Revelations

Hello everyone! I had a lot of people tell me that they wanted me to continue this story, even though I had originally planned for it to be this one-shot that I had entered into a contest. But, since people liked it, I thought, what the hell. It’s something to pass the time till the next volume of Hana-Kimi comes out (which I need for the Hana-Kimi fic I’m working on). So, enjoy. And I expect some reviews!

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Revelations

Rain


All-encompassing light blazed through the room, as if the very Sun existed within the confines of the young woman’s chamber. The light was not kind, bestowing an unwelcome reprieve from her perfect dream-world, forcing her to face reality.

It was fairly obvious to anyone who had eyes that Kinomoto Sakura had not had a good night. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot, evidence of the tears she had shed in the darkness. Their dried remains adorned her cheeks, shining in the light as if in mockery of the brightness and glitter she had known just a few hours previously. Her clothes were crumpled, fitting her oddly. Her hair was a mess, half out of its confines, as if someone had been desperate to run their hands through it, or pull it off completely.

She stood up shakily, her legs unstable. Sakura’s mind was a blur. Thoughts floated in and out, moving to stealthily for her to catch onto them. Her body moved on instinct, repetition guiding it out of the room and down the stairs into the kitchen. No one was there, though evidence showed that there once had been. Dirty dishes rested in the sink, and a plate of now cold food had been placed upon the kitchen table. A small note was lying beside it, and as Sakura scrutinized it, squinting her eyes as the light from the Sun was blocked by clouds, the knowledge that it had been written by her brother Touya flashed through her muggy brain.

Sakura,
I know something happened last night that made you upset. I’m not sure what it was, though I have guessed, but I’m not going to pester you about it. I know you’ll tell me when you’re ready. I just want you to know that I’m here for you, no matter what. I called your school and told them you were sick. So just rest. I left food for you here on the table, and I’m going to stop in at lunch to check up on you. I love you, Sakura. There are lots of people that do, just remember that.

Fresh tears fell from the woman’s pale face onto the note as she re-read it. Throughout her life, Sakura had always had an odd connection with her brother, one that surpassed the usual bond found between siblings. Touya was linked to her. He could read her like an open book. Her thoughts, emotions, and inner secrets could not be hidden from him. He knew her. And while for the better part of her existence she had come to find his uncanny ability to understand her a great annoyance, she was suddenly grateful that he possessed his eerie ability to read her so well.

‘Oh Touya’ She thought, her tears blurring the writing her sibling had spent so much time thinking over, re-writing till he had achieved perfection. ‘You’ll always be there for me, always.’

Holding the letter close to her heart, she sat down and cried for all she was worth. Touya’s note had reawakened her memories of the previous evening. Torrents of horrid memories flooded through her tired brain as the dam that had held them at bay was destroyed, reminding her of the grievous mistake, the near sin she had committed.

‘My god,’ She lamented. ‘How could I have been so stupid? How could I have just done that? Just give it all away to the wrong person.’

The realization that Sakura was indeed in love with her best friend, her confidante, and everything she ever dreamed of came too late. Sakura had already given herself over to another, her most personal possession gone from this world. Sakura had given her virginity to the wrong person, and there was nothing she could do to get it back. Her dream and utmost fantasy of sharing herself with the her beloved alone was dead.

And the fact was, she had not fought that hard for it. She had simply given in, throwing herself away for no good reason other than what was expected. It had been expected that she would become a mighty sorceress, Mistress of the Cards. It was expected that she would exceed all others. It was expected that she would fall in love with Li Syaoran and marry him. But Sakura was smart enough, had gone through too much, to not know the bitter and unshakable truth. Expect the Unexpected.

“How could I have been so stupid? How could I have not seen this coming?” She whispered, her voice hoarse and harsh on her ears. She had been stupid, she knew that all too well now. She had gotten comfortable, she had let her guard down. And now she was paying the price.

As if in agreement with the sorrowful young mage, the sky opened up and let loose a deluge of rain, as if it could wash away the pain. Tearful eyes stared at the rain, the indiscriminate, ever-forgiving, healing rain.

How she wished that her pain could just be washed away, just fall from her like a drop of tainted water. How she wished she could run away from it all, from them all, with there all-seeing eyes. Sakura knew that she would she into her soul and see the pain. See her mistake, her stupidity. She could not face them, she could not face her, not now. She had to get away.

Without thinking twice, the young woman ran out of the kitchen and through the front door, not bothering to improve her shoddy appearance or even put on shoes. All that mattered was the rain.

Sakura ran as if the dogs of Hell were at her heels. The stunned and confused pedestrians that she passed did not register in her wounded brain. The shouts that were emitted by her unusual actions fell on deaf ears. She ran in no particular direction, with no actual destination. All the young sorceress did was run, run from her past and her pain.

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Daidouji Tomoyo woke with a start. Her large, dark eyes scanned the room, looking for the reason to her sudden consciousness. Thunder rolled through the sky, screaming a wrathful lament. But she knew that it was not the thunder that had awoken her. The reason she had awoken was not in the nicely furbished bedroom that she occupied in her mother’s French summer home either.

The sudden realization for the cause hit the young artist like a sack of bricks, taking her breath away as rain started falling to the Earth. Tomoyo knew that the cause existed far, far away on an island on the other side of the world. Something was wrong in Japan. Something was wrong with Sakura.

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Kinomoto Touya shifted in his seat once again, not paying the least bit of attention to his college professor. But that was nothing new. After all, he really did not enjoy Ecology, he was only taking it so he could be near his life-mate, Yukito, who was diligently copying notes for the two of them. But the seer was inattentive for a different reason that day, and it had to do with two incredibly different people. One of them was probably still resting at his home, or perhaps eating the breakfast he had left. Or maybe she was reading his note.

The handsome male stared out the window, only fleeting noticing the gathering storm clouds. Touya’s thoughts drifted to the note he had left for his baby sister. It had taken him a surprisingly long amount of time to write such a short note. He had to weigh every word he used, trying to give the note as much comfort and sympathy as possible, without being too overbearing. It had been exceedingly difficult for the poor man, who had never been the vocal type to begin with.

Touya nearly jumped out of his seat when Yukito placed his hand on the seer’s shoulder, gaining his attention. Class was over, it was time to leave. Giving the fair-haired male a hug, a reason and farewell, Touya went his separate way, heading home. To Sakura.

Something was wrong with her. Something had happened, and Touya was willing to bet his motorcycle that it had to do with that brat, Syaoran.

Syaoran was the other reason that Touya had been inattentive to everything around him. He had never liked the little warrior. It was mostly due to the fact that the first time Touya ever laid eyes on the squirt, it had been when Syaoran had been attacking Sakura, demanding that she hand her cards over. But there was also something about him, something he really could not explain, that made the seer hate every fiber of Li Syaoran’s being. He speculated that maybe it was simply clashing auras, but whatever it was, it caused Touya’s eyes to see red, for his blood to pump in a rage at the mere thought of the little wizard.

And that was exactly the reaction he had when he saw the lean young warrior standing in front of his house, the distant figure of a lithe brunette running like the dogs of Hell were at her heels away from him as a downpour of rain fell upon them all.

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Li Syaoran was at a loss for what to do. He had never had a more confusing day. When he had awoken that morning, he had felt as if he were on top of the world. There had been this bubble of happiness inside of him that he felt was impenetrable. Syaoran had finally taken the next step with the love of his life, Kinomoto Sakura. They had started an intimate, physical relationship that nothing could destroy, that would only grow and grow, bringing them closer together. He had fully expected to see her glowing, beautiful face smiling at him in the entrance hall, their usual meeting place. But Sakura had not been there.

Syaoran had been surprised at the absence of his love, the bubble inside of him deflating just a tad. But he had instantly shook off any doubts that had entered his brain, refusing to give in to the depressing thoughts that had been reigning supreme in his mind for some time now. He had been running late, his damn alarm clock having decided that the young warrior needed another half-hour of sleep to make-up for all the energy he had exerted the night before. Sakura had probably decided to go off to home-room without him, not wishing to be tardy. He could hardly fault her for that.

But she had not been in home-room either. Her desk was absent of her lean, graceful form and a small seed of worry started growing in the young mage’s mind. Where was she, he wondered. Is something wrong? Was it him?

‘I didn’t hurt or anything, did I?’ He thought, during 2nd period Chemistry as he poured a vial of green liquid into a half-full beaker that started to froth tumultuously due to the addition. ‘Or maybe it was me? Maybe I wasn’t ....any good.’

Gloomy thoughts continued to float in and out of Syaoran’s mind, bursting his bubble and throwing him into a pit of despair. He knew that Touya had called Sakura in sick, but that could not be the case. She had seemed fine to him.

Such thoughts had led the young man to his current destination. It was lunch period, and Syaoran was determined to know why Sakura was not with him. Turbulent clouds the color of his mood flashed above as steaks of forlorn lightning danced across sky. Rain was starting to fall from the Heavens but it mattered not to Syaoran. All that mattered was Sakura.

And as if his mere thoughts of her become beacon to the lithe sorceress, in that moment she came running out of the house. It was clear to the young warrior that Sakura was not well. She was clearly a mess with hair out of place, her dress crumpled, no shoes on her feet, and her eyes red, puffy, and panicked. It broke his heart to see his angel that way.

Syaoran called out to her, trying to gain her attention, but it seemed as if she had not heard him at all. A part of Syaoran knew that his love needed some time alone, but the rest of him felt that it was too dangerous for her to out in this weather, to be alone in her state. He had to follow her, find her, and get her to safety.

But the young warrior had barely been able to finish the thought before he was pushed roughly to the wet, hard ground, his breath leaving him. Struggling to regain his upright position, Syaoran noticed that something, someone was holding him down, struggling to keep him in control.

“How dare you! You bastard!” Screamed Syaoran’s attacker, the slight bass quality of his voice revealing the mystery man’s identity.

‘T-Touya?!!?!’ Thought the young mage, confused and abused. Had he not come to an agreement with Touya years ago? Twisting his form expertly, the young warrior was able to escape his captor.

“What the hell are you doing?!?!?!” He hollered in reply, taking a defensive stance.

“Me?!!? Me?!?!?? What am I doing?! What are YOU doing?!?!?” The enraged man yelled, charging Syaoran. “You bastard! You did something to her, I know it! I’ll make you pay!!!!”

And Syaoran once again was at a loss for what to do. What on Earth was going on? How had things turned out like this? Sakura was running away from him like the dogs of Hell were at her heels and her brother was blaming him. Did he really hurt Sakura? Is he really the cause for all of this? Nothing but the rain answered him, singing a lament of broken dreams and unforgettable mistakes.

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YAY! The second chapter’s finished! Okay, so I made it even more angsty, but it gets better ......eventually. Just hang in there. Tell me what you all think, okay. I’m not going to continue until I get reviews.