Card Captor Sakura Fan Fiction ❯ The Garden Keeper ❯ Chapter one ( Chapter 1 )

Attack of the killer muse. I was watching my cousin, who loves this show, when my muse (who was off nursing his wounds from my last writing spree) decided to come home to bug me at the most inopportune time. So I sat down to write this as soon as I walked in the door.

This takes place in Japan. I'm only vaguely familiar with Card Captor Sakura. I have no idea what Syaoran's mother's name is, so I'm playing it safe and not using a name for her And, since it's an AU, it's okay that they're OOC, right???

As you all should know by now, I do not own Card Captor Sakura and would most likely be put in an insane asylum should I ever claim to do so.

The Garden Keeper

By Amiboshi-chan

Chapter one

Syaoran propped himself up on his elbow and stared out the window at the unending ocean. They had been driving along the coast for upwards an hour now. He turned to his parents in the front of the car.

"Where are we going again?"

Syaoran's mother turned slightly. "Ba Zhong Island. We're visiting an old friend of mine who owns a large manor out here. I'm sure you'll love it. It's quite beautiful. I'm just sorry there are no other children your age around."

Syaoran didn't mind so much. Even at the age of ten, he was a little anti social. His brooding demeanor caused all of his schoolmates to steer clear of him.

Syaoran looked out the window again. The vast blueness spread out, lapping at the sandy beach and waving joyfully. Syaoran ignored it, choosing instead to stare up at the gray clouds overhead.

* * *

"Syaoran, wake up. We're here."

Syaoran slowly awoke, realizing vaguely that they were no longer moving. He climbed out of the car, dragging his duffel bag beside him. He finally glanced towards the house.

Takeida Manor was a Victorian style house surrounded by lush gardens. The exterior was cream colored, and reached, maybe three stories high. A small orchard stretched out to the side of the garage. A little ways down to the other side, the property reached to a small inlaid beach. It had a large porch and a green yard. On that porch, a well dressed woman in her mid thirties was waving her arms over her head.

"Darling! Come on up!"

"Menami! Goodness, I haven't seen you in ages!" Syaoran's mother started towards the house, beckoning Syaoran to follow.

* * *

"This will be your room." Menami, Syaoran's mother's college companion, lead him into a room on the second level. "It has one of the best views of the ocean the house has to offer." Menami threw open the curtains, shedding the room with light. Then she turned and left, leaving Syaoran standing in the middle of the room.

`My room . . . for the mext month.' Syaoran started his unpacking.

A while later, Syaoran made his way down the staircase. He could Menami and his mother's voices in the parlor down the hall. He followed the sound and slowly pushed open the double doors.

His mother turned. "Are you done unpacking?"

Syaoran nodded. "I'm going outside." His mother nodded.

"Be careful around the ocean."

Syaoran closed the door and stepped out. A warm breeze passed by, and for the first time, Syaoran stopped to admire his surroundings. A few little gardens were scattered out to one side of the house. The other side was a little denser. It looked older and less taken care of. Syaoran headed off in that direction.

He walked awhile, passing bushes and flowering trees until he reached a crumbling stone wall, deep in the middle of a group of trees.

`Yeesh, this thing looks deserted.'

Syaoran followed the stone wall until it opened into an arched entrance. Ivy crawled up the arbor and reached into the long cracks that covered the walls beside it. Stepping through, Syaoran's eyebrows shot up at what he saw.

The view was breathtaking. Stone pathways framed with ivy rounded their way to a crystal clear pond. Two stone benches were places strategically around it, giving it a welcoming appeal. The rose bushes that were everywhere made the place smell heavenly.

One pathway led out the backside of the garden, through another arbor and out to the beach. The sound of the waves was delicate and comforting and serene. Syaoran stepped out into the warm sand.

As he left the garden, the faint sound of a girl's giggle followed him, causing him to turn abruptly . . .