The Guiding Star

Lost Love: Chapter Thirteen

By: Sakura

“Xiao Lang!” called Sakura from the doorway that afternoon. “I’m going to go downstairs and pay our fee, all right?” Xiao Lang whirled around from where he had been packing their belongings, his intention to stop her, but with a wave, Sakura had already left.

The Chinese Prince resumed packing everything and was done in a matter of moments. They didn’t have much after all. With everything in place and ready to go, Xiao Lang took a moment to pause and reflect. He was still relieved that Sakura had returned to her normal, cheerful self. For some reason unknown to him, it made him happy to see her smile genuinely.

Screams and crashes from below suddenly jolted Xiao Lang back to reality. His eyes widened when he remembered that Sakura had gone downstairs. Slinging their packs over his back, he hurried out of the room, hoping he wasn’t too late.

The sight of tables overthrown, scattered food and utensils, and people scurrying for cover greeted Xiao Lang. Downstairs, the place was a restaurant while upstairs held lodgings. Frantically scanning the room, he couldn’t find Sakura anywhere, causing his anxiety to heighten. Heaving the nearest person to their feet with a tug on the person’s collar, the Prince demanded fiercely, “What happened here?”

“I-I’m not sure,” sputtered the man uncertainly. “Imperial guards barged in, looking for the Japanese Princess and the traitor P-prince, Xiao Lang. Some g-girl overheard t-them and, and tried to elude them. The guards made a m-mess of the place and t-the girl ran outside, with the guards and t-two people in cloaks f-following.” Xiao Lang released the man from his grip and the latter fell to the ground, gasping for breath. Without stopping for an apology, he hurried out of the building, praying that he could reach Sakura in time.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Sakura couldn’t understand how this could have happened. They had taken care to cover their tracks, so how had they been found? One moment, she had been paying their fee at the counter, the next moment, imperial guards entered the building, demanded for the Chinese Prince and the Japanese Princess, and finally, she was running away, trying to escape them. She could only hope that nothing happened to Xiao Lang.

“There she is!” she heard someone cry out. Quickening her pace, Sakura turned back to see how far behind her they were when she ran into something…or someone. She looked up and found herself being looked down upon by a dark-cloaked stranger. The figure did not say a word. Instead, in one swift movement, he grasped both of Sakura’s wrists tight with his left hand, not letting her go. Sakura tried to force him to release her, but to no avail. The person’s grip was far too tight. The Princess turned around and gave a small gasp of defeat, to see the Chinese imperial guards surrounding her and the stranger. The chief guard ambled over with a wide smile and Sakura involuntarily stepped back, her back brushing the cloak of her captor.

“Are you one of us?” he asked. “If so, show your symbol.”

“I’m not an imperial guard,” was all the man said, in a rather indifferent-sounding voice. The guard was a little surprised by his tone.

“In that case,” continued the chief, “you will be rewarded handsomely. Hand the girl over to us.” Sakura’s captor made no movement whatsoever to hand her to him and the chief guard stiffened slightly, his smile still pasted on his face, as he stepped toward them. The stranger took a step back and lunged at the chief guard, pummelling him to the ground with a strong punch from his right fist.

“No one gets her but me,” the man said coldly. The chief guard spat the blood out of his mouth and motioned for the rest of the guards to go after him. All of them charged toward the man, only to be knocked down by a second man, falling like a set of dominoes. The second person laughed, his hands resting carelessly on his hips.

“If you’re after him, you’ll have to deal with me, too,” stated the second, also clothed in a dark-coloured cloak, his stance ready for hand-to-hand combat. “Are you sure you can defeat the combined power of Tan Shi Kuang and Yiu San Kong?” he asked cheerfully, in an almost taunting voice. The chief guard stood up, surveying the two newcomers with a glare.

“Don’t let the Princess get away,” he ordered his guards. All of them nodded in response and rushed back toward the Japanese Princess and the two cloaked strangers. Shi Kuang, Sakura’s captor, pulled her to the sidelines before releasing her, and stood before her in a guarded manner. He was determined that no one would get the Princess but him and his comrade.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Running around the town in desperation, a growing crowd caught Xiao Lang’s eye and he instantly knew that Sakura would be at the heart of it. Roughly forcing his way through the crowd, he was keeping his eye out for Sakura when he slammed into the back of another person. The man wheeled around angrily and Xiao Lang instantly froze. He was an imperial guard.

The guard studied the Prince for a long time and Xiao Lang found himself tensing, preparing to defend himself if need be. To his surprise, the guard shoved him hard, knocking him off his feet, and said, “Watch where you’re going next time.” He turned away, mumbling something about stupid farmers and the fifteenth son couldn’t budge an inch, only watching the guard go to a few other guards to help rid them of the crowd of people. Quickly slipping away, Xiao Lang couldn’t believe what had just happened…that the guard hadn’t even recognized him!

It was then that he saw Sakura, standing behind a cloaked person, who apparently was defending her. Xiao Lang didn’t recognize this person at all, nor the other cloaked figure fighting the guards a few paces away. Two guards led Shi Kuang away from Sakura, while a third went after her. San Kong tried to warn Shi Kuang of what was happening when Xiao Lang went in instead. With one quick punch to the gut and tripping the man afterward, the Prince easily took out the third guard. Sakura’s eyes lit up when she saw him, while Shi Kuang and San Kong exclaimed in surprise at the sight of him. More guards rushed toward the two cloaked men and they were once again distracted. Xiao Lang and Sakura took this opportunity to escape unnoticed by any of the guards, whom were all occupied with either their attackers or the crowd of civilians. When the Prince and Princess disappeared from sight, Shi Kuang and San Kong also withdrew themselves from the battle.

Shi Kuang angrily punched a wall and swore. “It’s okay, it’s okay,” reassured San Kong, giving his friend a pat on the back. “We’ll get Sakura eventually. No one can stop us from doing so.”

Calmed down somewhat, Shi Kuang leaned heavily against the wall, trying to catch his breath. He hadn’t fought that many opponents at once in a long time and wasn’t really used to it. “You’re right,” he muttered. “That Prince can’t protect her for long. She’ll be ours in no time at all.”

~*~*~*~*~*~

“You’re sure you’re okay?” asked Xiao Lang again. “Those people didn’t do anything to you?”

“I’m fine,” replied Sakura with a faint smile, “really. But…” she added slowly, looking about them, “we’re not going to Fengdu anymore?” Xiao Lang nodded in response.

“It’d be too dangerous to go right now,” he said, “with all the guards around. I still don’t understand how they could have found us.”

The Chinese Prince and Japanese Princess were trailing along the outskirts of Fengdu in the twilight. It was well into the evening now and they were still looking for a new place to lodge for the night. But every place they’ve approached, there were at least one or two guards stationed there. And to make matters worse, it started to drizzle.

“Look,” said Xiao Lang, gesturing at something in the distance, “we can stay in that cave over there, at least until it stops raining.” Sakura nodded in agreement, shivering slightly. The pair quickly made their way to the cave and out of the rain. Drying off, they watched as the world was suddenly drenched again in another downpour, but this time, created only by nature. Sakura took a glance at the back of the cave and was surprised to see that it extended far back, its end nowhere in sight. It was more like a tunnel than a cave. A flash of white flitted somewhere back there and she instantly froze, reminded of how Xiao Lang had once called Fengdu the “Ghost City”.

Noticing her sudden paleness, Xiao Lang asked her what was the matter. Sakura was still motionless and could only point at the back of the cave, shivering from the thought. The Prince turned to see what she was pointing to, but all he could see was blackness. Instead, he took out a blanket and wrapped it around Sakura’s shivering form.

“You’re tired, aren’t you?” he asked softly. Sakura turned to face him, but didn’t answer. “Go to sleep now, all right? Everything will be all right in the morning.” She was going to object, but seeing the firmness in Xiao Lang’s eyes, decided against it. When Sakura looked back at the end of the cave, whatever it was had completely disappeared. It was probably her imagination, she concluded. Both settled down in the makeshift beds Xiao Lang set out, and soon succumbed to sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~

An abrupt movement awoke Sakura from her deep slumber and she reluctantly opened her eyes. She nearly cried out in surprise when she found herself face to face with Xiao Lang. He had obviously rolled over in his sleep, his arm resting around her, without even realizing it. Sakura’s eyes traveled around his face, taking in his every feature. His short ruffled hair, the warm amber eyes hidden by sleep, and a tiny scar at the base of his neck. The sudden movement had been Xiao Lang unconsciously moving his hand to the back of Sakura’s head and pulling her closer to him. His lips were slightly parted and the lone thought that he was going to kiss her raced through her mind. Even though she knew he was asleep and most likely unaware of his actions, Sakura let Xiao Lang draw her nearer and nearer as she closed her eyes, her heart beating wildly. “Prince Xiao Lang,” she whispered softly.

“Wing Kay…” answered Xiao Lang in a soft, but hoarse whisper. Sakura’s eyes snapped open with surprise and her hand immediately moved up and slapped Xiao Lang hard on the side of his face. At this sudden action, Xiao Lang awoke. “What was that for?” he asked, rather angrily. He looked up and found Sakura sitting up, her eyes staring at her hand. Did she just hit Xiao Lang? How could she? Even if it was an accident… She looked at Xiao Lang and saw him glaring at her, rubbing his cheek with the back of his hand.

“I’m sorry, Prince Li,” she said, bowing suddenly. “There was no excuse for my action. But you tried to…” she choked slightly on the word, “kiss me…” Xiao Lang stared at her. He had tried what? He hadn’t even realized… “Of course,” Sakura added quickly, “you were still asleep so you might not have noticed. It’s not your fault.”

“Sit up, silly.” Sakura didn’t budge, but Xiao Lang pushed her up into a seating position. She was afraid to look at him. Slapping a prince…how could she be so stupid? Xiao Lang reached over to her and, taking her chin, turned her head to face him. She was surprised to see him smiling softly. “It’s not your fault,” he said, letting go of her chin and running his hand through his tangled hair ruefully, “not at all.”

“Xiao Lang…” began Sakura rather hesitantly, “who’s ‘Wing Kay’?” The Prince instantly froze at the mention of the name. For some reason, the girl had kept popping up in his thoughts lately, and unintentionally, at that. The image of a little girl holding out a red peony flashed in his mind.

“She was a girl I was in love with…” There was a wistfulness in his tone that didn’t escape Sakura.

“I met her a few months after my mother had died,” continued Xiao Lang, staring off into the distance. “Her kindness really hit home with me and she was the first person to make me speak, even without meaning to. She brought the smiles back into my life. But, the problem was, Yu Hong loved her, too.”

“How old were you went you met?” asked Sakura, trying to keep her tone light, though she found it hard to say anything at that moment.

“I was eight at the time,” answered the Chinese Prince, “and Wing Kay was two years my senior. For the sake of her smile and for her, Yu Hong and I fought over her for nearly seven years.” Xiao Lang was shaking his head in disbelief, but he had a light expression on his face. “But then, when I was thirteen, she told us that she had been betrothed to another man by her father long ago.” His expression dissolved and was replaced with a rather bitter smile as his hand clenched into a tight fist. “I had been completely crushed by the news… The only girl I had ever loved…belonged to another.”

“What happened after?” Sakura asked him gently. She had never seen Xiao Lang like this before. His eyes had never expressed such love as when he spoke of Wing Kay. Also, he had never opened his heart to her like this, ever.

Xiao Lang didn’t answer her right away. However, he turned and gave her a smile of relief. “She ran away from home. Of course, it wasn’t the most prudent action, but I had loved her so much then, I didn’t care at all. She visited me, though, after she left her home, and not Yu Hong. Wing Kay said the one she really loved was me and she wouldn’t want to marry someone that wasn’t. I can’t tell you how happy that made me feel. To know the one I cared for most returned my feelings. And then she walked out of my life forever…” The Prince sat up abruptly.

“I’m sorry, Sakura,” he said hastily, blushing furiously with embarrassment, “for rambling on and on like that. You should have stopped me.” Sakura was staring at the ground, one hand closed against her chest. It hurt, strangely. Was it because she had learned the one she loved most had given his heart to another completely? Was that why it hurt so much?

The Princess shook her head in response. “That’s all right, Xiao Lang,” she replied, with a soft smile. “I’m glad you feel that you can confide in me. No one has ever really done that much before.” A thought nagged at the back of her mind that she knew someone had once, but she couldn’t really place who it could have been. Was it Yukito? Her left hand immediately touched a ring on her right finger, subtly so that Xiao Lang wouldn’t notice. But everything Yukito told her, he had also told her brother, since they were best friends. It wasn’t always to her alone.

“I’m glad,” said Xiao Lang with a laugh for relief. “I thought you’d be mad at me.” He smiled at her again. “I’d hate to make you angry.” Was it just him or did the Prince notice that his smiles had become more frequent? Upon reflection, Xiao Lang realized that his smiles were always because of Sakura…

A low, whispering wail suddenly echoed softly in the cave, gesturing to the pair. Xiao Lang immediately leapt to his feet, his hand reaching for his sword. Turning to Sakura, he told her, “I’m going to go check that out. Stay here, okay?” Sakura nodded mutely, staring with wide eyes at the back of the tunnel.

“Be careful,” she whispered, as he slowly crept to the back. Soon he disappeared from sight. Sakura shuddered involuntarily as the sound was made again, seeming to surround her, and she curled up into a little ball, drawing her legs to her chest. It felt so ghastly and the thought that it could be a real ghost scared Sakura out of her mind. Again, the “Ghost City” statement by Xiao Lang popped into her mind.

Out from the darkness of the tunnel floating a small white figure and Sakura gasped aloud, her thoughts in a state of frenzy. What was this? And what had happened to Xiao Lang? The figure tilted her head to the side when she saw Sakura, and she pushed her long, wispy white hair over her shoulder. The Princess continued to step back, trying to distance herself from the ghost, and tripped over a rock, crashing into the wall and sliding painfully down to the ground. Slowly opening her eyelids and trying to clear the dizziness, Sakura found herself staring face-to-face with the strange ghost. She was kneeling before her, gazing at Sakura with deep concern in her eyes. Her hands were resting gently on Sakura’s knees.

“You’re not hurt, are you?” she asked, in a sweet voice, her tone filled with concern.

“Who…who are you?” Sakura murmured, blinking at the girl. She always thought ghosts had cold, grisly hands, but the girl’s hands were warm and strangely comforting.

“I’m…” began the girl. She suddenly stopped. “I don’t have a name.”

“You don’t have a name?” repeated Sakura, astonished. “Then…then I’ll give you one!” she declared a little rashly. The girl stared at her wordlessly. “No one should be without a name,” smiled Sakura. Her fear of ghosts seemed to have vanished. Because, to Sakura, this girl didn’t feel like the ghosts she dreaded, but a friend. “Hmm,” said Sakura, thoughtfully tapping her chin, “I don’t know much about Chinese names, but how about Chu Ling?”

“Chu Ling” jumped up and threw her arms around Sakura in a hug. “Thank you,” she cried. “No one has ever cared whether I had a name or not.” Sakura smiled and hugged her in return, briefly wondering again if that meant her fear of ghosts had completely disappeared or not. Chu Ling suddenly shivered. “Isn’t this place rather spooky?” she asked the Japanese Princess, as she peered around the shadows. “I don’t know what I’d do if there were ghosts around.”

Startled, Sakura turned and stared at her. “But aren’t you-”

“Sakura!”

The Princess immediately stood up-but fell over instantly. The moment she placed her right foot on the ground was when she lost her balance. She had twisted her ankle when she tripped earlier, and, at the moment, she couldn’t even stand up. “Are you okay? Are you okay?” asked Chu Ling worriedly, her hands clasped over Sakura’s. Sakura nodded, but with a slight grimace.

“I’m fine,” she gasped, clutching her right leg, “but my ankle…”

Footsteps echoed throughout the cave as someone came running toward them. When Xiao Lang reached the place the pair sat, he paused and tried to catch his breath, relieved to see Sakura okay. He had heard her scream not so long ago and hurried back as quickly as he could. But the moment he saw Chu Ling, he suddenly stiffened, his grip on his unsheathed sword also tightening.

“Get away from her, Sakura,” he yelled at her. Sakura blinked in surprise and turned to look at Chu Ling. The look of surprise on the latter’s face mirrored her own. Seeing neither of them moving from their position, Xiao Lang swiftly advanced and struck a blow at Chu Ling. However, she disappeared just as he struck, and materialized a few feet behind him.

“Why did you do that?” asked Chu Ling, her lip trembling slightly in fear as she eyed the sword the Prince wielded.

“Because,” Xiao Lang answered in a low voice, “I won’t let anyone harm Sakura, not even a ghost.” Sakura shakily stood up, using the cave wall as support.

“Ghost?” repeated Chu Ling in confusion. “But I’m not-” Xiao Lang ignored her and continued to advance. But, before he could take another step, someone tackled him from behind. He turned to see who it was.

“Sakura!” he cried. “What are you doing?” Sakura sat up, wincing slightly from the fall.

“Just listen to her,” pleaded Sakura. “I don’t think she’s bad at all. If she was, she had all those chances to hurt me before you returned, but she never did.”

“It could be a trap,” reasoned Xiao Lang, but Sakura shook her head stubbornly, refusing to believe such a thing.

“Sakura…” whispered Chu Ling softly. All of a sudden, she began to glow a creamy-white shade. Sakura’s pendant also glowed the same shade. Both Prince and Princess looked at “Chu Ling” in amazement. “I’m not a ghost,” she said softly, “but an elemental spirit of the rings, with the ability of the wind flowing within me.” She took off a ring from her finger and held it before Sakura’s star pendant. “I would be happy to have you as my masters, like the water spirit.” The star in the pendant spun like the last time with the water ring and the tiny white wings spread as the key appeared. A keyhole formed on the side of the ring and the key locked it, the ring’s spirit vanishing from sight.

Xiao Lang caught the newly sealed ring when it fell and he stared at it momentarily. “I’m sorry,” he murmured quietly and the ring flashed once, acknowledging his words.

“That means we only have three more to find,” said Sakura excitedly. “At this rate, your mission will be complete in no time. Hmm…” she tacked on thoughtfully, “But I wonder what happens when we find them all, Prince Xiao Lang…” Xiao Lang realized that he hadn’t even considered that, thinking only of finding them in the first place.

“But no matter what,” he thought to himself, “I’m not letting anything happen to Sakura. I always want her to stay by my side.” He held a hand out to her while Sakura looked at it questioningly. “You hurt your leg, right?” he asked aloud. “Let’s see what we can do to fix it up.”

“Hai!” she responded cheerfully. “Please let me stay by your side, Prince Xiao Lang,” thought Sakura, as the Prince helped her up, “you’re the only one I want to be with…”

~*~*~*~*~*~

“Those two idiots…” muttered Chi Yuen in annoyance. “Do they think that it will always be this easy? Hmph!” He kicked sand over his fire, putting it out, and donned his cloak as he sent one more gaze in the direction of Xiao Lang and Sakura’s cave. “I think it’s about time I formally introduced myself to you, Xiao Lang,” he murmured, a smirk on his face. He had never forgotten about the time they had first met just two years ago, when he had killed Xiao Lang’s master, unintentionally before the stricken eyes of the Chinese Prince.

Author’s Note: From the majority of the comments made for the last chapter, I take it that not very many people were pleased with the twist of events… o_O Gomen ne, but that’s what happened…

_ *gets dizzy and collapses* Hoe… All these new/original characters… I don’t have all the profiles up yet…only started writing them…but I will let you know when they’re up…

Sakura = huge procrastinator, sadly

So…a few things were “revealed”, like the identity of the person that killed Xiao Lang’s master and a bit on Wing Kay’s background. Those two “cloaked” people will need more info, ne? ^_^ It’ll all come in due time… I’ve got quite a few ideas up my sleeve. ^_~

My math exam for summer school is coming up. It’s going to be on Tuesday, so I won’t have time to work on this again until after that day.

Author’s Note to chibiookamigirl: Who’s “she”? Me? I’m sorry if you feel it was wasted. But I really don’t like making stories too predictable to the readers… It’s really no fun if you know exactly what’s going to happen. Who would bother to read that, right?

Author’s Note to star: As was mentioned before, Shui Ken was very insecure and would go to any lengths to secure what he wants. There’s good and bad in an attitude like that.

Author’s Note to LiL DreameR: Hoe? *fails to see the “icky-ness” in it* At least it’s something different, ne? ^_~

Author’s Note to Snowdazed: *hugs* Arigato gozaimashita, Snowdazed-san. And who said anything about Xiao Lang dying? A little soon, ne? Since I have enough ideas to cover at least another ten chapters… ^_^ See you around Star Boards!

Author’s Note to Satine: Eh, nani? So you figured out it was Shui Ken? Out of curiosity, how did you figure out it would be him, of all people?

Author’s Note to Nanali: Ano… *sweatdrops* This fic isn’t finished yet - nowhere close, in fact… *gives Nanali-san a reassuring pat on the back* Don’t start worrying about anything until I’m ready to end this fic…and with all the ideas I have, it won’t be ending anytime soon… =)

Author’s Note to Shi-Chan: The number of sons… *sweatdrops* I know the number is around eighteen or nineteen, however, I’ve only come up with names for the first fifteen (up to Xiao Lang)…*more sweatdrops* Um, I’ll just give you the names to the first fifteen, okay? ^_^ Chi Shing (1), Shuk Yue (2), Tsai Fang (3), Hon Chung (4), Kim Tang (5), Kiu Kwong (6), Poon Shek (7), Pao Fung (8), Shui Ken (9), Shum Yee (10), Khai Ming (11), Wing Kuen (12), Yuan Loon (13), Zhu Quan (14), and Xiao Lang (15). For the majority of the sons, I’ve noted briefly of what they are doing during the fic (in my own notes, of course), which I’ll post along with their profiles when I write them. =) The profiles would help a lot with characters that aren’t mentioned much or don’t have a big role. Oh, and of course, that doesn’t mean the Emperor never had any daughters or anything. ^_~ (And since I mentioned a few, that means he did have them. ^_^) It’s just a) they weren’t that important, compared to the sons, during that time period, and b) if I recall correctly, they were never “numbered” the way the sons were. Also, isn’t it a good thing I’m not very good at writing mush, sap, fluff, etc? ^_^

Author’s Note to hannagrace: A command? Yes, ma’am! *straightens up and salutes* ^_^ *then drops and falls asleep on her keyboard…* -_- So tired… *laughs* Did I really bang on the cafe table? I suppose I do when I’m very frustrated about stuff…and you and I both know how bad May and June were… *was so scared out of her wits* What with ISUs, ISPs, presentations, essays, projects, tests, quizzes, homework, accounting contest, music concert, exams… *gets dizzy at the thought* _ Now that I have summer school…

Author’s Note to Evil’s toughpreacher: Uwaa~~ You know so much about Chinese history. o_O Gomen ne, that it doesn’t follow that closely to the true history… I still have a lot of research to do, it seems… *sighs* But with oh-so-little time~ -_-* =Þ Thanks for your help, however. ^_^

Author’s Note to Alrim: Other qualities? Oro? Wah~ now you’re making me worried. ;_; Where did I go wrong? -_-

Author’s Note to Meruru: Why haven’t I updated? Well, it’s all thanks to that wonderful thing we all call school. -_-* Grade eleven is my second last year in high school and it was pretty tough this year. (Ne, Hanna-chan?) Exams nearly killed me. x_x Ah, well, it’s finally updated now, ne? ^_^ Now I have to get cracking on my other fics. o_O

And thanks to Lonely Tenshi, Final Fantasy Princess, Silver-Cherry, Karamel, Syaoran-and-Sakura, chunsa1004, CCSobsession, Articuno, nicole, FGWeezeyLuva, rosie, Story Writer, Deborah, Gen, Little Wolf LOVER, Kitty Meow, Pochacco, Lexi, somebody, Elley, and everyone else for your reviews!

*Sakura
~The Animé Archives Team