by SAKURA AKA MICHELLE
Syaoran leaned against a tree trunk with his arms folded in front of his chest as he continued to watch Sakura practicing with his sword, with him giving some instructions every now and then. He was amazed by the strength that Sakura showed during the sword practice for he knew that Meiling would rather die than use his sword; his sword was just too heavy for a lady to lift up. He had considered Meiling a strong lady and he was rather surprised that Sakura held his sword as if it did not weigh more than a feather.
“Do you want to take a break, Sakura?” Syaoran suddenly asked. “You have been practicing for three hours already…”
Sakura paused suddenly and ran towards Syaoran, flinging herself into his arms knowing that he would catch her, which he did although he did look surprised by her actions. He was about to ask her if anything was wrong when she hugged him and beamed up at him with all the adoration that was stored in her heart. Syaoran was so startled by the intensity he found in her eyes that he was rendered speechless.
“Can I continue practicing tomorrow?” Sakura asked eagerly. “Can I? Can I?”
Syaoran returned the hug and settled his hands on her waist. He grinned down at her and answered, “Of course, anything for my Sakura.”
Sakura giggled in response and slapped Syaoran’s arm playfully, “I am not your Sakura and do let go of me now.”
“No,” Syaoran answered straightaway without putting much thought and to emphasize his point, he pulled Sakura tighter into his embrace and enjoyed the blush that spread like wildfire on her cheeks. “Sakura, I’m going to claim my reward now...”
Sakura’s flush deepened as she tried to pull herself away from Syaoran but he refused to give in to her demands. She then protested, “It is unseemly! Other people can see us...”
Syaoran leaned his face closer to Sakura’s and she averted her gaze immediately. His voice sounded husky to him when he answered her, “There’s no one here, Sakura... No one dares to venture into my most private area of the mansion, except you. Look at me Sakura.”
She did as asked and found herself lost in his amber orbs. All was forgotten but the feel of Syaoran’s body pressed against her and his wonderful scent... She trembled slightly when he said her name again and she leaned her cheek against his chest in acknowledgement that she had heard him. He would not have it and he used his hand to cup her chin while he leaned down purposefully, looking into her eyes. Sakura knew what Syaoran was up to; he had told her earlier that he was claiming his reward and she did not stop him. Instead, she leaned up closer to him and her eyes fluttered close...
And the bell that signaled the start of the family’s breakfast rang and interrupted their precious silence.
Sakura’s eyes widened with a start before she jerked away from Syaoran, turning her back to him lest he noticed the blush that was tinted on her cheeks. Syaoran cursed softly, Damn the bell! I must abolish the bell system! Arghh...
“We shouldn’t try that again; it seems inappropriate to me... I mean... you are a prince while I... I am nobody,” Sakura soft voice echoed through his ears.
“We have been through this many times, Sakura,” he said in exasperation. “In my eyes, you are a princess and wait, you aren’t going anywhere yet,” he added when Sakura started walking away from him.
“Your family won’t approve of us being together!” Sakura wailed in his face, her eyes watering with fresh unshed tears. “I can’t continue this... I can’t and I won’t continue.”
“What do you mean by that?” Syaoran demanded and shook Sakura by her shoulders. “You can’t mean that!”
Sakura swallowed the lump in her throat and hugged Syaoran with all her might. “I’ll stay, Syaoran. I will stay with you until you are married. I know Queen Li wanted to keep the Li’s bloodline pure so... it would be quite impossible for us to marry,” she told him with a sad smile. “Let’s just enjoy the days together until then.”
“No,” Syaoran replied, nuzzling against her throat and making her squirm. “Two years isn’t enough for me Sakura. I can choose not to marry whoever that was appointed to marry me. I won’t marry them if you don’t want me to.”
“Can we drop the subject?” Sakura pleaded. “And we are late for breakfast if you didn’t notice...”
Syaoran paled almost instantaneously. If they knew that Sakura was with me, suspicion will arise... She might get punished! Damn the rules! “You need to change out of my training outfit,” Syaoran reminded and then added when he checked his wristwatch. “And hurry while you are at it or we will both be dead.”
Sakura frowned at his choice of words but shrugged it off anyway. “I guess it would be better if you go first,” she suggested and leaned up to press a kiss on Syaoran’s cheek. “I’ll be there in a while.”
“Be quick about it,” Syaoran told her and gave a quick kiss on the forehead as they neared the exit and grinned when he saw Sakura blushing.
Li Meiling watched the exchange between the two from the corner of the corridor with a smile. Things are getting more interesting around here... She quickly withdrew from her hiding place when she noticed that Sakura was walking in her direction. She immediately relaxed when she realized that Syaoran was not following Sakura and that meant that Meiling was safe for now.
Meiling glared at the two guards that she employed into motion, now that Sakura was alone and there was nothing that she could do to fight back two grown men at the same time. Meiling watched with glee as her two guards crept silently behind Sakura, their movements so delicate and executed so swiftly that she was sure that Sakura would be caught off-guard.
And she was wrong!
Sakura sensed that she was being trailed by someone from the moment she stepped into the corridor and she had an idea who was behind this. Princess Meiling... Why does she like to do this every time? She sighed and hurriedly duck when she realized that the two persons meant to whack her head and make her loose consciousness. Luck was with her for she barely made it in time before the hit. Dropping to her hands and knees, Sakura kicked out at them swinging her leg into a powerful arc that meant to trip them to delay some time for herself to make her escape. She swallowed her laughter when she saw her attackers’ state; they were sprawled on top of each other, each trying to entangle themselves without much success.
Deciding that she had had enough, Sakura swiftly made her escape but her only escape route was blocked by yet another burly and hideous looking war-toughened guard, obviously hired by Meiling.
“What do you want from me?” Sakura demanded angrily, irked by the constant confrontation with the Li princess. “I have done nothing to disturb your peace!”
“I am just following orders,” he replied in monotone. “If you would just come with us, we can assure you that no harm will come to you.”
“Why should I believe you?” Sakura taunted, her eyes blazing with anger. “I don’t even know where you are bringing me!”
There was no need for answer and it happened so quickly; in a blink of a second Sakura dropped into a heap on the ground, blacking out. “Are you sure you didn’t hit anything vital?” the war-toughened guard asked worriedly.
“No, of course not!” The other two guards shouted in unison. “Princess Li will chop our heads off!”
Throwing Sakura over his shoulder as if she was a sack of grain, the trio left to perform their required tasks...
To be continued...