Fore notes: I have total desire to rewrite Stairway to Heaven because when I read back, it was horrible! So now I add more twists so I could slowly work my way across the little bumps and knots. Your favorite stories wrapped all in one package. Tsuru means 'crane' in Japanese and Himene means 'princess + sound'.
Disclaimer: Plot loosely based of Cheonkukui Gyedan aka Stairway to Heaven /slash/ Paradise. Characters based off of CLAMP's CCS group, personalities a bit (she's lieing) changed, all OC's belong to Liberty's Lie.
Plot/Summary: Kinomoto Sakura, the heiress to the throne has a best friend she simply adores, Li Syaoran, future heir to Li clan. You never see Sakura out somewhere without clinging to the arm of Syaoran. Syaoran loves to be around Sakura, as protective as an older brother and perhaps, something even more. At the age of eight, he departed for boarding school to America, still unaware of his feelings as she was. At the age of twelve, her mother died in a car crash, her father wedded a new woman when she was thirteen until months later, her father died as well. Treating Sakura as Cinderella, she never saw they light of day, but somehow, she was still Miss. Popular that her step-sister, Tsuru, envied. Age fourteen, Syaoran came back from America and bam, Tsuru plotted behind their backs, more and more jealous of what Sakura owned… Then, it happened.

Loosing her memories, Sakura was taken in by couple in wish for a child but could not have one. Treating as Sakura as their own, they named her Himene. Himene turned out to be a smart girl and enrolled Hibari High. So smart they classified her as 'nerd'. Then he came into the picture. The wonderful, handsome, perfect Li Syaoran, in his arms the spoiled future queen of Japan Tsuru. The green eyed 'nerd' caught his eye though, two star crossed lovers. Will they be a pair of larks or shall Tsuru take Syaoran under her crane wings? Oh, wait, a big question mark was slapped in Syaoran's face, 'Is Himene Sakura?" One more thing, Himene is blind.
Side Note: Datenshi here, me and Liberty's Lie are getting together and writing the stories. Ideas copyright me, OC's are hers. Next time you see any stories that are more, fancier styled then Liberty's then I designed the idea and plot. Ja ne for now!

S T A I R W A Y¤T O¤H E A V E N
天國的階梯
Normal Disclaimer Applies
Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind;
And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.
- Helena: A Midsummer Night's Dream
C H A P T E R O N E

A perfect pair they called her and him, ascended from heaven to each other on white wings made only for angels, they were angels themselves they even say, love a torn angels that was. They loved each other but fate just had to toy with their emotions, pulling them apart from each other.

The beautiful heiress to a royal position, the handsome heir to the noblest clan, two childhood playmates and schoolmates, best friends. And now shall our tale be told, in the setting of Tokyo, Japan...

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"But I'm scared Syaoran!" A six year old girl clung onto the sleeve of a boy around the same age, burying her face into the side of his arm. "But it's just a spider Sa-ku-ra!" Syaoran stretched the syllables of her name.

Sakura started to wail in fright as he took her into his arms, stroking her feather-light hair and telling her to calm down. They were playing around the palace garden again, among the million kinds of flowers and fragrances.

She stopped crying and looked up under her tear stains with a weak smile, "I don't know what I could do without you Syaoran, and you are my best friend." Sakura reached out and pulled the taller boy to her level then kissed him on the cheek.

As a best friend, it was nothing really, but as a boy with this close (pfft!) with a girl, he turned bright red. The girl resumed clinging onto his arm with a grin on her face. "Best friends forever, and ever…" She yawned and curled up next to him while they were sitting on a bench, watching the clouds and world go by…

She lay her head on his lap like a cushion while the two fell asleep in the calm summertime, cherishing that special bond together that stayed from now to forever.

That was the first deep memory.

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A soft giggle erupted through the hallway, girls clustered around him and fawned over him, he paided no notice. He just wanted to some and get her and be on with his life.

Silently, a girl walked among another group of girls, her short auburn hair tied into two small pigtails on her hair, letting more of her hair run stray and framing her face. Her face, her face was what caught his eye: A pale face with light pink cheeks, almost like a porcelain doll with bright emeralds as eyes, her smile as dazzling as the stars above.

She ran out of the crowd that surrounded her and fought her way through the crowd that surrounded him. "SYAORAN-KUN! You came! You really came to see me!" Sakura flung her hands around his neck into a hug, making him blush.

The seven year old girl was holding her backpack to her chest and skipping happily in front of Syaoran, this was the last day of Sakura's boarding school and he did promise to come and pick her up.

"Where's your driver?" Sakura asked as they stepped outside, Syaoran just shook his head and smiled, "As a gentleman, I am going to walk you home."

Sakura turned to smile and hug him again, "Thank you thank you thank you thank you and thank you!" She grabbed his hand and started walking down the hill with him.

The sky started becoming darker and darker; a drop of rain landed on the rim of her nose, more drops started raining from the sky until it rained down onto the two faster and faster. "Oh, let's find somewhere to stay first!" Sakura yelled as they began to run, she forgot she was still clutching onto his hand.

Running, Sakura stumbled and both of them fell, him on top of her as the blushed furiously, their lips had barely touched, if they were to flinch they would tap against each other.

"O-Okay, please get up Sakura." Syaoran quickly stood up and held his hand out for her. Sakura took it and stood back up, staring at him, the two forgot that they were soaking wet and in the rain.

That was their second deep memory of each other.

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"But, but! You can't leave!" Sakura cried as she clung onto him at the airport, tears rolling off of her face at a rapid rate. "B-But I have to go Sakura…" Syaoran replied tenderly, seeming to try not to cry himself.

"Saku, honey, Syaoran has to leave now." Her mother pulled onto Sakura's sleeve and tore the young girl away from Syaoran. "Remember to call!" Sakura yelled as she waved vigorously at Syaoran.

The chocolate haired boy threw a teddy bear in mid-air as their parents pulled them apart; the brunette caught it and held it close to her chest, whispering one word, Syaoran. That was their last but most precious memory.

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"Hello Auntie." Sakura said softly, head dipped. This lady, her name Rei, had been in this house for less then a month and her father had already talked about proposal, what a disgrace to her mother's memory.

Behind Rei came a girl taller then Sakura with dark brown hair and a lock of pink hair in her void, black eyes. "Tsuru, this is Sakura-chan. Sakura-chan, this is my daughter Tsuru." Rei said, almost gently. But Sakura cold tell that voice was a fake.

Her emerald eyes glanced up to meet those onyx black ones, "Welcome Sung-san." Sakura's voice was cold and emtionless. She stopped and glanced at Rei. "I'm going to be your mommy soon, and as soon as I am, I will be addressed as your mother."

Sakura looked up and gave a cold, hard glare and walked off. How can father fall in love with such a deadly woman? I don't understand it… She spread open a piece of paper with cherry blossoms printed on it and began to write.

She didn't tell Syaoran that Rei was going to make her life a living hell, she didn't write about how her father disrespected her mother, writing all of those things would only make him worry about her. Sakura didn't want Syaoran worrying over her.

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The smile on his face was wide and natural while his dark eyes as they scanned the latest letter from Sakura. "She's finally over the fact Kinomoto-san passed… It wouldn't be right if she cried."

Syaoran then picked up his fountain pen while he was swarmed by all the fan girls that he had. It was always like that, ever since he started school girls would swoon over him.

Folding his latest letter in a white envelope, he barely dodged his fan girls by five centimeters before he slipped the envelope into the mailbox. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it.

Syaoran slipped away into his dormitory, sitting cross-legged on his beg, chewing on the end of his fountain pen, thinking of what to write to Sakura.

After a few minutes, he sighed. Best not to tell her about the fan girls and how they were going to kill him, she would only worry.

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The wedding bells chimed as Sakura watched her father and new mother walk on the plush red carpet, pink rose petals were scattered on them while Tsuru danced happily in her blue dress.

Her father had that smile on his face, that smile he only gave to her mother. Had he forgotten about her already? Sakura turned her heel and began running.

No one noticed she was gone while she sat under a pear blossom tree. The beautiful white flowers bloomed in clusters. Her green eyes trailed and looked at the cherry blossom tree ahead… "Syaoran, when are you coming back? I can't manage without you…"

Then she broke into tears. After Nadeshiko had passed away, the palace was always quiet, no singing or laughter. Now Rei had moved it, the palace would no longer be a home for her, but a prison.

"What would Syaoran do?" Sakura asked herself as she wrapped her arms around her knees, twitching violently as she continued to weep silently.

A soft tap came onto her shoulder; through that blur of tears she saw the outline of two people in front of her. "Hime-sama, are you alright?" A girl's voice said, it was full of elegance and grace, lady-like in other words.

"Hime-sama, here." The other voice called out, a boy's voice, calm and serene but with a hint of firmness in it. He had put out a handkerchief for her.

S A K U R A S P O V

I reached out and lifted it off of his hand hesitantly. "Th-Thank you." I whispered in reply as I dabbed my eyes with the handkerchief. "Why are you not at the wedding party?" The girl asked me as they both crouched to my level.

With the tears out of my eyes, I finally saw how both of these two looked like. The girl had long, wavy violet-black hair and light gray-lavender eyes on pale skin. She was wearing Seijou School's uniform.

The boy on the other hand had blue-black hair and blue eyes that were like the midnight sky, covered with round glasses, too on pale skin. I wonder if they are siblings. The boy held out his hand for me and the girl smiled.

"Please stand up, you're getting yourself dirty." I took his hand and stood up, the girl turned and gave him a nod and a smile. "I forgot to introduce ourselves Hime-sama. I am Daidouji , Daidouji Tomoyo." Tomoyo bowed at me.

The boy pushed his glasses up a bit and smiled at me too, but he knelt down and kissed my hand. I don't know how many shades of red I blushed but I felt red, hot blood flushing to my cheeks.

"This is a honor to meet you milady. I am Hiiragizawa Eriol." He brushed his pants and stood up, I was still blushing, "Ni-Nice to meet you both. Call me Sakura."

The two stared at me for a moment before chorusing, "Likewise." If I didn't know they were from different families, I would think they were twins.

"Hiiragizawa! Daidouji! Get the ball and finish the volleyball game!" A random kid yelled at them. Tomoyo bent down and tucked a white volleyball under her arm and Eriol was writing something down on a piece of paper.

Tomoyo leaned forward to whisper something into Eriol's ear, the two laughed slightly, "If you need anyone to talk to here's our person phone line. We do match-making, advice giving and all the things counselors do and more!" Tomoyo explained and Eriol smiled.

"And here's our website. Well, see you Sakura-chan; hope to hear from you real soon!" Before I knew it, the two had run off after they pressed the piece of paper into my hand.

Thinking about them, it reminded me about Syaoran and what we used to do, that just made me miss him more.

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After reading his latest letter, I have a fuzzy feeling in me. He's coming back on my birthday. I can't believe Syaoran's coming back…

It is Christmas and father is ill. Rei seems happy about the fact that father is ill… I don't know what to do…

N O R M A L P O V

Sakura closed the window and pulled the pink curtains over it, then closed her door and locked it before walking to her balcony, closing the glass door; she tied a rope onto one of the pillars on the balcony and slowly lowered the rope down before she climbed down herself.

Sighing contently, Sakura pulled a baseball cap over her long, braided hair. She smiled, she had looked in a mirror and she looked exactly like a boy.

Pulling a boy's jacket on her slim body, Sakura slipped pass the guards and began to run. Where? Tomoyo's house.

She began running through the streets, like a blur to the passing walkers until she reached a white mansion. Pressing the doorbell, a maid came and welcomed her in.

"Satoshi-san, welcome." The maid said politely as she bowed, Sakura smiled lightly and nodded her head, making way to Tomoyo's room. Satoshi, another one of Tomoyo's brilliant ideas. She thought to herself when the door creaked open.

Tomoyo let Sakura slip into the room as she grabbed the baseball cap off of her head. The long braids came tumbling down undone. "Sakura-chan! You are absolutely kawaii!"

"Ahem." Eriol coughed at the corner, standing up and giving a slight smile at the girls. "So do you get enough to eat at home? The palace seems full of chaos lately."

Sakura nodded and hugged herself. "Rei can't starve me, I'm older then Tsuru so naturally I'm the heiress to the throne. I officially still have more power then she does."

Tomoyo smiled and handed Sakura 'Syaoran' the bear. "Queen Don't could have threw him away if you hadn't come to us for help." Eriol chuckled as he read a magazine.

"If I hadn't run away that day I wouldn't have met you two." Sakura yanked the magazine out of Eriol's hand and started giggling. "That whore. She's out there again." Sakura shook her head at the pictures of Tsuru in the arms of countless guys.

Tomoyo looked outside; the sun was setting beyond the treetops. "You better get home Sakura, or else Queen Don't is going to suspect something." Eriol and Tomoyo both smiled as they helped her with her braids.

"I'll walk you home just in case, come on." Eriol said as Tomoyo bid them farewell at the front entrance, the two walked off. Once they arrived at the palace, Sakura took off her cap and the guards let her in. "Thank you Eriol."

She bowed at him and sprinted off while climbing the rope to her balcony. An ear piercing scream echoed in the halls. "The king has died!" The last thing Eriol heard was Sakura bursting into tears after the guards ushered him to leave.

C H A P T E R O N E END

Datenshi; That wasn't so bad Liberty, not bad at all, but plenty of grammar mistakes… Good thing I'm your beta reader.

Liberty (aka me); Shut up and think up ideas for the next chapter, that's what I pay you for right?

Datenshi; You don't pay me.

Okay, back to the readers, I am glad… -smiles- Glad that this chapter got like 200 hits. Well, that's all folks, see ya.