Card Captor Sakura Fan Fiction ❯ Black Wings ❯ Chapter 9 ( Chapter 9 )

Black Wings

By: Aisaki Sumi

 

Chapter Nine

 

Time has always been perceived as an ever flowing stream of water, never stopping. Akin to the spinning wheel of fortune, it was in perpetual motion.

 

But to Sakura, the river of time was always frozen in that one single frame of movement, or perhaps her time was flowing much slower than others' that the distinctions were too subtle.

 

The feeling of being suspended in the space of time always tugged at her heart, where she was just an outsider who could only stand there in the same spot and watch the others being absorbed into what they do.

 

She could only watch the world change before her eyes, and knowing she could never be part of it.

 

It was a bitter feeling, but she had learned to accept it a long time ago. Meaningless struggles in life could only worsen her predicament. And sometimes, acceptance was simply the better choice.

 

Looking down at the blank page of the sketchbook lying in her lap, she tried to put her thoughts together and let her inspiration guide her hand and recreate the fine lines of the image she saw in her mind onto the paper before her.

 

Green eyes scanning across the page, her talented fingers wrapped themselves around the pencil and started to trace down the invisible lines.

 

Her bento was lying abandoned on the soft olive green grass beside her. The tree trunk her back was leaning against belonged to a beautiful cherry blossom tree.

 

The leaves and branches acted as a shield to protect her from the outside world as she concentrated on her drawing, leaving only the gentle, melodious rustling of leaves resonating in the air.

 

The soft, almost silent scratching sounds created by the strokes of the pencil tip against the paper blended into the sound of the swaying entities. It was the perfect environment for sketching.

 

Sakura was drawing a uniformed girl standing alone by a cherry blossom tree, watching the world before her. She gave away the appearance of loneliness and fragility.

 

There was an angel descending down from the heavens on the left side of the picture. His wings were as a rich dark shade that closely resembled the color of coals, tinted slightly silvery by the blinding rays of the sun. He was watching down upon her, like a silent guardian, keeping an eye on the lost soul.

 

She was once a carefree angel soaring in the sky. But her wings were no longer in tact. They were broken, shattered, and what was left were thousands of white feathers, floating in the mortal realms and forever lost.

 

The picture was a visual, and metaphorical representation of her life. The haunting image she saw in her mind. It was the truth, the truest of all things. It was the reflection of her feelings, the things she couldn't translate into words, the things she couldn't speak to her father about regardless of how hard she had tried to communicate with him.

 

She knew he cared a great deal about her, and valued her life more than his own. But she felt there was a thick brick wall separating them. Their worlds had been divided the moment Nadeshiko ended her life.

 

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she took her eyes off her half finished sketch and aligned her vision with the heavens above. The sky was as blue as ever, and she could hear the faint, indistinctive laughter reverberating through the air, carried miles away on the careless wind.

 

It was lunch time after all and most students were sitting in groups with their friends, sharing the exciting stories about their summer and how great their lives were.

 

Her gaze then fell upon the school building before her and remembered Tomoyo was at choir practice. Apparently, the school choir had high aims this year and wanted to give the national choir competition another shot. This left her alone, once again, on an unfamiliar land that she was supposed to call “home”.

 

Sakura returned her attention to the sketchbook as she tightened her grip around her pencil, determined to finish the sketch while the idea was still fresh in her mind.

 

Because of her deep concentration, she missed the quiet approaching footsteps until she was tapped on the shoulder by a gentle, warm-emitting hand.

 

Startled by the sudden contact, her body's first reaction was to flinch and move away from the contact as if it burned. Looking up at the intruder through stunned green eyes, she nearly gasped as she recognized who it was.

 

It was none other than the owner of those golden amber orbs that tugged at her heart so relentlessly. Forgetting how to breathe, the air she inhaled was caught in her throat as she stared at him.

 

There was a small grin on his face as he waved a hand at her before sitting himself down onto the soft grass beside her. “Hey.” The casual greeting was accompanied by a slightly sheepish grin.

 

Instead of replying to the greeting with a “hi” or “hello”, she simply stared at him as if he had grown two heads.

 

“You can stop staring at me like that. I'm not a kidnapper or a stalker or a rapist.” He commented as he spotted the traces of fear reflecting in her eyes; his voice lacing with the slightest hints of dry sarcasm.

 

She quickly looked away from him as she realized what she was doing and lowered her head, covering her beautiful green eyes with locks of auburn strands.

 

Chuckling softly at her reaction, Syaoran leaned back against the rough surface of the tree trunk, tilting his head back until it touched his shoulder. “Don't worry, Hiro and Eriol won't be bothering you anymore.” He assured.

 

She glanced at him in surprise from the corner of her eyes but said nothing, deciding it was better to listen to what he had to say.

 

A part of her pondered for a reasonable explanation for his being here, since they barely knew each other. Besides, he seemed rather popular among the people in his class and was a rebellious yet charismatic figure that many envied.

 

Sakura had learned to use her eyes to observe and analyze the things and people around her. It was a way to protect herself. Nadeshiko had taught her how to be observant about things and how to scout for people's intentions after they moved to Tokyo and before the suicide that sent her to the deep abyss of depression.

 

It was then she realized he was looking at her again, studying her with his sharp golden amber eyes. The gaze burned the areas that came into contact and Sakura felt her face growing warmer by the passing seconds.

 

Her heartbeat escalated as she gulped nervously. She turned away awkwardly and decided to bury her face into her sketchbook and hopefully he would go away. She didn't like the uneasy feeling of being watched, being scrutinized, and being exposed.

 

Noticing her discomfort level rising, Syaoran's grin widened. If it was the exit sign for him, he didn't see it.

 

“Fate is a funny thing eh? We met in the summer and now we are in the same school, and the same class.” The somewhat amused murmur reached her ears and Sakura's only response to that was burying her face lower into the sketchbook until it was just inches away.

 

Syaoran quirked an eyebrow and peered at the opened sketchbook that was interesting enough to receive all of her attentions.

 

“What are you drawing?” He asked, innate curiosity stirring in him as he leaned toward her. His face was almost inches away from hers as he tried to get a better look at what she was sketching since the girl apparently covered her artwork with her silken auburn hair.

 

This advancement caused Sakura to tip away from him, attempting to keep the distance between them. Syaoran chuckled again, a hand cupping his face as he scrutinized her from the side way.

 

“It looks nice. Some kinda angel watching over a little girl eh?” He drawled. To say he was enjoying the reactions she gave to him for every single comment of his would be the biggest understatement of the year.

 

She was the first girl who ever ignored him, and this mere fact intrigued him to no end.

 

Grinning, Syaoran decided to enjoy the faint amusement offered before him while it lasted. “How come you are so quiet?” He asked again, not minding the lack of response sent at his way and the vibes of `leave me alone'.

 

“You're the quietest girl I've ever met you know that? Why don't you like talking to others? I thought new students were supposed to try to make more friends on the first day of school and somehow blend into the crowd.” He continued on, sounding more like he was talking to himself than to her.

 

“How come you're not with that friend of yours? She seems like the really overprotective kind. But how come she's letting you sit here in this remote area of the school all by yourself? There are molesters lurking around behind the bushes you know…” Trailing off, a triumphant smirk curving on his lips as he saw her froze on the spot.

 

“But I can offer you protection, Sakura.” He offered in a half-jokingly manner, waiting expectantly for her reply, if she ever decided to give him one. A contemplative expression grimacing his face as he inquired. “Your name is Sakura right?” Now staring at her once again, he saw her twitch slightly at the use of her first name.

 

After a moment of silence between them, she suddenly started to gather up her stuff and lifted herself off the ground before he even had the time to come up with anything else.

 

She gave him a glance, caught between “what do you want from me” and “please leave me alone”, before hurrying away with her head ducked low. Syaoran's eyes trained on her frail profile and gave in a small sigh as he rested his head against the tree trunk.

 

“Losing your touches eh Syaoran?” A masculine voice inquired lazily, lacing with hints of faint amusement, an indication that he was thoroughly enjoying the sight.

 

“Oh shut up Eriol.” Syaoran didn't need to turn around to see who it was. He knew the other's lazy, silky voice all too well, but not by choice of course.

 

“I honestly don't see the reason of you talking to that girl. I mean you don't even talk to those hot cheerleaders at our school and yet you are here trying to get some plain, quiet girl's number. Are you sure you're Li Syaoran today?” Hiro crossed his arms and gazed down at Syaoran, while his mind doubted the other's sanity.

 

“I just find her interesting that's all, and I was not trying to get her number.” Syaoran glared at Hiro defensively, feeling slightly offended by the other's speculation.

 

“Sure, sure we believe you.” Eriol dismissed the topic, sounding no where near convinced.

 

Just when Syaoran was going about to toss a smartass retort at Eriol, another intruder made his grand entrance.

 

“Li Syaoran, the leader of Black Wings.” The title caused Syaoran's jaws to tightened slightly. He tilted his head toward the direction of the caller and narrowed his eyes at the annoying sight of the trios advancing toward them slowly.

 

The tall, well-built young man with raven hair gelled into small spikes in the middle was the leader of the Bloods. There was an overly smugly smirk on his face that made Syaoran's eyes darken.

 

“What do you want Katou?” Syaoran demanded with implied harshness.

 

“A motorcycle race.” Katou slanted his head to the right, arms crossed.

 

Glaring amber eyes bored into the ink-colored orbs for a moment as a suspensive silence washed over them.

 

“Just don't cry when you lose.” The silence was broken as the confident words resounded in the air. The corners of Syaoran's lips lifted into a culled a familiar trademark smirk as he accepted the challenge.

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

A/N: Lyphta, shaaarona, darksessho, SweetBabyGurl, Inkirietta, eulogize goddess, Ying fa18, thank you guys for your lovely encouragement and from your reviews, I saw the point of me writing on FF.N. Thank you for understanding my writing and not just skimming through them for fluff and SxS moments. Writing isn't about fluffy scenes or teenage drama, but about the themes and the message the story is trying to deliver.

 

Reviews appreciated. Flames ignored.