by SAKURA AKA MICHELLE
“Syaoran, I would like to go to the Kinomoto castle with you,” Sakura started and twisted her fingers in front of her nervously while she waited for him to answer. When he did not, she looked up at him curiously and attempted to explain to him. “You see? I was born in that kingdom and have not returned since I came here. I missed my own home. Can you bring me with you? I promise I won’t not be a nuisance to you. You can proceed to the castle while I... while I find my own home.”
Syaoran said nothing but continued to stare at her until she became very uncomfortable that she actually felt guilty for having lied to him and as if he had already knew her secrets. She squirmed and tried to take a step backward in an effort to put some space between them in order to reduce the awkwardness that occurred between them. Before she could even draw her leg back to take a step, the grip on her arms tightened and she paused, looking up at him with uncertainty and not knowing what was going on in his mind.
“Sakura,” Syaoran finally said after long moments but was at a loss for words after this. The silence stretched further and it was Syaoran who broke it again. “It was said that the royalties in Kinomoto Kingdom are very special.”
Sakura gulped and nodded her head, unsure about where the direction of this conversation would be heading. “I have heard about that before too.”
Syaoran shook his head slowly, but his eyes remained staring at the lady in front of him. “You did not hear about it, Sakura. For you yourself, is a very special person. I’m sure that you are still unaware about it right now, at this moment in time.”
“What are you talking about, Syaoran?” Sakura interrupted, stopping him from saying more and looked away. “I don’t understand what you are saying to me.”
Syaoran sighed. She is still trying to hide it from me, after all that I have done for her... He used a finger to pushed Sakura’s chin up, forcing her to look at him in the eye. Having no other choices, she naturally obeyed and waited for him to explain himself, hoping that it was not what she was actually thinking and hoping that it would not happen.
“You are a very careless lady, Sakura,” Syaoran commented and had Sakura confused all over again. He chuckled, seeing her confused expression and then added, “I have heard that the royalties from the Kinomoto Kingdom have a unique emerald iris that no others have except for their own families and you here, has the exact iris colour as them. I believe that is what you have been trying to hide from us all these years that you are staying with us.”
Sakura gasped aloud, thunderstruck by her carelessness and his astute observation, and her lips had formed an ‘o’ shape and her eyes had turned as huge as a saucer. Syaoran actually thought she looked cute this way. She put a hand over her right eye had silently berate herself for her own carelessness that led the cat out of the bag and her secrets revealed. She looked over to the small cupboard by the side of the wooden tub and saw her two black lenses still lying there. She wished that the floor would open up a big hole and swallow her or a big bird to fly in and carry her away so that she could escape from the inevitable confrontation.
“I... I’m sorry!” It was all Sakura could say in this situation that she had feared for many years and had tried her very best to avoid by taking precautions such as checking her eyes the first thing she woke up in the morning but yet, due to her slight carelessness, she screwed up everything. She felt so devastated that she started to weep.
Syaoran groaned when he saw her crying and quickly pulled her deep into his embrace and told her gently, “I’m not berating you for trying to hide your identity for I believed that you have a reason for doing so and I also understand the difficulties that you are in all these years. I am really glad that it was me who found out about it and not any other people who might blow up the matter and make it even worse.” He patted her back awkwardly, having not used to comforting other people especially crying ones, and then continued his efforts to comfort her. “Don’t worry about it, Sakura. Your secret is safe with me.”
Syaoran’s gentleness moved Sakura to the core and she wept even harder, pouring out all her pent-up emotions that she had kept deep inside of her all these years; the homesickness she felt each and everyday and the yearning for Syaoran’s love even though she knew it was impossible for them to be together. She had felt bad for lying to everyone and she feared she might not be able to take on the guilt from now onwards. She feared rejection from the Li family once they found out their identity and she was afraid that Syaoran might push her away once her identity was revealed. However, it turned out that he did not despise her for her lie and had actually accepted her as she was. She felt as if a heavy load had been taken off her shoulders.
Sakura snuggled deeper into his embrace and she felt tired after the torrents of tears had subsided, along with all her bottled up emotions. “After all these years of finding, you are actually right in front of us all along,” Syaoran commented, chuckling. Sakura looked up at him with tear-brimmed eyes, unable to make sense out of what he had said. He shook his head and used his thumb to wipe away the droplets of tears that still clung to her eyelashes. “I still have to go to the Kinomoto castle, Sakura, and I can’t bring you along with me. Who knows what will happen when I am there. However, I’ll find out more about this imposter while I am there and I need you to stay at the Hiiragizawa castle under heavy protection.”
“But I want to be there!” Sakura protested. “I have to see it with my own eyes who the imposter is!”
“You know it is impossible to do that,” Syaoran said firmly. “You don’t know what they will do if they know you are the real princess. I do not wish to put you in that kind of danger. I’ll pretend I do not know anything that happens when I am there and find out as much information as I can. Then, we devise a plan together.”
Seeing the reason behind Syaoran’s plan, Sakura had no choice but to obey him. She did not know how it happened but half an hour later, she was all dressed up and sitting in the carriage alone and was driven to Hiiragizawa castle for Syaoran was heading off in the other direction and was unable to accompany her. However, he did pass her a letter meant for King Hiiragizawa to explain the reason for her presence. The guard at the entrance of the castle stopped their carriage and Sakura stepped out, handing the letter over to the footman to be brought to the King’s attention immediately. The guard raised an eyebrow and looked at Sakura suspiciously. “It is from Prince Li Syaoran. It is an emergency,” Sakura repeated what Syaoran had told her and it was effective for the guard practically flew into to castle to hand the letter over the King.
Sakura stood waiting at the entrance of the castle and stared at the beautiful surrounding in awe. I wonder how Kinomoto castle looks like now, Sakura thought fondly, remembering the beautiful scenery of her own home and the caring villagers who often played with her when she was young. A loud cough interrupted her train of thoughts and she turned and found that guard earlier standing rigidly at the entrance.
“The King will see you at the throne room,” he announced devoid of any emotion. “Please follow me.”
Sakura said her thanks to the carriage driver from the Li Kingdom and sent him back to where he was before following the guard to their destination. The whole entrance walkway was covered with purple banners that bore the crest of their Kingdom, which was a pair of ferocious lions. It looked very similar to that of the Li Kingdom’s, which was a pair of wolves. However, the crest of the Kinomoto castle was that of a cherry blossom. Sakura wondered if the Li Kingdom and the Hiiragizawa Kingdom were related somehow.
The guard left her own her own once they reached the door that would led her to the throne room. When she did not move, the guard opened the door for her and explained, “The throne room is just ahead.”
“Thank you very much, guard-san,” Sakura said sincerely and smiled at him gratefully. The guard blushed and bowed deeply before rushing off to continue with his duties. Sakura walked into the throne room cautiously, blinking at the unfamiliar environment.
The King who was initially sitting on his throne stood when he spotted her at the entrance and moved towards her with a long-haired lady beside him. Sakura stopped mid-pace and wondered what she was supposed to do. By the time she had made a decision, the pair had already stopped in front of her. The lady had gorgeous violet eyes that were staring intently at her and Sakura stared back, finding her familiar, as if she had met her before.
Violet eyes... Dark hair... Could it be Tomo-chan? Sakura thought.
The lady in front of her beamed at her and that was when Sakura realized that she had spoken her thoughts aloud. “That’s her! That’s her!” The lady exclaimed excitedly to the King. “It’s really her! She’s the only one who calls me that!”
“Calm down, Tomoyo,” The King told her. She stopped her excited chattering but a brilliant smile was on her face. “Nice to meet you, Princess,” The King said to Sakura. “I’m Hiiragizawa Eriol. Please call me Eriol. And this is my wife, Hiiragizawa Tomoyo. She used to be called Daidouji Tomoyo.”
“Sakura-chan!” Tomoyo rushed forward to hug her tightly. “It has been so long! I just knew that the Sakura in the castle is not you!”
Sakura smiled and hugged back, “It’s also good to see you too, Tomo-chan. After all, it has been really a long time since I see any of my family members.”
“Well, I guess you will be staying with us until Syaoran is back from his current mission,” Eriol said. “We are in the process of preparing a room for your stay. We will bring you there later when it is done. Meanwhile, why not join us for dinner while we talk?”
“I would love that!” Sakura disengaged herself from Tomoyo to reply. Eriol smiled warmly at her enthusiasm and nodded to one of the lady servants to get their meal ready.
“Shall we, ladies?” Eriol asked, extending both his elbows to both Tomoyo and Sakura. Tomoyo went to him almost immediately while Sakura hesitated, looking at Tomoyo worriedly, afraid that it would be against the protocol to link her arm to a man who was already married. Seeing Tomoyo’s nod of approval, Sakura shyly allowed herself to be led by the King.
To be continued...