The Guiding Star

Back from the Dead: Chapter Nineteen

By: Sakura

Come back, you!” roared the guard as he chased after the girl. Sakura looked back to see where he was, but she didn’t stop running.

Several weeks had passed since they left Fankuai. In general, the weeks had been uneventful as they had found no new rings since they lost the one to Chi Yuen nor had they run into any of Wing Kuen’s guards. That is, until they reached Chengkou.

~*Flashback*~

Since leaving Fankuai, Sakura noticed that everyone had changed somehow. For one, Wing Kay may be smiling more often, but they were all forced smiles. It no longer came from her heart anymore. Aside from this was the fact that Xiao Lang was far quieter than he usually was and wouldn’t talk about what was bothering him. As for Sakura herself, even after all this time, Xiao Lang’s kiss was still burning on her lips.

They hadn’t been doing anything in particular in Chengkou - just walking through a busy street filled with merchants and people and thinking of stopping for a meal while they were there - when Xiao Lang accidentally bumped into another person’s shoulder, who was walking in the opposite direction of them. However, they had created such an impact when they bumped into each other that the prince was knocked off his feet. Sitting on the ground, he realized he wasn’t the only thing that fell; Wing Kuen’s braid, which usually was clipped to the back of his head, also fell off and the man saw the braid sitting on the dusty ground. Both men stared at each other in stunned silence. Sakura and Wing Kay immediately went down to help Xiao Lang back on his feet and Wing Kay picked up the braid and quickly hid it out of sight. The man suddenly laughed as the prince was dusting himself off.

“It must be nice to have two wives to help you out,” boomed the giant in a loud voice. “I’ve never been able to get even one!” Xiao Lang smiled wanly at the man and said nothing in return. The trio had been about to continue on when the man stopped them again. “Wait a minute,” he said, in a much quieter voice than his usual, rambunctious tone. They all paused and Sakura and Wing Kay turned around to face the man while Xiao Lang stared straight ahead.

“You can’t have these two women as your wives,” he said. His smile instantly changed to a sneer. “After all,” he continued, slowly walking toward them, “the girl on your left is already engaged to another man, and this girl here,” he placed a hand on Sakura’s shoulder and she flinched slightly in response, “is your brother’s concubine.”

Without wasting a second, the prince turned around and delivered a flying kick to the man’s face, knocking the other man unconscious. But it was already too late, for guards had completely surrounded them by this point, all with swords drawn. Xiao Lang realized then that that man must also be one of those guards and had purposely approached them and walked into him. Although the situation looked bad for the group, none of them seemed worried at all. Within an instant, Wing Kay drew her arrows and when she let them fly, they took out a few guards as they landed on their backs or shoulders. And while some of the guards still standing stared in surprise that their comrades had lost conscious almost instantaneously, the fifteenth prince disarmed them, easily handling the sword with his left hand, and elbowed a few of them in the face. Even Sakura was able to fell a guard with a swing from the bag she was carrying.

Still, this effort was not enough for the small group, as another group of guards, alerted to the fight on the street, came charging through the crowd of civilians watching the skirmish. A few of them had seized Wing Kay and taken her arrows away. She kicked at them and tried to force them to release her, but these men weren’t imperial guards for nothing. Xiao Lang and Sakura, somewhat away from her, went unnoticed by the new groups of guards for the moment. Xiao Lang looked at Sakura, then at Wing Kay, and then back to Sakura, his brow furrowed in worry.

“We can get her away from them,” Sakura said suddenly, thinking rapidly, “if I was used to distract some of them and you handling the rest of them. After all, they don’t want her, but me,” she added, not looking at him. Xiao Lang only stared at her in surprise.

“Sakura…” he said softly. “No, you can’t make yourself a decoy!” the prince exclaimed, grabbing her wrist with his left hand and holding it tight. “There’s got to be another way without putting yourself in danger like that!” Sakura looked up at the amber eyes before her, full of worry and anxiety. She just wanted to be useful to him and not always being a burden. She wanted to help him any way she can.

“Don’t worry about it,” Sakura told him confidently. She had to be strong and she had to muster up all her courage to keep her strength. “We’ll meet up back by the dress-shop near the end of the street we came in from,” she continued. Still, Xiao Lang didn’t release her hand nor had his worries subsided. “Everything will be all right,” Sakura said softly, granting him a soft smile. “That’s always been my ‘invincible’ phrase…” She made him let go of her hand and deliberately ran past the guards, immediately getting their attention and causing a few of them to give chase. All he could do was watch her as she left… Nevertheless, he wasn’t going to let her efforts go to waste and he quickly went to help Wing Kay, hoping that everything really would be all right…

~*End Flashback*~

Originally, there were many guards following Sakura as she weaved through the crowds of civilians, but the moment she ducked into an alley, only one remained on her tail, screaming for her to stop. Even if there was only one guard behind her, she still had trouble disappearing from his sight as he stuck as near her as possible. The alleyways she had ventured into were relatively short and connected to main streets where there were many people milling about, buying their groceries, chatting with neighbours, and so forth. However, every time Sakura left an alley to attempt mingling with the crowd, she saw guards leaving the alleys parallel to the one she was in and was left with no choice but to continue running straight ahead, through more alleys.

A hand reached out from behind her and grabbed her arm, forcing the princess to turn around and face the guard who was trying to catch his breath. She opened her mouth to scream but he clamped a hand over her mouth and used the other to drag her out of the alley and into the street. Sakura’s eyes darted around helplessly, trying to find a way out. The townspeople turned in surprise at seeing them, but as soon as they realized it was an imperial guard, all returned to their own business, nervously glancing over their shoulders and wondering why there was an imperial guard so far from the palace. They didn’t bother giving a thought to the girl, dismissing her as possibly someone from a brothel. She understood then that they would never aid her. Three other guards rejoined the princess’ captor, all with delighted smirks on their faces.

“You’ve caused us a lot of trouble,” sneered one of the guards, poking her forehead hard a few times, as Sakura winced at every jab. “Still, I’m certain the fifth prince will give us a hefty reward for getting you back to him.” He peered closer at Sakura and noticed that she wasn’t paying attention to what he was saying. He grabbed her hair and forced her head up to face him. “What’s the matter with you?” She didn’t respond to him. Instead, Sakura’s gaze was no longer on him, but focused on something past the guard.

There was a procession coming up the street of a sedan chair, eight chair bearers, and twelve guards flanking them. They didn’t seem to imperial guards, as they didn’t wear the same particular robes. The sedan chair was a little bigger than the ones she had seen or rode in, as this particular one could seat two people quite comfortably. With that many people included in the procession, it could easily be assumed that the person in the chair was very wealthy. The group came to a sudden halt as they neared the guards and the chair bearers carefully placed the sedan chair on the ground. In surprise, the guard released Sakura from his hold and the other three equally turned their attention to the arrival of the other group. Although Sakura wanted to use that moment to escape, she knew it wasn’t plausible since she was completely surrounded by both imperial guards and those that protected the occupant of the sedan chair. Around them, curious onlookers tore themselves away from their work to watch the scene unfold.

All of a sudden, all four imperial guards went down on one knee and bowed before the group. “We didn’t expect to see you so soon,” spoke one of them, a little nervously, “but we’ve got the girl for you.” Sakura looked at the guard in surprise, mystified by his words.

“You’ve done an excellent job,” said the voice from inside the chair. “And I’ll be certain to reward you well for your efforts.” The curtain to the sedan chair was gently pushed aside and a man stepped out, smiling serenely at everyone as he walked toward them. Sakura clamped both of her hands over her mouth in shock and her legs gave way beneath her, causing her to drop to her knees. The man stopped before Sakura and held out his hand to her up. “It’s been quite a while since we last saw each other, hasn’t it, Sakura?” the ninth prince, Li Shui Ken, asked her with a calm smile. She could only stare at him, unable to budge an inch. Her mind was reeling from the shock. Shui Ken had caught up to them himself…!

“It’s about time, don’t you think?” San Kong asked his partner as he deftly tied his mask behind his head. Both Shi Kuang and San Kong were watching the scene below them from a random balcony. “It’s time that we take that princess away with us.” Shi Kuang, leaning against the wall, nodded curtly in response.

“She’ll belong to us before she goes to that guy,” he said coldly. San Kong didn’t respond to this, but he agreed with his companion, nonetheless.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Xiao Lang was frantically running around Chengkou with Wing Kay close behind him, not even caring about staying hidden anymore. After all, the guards already knew he was there and hiding would have been pointless, anyway. Cursing silently, Xiao Lang was angry with himself for letting Sakura run off like that. He should’ve realized immediately that it was all just a trap. For the moment he had arrived at Wing Kay’s side, the guard holding her captive shoved her in the prince’s direction and he instantly caught her in his arms.

“Do you think you’re all that important, traitor prince?” asked the guard jeeringly, as Xiao Lang helped Wing Kay back to her feet, one arm around her protectively. “Right now, you’re nothing to Prince Li Shui Ken. Only after we retrieve the Japanese princess is your head worth a little more than nothing.” All the guards turned and gone, leaving Xiao Lang and Wing Kay standing alone in the dust, and the townspeople, who had been watching in curiosity, returned to their work.

“Sakura,” Xiao Lang thought in desperation, “where are you?”

~*~*~*~*~*~

The only daughter of the Japanese Emperor Kinomoto Fujitaka sat very stiffly on the edge of the sedan chair. She chose to stare only straight ahead, refusing to look elsewhere, even if all she saw was the closed curtain that hid the occupants from the people outside. The man beside her slipped his right arm around her shoulders and pulled her back against him, his left hand caressing her cheek. “You’re acting very coldly,” laughed Shui Ken, kissing her forehead lightly. Sakura continued to ignore his gestures, but it only served to amuse him further.

Just a little while earlier, the ninth prince had handed the princess over to the handmaidens he had brought along with him from the palace and they fixed her up for him. Her scruffy peasant clothes were stripped away and she was adorned with a pale pink high-collared shirt and long skirt. The shirt had buttons starting from the center and travelling down both sides of her and the skirt was merely pleated on both sides. The pattern for the dress was actually fairly simple, but the materials it was made of were very expensive, something an ordinary citizen normally would not be able to afford. Parts of her long silky brown hair were braided and twisted up to her head, where they were pinned with small flowery clips. The rest of her hair lay gently on her back, brushed until it shone. When they were finished with her, she looked quite unlike the peasant woman she presented herself as when she was found. Rather, she looked the princess that she truly was, much to Shui Ken’s satisfaction.

Shui Ken placed his right hand on her chin and turned Sakura’s head to face him, looking into the depths of her emerald eyes. She was still the most beautiful woman he ever knew, as he had formed his own standard of beauty based on her. She was his and would always belong to him… He’d make certain of that.

Sakura squirmed uncomfortably in her position, not wanting to look at the prince. But, his eyes – why, they were the same shade of amber Xiao Lang’s were – held her entirely captive in its gaze and she could not look away, try as she might. Deep down, despite her fright, she realized that these were familiar eyes… The eyes, which usually gazed at her so cruelly, were softer and somewhat gentler. They didn’t remind her of Xiao Lang’s eyes, even if they were the same colour, but of someone else, from long ago…

“My dear Sakura,” he whispered in a soft tone, losing himself in the moment as he held her cheek in his hand. Very, very few would ever recognize the ninth prince in this state. Sakura trembled in his grasp as he continued to stroke her cheek, only wanting him to release her and nothing more. “I’m going to change your title… You’ll be named as my wife when we return to the palace and not just any concubine.” The princess looked at him in surprise, not comprehending what he was saying immediately. “Because,” he said, “you are my most beloved.”

“But,” she protested, “you already have a wife! You can’t have two at one time…” Shui Ken looked away at that moment and was silent for a few moments.

“She died a few weeks ago from heart failure,” he replied in a low voice, his eyes downcast. Although Sakura had always been his ideal woman in his heart, in his own cold way, he still did care somewhat for his wife, and even the other concubines that followed her. She was the first one he had ever married and she had stayed faithful to him from the moment of their marriage, unlike the wretched second and third concubines, who paid for their treachery with their lives. If Sakura was astonished by his earlier gentleness, she was even more dumbfounded by this melancholy display. He was showing her a side of him that he rarely showed anyone, one of vulnerability and weakness. She almost opened her arms to embrace him at that moment when a thought flashed through her mind. Sakura could not forget that this was the man that had destroyed her home, family, and friends. He had hurt so many people for his own selfish reasons. Never again would she submit herself to him.

It was also then Sakura remembered that, even if she was considered his concubine and all by everyone, they still never had an official ceremony, for the time she had arrived in the imperial palace and was called the ninth son’s concubine was the time the Emperor of China had passed away and his funeral had taken precedence over everything else. Also, soon after the funeral was when Xiao Lang had threatened Shui Ken and the latter charged his younger brother with treason, getting him sentenced to die. Throughout all that, Sakura had never officially became his…

The sound of swords clashing and screams of pain reached Shui Ken and Sakura’s ears and the sedan chair was placed back on the ground none too gently. Shui Ken’s arms had encircled Sakura’s waist and he held her tight so that she wouldn’t fall out as the sedan chair was dropped. A trifle annoyed by the interruption, the prince stood up, flung half the curtain aside, and stepped out, in time to see a guard thrown against the sedan chair, a deep stab wound in his chest. The man was already dead. Several of the other guards had been taken out in the same manner, a single stab wound to the chest. He stood before the half of the open curtain, shielding Sakura from the view outside. One hand rested protectively over the other half of the sedan chair while the other hand on the hilt of his sword. Nonetheless, Sakura moved the other half of the curtain aside and peered outside to see the situation for herself. She gasped at the sight of the few dead guards and saw two men standing in their midst, swords drawn, each stained with the blood of the eunuchs. Other imperial guards were joining them, but at the moment, it was as if time had stopped for those four people. The two men wore their usual masks, their only expression being the one painted on each of their masks.

“Give us Kinomoto Sakura,” demanded Shi Kuang, pointing his sword as Shui Ken, although they stood several feet apart. The prince didn’t seem the least bit fazed by them. On the contrary, he was studying them calmly, as if they were just guests joining him for tea.

“Have we met somewhere before?” Shui Ken asked him in a pleasant tone, smiling coolly at him.

“My name is Tan Shi Kuang,” the other man answered brusquely, his countenance threatening. “Introductions are meaningless, really, so just hand her over.”

“Do you really expect me to hand over my important person willingly?” the prince asked frostily, an eyebrow raised questioningly.

“Of course not,” Shi Kuang responded in relative agreement. He gripped his sword tight with both hands. “That’s why I’m going to defeat you here and take her from you.” His entire focus was on the ninth prince and he ignored everyone else around him. But as San Kong knew how much Shi Kuang wanted this one on one fight, he took care of any intruding guards that came lunging toward them. The ninth prince first swung his queue around his neck, so as to not get in his way, and unsheathed his sword from the scabbard. Both men then approached each other, completely oblivious to their surroundings and the people around them.

It began as a trade off of blows and blocks as both Shi Kuang and Shui Ken struck at each other with their swords, each escaping with narrow misses. Shi Kuang’s strokes were heavier, as he put more force into them, while the prince, slightly smaller in stature compared to the masked man, used speed and precision for his shots. A good few moments had passed by and both still faced each other, breathing a little heavily. Neither one sustained any injuries at the time. Aside from Sakura, no one was paying much attention to their battle. The eunuchs caused a great deal of commotion, even though San Kong easily parried them all, and the civilians all watched this one man facing over a dozen imperial guards alone. San Kong was very skilful with his sword, having learned how to use it at a very young age and honing his skills since then. However, he hated having to kill someone, as he was often forced to when he was in a battle, especially when his life - and the lives of people he cared about - was on the line.

Making his way to Sakura’s side, he stood next to her as he continued with his fights. “Sakura,” he began, ducking in time to avoid the heavy cuff to his face. “Would you mind coming with us? We really want to take you away with us.” He suddenly covered Sakura’s eyes with his left hand as his sword plunged into the guard’s chest. He didn’t want her to see people dying like this, even if it was for her sake. The sudden motion puzzled Sakura, but when his hand lowered, she found herself face to face with San Kong, and she could see nothing beyond the mask. “Actually,” he said ruefully, “it doesn’t matter whether you want to leave this prince or not.” It seemed to the princess that the man was smiling underneath his mask. “Because we’ll steal you away no matter what.”

“But, why?” Sakura asked, still not understanding in the least bit what they wanted from her. Besides her very first run in with Shi Kuang several months ago, she was certain she never met them before. What could they possibly need from her? It couldn’t be the star key again, could it? That was something Chi Yuen wanted. However, San Kong didn’t answer her as his attention was turned back to the guards. Sakura then returned to watching Shi Kuang and Shui Ken battle, rather anxiously. Only one winner could emerge from a fight…and who she wanted to be the victor, she wasn’t sure…

Every time their swords clashed, every time a hit was dodged or made impact with something other than his opponent, Shui Ken realized that the style Shi Kuang fought with was fairly similar to another man’s that he battled with before. He couldn’t place a finger on who that person was, but he was most certain that that man had died by his hand long ago. Still, what was the reason that the style was so familiar? The only explanation he could come up with offhand was that perhaps these two men had studied under the same master. However, that sort of answer didn’t satisfy him.

Both men were no longer completely unscathed, though, neither had any serious injuries, either. They dismissed any measly cuts and bruises to be meaningless and continued without thinking about them. Still, the longer Shui Ken thought about it, he knew this style was the exact same. Was this Shi Kuang testing him for some reason? His next movements were completely natural; he moved as if he were re-enacting a one-on-one battle he had with another person years ago. He had faked a movement with his sword to the left of the man, as if he were to strike him, and then followed up instantly with a side kick, but Shi Kuang deflected them with ease, as if he were expected them. Shui Ken took a step back and paused for a moment, observing his opponent. He imagined that Shi Kuang was glaring back at him, much like that other man, but he couldn’t really be certain, what with the mask on his opponent’s face.

The Chinese prince decided that it was time to end this child’s play. Reaching behind, he withdrew several daggers from his belt and suddenly leapt high into the air, throwing the long daggers at Shi Kuang. The masked man jumped out of the way, avoiding all the daggers as they struck the ground. Before the taller man landed on the ground again, Shui Ken instantly reappeared before Shi Kuang’s eyes. “He’s fast,” the man thought grudgingly, noticing that the prince had moved from one place to the next in a matter of seconds. Clutching the hilt of his sword tight in both of his hands, Shui Ken slashed down on Shi Kuang, intending to strike him across the chest. However, Shi Kuang knocked the sword away by pushing against the flat side of the blade and grabbed Shui Ken’s right wrist, stopping him in his tracks. The prince looked mildly surprised at Shi Kuang’s action. “That kind of move won’t work on me,” the man said coldly.

“I didn’t expect it to,” Shui Ken said with a calm smile. Shi Kuang wasn’t given any time to ponder over his words. With eyes wide open, he looked down at his midriff. A dagger was protruding from his midsection. Shui Ken had pulled one of the daggers from the ground with his left hand and stabbed his opponent with it. Unknown to Shi Kuang, the prince had originally designed his move to have a back up finishing shot, if the first were to fail. As it was the first rarely ever failed - in fact, this was the first time it had - but if it did, the second move would guarantee an end. As he swiftly withdrew his dagger, Shi Kuang, his hand clutching his wound, the blood beginning to spill over his hands and clothes, collapsed to the ground, no longer moving.

Shui Ken looked down at the fallen man, a grim smirk on his face. No matter who it was, no one could defeat him. Still, this man… His curiosity getting the better of him, Shui Ken bent down to remove Shi Kuang’s mask, wondering whose face it hid.

“…tou…” muttered San Kong almost incomprehensibly, left to watching a few feet away, not close enough to do anything to stop him.

“Eh?” Sakura turned to San Kong in his surprise, and noticed he was hidden in shadows.

Suddenly, his head snapped up. “Don’t touch that!” he cried. Somewhat startled by the outburst, Shui Ken straightened up again, but before he could respond to this, something else completely pulled his attention away.

“Sakura!” a voice shouted from the distance. Everyone, including what guards remained standing, turned to the direction of the voice. Sakura’s heart leapt at the sight of him and at the same time, Shui Ken’s eye narrowed in quiet irritation.

“Xiao Lang,” she whispered softly, watching him and Wing Kay running in their direction.

“Xiao Lang,” muttered Shui Ken at the same time, his tone filled with annoyance. His little brother would have to come later though, the prince noted. After all, he had to take care of this one named Shi Kuang first. However, when he turned back to the other man, he realized he had disappeared. Looking back toward the sedan chair, he saw no one there other than the dead eunuchs that littered the street and the other guards regrouping. The other masked man and Sakura were gone. Stranger, still, at that moment, the seemingly dead guards slowly got up, rubbing their heads as if they had just woken up from a nightmare or a long sleep. Quickly whirling around, his composure ruffled as he seethed in cold fury, he saw Shi Kuang and Sakura both being borne off by the other masked man. At this moment, Xiao Lang stepped into his range, stopping him before he could give chase to the others. The guards still left standing immediately surrounded the fifteenth prince and Wing Kay. Both brothers held each other’s gaze for a long time, neither breaking that gaze. The eunuchs were hesitant to do anything without their prince’s command and stood aloofly to the side, and went unnoticed by either of the princes. Finally, Shui Ken looked away.

“Right now, little brother,” he said coolly, “you’re of no interest to me. Besides,” he added, with a hint of impatience in his tone, “why didn’t you go after that guy? He took away your beloved princess, after all. The one you stole from me.” The corner of Xiao Lang’s lips lifted in a crooked smile.

“Don’t think of yourself as so high and mighty, older brother,” Xiao Lang replied, with the same pointed emphasis on the word ‘brother’ that Shui Ken had used. “As for that guy, I trust Sakura with him more than I do with you, so I’m not in that much of a hurry to get her back from him as I am if she accidentally fell into your grasp.” With nothing to reply to that, Shui Ken turned his back to his younger brother and continued on.

“Let’s go,” the ninth prince commanded to his guards as he stepped into his sedan chair again.

“But, your highness,” protested one of the guards anxiously. “Shouldn’t we bring the treacherous prince with us, as well, while we’ve captured them? Or at least kill him here?” Shui Ken wordlessly turned around and grabbed the guard by his collar and pulled him close.

“Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear,” he said icily, his eyes glaring down at the other man. “I said ‘let’s go.’”

“Y-yes, your highness!” the eunuch managed to squeak out, still quailing under his master’s gaze.

Shui Ken roughly released the man, who quickly scrambled away, and looked over his shoulder at Xiao Lang. “Frankly, killing you here and now would be too troublesome,” he said indifferently. “You’re just not worth the effort right now.” The curtain to the sedan chair shielded him from view as he sat down and the procession picked up where they left off and continued on, Xiao Lang and Wing Kay left standing in the dust, watching them leave. They only noticed then the audience that had gathered around them and when any villager caught their eye, they immediately returned to their original tasks, pretending nothing had happened at all.

“Xiao Lang?” Wing Kay said gently, lightly touching his shoulder. The prince’s fists were clenched tight and when her hand touched his shoulder, she could feel the stiffness in his body. She knew Xiao Lang hadn’t been afraid of his older brother…no, rather, he was worried about something else…

“I lied, actually,” Xiao Lang said suddenly. He missed Wing Kay’s questioning glance when he grabbed her hand and the two took off in the direction San Kong had disappeared to. “I don’t really trust those two guys more than my brother. We have to find Sakura and fast!”

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was like waking up from a bad dream. Mother was there, with her arms enveloped around him in a warm and sweet embrace. Her soft smile that told him everything was just fine… He reached out to hold her hand and grasped it firmly. A surprised “oh!” dragged him back into abrupt consciousness. The man opened his eyes and found himself facing the Japanese princess, his hand holding hers tightly with his strong grip.

Quickly releasing her hand, Shi Kuang tried to sit up but found that he hadn’t even enough strength to pull himself up. Sakura was sitting by his side, not letting move either. “You have to be careful, Shi Kuang,” she said softly, “or the wounds will open up again.” The older man took in the entire situation in one glance. His entire body ached, his muscles hurt, his midriff had been completely bandaged up to keep the wound closed, he was still in the abandoned shack that his friend and himself had found only a few days previously and decided to occupy, and he was being looked after by a girl he had supposedly kidnapped, if not by him, then by his friend. He sighed inwardly, somewhat in irritation. This was not how he had wanted to start a new day… It was then that he realized his mask was still tied around his face. He had been wearing the wooden object for so long that he was beginning to be accustomed to it being there…despite its weight. He looked over to the princess, who was retying one of his outer bandages, ensuring that it wouldn’t loosen.

“Hey, you,” he spoke in a gruff voice. Sakura turned to him questioningly, but said not a word. “How come you never took off my mask when you had the chance?”

“Eh?” was Sakura’s only reply. She hadn’t expected him to speak to her and not about that, above all else. But without any hesitation, her answer was, “What makes you think I didn’t?”

Beneath the mask, a slight smile twitched on the edges of his lips, the first smile he’s had in a long time. “I know you haven’t,” he said simply. He gave no other explanation as to why he was so certain she hadn’t. Sakura, already finished with the knots, began to fidget with the ends of the bandages rather nervously as the other man watched her every move. Her head and eyes were looking down, but she could still feel his intense gaze.

“It’s just that…” She turned to face him and smiled wanly. “You wear that mask for a reason, don’t you? And if you don’t want to take it off yourself, no one else should have a right to.” She continued fidgeting with the ends as she paused for a moment. “Besides,” she added, “San Kong was really worried when Prince Li almost took off your mask. It must be really important to you two…” Shi Kuang abruptly grabbed both of her hands so that they’d stop playing with the bandage ends. Sakura wasn’t sure how to respond to this action and stared back at him.

“Sakura,” he began, “I…”

“Looks like the big guy woke up.”

Both Sakura and Shi Kuang turned to the source of those words and saw San Kong leaning on the doorway, his mask still beaming down at them. He began to limp slowly into the room and Sakura immediately got up and helped him into a chair. Shi Kuang observed them and then muttered, half-sarcastically, half-concerned, “What happened to you?”

“It’s only a little sprain,” San Kong replied cheerfully. He said nothing more about the matter nor did Shi Kuang press for more details. The two had been friends long enough to be able to understand each other even without speaking a word. While escaping earlier, San Kong had landed improperly on his right leg and twisted his ankle. Although Sakura was anxious about him, he said she had nothing to worry about and that he could heal himself as soon as his powers returned. After all, he had been greatly weakened after using most of his powers trying to pull his friend back from the brink of death.

“Oh, shoot, I forgot the tea I made in the other room,” San Kong said suddenly. Sakura got up instantly at this.

“I’ll get it for you,” she said and took leave right away. Shi Kuang watched her go with mixed feelings.

“I don’t know what to think anymore,” he told his friend in a rather disgruntled tone. “She’s far too trusting for her own good. No wonder people like Chi Yuen got their dirty hands on her. If it were up to me, none of them would be able to touch her, especially not Shui Ken or that stupid brother of his.”

“It sounds like you love her,” teased San Kong impishly.

“That’s because I do love her,” Shi Kuang countered immediately. San Kong laughed in response.

“It’s so rare to hear you say that,” he said with a smile, as he took his right leg up and rested it on his left thigh. Placing both hands on his ankle, they glowed for a moment and it was healed in seconds. He looked back up at his friend, a twinkle in his eyes. “I do understand how you feel, a little,” he added, “as I had fallen in love with her a long time ago, too.”

Shi Kuang almost seemed to be glaring at San Kong through the tiny slits in his mask, but he only let out an annoyed sort of sigh and muttered, “And I nearly thought you were lying about the sprain.” San Kong didn’t answer this but instead, walked over to his friend’s side and helped him up into a sitting position. At that point Sakura returned with the tray and she could feel both of their gazes on her as she re-entered the room wordlessly. She felt somewhat unnerved at this, yet at the same time, she couldn’t shake the feeling that the atmosphere she felt from them was so warm and familiar…

“Sakura,” Shi Kuang said suddenly, before she had moved far from the doorway, “why are you making yourself so comfortable amongst two strangers? Don’t you realize that we could be out to hurt you?”

It was almost as if they could read her mind, Sakura thought silently to herself. Even she hadn’t quite understood why, and yet… “I don’t really know the reason why,” she said honestly. “Every time I’ve met you two, I’ve always felt you weren’t bad people. After all, you’ve always saved me from Shui Ken’s guards and, Shi Kuang, you even got hurt trying to help me!”

The first response Shi Kuang gave was a harsh and guttural laugh. “You’ve got to be kidding me, right?” he asked coldly. “Did you ever even think of the possibility that this was all a façade just to make you trust us? Chi Yuen already did this once.” Sakura had no answer to this at all, but the hurt look in her eyes pained Shi Kuang and his tone had softened when he spoke again. “You’re too gentle and kind, Sakura,” he said gruffly, “a lot like your mother. And Emperor Kinomoto would have been very proud of you, had he still been alive, to see you growing up so well.” The princess stared at him in surprise. Just who was he? How could he have known about her parents…?

“I’m really proud of you, too,” San Kong spoke up for the first time since she returned, his hand resting lightly on the edge of his mask.. Sakura turned to face him and could have sworn she could see a smile of relief on his face. “We both are, really, even if this guy tries to pretend otherwise. And we’re just thankful you’re okay.” He reached behind his head and unhooked the mask, slowly taking it off. The tray slipped from Sakura’s hands and crashed to the ground, but no one noticed it. Instead her hands flew to her mouth, covering it in shock.

“Yu…kito…san…?” she asked slowly, her emerald greens eyes locked in a gaze with his light brown ones. He smiled faintly at her and nodded. It was too unreal… The Yukito that had disappeared after the last battle in Japan…here, right now? In China?? This…it had to be a dream, it just had to! There was no possible way…

Turning around, she watched with equal disbelief as “Shi Kuang” took off his own mask and threw it aside. She turned completely numb at the sight of her older brother, the one that she believed had died so long ago, and unexpected tears slowly trickled down her cheeks. Touya and Yukito wisely said nothing more. It was as if time had stopped for the three of them and they could think of nothing else. It would be a long while before another word passed between them…

Author’s Note: *kowtows to everyone* I’m so sorry! So sorry, so sorry, so sorry! It’s been one delay after another! As some may know, I started university this year, plus a second job, and the effect it has on my time is absolutely horrible! …not to mention that I seem to have forgotten how to write (did I even know in the first place?) and everything just sounds/looks horrible to me. *is completely dissatisfied with her work*

So…who expected that? ^_^* Did anyone think they’d see Touya again? When I first began writing this fic, I certainly didn’t. =P But shortly after a few of the beginning chapters, the idea to do that *points above about his return* popped in my head. =) As for Shui Ken…that was only a recent idea (I thought of it a few months ago? sometime in the summer). I had never intended for him to appear again this soon. =P On the same note of reappearing characters, you’ll be seeing another two familiar (well, one’s familiar if you watch the series and the other is if you follow my two long CCS fics…that’s a huge hint about who they are right there XD) people in the coming chapters. But this won’t be for at least two or three chapters.

If you haven’t done it already, go visit TGS’ very own website! It can be found at “/~taateam”.

Author’s Note to laura: Draw it however you like. ^_^ I don’t even mind if my own original characters are drawn differently. So it’s all up to you; you have the freedom. =) Maaa, my imagination tends to go nuts on me sometimes. ^_^* I can get really strange ideas sometimes. =P And you’re not improper at all. Though, I’m not quite sure what you meant by “improper”. ^_^*

Author’s Note to Mel Barry: I wonder if Mel-san still remembers the Wing Kuen oekaki pic she made oh-so-many years ago. ^_^ (It’s posted on the site now. =D)

Author’s Note to Umiko Morimoto: Well, let’s not forget that back then, polygamy wasn’t a big deal. =P You pretty much won’t find it much here in North America or anywhere else where it’s widely practiced, but back then, there was nothing wrong with a man having more than one woman (in the sense of wife/concubine). ^_^*

Author’s Note to rubygurl: Ano… I don’t know how Syaoran can be cheating on Sakura when they’re not even together. ^_^* If anything, he’s “cheating” on Wing Kay when he kissed Sakura, but then again, it’s not “cheating”. Remember, nothing wrong with polygamy during this time~ =P

Author’s Note to hannagrace: Hmm…how many more chapters left? Er…well…there’s still a lot of stuff to be covered before this fic ends so the most I can say right now is not anytime soon. ^_^* Commencement was so much fun! I loved seeing everyone again! ^_^ And you, too! *huggles* =) Even if you’re no longer “mommy”, mommy still looks way cool in a suit. ^_^

Author’s Note to vora: Well, chapters are posted the moment I finish them. ^_^* I can never ever give a specific date or even around a particular time because I always get cursed one way or another and never do get it done by that time. The most I can do is e-mail you whenever a new chapter is posted.

Author’s Note to Angel: (Note to self: let Angel-san kill me later.) Hmm, but come to think of it, it’d be really hard for me to update if I was dead, ne? ^_~

Author’s Note to starlight: For a few weeks (months?) now, this chapter had been more than half finished. So why the delay? Simply because a) I had writer’s block when it came to certain parts and b) I have my midterms/finals and writing time needs to be changed to studying time. You can always give me your e-mail to be added to the e-mail notification I send out when a chapter is completed, if you haven’t already done so. Right now, that’s the best I can do.

Author’s Note to Kaji no Tenshi: Sakura~~ *glomps you* Two thumbs up on the great translating job and happy to have you on our team. =)

Author’s Note to Thallein: Thanks for your review! I’ll agree that the way Sakura is being portrayed right now doesn’t exactly please me, either. Did you ever write a fic where the fic just wouldn’t listen to you and went off and did its own thing? TGS is like that for me, sometimes. ^_^*

And thanks to sweet-strawberry692003, yumi, Rindi, Linky-chan, KayJuli, Crystal jade2, japanimerox, sakura-li9, MoshiMoshiQueen, Feathers1, TiarellaCordifolia, Final Fantasy Princess, QTKawaii25, Jiruru-chan, White Blossoms, Yukimi Yuki Takiro, Bonnie-chan, cherryblossomsakura2111, Red-Emerald, BabyWolfGurl x10, s jus me, rebecca, Little Wolf LOVER x3, crystalstar, Megan, Innocence8, MuiscalMooky, and cherry blossom x3 for your reviews!

*Sakura
~The Animé Archives