A/N: Alrighty people!

Not exactly a complete update but this is just a preview for the chapter. I received an anonymous review today that said that people are thinking that I might be holding my stories for ransom once again. I can assure you guys that I have a valid reason for not updating as fast as I usually do and that does not involve me holding these little babies at ransom for reviews. I'm past that stage now. xP The thing is that despite it being a time when people are generally enjoying their summer vacations, I'm taking a couple of summer courses that are being offered at my university this year. One of them happens to be a programming course that demands a lot of my time. Plus, I'll be starting my final year in a couple of months and I have to come up with a good final year project and that means that I have to go and visit a lot of teachers for discussions and stuff. Plus, I've decided to start on a few other extra-curricular activities, helping out with organizing a few events here and there. As much as I love to write, I really can't find any time to write these days. So I apologize for the slow updates but bear with me here guys. I'm working on all my fics whenever I can but I don't want to put up half-assed chapter. Here's a little preview of the next chapter for you guys though. I'll be replacing this chapter with the actual one when I'm finished with it, k?

Enjoy for now.

Sakura felt the world twirling around her as she came too. With a groan she forced her lids apart with great difficulty; it was as though someone had glued them together. Bright artificial light assaulted her eyes making her shut them almost instantaneously. She tried one more time after a little while, opening them slowly, almost hesitantly as she pushed herself into a sitting position… and blinked.

The low lighting of her bedroom in Infinity greeted her vision.

"So you are finally awake."

"Y-Yuuko!" she jumped almost a foot into the air as she heard her employer's voice. She almost fell off the bed in her haste to turn around to face the older woman. Yuuko Ichihara, the hidden ruler of Infinity was a tall, dark haired beauty with flawless milky skin and exotic wine colored eyes. Despite the way that woman liked to dress, she carried herself with a grace and poise befitting of her station. With her long hair pulled back in a messy half bun with the remainder of her hair flowing way past her hips, dressed in a pair of artistically ripped jeans and a strappy backless shirt, her appearance belied her age. Only those with magical sight would be able to feel the buzz of ancient magic about her person, strong enough to rival the legendary sorcerers and mages produced by the royal line of the now barren planet of Valeria.

"I take it you found what you were looking for."

"The kingdom of Clow… Touya nii-san… my parents… E-everything was… You knew all along, didn't you?" Sakura finally managed to gather her thoughts, though her tone was anything but accusing.

"I did."

"Why didn't you tell me then?"

"The memory seal placed on you by the one that sent you to me all those cycles ago made it impossible for you to remember anything related to you past."

"But these past few weeks…"

"Your proximity to Xiao Lang served as a means to weaken that seal. The fact that you had continuous encounters with your brother helped as well."

"Xiao Lang- you mean Syaoran, don't you?"

"I do."

"I still can't recall having met him before." She frowned thoughtfully. "But when I first met him on that ship, it felt like I had known him forever…"

"Do you have any idea of what Fei Wong had done to you while you were being kept in his captivity?" Yuuko asked as she draped herself languidly on one of the chairs set in Sakura's room.

"I know he was trying to change me into a mindless weapon. He had the memories of my life with my parents and Nii-san and Yukito-san erased for that very reason, didn't he?" it felt strange, going back to addressing those two like she had when she was a little kid all of a sudden but then again, now that she had her memories, she knew that it was only right to do so. "The training regime he had me go under after that was just to convert me into the perfect obedient weapon. That's why even after Fai took away my memories of the time in captivity after he broke me out I still couldn't stop myself from killing anyone." Realization dawned on her, "That was why I never missed a single target!"

"Precisely," her employer nodded, "but do you have any idea of what else he had had done to you?"

"No."

"The princess of Clow was rumored to be a very powerful mage, one having the capability to surpass even the legendary Clow Reed himself. Only one other person is said to have a power equal to that of the princess… The young heir of the Li clan."

"But I heard the Li clan was wiped out in a massacre a few cycles back." Sakura frowned. "Around the same time Clow was taken over by Fei."

"It was on the same night as a matter of fact." Yuuko said, pausing long enough to let her words sink in. "Fei Wang Reed wanted both the princess and the heir as his personal weapons."

"And judging from those files I stole…" Sakura said after a while, catching on to what Yuuko was getting at. "He got his hands on him as well. But he didn't use the same tactics with Syaoran as he did with me. Syaoran remembers his family. He recognized the sketch of his mother that I drew after a dream I had."

"No," Yuuko sighed tiredly, shaking her head as she glanced as Sakura, "after seeing how you had managed to escape his clutches despite all the brainwashing, Fei Wong devised a new plan. He decided to use magic to suppress that child's personality and diminish his mind so much that in the end, he would be nothing but a mindless doll, carrying out whatever task his master willed. I have not been able to ascertain how he did it, but your magic was involved in the process, Sakura."

"What?" Sakura almost shrieked in surprise.

"That is why he feels so familiar to you." Yuuko pressed, "He has your magic inside of him. The original seal on your shoulder was designed to siphon off parts of your magic that gave you your compassionate nature so that you could be used as an effective weapon. That part of your magic now resides in Xiao Lang, making him an empath. But since he was not born with this ability, he has a very hard time controlling it."

"But wouldn't him having the abilities of an empath work against the whole suppression thing?"

"The seal that he has was designed to counter that." Yuuko shook her head as she climbed to her feet. "I need to get going now. Some important clients will be here soon and I have to prepare for their arrival."