Wolf's Domain
Disclaimer: I do not own CCS. Everything rightfully belongs to CLAMP.
A/n: This is originally intended as a oneshot, but it kinda spawned its way to a bit more than that. So I figure that this will be up until three chapters. There's a bit of OOC-ness floating around, but not much. Enough with my ramblings, and back to the story!
The Path in The Forest
Sakura woke up from her doze in the train, rubbing the sleepiness away from her eyes as she stretched a bit. She was on her way to the countryside, as her great-grandfather, Masaki Amamiya invited her there, to his second summer house. After the reconciling of her great-grandfather and her father, Sakura and her family had been visiting him often, glad to be the companion of her great-grandfather. Masaki had always been delighted with the visits as well, as being alone in a big mansion can be pretty lonely, he said, just before he bought a small but comfortable summer house near the countryside, which is where Sakura is heading to at the moment.
She checked the small basket she brought with her. It was packed with picnic assortments, made and arranged beautifully by her father, Fujitaka Kinomoto, along with Sakura's brother, Touya. The both of them had been unable to come due to some business they have to attend to, so Sakura had gone alone instead. Touya had been against it initially, but relented when she said she'd be okay. She is a grown up fifteen year old now, insisted Sakura, and with the approval of Fujitaka, Touya agreed in the end. "Just be sure to take care of yourself there. There's a lot of those spirits and ghosts you're afraid of so much back at the countryside." said Touya before she boarded the train, earning him a foot-stamp from Sakura. "Stop trying to scare me, Touya!" had been her reply. Sakura slightly chuckled at the thought.
The auburn haired beauty looked out of the window, as the scenery changes. Mountains and fields filled her vision, and she reveled at the sight. She loves the countryside. The breeze sending wafts of the sweet smelling flowers nearby, the chirp of the birds merrily singing, the cool mountain breeze dancing around her, Sakura couldn't possibly ask for more.
The train stopped as she arrived at her destination, and sure enough, her great-grandfather is there, waiting for her, with his driver in tow. Sakura smiled happily as she waved towards him from the distance, as her great-grandfather beamed at her.
"Jii-chan!" she exclaimed happily as she hugged him, "Sorry I'm late… I woke up late this morning…" said Sakura with a slightly nervous grin.
"It's okay. I'd wait as long as I could if it meant to see my lovely Sakura-chan." He said as he hugged her back warmly. "Touya and Fujitaka isn't coming today, are they?"
Sakura shook her head as they walked to the car. "No, I'm afraid they can't make it. Touya had some university stuff to settle, and so does Dad. They're sorry they can't come though, so they made this as a token of apology," she said as she gestured to the basket she was carrying.
"It's a shame they couldn't come, but I suppose it can't be helped then. The lunch looks wonderful though." said Masaki with a smile as they got into the car.
"They taste good too!" said Sakura with a slight giggle. "Demo ne, jii-chan… I thought I told you not to overexert yourself. You could've just send Akio-san to pick me up, and we can meet at the house when I arrive."
"Now now Sakura-chan, you make me feel old when you say that. And I told you, I'm fine… besides, is it so wrong for a great-grandfather to want to greet his great-granddaughter? I'm lucky I'm alive long enough to get to see my great-grandchildren, so I don't see why I shouldn't devote my time for them." replied the old man with a smile.
"Mou, you're unfair, Jii-chan. You always win in arguments like this," pouted Sakura slightly.
"It's all experience, I suppose." He said with a chuckle as he patted her auburn hair. "Oh, we're here."
"Welcome again," said Masaki as he walked side by side with Sakura. A young man in his twenties with fair skin and long silver hair tied up neatly greeted them with a smile. "Sakura-san! Welcome back." He said with a smile as he took her things away.
"Nice to see you again, Yue-san," she said with an equal smile. She's quite fond of the older guy, him reminding her of her brother's best friend, (and her used-to-be crush) Yukito Tsukishiro. Yue is a native from the area, apparently an orphan whom Masaki 'adopted' and helped out a lot. While Yue owes a lot to Masaki, the latter prefers to have a father-son relationship rather than making it clear that Yue is indebted to Masaki. Grateful for his generosity, Yue had opted to stay with him and take care of him while he's here.
"Your stuff is all up there, Sakura-san. Oh and come to the living room if you're hungry, I got some chilled watermelons we can eat together." He said as he led her to her room, then made his way to the kitchen.
Fifteen minutes later, the three of them are chatting away merrily, helping themselves with slices of watermelon prepared by Yue. "Mm… there's nothing like a cool watermelon in the summer." exclaimed Sakura happily.
"I'm glad you like it," replied Masaki as he finished his second helping. "So, what's been going on at your end, Sakura-chan?"
"Well… I'm doing fine in high school, Tomoyo-chan's always with me. She tends to be busy in holidays though, as she followed her mum to the company's business."
Masami chuckled slightly. "That seems like Sonomi-kun indeed. I'm sure she's happy to come along though."
"Un! She is. Oh and she even thought of introducing a fashion line someday." said Sakura with a giggle. "That's not impossible with Tomoyo, that's for sure."
"How about Fujitaka-san and Touya-san? Are they doing fine?" asked Yue.
"Dad's fine. He's with his archeology works, as always," smiled Sakura. "Touya's fine too, though he's a bit busy with university stuff, but he's as protective as ever." giggled Sakura again.
"I see, that's good then." replied Yue.
"Say, Yue-san…" started Sakura.
"Yes?"
"I saw a trail leading up into the forest near the mountain last time I got here. So, I was wondering, have you ever go up there?" she asked, tilting her head sideways slightly.
Yue's face changed a bit as the question is asked, but fortunately it went by unnoticed by Sakura and Masaki, so he composed himself back to normal.
"Yeah, I've been there." He said with a smile. "But people rarely venture there though." He said as he cleared up the dishes from the table, setting them aside for a bit.
"Really?" asked Sakura, eyes filled with curiosity. "But how come? It seemed peaceful enough for me."
"Ah, then you should learn to understand the proverb; don't judge a book by its cover. Not everything is as what they seemed, Sakura-san." smiled Yue as he picked up the dishes and went to the kitchen to wash them, dismissing the topic.
Sakura pouted slightly as she pondered on Yue's words. "But why would they be so?" she mumbled.
"Sakura-chan, don't worry that much about it. Perhaps Yue is just talking about the wild animals that lives in there. I sometimes heard wolves howling in the full moon too, you know." said Masaki good naturedly, trying to pacify his great-granddaughter.
"Hmm… then can I take a walk up there tomorrow, Jii-chan?" asked Sakura. "I'm sure the surroundings there are beautiful."
Yue came back to the two of them just in time to hear her idea. "I… wouldn't recommend you of doing that, Sakura-san. Like otou-sama said, there's wild animals lurking in there. Ghosts and spirits even.'
"M-Mou… Yue-san, you're just trying to scare me, aren't you? You're as bad as Touya." said Sakura, pouting slightly.
"I'm just telling you the truth, Sakura-san. Though if you want to take a look there, I can accompany you. I am familiar with the path anyway," he said with a smile.
Sakura shook her head in as she declined the offer. "It's okay, I can go there by myself. Can I, jii-chan?"
"Well… I would've rather if Yue is with you… but if you promise to come back safely and take care of yourself, then okay." replied Masaki.
Sakura grinned and hugged Masaki in glee. "Thanks Jii-chan."
x.X.x W.O.W x.X.x
The next day, Sakura got ready to go and take a walk at the place she mentioned yesterday. Donning a summer hat and a simple baby blue summer dress, she bid her goodbye to both Masaki and Yue cheerfully as she began walking, humming slightly.
She brought a bento with her, in a small backpack she brought along. She took her time in climbing up the path, partly not to tire herself too much, and partly because she wanted to take in the surrounding. Initially, she had half expected it to be scary, but while the sun is still up, the path looked lovely, cheery even. The birds are chirping merrily, and despite the fact that it is summer, she didn't really feel the heat, because she was sheltered under the tall trees, and a cool breeze is felt on her cheeks, bringing in the scent of summer.
She stopped at a riverbank, the river flowing beautifully as the water sparkled in the sun. She set her backpack down, and wash her face by the river, before she sat herself on one of the boulders near the riverbank. She took her bento out and began eating it, reveling in the peaceful atmosphere. She once saw a pair of squirrels playing on the trees at the other side of the river, and that made her laugh. But that was when she heard it.
A growl.
Startled, she hurriedly put away her bento and looked around, searching for the source of the sound. It was coming from a wolf, in the clump of trees that lined the area near the riverbank. It was a middle sized wolf with a brown coat, growling in a second then whimpering in the next.
The auburn haired girl drew a slight sigh of relief, seeing that the growl wasn't directed to her. Being the kind-hearted person she is, she stepped forward nearer to where the wolf is, trying to make out what is bothering the poor animal.
The wolf growled slightly at her when she came close to it, but whimpered when he tried to lift his right hind leg away, as it is stuck in a chain of vines, which just tightened around him the more he struggled.
Sakura saw the problem, and she could very well help, but she was still a bit afraid of the wolf. What if it bit her? Surely Masaki and Yue would be furious if she's injured. But she couldn't leave the poor thing just like that. So, she heaved in a deep calming breath, and edged closer to the wolf.
As she expected, the wolf growled again. "Now now, calm down. I'm trying to help you here, so don't move… please?" she said as gentle as she could, as her eyes scanned what she could use to cut away the veins. She is put at an ease when the wolf stayed silent, and she smiled as she found a sharp edged stone that she can use to tear away the veins. After a few tries, she succeeded in loosening the restriction that held the wolf, loose enough for the wolf to escape. She hurriedly stood up and backed away from the wolf, fearing that it might do her harm somehow.
Seeing that it is now free, the wolf tried pacing around , apparently uninjured. The brown wolf stared at the auburn haired girl, and started to make its way to her.
Sakura was taken aback, frightened even. Is the wolf going to bite her? Attack her? Her conscience screamed for her to run away, but she was stuck at the spot.
When the wolf arrived to where she stood, it lowered its head down for a bit, before nuzzling into her hands. Sakura is frozen for a bit, before she let out another sigh of relief. "You're welcome." She said with a slight giggle as she patted its head and smiled.
She made her way back to the riverbank, leaving the wolf, to continue eating her bento. She bent down near the river to wash her slightly dirty hand, before she returned to where her backpack is.
She was surprised to see the wolf sitting beside the boulder where she left her belongings, lying down, its eyes closed. Sakura merely smiled as she sat down near the wolf, ate the rest of her bento and leaned against the rock, feeling drowsy. It wasn't long till the auburn haired beauty settled into a nap beside her new companion, lulled by the cool breeze of the river.
x.X.x.W.O.W.x.X.x.
By the time Sakura woke up, it was near sunset. The sky had already formed the gold-like colour of near sunset, as the sun descended to give way for the moon. She looked to her left, expecting the wolf to be there, but it wasn't. Deciding that she is very late now, she hurriedly picked up her belongings and ran down the path she came from.
It only took her fifteen minutes to go up the path leading to the river, but the way home seems to be taking way longer than that. She began to panic as the sky began to darken, dusk will be over soon and nightfall will come. She looked right and left, hoping for some sort of clue or marks that she may have noticed earlier to get her way back home, but it was futile. She felt her tears flooding her eyes, blurring her vision.
She's lost.
She stopped and buried her face her hands as she cried. Her sobs echoed throughout the forest, making it more eerie for her.
She was startled when she heard a rustle, then a voice. "H-Hey. Why are you crying?" said the voice.
It was the sound of a guy. Yue-san? But his voice is deeper, so it can't be him. She rubbed her eyes as she turned to where the voice is.
Indeed, it was a guy, wearing a simple green yukata, and she guessed that he was around her age. He had tousled brown hair, and a pair of amber eyes to match, as they looked at her with worry. "Are… you okay? It's almost dark. You shouldn't be here alone." He said as he offered his hand for her.
Sakura hesitated for a bit before she took his hand and pulled herself up. "I'm… lost." she said, her voice cracked a little, the after-effects of her crying.
He gave her a small smile as he led the way, his hand still holding firmly to hers. Sakura blushed at the contact, but she kept quiet as she followed him.
"Lots of people gets lost here. Didn't you hear the stories? People rarely go up here. The minute you enter the Wolf's Domain, your heart will be lost. You'll never return home." He said as he led her to the path she comes from. "Follow this road straight ahead, someone will pick you up from where you come from."
Sakura nodded and muttered her thanks, but she stopped after a few steps, as she looked to her savior once again. "Thank you for helping me…" said Sakura. He nodded his welcome. "U-um… my name's Sakura Kinomoto. You are…?"
She waited for the latter to answer but he didn't. So she turned away and made her way down the path, when his voice sounded again. "It's Syaoran."
She turned the moment he said his name, but he was no longer there. Confused, and a bit scared, she ran down the path, where she found Yue at the end of the path.
"Sakura-san!" he exclaimed as he caught sight of the young girl running towards him. "Where have you been? Otou-sama is worried-" his sentence is cut down when Sakura hugged him tightly, earning a slight blush from the silver-haired guy.
"Yue-san… Yue-san… Thank goodness you're here… I was so scared…" Sakura blabbered as tears ran down her cheeks again.
Yue hesitantly pat the girl's head in an assuring manner. "I-It's alright now… I'm here…" he said as he gave her a slight hug to calm the girl down.
The two of them then made their way back home, hand in hand. Sakura was sent straight to bed after dinner by Masaki, under the suggestion of Yue, saying that Sakura must've been tired after her walk, which Sakura quickly agreed to.
Lying alone in her room, her mind went back to what had happened today. Who was the Syaoran person? She was sure she didn't see anyone in that path… then how…
Her train of thoughts drifted away as she fell to slumber, the image of those mesmerizing amber eyes etched in her mind, and the warmth of Yue's embrace lingers in her wake.
A/N: So, how was it? I hope it's enjoyable for you readers :D Tell me your opinion/suggestion in a review, kay?
See you in the next chapter!