Disclaimer: Clamp, dearest Clamp, I'm afraid I don't own Sakura, Li, Tomoyo, or Eriol at all. In fact, I've never read CCS or the other series. I accredit my beta reader Shiruba Niko and my close friends Estalio and Martha for making sure I keep these four in character at all times and preserve at least some semblance of what they are in the series they belong to. There is violence in this story, as well as romance and some strong ideas. I do not mean to insult anybody with my own opinions and prejudices. Read the story for the story, and if you can't handle it, I advise you not read it. All flamers will be handed many virtual slaps.

Note: If you ask a question in a review that I can't answer within the contents of this story, you can find the answer in my bio. That said, have fun reading and please leave a review! (Or two…or three…or four…or fifteen…-)

Tears of Tyranny

Part One

To Flee the Fallen Flag

By Onyx Dawn

"."

Chapter One

World at War

Nineteen-year-old Sakura Kinomoto listened intently to the buzzing radio, attempting to pick up some semblance of an answer to anything in the mad gibberish. The reporter went on and on about the wondrous Minister, probably expecting to get a pay raise or something. Sakura shook her head against the couch she was pretending to sleep on and repressed a disgusted snort. She closed her eyes to block out the generic pattern on the furniture and tried to listen to Tomoyo's soft voice as she sang and cooked their meagre lunch. Tomoyo's voice, as usual, succeeded in calming Sakura's nerves slightly. The young woman, though she was no older than Sakura herself, had taken on the role of big sister almost five years ago after the 'accident'. While Tomoyo had come out of the incident with a changed roll in her life, Sakura had lost her memory and so could not remember a time when they had known freedom.

Sakura breathed deeply and realized, too late, her mistake. She coughed and spat the particles of dust and dead moths out of her mouth, gasping at the thought of swallowing bugs and wasted skin. Tomoyo tsked in the corner where the once-white stove sat and walked right to the couch, putting her hands on her hips. She sighed as Sakura rubbed her eyes and banged off the radio, almost busting it in the process. Tomoyo sat down next to Sakura and handed her a dirty wooden spoon with some icing on it.

"Here," she said softly. "Eat that...it's from the canister they brought yesterday. Something sweet, for once. You deserve it." She smiled at Sakura and wrapped her in a one-armed hug before standing up and going back to the kitchen corner. Sakura had the feeling this was all the icing they had, but licked the spoon gratefully anyway because she knew Tomoyo wouldn't have it any other way. After sitting on the couch for a moment with the newly-cleaned spoon, Sakura stood up and stumbled groggily over to the fridge and leaned against it.

"Tomoyo," she started in a questioning voice, "What was freedom like?" She chewed her lip for a moment, not too startled but slightly disappointed by Tomoyo's lack of reaction. The long-haired, mysterious woman kept stirring the pot of already cooked rice as if it were the most important thing in the world. Finally she stopped her movements and turned around, meeting Sakura's eyes.

"I can't-" she began, speaking hesitantly as if weighing her every word. "We're not supposed to talk about it, Sakura, you know that." She ran her hands through her hair, pulling the long bluish strands away from her face to reveal her bright brown eyes. Sakura nodded and looked down, resting her chin on her chest and folding her arms defensively at her midsection. She felt terrible for asking, now, because she did know how much trouble they could get into. She just wanted to taste the knowledge; she already had a vague idea. Freedom, she supposed, was being able to speak your mind and not worry about being whipped.

"I'm sorry, Tomoyo," she whispered, sniffling. "I guess it's just..." she stopped, not sure about how to explain it. She was lost for words, surprisingly, and it scared her something fierce. Sakura had only rarely found herself lost for words before. Four years of tyranny had not quenched her cheerful disposition. As head cheerleader at Tompeda High school, she was prided for being so optimistic about everything. In fact, if anybody were to ask some of her lesser acquaintances, they would say she worshipped this life she lived.

Of course, she didn't, but what do strangers or acquaintances know about a person? "It's alright," Tomoyo reassured, stepping close enough to Sakura to wipe away her unshed tears. She lifted Sakura's chin up and stared into the emerald eyes, wearing an expression that practically forced Sakura to smile and even giggle. "You deserve to know, of course...freedom is like the world on anti-depressants, permanently." She shook her head, laughing and letting go of Sakura's chin. "Not the best way to describe it, I guess," she admitted. "I've never taken an anti-depressant."

"Well, it sounds nice; the concept, at least." Sakura walked to the stove and tasted the bland rice. She wrinkled her nose in disgust, but put on a cheery voice and said "Mhm," as if it were the most delicious thing in the world. "Wonderful supper tonight." She looked at the digital watch on her wrist and frowned. "It's seven o' clock, why didn't we eat earlier?" She gave Tomoyo a confused look. They were used to eating dinner as soon as the dinner bell tolled at five-thirty. They were constantly hungry, and the sooner they could eat the better.

"They changed the rotation," Tomoyo explained, her smile fading slightly. "Ghetto one starts are five-thirty, two starts at six, three at six-thirty, and us at seven."

"But the bell-hey, it didn't go off at all today," Sakura said, finally noting the fact. She hadn't noticed, at five-thirty, how Tomoyo had come home with a set scowl on her face. She was too busy taking advantage of the hour of TV she had been saving up for a month.

"Yeah," Tomoyo confirmed. "The Bell-Ringers were having trouble with it, so they just told us at work. Sorry I didn't mention it...forgot."

Sakura shrugged, having no complaints because she, too, had forgotten to acknowledge Tomoyo once today. She sent a fierce glare to the TV and huffed slightly, which Tomoyo must have taken the wrong way because she sighed and apologized again, looking hurt. Sakura blinked in surprise and stared at Tomoyo for a minute before realizing her mistake. "Oh, sorry, I was just mad at the gover-at the TV." Sakura glanced around nervously, hoping none of the audio personnel had caught that little slip. If they did...shaking her head, Sakura slumped back against the fridge with a discontented sigh.

"I know," Tomoyo said, nodding sympathetically. "The TV certainly has got-"-the phone rang-"Whoops...I'll get that." Tomoyo frowned slightly, wondering who would dare break the no-phone-until-nine-thirty rule. Unless, horror of horrors, it was a government official calling to change their schedule yet again. Sakura pushed herself off the fridge and walked across the room, sitting back down on the couch. She let Tomoyo's voice wash over her, not really listening to the words until she noted a hint of panic.

"What?" Tomoyo was saying. "No, you don't understand. I wasn't denouncing the Minister in any way-I mean, I wasn't-the Minister...long live the Minister, yes, yes, I quite agree. Excellent man. I would never...of course not, maybe you have the wrong number...You don't need to get all foul with me, Mister, I'm perfectly aware of the laws of the-no, sir, I would never do that. Long live the Minister, sir, I quite agree." There was a long silence in which Sakura let the words sink in. Her heart began racing, thumping against her ribcage like a frightened rabbit.

"Sir, I swear-please! My cousin, I couldn't leave her...well, yes, she's nineteen but she lost her memory...it isn't a sap story, sir! It's the truth, I-of course, I'm sorry, sir. It's just that there's no justification. I've always agreed...yes, long live the Minister! Now please understand sir, I would never..." But Tomoyo fell silent once again, listening to the man on the other line. Sakura looked up in time to see her shoulders slump. Tomoyo's eyes went vacant, dead almost, and she nodded to the phone. "Of course, sir, I understand. I'll be ready." With that she hung up the phone and stared at Sakura.

"We have to go," she said quietly.

Sakura reacted faster than the pacing of her heart. Tomoyo asked her to jump and Sakura didn't even ask how high. She just did it, and now, more than ever, she knew that was exactly what Tomoyo needed.

"."

Princess Alysuoun paced the perimeter of their cell with the ferocity of someone trying to wear a hole through the floor. Her soft blue eyes would, on occasion, dart over to her companion for a few moments. She would examine his lean form and then begin pacing again; pretending that she no longer knew he was there. Alysuoun then looked up to the window, about three feet above her head and barred so heavily that a cockroach could hardly crawl in, with a despairing plea in her eyes that went unanswered by the mercilessly cold midnight sky. In her mind she could see a spark of freedom, trodden on, perhaps, but not entirely gone. But, of course, her companion had given up ages ago and she could do nothing without him.

Li, said companion, sat sometimes for hours in the same position he was now. His knees were tucked under his chin, his arms were wrapped around his shins, and his eyes were closed as he pondered the secrets of the universe. He wasn't hoping, or pacing, or thinking about freedom in any way at all. Instead, he had long ago accepted their fate and made the best of it. He treated every meal like it was a delicious feast, he always made sure to treat Princess Alysuoun with the respect she had once deserved as daughter of the Minister. Alysuoun thought sadly about how it hadn't always been that way; she thought about the closeness they had shared in times of peace and happiness. She remembered he used to smile a lot, and blush a lot too. That was only when Sakura came around, though.

Alysuoun stopped pacing at last, realizing that she had actually managed to lull Li asleep with the rhythm of her bare feet padding along the straw-covered cement floor. She shook her head with disbelief and sat down a few feet across from him. "Wake up," she said ungraciously. "I've got an idea." He didn't react, but Alysuoun could tell by the hitch in his breathing tempo that he heard her and understood quite clearly. Li moved his head so that she could not see his face, buried between his knees as he stared vacantly at the floor.

"Not a single one of your plans has worked within the last four years, Swan, what makes you think it'll work today?" Li sounded sceptical, as always, and there was a hint of exasperation in his voice that signified she had his full attention. The first thing she said, however, had nothing to do with her newfound plan.

"Don't call me Swan," she snapped bitterly. That was what her father and Nadeshiko used to call her, and it brought back bittersweet memories that Alysuoun tried very hard to forget. Li looked up and raised an eyebrow at her, though he understood perfectly what the name did to her. He shrugged and gave her a look that said "Continue or I'm going back to sleep," so she did. "Well, here's my plan. You see, every time we've tried to escape, guards have come immediately. Well, this time, we'll use that to our advantage. Cause when the guards come they'll expect us to give up-"

Li interrupted her. "We tried this plan about four years ago when you first noted this fact," he told her sternly, albeit with a sad expression on his face. "It didn't work, remember?" Alysuoun's hope dived into a fiery pit of boiling lava, also known as despair. She nodded her head and sniffled, accepting a place to cry on Li's shoulder as she finally realized, as she did every time after one her plans was shot down, that there would never be any hope for escape. She looked up at him and met his eyes, trying to smile.

"I'll come up with something," she said softly. "Someday, I swear it, I'll come up with something and we'll get out of here. And then you can find Sakura and we can get out of this godforsaken hell hole." Li, for once, could not find the heart to give the don't-get-your-hopes-up speech. He nodded and drew her close, running a hand threw her hair as he pulled himself out of the Li Position (Alysuoun's words, not his).

"Maybe," he told her quietly. "And maybe Tomoyo and Sakura will be in here to rescue us in just a few days time." He said it sarcastically, only he didn't realize how well he had just summarized the events of the next day, for Tomoyo had just been arrested by the Minister's Police Squad and was on her way to prison with Sakura.

"."

Sakura, young and alive, beamed at him. She loved to make him blush; it was perhaps the easiest thing for her to do around him. He always blushed when he saw her, as if he somehow believed she could read his innermost thoughts. It made him cute, really, though Sakura wished that she could, for once, get to know him. If he weren't so stiff and gentlemanly around her, she could figure him out. But he always blushed. He always smiled and looked away. He always spoke to her as if she were royalty.

A crashing noise behind her brought Sakura's attention back to the present. She turned around and saw Tomoyo's tear stained cheeks. "They're coming," she gasped. Li's eyes widened and he turned to Sakura. Now he didn't blush, but he looked like a security guard doing his duty and protecting a princess-or a queen.

"Come on," he told her. She shook her head, trying to speak, but she couldn't. 'Tomoyo,' she wanted to tell him, 'I can't leave Tomoyo.' She was many yards away, fighting off a large crew of the Minister's Assassins. He gestured wildly to her again. "Come on! Sakura, we have to get out of here!"

She shook her head, planting her feet firmly in the ground and folding her arms across her chest. She couldn't speak, but she could still convey that she wasn't about to leave her cousin behind with those monsters. He gave an exasperated sigh and threw her over his shoulder, running away from the scene of chaos. Sakura screamed and pounded his back, unable to voice her words. 'Let me go! Let me go! I can't leave Tomoyo!'

But it was too late…

"."

To be continued…