ok, here is the list of new characters!!:
Oracle of Apollo: Clow Reed
Apollo(God of art, prophecy and light): Eriol Hiiragizawa
Zephyer (God of the West Wind): Yukito/Julian
I hope you enjoy!!
Chapter 2: The Curse:
Ruby Moon was laying in her bed, awaiting her son's return. She sighed deeply and thought about going to her looking glass to see exactly where he was, but no sooner did she stand did he open the door to her room.
"Hello, Syaoran."
Li closed the door behind him. "Call me Li, mother. Syaoran is my God name..." he hated being called Syaoran by anyone he knew personally.
Li moved over to his mother's side, who tried to hold back a laugh, but she failed.
"How did it go?" she asked.
"What?" Li played stupid, trying to buy more time to think of a good lie.
His mother plopped down on her bed. "What do you mean 'what?' What did you do to the girl?!" she had agitation in her voice.
For a moment Li thought about telling her the truth, that was until he heard that anger in her voice. When it came to Ruby Moon there was no saying more true then 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.' It was this reason that he decided to lie to her.
"I cursed her and peirced her skin with my arrow." he lied.
"Great!" she laughed. "Between you and I she will never get a deserving man!" Ruby celibrated. "How will she ever get a good man if the goddess of love dosen't like her?"
"Perhaps if the God of love did..?" Li said without thinking.
Ruby shot him a glare. "But we don't have to worry about that... now do we Syaoran?"
He shook his head. "No, not at all! Why would I ever care for such a mortal?"
"That's what I thought..." she gave him one last look over before laying down in her bed. "Now leave, I'm tired.. and I suggest you go to bed as well. All of the gods and goddess are meeting up at Olympus tomorrow, and you are expected there as well."
Li nodded once and left his mother's room. He started down the hallway, he saught after the comfort of his own bed.
When he was safely tucked inside of his room he spoke quietly to himself.
"I cursed her? I feel like I've been cursed... I've never felt this sort of pain in my chest before..." he sighed once before turning over and falling into a deep slumber, his dreams were filled with that mortal princess.
--
It had been months since Chiharu had announced that she was to be wed, and long since has she. Her prince and she were very happy, moving frequently between castles and cities, visiting their families often. In a few months her prince was set to become king. His father choose to step down after his boy got married, and needless to say Chiharu had never been happier.
Meilin was even married now, as of two months ago. That prince she spoke of over dinner had finally stopped beating around the bushes and asked her. She was delighted.
Both of the sisters were very happy. They were married to powerful, rich, handsome princes. It was everything they'd ever dreamed of, they had every reason to be happy. But Sakura was left there, nine months later still unmarried.
For quite some time this fact didn't bother Fuijitaka or Nadeshiko, but after a few months it began to. Their other daughters were both married to princes, soon to become queens, yet their youngest was not. They knew that she was the favorite of the men, and they knew that people came from all over to see her beauty. Even princes. That's why they didn't understand how she wasn't married yet.
What they didn't know is that Ruby, the goddess of love, wouldn't allow any man to love Sakura. What Ruby didn't know was that Sakura wasn't cursed to love an unworthy man.
"I'm telling you, men are far to intimidated by her beauty!" Toya insisted to his parents.
The whole family was sitting around, debating the reasons. Even Meilin and Chiharu was there.
"Her beauty never stopped them before." Nadeshiko argued.
"Maybe people don't think she is the most beautiful anymore?" Chiharu asked.
"That's not true." Fujitaka said. "People still come to see her.. but they don't seem at all infatuated.. not like they used to be."
"Perhaps.. I've just not found the right one yet..." Sakura sat in the middle of the room, staring at her feet. She was sad and embarassed, her cheeks were burning red.
"Maybe she just pissed off a god or something." Meilin said, bored with the conversation. She didn't realise that her comment would spark something more.
"Maybe... maybe you're right..." Nadeshiko said. She looked over at her husband.
"Ruby Moon.. she must be angry at us for comparing you to her, Sakura."
"Comparing?" Chiharu almost laughed. "You've out and said that Sakura was more beautiful then Ruby."
"It's our fault..." Fujitaka said quietly, and sadly.
"Well... what can we do now?" Nadeshiko asked. "Ruby Moon is too vengeful a goddess to ever forgive such a thing!"
"I guess there is nothing you can do." Meilin said with a small sigh, wishing the conversation would end.
"Maybe there is." Toya said.
All eyes fell on him.
"What? What is there?" Chiharu asked.
"The Oracle of Eriol (Apollo), the one who claims to be his incarnation.. He can help you. He can speak directly to the gods."
"Of course!" Fujitaka said with a smile. "I'd forgotten that he had moved here. We shall go speak with him now! Come on everyone, get dressed, we're going into town!"
--
For all of these months Li had watched Sakura through his mother's looking glass. Every once in a while he would even go to her house and admire her there. Over the months Li had found himself growing more and more fond of the princess. He couldn't even escape her in his dreams. Everynight she was there.
Li had grown so fond of the girl he was finding every excuse to be close to her, and now, as he watched her through the looking glass he found his perfect chance. He got ready to run and see his best friend, but stopped for a moment. He looked at Sakura, her eyes filled with sadness as she put on her coat to go speak with the oracle.
"Don't be sad princess..." he ran his fingers over the looking glass... "Things will be better soon..."
And with that Li took flight and quickly went looking for his friend, Eriol.
It didn't take Li long to find him. He was bouncing a ball off of a golden pillar on the edge of Olympus. Li was eager when he landed beside his friend.
"Hello Syaoran... what's wrong?"
"Nothing..." Li gave his best friend a strange look. "For the hundreth time call me Li."
"Ok.." Eriol laughed lightly. "How can I help you?"
"Oh yeah!" Li lost his train of though in his excitment. "Do you recall your oracle? Your incarnation?"
"Well I'd certainly hope I did." He gave his friend a strange look. "..why?"
"He will be speaking with you in a few minutes."
"Have you been spying on my oracle?" Eriol asked, raising his eyebrow.
"Yes. No. No I haven't, not realy, it just came up when I was watching my mother's looking glass."
"So you are spying on someone." Eriol grinned at his friend.
"Shut up, that's not the point. When he speaks with you, he will be asking you a question about a princess named Sakura. I need you to tell me what he asks, and tell him exactly what I say, alright?"
Eriol nodded.
--
The royal family approached the oracle's door, and hesitated, by the time the king atempted to knock the oracle opened his door.
"Hello king and family. I've been expecting you." his smile was genuine as he stepped to the side and let the whole party into his home, and he shut the door behind them.
"My name is Clow Reed, the oracle and incarnation of Eriol, how can I help you?" he smiled at the family.
The girls and Toya were looking around in wonder at all of the things Clow had hanging on his walls and from his ceiling. Star charts and strange tarot cards. It was mystifying.
"Our concern is with our youngest daughter." Fujitaka said. "You see, we are concerned on why she is yet to find a husband."
Clow turned and looked at the children, and then smiled at the teenager. "Sakura is you name, is it not?"
Sakura looked shocked, but nodded once.
"I don't see why you are having trouble finding a husband, you're quite beautiful."
"Th-thank you..." Sakura replied.
"We thought.. that maybe the answer lay with the gods." Nadeshiko said to Clow. "We were hoping that you could speak with Eriol, and maybe he could give you the answer to our problems."
"Of course, my queen." He smiled gently at them all and re-adjusted his glasses. "Just a moment."
He moved to the tarot cards on his walls and arranged the elemental one's into a certain order. Wind, fire, water, and wood. Then he placed his hand in the middle of the four cards and closed his eyes. Merely a moment later a faint blue light illuminated around his being and he spoke to himself, far to quiet for anyone else to were all too amazed to pay mind to his words anyway.
After a few moments of speak with Eriol the blue light disappeared and he turned to Sakura.
"Tsk tsk, child... You seem to have angered Ruby Moon." Clow said to her.
Sakura's emerald eyes fell to the floor.
"It seems you've cursed yourself..." it was at this moment that Clow turned to face the rest of her family. "She is not destined to be the bride of any mortal lover. Her husband awaits her atop the mountain. He is a serpant monster which neither god nor mortal can resist..."
There was a stinging silence fall over the room, and for a moment it was as if the world had stopped spinning.
The family abandonded themselves to grief. The queen and Chiharu burst into tears, while Toya, Meilin, and Fujitaka tried to hide their tears.
"She is expected there before nightfall." Clow said, frowning for the first time. "I'm afraid it is destiny."
Sakura, swallowed back the lump in her throat as she approached her family.
"Don't cry... please... don't cry for me.." She choked back her own tears. "If you ever should have cried for me it is when people started bestowing me with honors that I didn't deserve." She wiped one tear away from her mother's face. "It is destiny..."
Her mother took hold of her and was likely to never let her go, had her husband not taken her from Nadeshiko.
"If I am due there before nightfall then we should leave now... please.. lead me to my place." Sakura cried now as her father held her.
And without a choice the family started off on a journy that resembled a funeral more then a sending to destiny.
--
Atop the mountain the family continued to cry. The sun was falling slowly, the orange light fell over Sakura. She was glowing beautifully.
"There has to be a way!" Toya said, tears in his eyes. "I can't let you go this easily."
Sakura wiped her brother's tears away. "We have no choice, brother." she forced a smile on her face. "I would rather go and face what ever fate I must, if it will protect my family from the wrath of Ruby Moon."
Toya starred at his brave little sister with tears still in his eyes as he grabbed her and held her tight.
"If there is a way for you to contact me... please Sakura..." Toya whispered to her.
"I will... I will..." she managed to say.
Her parents held her one last time, and she hugged her weeping siblings again, but now the sun was disapearing.
"You must leave.." Sakura spoke sadly, but bravely to her family. "I don't want the monster to get you too."
"I love you so much..." Nadeshiko said to her daughter.
"I'm sorry.. I'm loseing you baby..." Fujitake was weeping as well.
"I love you both." Sakura said to them.
"I know I always gave you a hard time sis... but I always meant the best for you." Meilin said sadly.
"I know... I love you..." Sakura said, choking up again.
"I-i love you too." was all Chiharu could manage to say.
"I'm so sorry... I couldn't protect you.." Toya cried.
Sakura shook her head. "I love you all far more then life. I will always love you all... that is one thing no beast can ever take from me... please... leave.. and live life for me as well." She smiled at her family. "I love you all... be safe."
And that is all she said. 'I love you, be safe. ' As if they were just leaving for a few days.. as if everything would be alright... like everything would be back to normal soon. She was far more brave then the family had imagined. And as the sun sunk behind the horizon the family relunctantly and mournfully left their baby behind, never to be whole again.
Sakura on the other hand stood sadly by herself in the dark of the night. The cool air stood around her. There was a stillness in the air for a long time. After her family was gone for a while, however, a strong wind picked up from the west. It grew more and more powerful until Sakura felt like it was going to knock her off of her feet.
She closed her eyes and crossed her arms over her body and tried her best to keep warm until suddenly the wind came to a complete halt. She slowly opened her eyes, only to be greeted by a pale and smileing face. His golden eyes were glowing.
"Hello." the god spoke to her.
"A-are.. you m-my husband...?" Sakura asked after gathering her courage up.
The god smiled brightly at her. "No," he replied. "My name is Yukito (Zephyer), the god of the west wind. I am here to take you to your husband."
She returned the god's smile. He seemed gentle enough. "O-Ok..." she tried not to look woried. "Is he far from here?" she asked.
"Oh yes, very far." He said with a chuckle. "But it will only take seconds for me to get you there."
She nodded once.
"Then shall we?" he asked.
He didn't wait for an answer. A second later he had dissapeared and a strong west wind started blowing. It picked Sakura up off of her feet and took her into the air. She was moving far to fast, and the cold wind stung her eyes, so she closed them tight. The sounds around her rung loudly in her ears, and as her robes whipped around in the wind it hurt her when it hit her skin. She didn't know how fast they were moving, but after a few seconds the wind stopped, just as quickly as it had started.
Sakura opened her eyes slowly and looked straight out, half expecting to see a beast infront of her. She expected sadness and darkness. When she opened her eyes she certaintly was no longer standing on that mountain top, no. Now she was standing in a feild of flowers that seemed to go on forever. The only thing blocking it was a long twisting river and a castle. A castle larger then any she had ever seen.
She stared in amazement, speechless.
"Welcome home.." Yukito whispered, still yet to make himself visible.
The sceanary, the castle, everything. All at once reality set in on her. Sakura felt herself get light headed, and the world began to spin. She felt herself hit the ground.
The last thing she could hear was a faint voice.. but she couldn't make out what it was saying.
And then there was darkness.
No comments:
Post a Comment