Gomen nasai a hundred times, readers!!! I'm so sorry for the delay. The first week was just me being lazy and unmotivated, but the second week I was literally flat on my back for EIGHT DAYS with the flu. For those who've never had the full-blown influenza, I sincerely hope you never do. It is the most miserable thing I have ever experienced. :shudder:

So anyway, that's the story. Now on to the chapter! Thank you so much for your patience and support - you guys make this whole thing worth it!

:hugs:

Tokoharu :: Everlasting Spring

Chapter Three :: Kaihyou

As it turned out, Syaoran's alarm was justified: the girl did indeed have a fever, which over the course of that night turned into a rather severe chill. Fortunately, however, it did not worsen beyond that and Gensai assured him that provided she was monitored carefully, it was in no danger of doing so. This eased Syaoran's initial panic, but it only increased his concern. Royal duties kept him busy throughout the following days, but he took care to visit the girl at least once a day for an hour or so. Sometimes she was delirious, muttering unintelligibly or even once, to his dismay, crying in her sleep.

The fever did not abate for three days, and the cough lingered a full week. But it was on the fourth day that Syaoran finally learned her name: Sakura. Once she was able to stay awake and coherent, his visits lengthened and they were soon talking for hours at a time. He admitted to himself that she fascinated him; she was so utterly unlike anyone he had ever met. She told him, in her soft, light voice, of her small village far from the capital, of her late father's swordsmithy which her older brother had taken on with the help of her father's former apprentice. "They must be terribly worried," she'd said tearfully, the first day she'd spoken about them.

Syaoran had immediately agreed to her request to send a letter informing her brother of her whereabouts, of course. Her village lay on the other side of the mountains, however, and the pass had been blocked with snow the day after he'd found her. It would probably take two weeks, at least, to reach them by the longer lowland rout, but he'd sent his swiftest messenger.

After a few days Syaoran told Sakura in turn of his own late father, of his mother and his life at the palace. She was terribly easy to talk to, he discovered, and he soon found himself sharing more and more with her, more than he'd ever shared with anyone. Several times, in fact, he had to reign himself in to keep from being dangerously open with her. Despite her smile and her sunny kindness, trusting people was a weakness he could not afford, in his position. It was surprisingly difficult with her, though. He found that he wanted badly to trust her, and resisting the desire to do so grew more challenging each day he spoke with her.

Two weeks had now passed since he'd rescued Sakura, and the days since her awakening had gone by swift and unnoticed with the quiet comfort of their routine to brighten each one. Life at Court was no longer boring and uncertain, and the novel pleasure of having someone to speak comfortably with began to affect Syaoran himself, easing his constant tension and softening his moods. He had never really had a friend before, and even though he knew it was dangerous, Syaoran knew that he had found one in Sakura.

The change in their Prince's manner had not gone unnoticed by the courtiers in the Palace, and he was not surprised when a servant came to summon him to his mother's withdrawing room one morning as he was on his way to visit Sakura. Feeling lighter than he could remember since his father's death, Syaoran was not even annoyed by the request, although he had a fairly good idea of what his mother had to say.

As the servant bowed and announced him, shutting the doors of the chamber behind them, Syaoran's suspicions were confirmed upon seeing the Chamberlain standing beside the Queen. He braced himself, but refused to let his good mood dissipate so easily. "You called for me, Mother?" he said pleasantly. "What is it?"

Emi was twisting the wedding ring on her finger in agitation; it occurred to him that she had been doing that often of late. "Syaoran," she said briskly, "I have news for you."

Syaoran's eyes narrowed at the undertone in her voice—he could not quite place it, but his wariness increased. "What news?" he asked finally, when it seemed that she was waiting for a response.

The Queen straightened and looked him in the eye. "We have received word this morning from Princess Li-Mei," she said. "She has decided to come visit our Court. She will be here tomorrow."

Syaoran realized that he was gaping and hastily closed his mouth, but the shock was still plain on his face. "Visit?" he repeated rather dazedly. "But why would she do that?"

"Her message said that she wishes to finalize the terms of the engagement contract in person."

Syaoran began to recover from his bewilderment, anger stirring faintly in his chest. "But I said that I would not negotiate further until the month of mourning is over," he said, his voice growing stronger by the second. "She can negotiate no terms without my consent, and I will not give it until the end of the mourning period, as I have stated before."

"Syaoran," Emi returned sharply, "you have no choice in the matter. Xiang is a far more powerful nation than ours, and the Princess is of a volatile temperament. She could raze our little kingdom to the ground in an instant if she wished!"

"Then I shall explain things to her myself when she arrives." Syaoran was firm. "Surely she will understand; she lost both parents herself not long ago. I will make sure that she understands that I have no wish to slight her with my decision."

Emi looked at him with an unreadable expression for a moment, and then turned away abruptly. "We will speak of this later. You may go now."

Puzzled but relieved, Syaoran bowed and turned to leave. But as he reached the door his mother's voice made him pause. "By the way," she said with poorly attempted casualness, "when will that peasant girl be leaving? I hear that she is well recovered now."

Gritting his teeth and feeling an inexplicable flicker of defensive anger on Sakura's behalf, Syaoran replied over his shoulder. "Her name," he said evenly, "is Sakura, and she will be staying here until the mountain roads are cleared enough for her to return home."

Emi sniffed in distaste. "Well, you will have to stop spending so much time with her. We have much to do before the Princess' arrival."

Syaoran nodded shortly and left before she could add anything else, shutting the door firmly behind him. As his footsteps faded down the hall, Emi turned to stare at the door with narrowed eyes. "Jiro," she murmured. "Keep your eyes upon my son today. Inform me of his movements." Jiro bowed low in acknowledgement.

Syaoran's boots thudded against the marble floors as he strode swiftly down the hall and away from his mother's chambers. He headed towards the section of the Palace in which he guessed that he would find Sakura, and was proved correct. Still pale but fully recovered now, Sakura had been out of bed since yesterday and had immediately insisted that she do something to earn her keep. Thus, he found her scrubbing the floors of the hallway, clad in the white and wine red dress of the royal maids. He found himself relaxing slightly just upon seeing her.

Sakura was so intent on her work that she did not notice his approach until he stopped just in front of her. She looked up and the surprise on her face quickly melted into genuine delight. "Prince Syaoran!" she cried, jumping to her feet and bobbing a hasty curtsey while she dried her hands on her apron. He had told her repeatedly that such reverence was unnecessary, but she was more stubborn than she looked. "I was hoping you'd come by this morning. What's wrong?" Her smile faded as she noticed the displeasure he had thought he was hiding.

Opening his mouth, Syaoran paused and caught himself. He had been about to pour everything out to her, and the hallway was not the place. He glanced at her, made up his mind, and grabbed her hand, tugging with gentle force. "Come with me."

"Eh?" Sakura let out an involuntary murmur of surprise but did not protest as the Prince led her briskly down halls and through doors until they stepped outside and she found herself in one of the private gardens. It was one of the smaller ones, with just a few dormant rose beds and skillfully trimmed hedges surrounded a little stone fountain at the center. The water was frozen now and the entire garden was covered with a layer of snow that only added to its beauty. Its stone walls, overgrown with snow-dusted ivy, gave the little garden a peaceful, secure feeling and the air was pleasantly cool, sheltered from the worst of the wind.

Syaoran smiled to himself upon seeing Sakura's obvious enchantment, and he led her around the fountain to the little bower set against the far wall. They sat down side by side on the bench and remained for a moment in companionable silence as Sakura continued to gaze around the garden with wonder. "Do you like it?" asked Syaoran at length.

Sakura nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, yes!" she breathed. "It's lovely! I didn't know there were gardens like this around the Palace."

"This was my father's favorite," Syaoran explained, looking out around the quiet little enclosure and feeling the familiar muted pain of his father's absence. "He used to come out here often to think or to read. I do too, now."

Sakura was watching his face with concern, sensing his mood. But she did not speak, for which he was grateful; after another period of silence he told her about the meeting with his mother, his engagement to the Xiangian princess and her impending visit. Now that he had cooled down somewhat, he understood more clearly what exactly had upset him so. He disliked being caught off-guard, for one thing, and the news was a shock.

The real issue, however, was the fact that his mourning for his father was being ignored. It disturbed him, even though he knew that his mother's logic was inescapable. He realized now that he had expected her to support him in this, since she was still mourning as well; that she did not was somewhat troubling, despite her reasoning. Surely she understood his feelings on the matter—how could she not? He knew for a fact that she had loved his father at least as deeply as he had. It was true that she was not an especially outgoing woman in regards to her emotions, but he could not believe her to be truly as cold as she was acting.

Looking away as he finished his explanation, Syaoran sighed. "I know I'm being childish," he said, "but—"

A light touch to his hand stopped him and brought his gaze around to Sakura, surprised. "You're not childish at all," she argued, green eyes earnest. "It's so soon after your father's death. It's perfectly natural to be upset when you must miss him so much!"

"But," Syaoran protested weakly, "a Prince cannot afford to be—"

She cut him off again with uncharacteristic firmness. "You're a person too, aren't you?" she demanded. "You aren't just a Prince, you're also a human being with feelings and fears just like everyone else! If you want to cry, or get angry, then you should!" Her voice softened slightly. "There must be someone here you can trust enough to talk to."

Stunned by her outburst, Syaoran stared at her a moment. "I trust you," he responded finally. As he said it he realized that it was true.

Sakura blushed and glanced down briefly. "There must be others, too," she said. "There are so many people at the Palace!"

Syaoran snorted. "All my father's best men left after his death or were removed by my mother, and they were the only ones I could trust. I'm alone at Court now."

"Well…" Sakura chewed her lip thoughtfully, then brightened. "What about Gensai-sensei? He seems trustworthy. His assistant, too—Rikichi-san."

Syaoran was surprised, but thinking about it he found that he did trust the two. They were perhaps the only servants of his father left in the Palace, but he had rarely thought of them before now. His father had always trusted them, though, and Gensai-sensei had been a friend of the Royal Family for as long as he could remember. "You're right, Sakura," he conceded, smiling at her. "Thank you for reminding me. You see, I was being childish," he added with a slightly sheepish chuckle.

Sakura giggled, and he found himself smiling further at the sound. "Well, maybe a little," she allowed. "But I think that's all right, just for a moment."

Warm, relaxing quiet fell for a little while, broken only by the soft rustling of the ivy in the breeze. Suddenly Sakura startled Syaoran out of his thoughts as she jumped to her feet with a gasp. "The floors!" she cried. "I was cleaning them!" She hurriedly brushed off her skirts. "I have to be getting back before I get in trouble."

Feeling guilty, Syaoran nodded. "I'm sorry," he said, "I dragged you out here just to bother you with my problems."

Sakura threw him a beaming smile over her shoulder. "Don't be silly!" she retorted. "It's never a bother when you want to talk to me. I'm glad you did. Please don't hesitate to come to me again, if you need to. I mean, if you want to. I know I can't really help, but…" Sakura paused, blushing, and finally just shook her head and bobbed a brief curtsey. "Anyway, I really have to go back. Goodbye!"

Syaoran watched her hurry inside with a smile. Somehow, he felt that things were not quite so dark now.

:: to be continued… ::

kaihyou :: thaw

-san :: everyone knows this one, right? Okay. XD