EN: I should apologize for several things.
First, I apologize for the lack of updates. It's just that… after reading Tsubasa 16 online, I looked at my stories and screamed, "THEY'RE ALL LIES!" and didn't want to continue writing TCR fics. I'm back, inspiration has hit me and my muse is kickin. Thanks to Kairii O.C, Sister Complex will end but in a completely different way then what I had planned. This chapter will serve as a sort of introduction for what is to come. I hope you'll all read them and like them.
Secondly, I should be apologizing to my readers-- especially the ones who hate spoilers. After talking about the relationships of the TCR cast with my friend, we realized that I did… something that was ironically genius but might have unintentionally spoiled some things for Sister Complex readers. To those of you who have noticed, I'm sorry-- feel free to have as many homicidal thoughts about me as you'd like for the next few days. To those of you who haven't noticed; the same applies to you when you do figure it out. [bows apologetically
Now that that's all over… here is chapter 11, of Sister Complex.
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Chapter 11: Sands of Misfortune (Part I)
Summary: Yukito and Fujitaka discover a forgotten but important law in the old books...
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"…And now I wish you would go away too."
She felt as if his words had gone through her body and broke her very being. The pink haired girl could feel herself falter under the king's serious gaze and she knew in her heart that the king was not willing to play with her. "Wh-what do you mean, Touya…dear?" She asked, hoping the handsome king would give some dodgy excuse so she could twist his words and reclaim the part of her being that Touya had stolen from her.
"I want you to leave. Now." He replied in a manner that rubbed her as cold and defensive. "I've no need for a wife right now."
It wasn't good enough and the girl forcefully tried to pull Touya close to her, as if looking directly into his eyes would change everything and he would melt into her arms as if under some sort of spell. If that was her idea, it failed miserably as the raven haired, dark eyed king let the girl pull him physically closer but remained distant in all other aspects. It angered her and she pushed him away from her. "Why?-!" Nakuru demanded, "You can't rule a country alone!"
Rubbing the back of his head carelessly, he shrugged in response before speaking, "I was doing fine before this mess." He pointed out, "And…"
"And what?-!" Nakuru sneered.
A smile formed on his lips as the King continued to stave off Nakuru's attempts to capture him, "I was never ruling alone."
It broke. What was it? She didn't know but all she knew was that something inside her had fallen apart into a million different pieces. What…? What was she supposed to say now? How was she supposed to react…? Why… why did this whole think suddenly piss her off so much?-! She was speechless. He was leaving. Where was he going? Who did he think he was, just walking away from her like that? He couldn't… no. No! No! No! "Touya." The name was the first word she was able to find. "Touya… Touya… Oooh, Touya…" She moaned, raising her hands to her chest and hugging herself to prevent her body from shivering. "You must like me… to keep playing with me so!"
As for Touya, who was leaving the garden and returning to the cool shade of the palace, he wasn't sure if the sounds he heard were that of an annoying woman crying or laughing. Shaking his head, the raven haired king continued to walk away, leaving the girl behind to disappear on her own.
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If he refused to play by the rules of her game then fine, she would follow his own damned rules and still win. She never lost a game and she didn't plan on losing now. Now, where was that annoying man? You know, the one with the moon colored hair and those annoying, honest eyes. Yes, that one, the one that was always by Touya's side.
Sulking about the castle, the pink haired woman began to search for priest who had served as nothing more but an obstacle to her. She had tried to play nice by going around the said obstacle but now, the foreign woman had no other choice-- she would destroy him and any other obstacles that got in her way. Oh, silly King, didn't he know that the queen was the most powerful piece in chess and no bishop was going to get in her way, regardless of how close he was to the king.
Turning the handle to the library, dusty sunlight spilled out and Nakuru grinned. There he was, sitting at one of the tables with little Sakura standing on the chair next to him, leaning close to read over his shoulder. The other brat was sitting next to the princess, his chin resting in the cup of his hands as Yukito calmly explained something to a glowing Sakura. Looking up from the books, the three took notice of the fourth person and reacted differently.
The younger boy had adverted his gazed down to the floor as if he was nervous. The princess greeted her warmly with a, "Hello, Nakuru-san!" and the priest- her prey- merely smiled politely.
Nakuru smiled slyly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude." She exclaimed apologetically.
"It's all right." Yukito replied calmly but Nakuru could sense that the priest was on edge.
"Yeah!" Sakura exclaimed, "Hey, Nakuru-san, did you know Touya's only looking for a wife because he's a King?" She asked, glowing with the delight of learning something new.
Well, it wasn't new information to her but Nakuru continued to feign innocent. "Oh, really?" She asked.
"Hm-hm." Sakura chirped, holding up an old, dusty book and pointing a paragraph for her to see.
The pink haired woman eyed Yukito and forced an explanation out of him without even trying. "Her highness was curious about why all of these princesses were here earlier this week."
"And I wanted to know if I had to get married too." Sakura sighed almost dreamily and looked at Syaoran.
"I think her highness was more interested in changing the subject from the history of Clow to something else." Yukito teased, seeing through Sakura's façade and causing the girl to puff her cheek and deny the obviously true accusations.
From the window, one could make out voices and laughing and Syaoran uncharacteristically ran towards the ledge and peered out.
"Hello, Syaoran!" A voice called from below, "Did you have fun today?"
Syaoran nodded his head, "Is it almost time to leave?" He called down.
"Almost."
"Awe, you're leaving already?" Sakura whined, walking towards Syaoran's side and waving at the man and his friends below.
Syaoran nodded his head eagerly and smiled, "I can't wait. Father told me he might have found a new room…!" He whispered excitedly and Sakura smiled in response, pleased to know the boy was going out to have fun but upset to know she wouldn't see him for another few days at the very least.
"We should carry these maps then," Yukito announced, shuffling some papers and scrolls that Syaoran and Sakura began to help pick up.
Walking past Nakuru, Yukito bowed his head politely and smiled, "Good bye, Nakuru-san." He said and the priest left her alone. She hated that oh-so-honest, special-someone-to-the-king, high priest. She didn't see what was so special about him. Stepping towards the table that still had many old books thrown about, she flipped through the pages of the book Sakura had held so proudly before the woman moments ago. By the looks of it, it was a book of laws and very old at that.
Her fingers touched each word of clauses one through seven but only clause six one stood out to her. "The King of Clow…must marry ... And rule along side his chosen Queen…" This clause really was the only reason she and so many other noble women were summoned to this dusty kingdom. Flipping through the pages, she read about fairness and caring for the common people and how to handle droughts and other bits of useless information. Unknown to her, as she continued to read selected clauses, the book was turning to be something to her advantage.
"Oh, Touya," Nakuru purred, "You'll thank me when this is all over." She sang, dancing out the library. She had no time to waste! She had to be there when her darling Touya needed her most…
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There was a click and the door to the library opened. In entered the sandy haired priest who began to search the table top for a forgotten map. "Where is it…?" He thought out loud, lifting up book after book after book in hopes of finding the lost document.
"Do you need help, Yukito-san?" A man with glasses asked, smiling good naturedly at the priest.
"Oh, if you don't mind, Fujitaka-san…" Yukito laughed weakly. "I'm sorry, it has to be around here somewhere." He mumbled.
"It's not a problem." Fujitaka insisted, searching the opposite end of the table but he had barely moved a single paper when he noticed Yukito was no moving. "Yukito-san? Did you find it?" He asked. "Yukito-san?"
"…Fujitaka-san." Yukito whispered, using his hand to shakily turn the page of a book that was left open.
"Yes?" Fujitaka replied, walking to the priest's side and looking over his shoulder to see what it was that had managed to captivate the younger man.
"Do you know… anything about this?" Yukito asked, pressing the page down and placing a finger on a clause that was numbered twelve.
If someone were to enter the room, they would see two knowledgeable men standing over the same book with very different expressions. Yukito's face was drained of color, he appeared to be biting his tongue and his eyes watched the older man as if he was expecting him to attack him at any moment. Fujitaka on the other hand was obviously amazed by what he was reading. His eyes began to glow the same way Sakura's did when she learned something new. He flipped back and forth a few pages, reading each one religiously and causing Yukito to wait anxiously for many minutes.
"This is…" Fujitaka began, running his fingers through his bangs and exhaling heavily. "I've never read this before. It might be one of the first theories ever made about the ruins…"
"Is it true?" Yukito asked. "Will Clow really…?"
"I don't know but if it helps any, the rest of the book seems pretty reliable to me." Fujitaka concluded.
"It can't be true!" Yukito insisted, his voice raising to a volume uncharacteristic of the normally gentle priest. To be honest, it caught Fujitaka off guard and he didn't know how to react.
"...Of course, I'll have to look into it some more... do some more research..." The archaeologist added.
The priest picked up the book delicately with both hands as if it would bite him at any moment and reread the same piece of information many times before finally speaking, "But if this is true, we only have a few days left..." He whispered and suddenly, the priest's reactions made sense to the foreigner. Fujitaka tore his eyes away from the book, making his way towards the window and leaning against it as if he would collapse at any moment. The Clow Ruins that made up the horizon now struck a different feeling into his gut.
"To prevent a Great Catastrophe, the King is must have a Partner by his Eighteenth Year. In the event the King has not found his Partner to help Protect the Land, the Kingdom of Clow shall be swallowed by the Sands of Misfortune."