch, and started in the direction of Syaoran.
Syaoran swore mentally, and carefully shifted into the shadows, concealing himself so that Time wouldn't spot him…hopefully.
Time stopped near Syaoran, looking at the window, as if suspecting something was happening…
"Crap!" Syaoran muttered. He knew Sakura was coming. The spirit started to raise its hands into the air, muttering some odd incantation. Moments later, Sakura and Kero burst through the window, shattering it to bits…again.
Kero let out a stream of red flames, but Syaoran knew they wouldn't reach in time to hit the old spirit. He was about to send them back in time…again! Acting as quick as possible, Syaoran slashed out at Time with his sword, taking the spirit off guard, and causing him to fall over in order to avoid both flames and the edge of a sharp sword.
Unfortunately, he didn't stop his incantation. The entire room seemed to glow in an eerie pale green light. The spell had begun already.
They couldn't afford to keep chasing after Time! This was the third time they had tried to catch it anyway!
Syaoran raked his mind for options as time started to reverse….
"That's it! Sakura, use Keroberos! He can control the cycles of the sun! If he can keep time in place by doing that, we can catch him!"
Upon hearing this, Kero let out a roar, and the green light stopped spreading throughout the room.
"Sakura," Kero growled, "I can't keep this up for long. My magic will only last as long as yours does…."
Sakura could feel her life force draining from the strain of stopping time. She had to act fast if she was going to catch this spirit….
"Petals of Wind, answer my call!" Syaoran shouted, sending a stream of magical wind around Time, binding it so it could not move.
"Hurry Sakura!" Kero shouted. He was barely standing…and Sakura wasn't fairing much better….
Syaoran rushed over to Sakura's side, holding her up as she started to stumble, "Come on Sakura," he said encouragingly, "You got this."
Sakura opened the book to Time, and looked down at the text. Her sight blurred, and she couldn't read it, "Does he have a name?" she asked. Syaoran looked over Sakura's shoulder, trying to locate it in the text so Sakura could capture it. He had no idea why she insisted on calling them by name, but he was in no position to argue right now. Sakura could only hold out so much longer.
"I don't see one," Syaoran stated quickly, "Just seal it. Hurry!"
Sakura nodded lazily, and muttered, "Spirit of Time, abandon your physical form, and return to the ancient scriptures Clow made as your home!"
The spirit glowed a shadowy purple, and dissolved into the book, the green hue that was his magic flowing into the book along with him. Finally, the room was left with nothing but shattered glass from the window, and an exhausted looking Kero.
"Ugh," Kero said, collapsing. "I'm out."
With that, Kero disappeared back into the book in the same fashion Time did, leaving Syaoran holding up a barely conscious Sakura.
"So…tired," Sakura muttered.
Syaoran realized with a start, that Sakura seemed to be more tired than ever. He grimaced. Something was wrong…. She should have been getting more resistance to magic over time…not less.
"Sakura," Syaoran said, concerned, "Are you sick?"
Sakura shifted in Syaoran's grasp to look up at him with lazy eyes, "No," she said, "I'm just…tired."
What could she say to him? That she was slowly killing herself? Would he even believe her? Plus, why did he care in the first place?
"Then something's definitely wrong. You shouldn't be this out of it…even if you've only just started with magic…you should be getting better at resisting its aftereffects by now…. Is there something you're not telling me about this book?"
Sakura's eyes widened in horror, "No," she said frantically. "Nothing. You know more about that book than me…why would I know anything about this? Like you said, I'm just a beginner…I'm sure I'll get better soon…."
Sakura trailed off, slipping into unconsciousness. Syaoran cursed. This was the second or third occurrence where he'd have to go back to school with her looking dead. How would he keep explaining this to the teachers?
Sighing, Syaoran decided he'd bring her somewhere safe, and suffer the consequences of missing school later. If anything, he could always bribe his way out of detentions…or whatever Seiju High gave as punishments….
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Sakura awoke with a start…again; however, this time, it wasn't from magic….this time, it was from something else….
She could feel herself laying on something soft, and when her eyes focused, Sakura realized she was laying on a couch in a foreign place….
Sakura drew a sharp breath in, and sat up, stiff as a board. Frantically, she looked around the room.
Where in the world was she?
And then her eyes landed on a figure…it was Syaoran, asleep on a desk in an office chair. He had his arms folded under his head, and was leaning on the book.
Sakura sighed. She must have fainted again…and Syaoran must have brought her here….
Getting up quietly so as to not wake Syaoran, Sakura tiptoed across the room to obtain her book, only to find that it was open to a specific page….
Lightening.
Sander was curled up, much like Syaoran, snoring lightly inside his page. Sakura smiled. They were similar….
Then, something crossed Sakura's mind: "It was the only Spirit he'd let me play with as a child…."
Sakura realized, that this spirit knew more about Syaoran then she did, and Sakura was curious… and why shouldn't she be? Syaoran was a relative of Clow, and was so secretive about his life and feelings…well, Sakura didn't know anything about him at all….
Except for that he acted like an ass a lot of the time.
After picking up the book carefully, Sakura wandered over to the other side of the room. She took a look behind her to make sure Syaoran wasn't awake, and then bent over, looking at Sander.
"Sander," she whispered. "Wake up. I need to talk to you."
The lightning wolf opened one eye, and upon seeing Sakura, lifted his head, "Hmm?" he asked in a small voice, like a child. At least he was smart enough to realize that they needed to be quiet.
"I wanted to ask you….you know Syaoran very well, right?" Sakura inquired.
The wolf tilted its head, something most canines do in a situation that confuses them, "Yes, I do. Why master Sakura?"
"You don't have to call me master…just Sakura will do. I want you to tell me about him."
Sander said nothing, and stared at Sakura for awhile, "Okay…Sakura….I guess that's okay. What did you want to know?"
"Why does he act like he does?" Sakura said, her heart thumping at the question. "He acts like a jerk, but then does something really nice. He's saved me more times then I can count already, but he still doesn't act like he's my friend…I don't understand it, that's all."
"He's bitter," Sander replied. "But he's not a bad person. His father was a bad person, that I can agree with. If you grew up like he did, you probably would act the same."
Sakura grimaced, "What happened to his father?"
The canine before her seemed to frown, "He…wasn't there most of the time, and let's just say Syaoran's mother isn't the nicest person in the world either. Syaoran grew up very…alone."
Sakura stopped, frowning more. Despite her misgivings about Syaoran, what Sander was saying troubled her. Just how lonesome was Syaoran anyway?
Sakura took another breath, to signal she was about to speak, but another voice interrupted her, making her pale.
"That's enough," Syaoran said bitterly. "Don't you dare ask Sander another question."
Sakura turned around, fear showing in her eyes. Syaoran was standing behind her, looking at her with the coldest eyes she had ever seen…or maybe they were always like that and she failed to see it. Either way, she saw it now, and that was all she needed to confirm how much pain Syaoran felt.
"I'm so--" she started.
"Sorry?" Syaoran exclaimed sarcastically, breaking her off. "You shouldn't be snooping around in things that aren't any of your business. Now, get out!"
Syaoran pointed to the door, looking away from Sakura.
"Syaoran…." she trailed off.
"Get out god-dammit!" he yelled again.
Sander whimpered. Sakura knew she would have to apologize later. She closed the book and tucked it under her arm, and walked out of the room.
As she exited his house, she heard something hit a wall. Wincing, Sakura realized that some things really weren't her place to solve.
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A/N: Longer chap this time. Yay! We learn more about Syaoran finally. And now he's starting to get suspicious. Sakura needs to do a better job at lying.
So yeah…the usual…review!