Chapter 5

Sakura yawned as she slowly awoke from a groggy state. She heard birds chirping around her. Where am I? She shivered from the morning cold and her damp clothes. Still, something warm leaned against her. She slowly opened her heavy eyes and looked over at the heavy object against her. A few seconds went by that her mind didn’t register, than she recognized the green weighing against her.

"Kiya!" Sakura jumped up from her warmed spot on the ground and sent Syaoran falling onto his back from the comfortable position he had leaning against Sakura. He shot open his eyes, then relaxed seeing no danger around. He looked at Sakura questioningly.

Sakura smiled sheepishly. "I, uh, had a bad dream." She walked back over and sat next to him. "Sorry." He doesn’t need to know he was leaning on me in his sleep.

Syaoran nodded and sat quietly for a few moments to fully wake up. "We need to start walking. If it hadn’t gotten so dark out last night, I would have kept hiking, but you looked pretty tired."

Sakura roller her eyes. He looked like he was about to collapse. I was the tired one? She nodded in agreement with Syaoran. "They are probably really worried about us." She paused. "Are you sure we are going the right way?"

Syaoran glared. "Of course I am sure."

Sakura shrugged and stood up, looking around. They were still next to the brook. She walked over to it and cupped some water into her hands, splashing it into her face. The cold shock made her feel more alert. She took a few more handfuls and drank them, then walked back over to Syaoran.

Syaoran frowned. "I wouldn’t drink too much of that water, it might have connected with the chemicals upstream."

Sakura looked at him with fright. He reworded it and said it slowly. "I just mean a whole lot of it could be bad."

When Sakura looked more at ease, he looked around to find their path. "Alright, let’s start walking. We can go a bit more into the woods where it’s less rocky, but we have to keep the brook in sight at all times. It’s bound to lead somewhere near Amy’s."

They started walking through the trees, very beautiful landscaping. They walked for a long time in silence, just focusing on getting back. After a while, Syaoran spotted something. "Look!" He pointed towards something moving in the distance.

Sakura squinted at the far away object, a moving animal. Syaoran frowned and looked about him. "We should hide. They may be poachers or something, we might be on their property."

Sakura followed him over to the band of the brook and slid down onto the exstremly small amount of beach before the water’s edge. She gripped the earth in front of her and peered over the small hill of bank. Two animals came quickly in their general direction. "Horses!" Sakura whispered loudly.

Syaoran nodded but didn’t move. "Those aren’t Amy’s horses."

Sakura squinted to try to look closer at them. Syaoran’s right, those don’t look like the horses Amy had. She didn’t have any black ones. But someone must be riding them, and riding very well from the looks of it.

The riders whooped along, obviously enjoying the run. Coming dangerously close, Sakura recognized them as girls. One had aburn hair, the other had blonde. Sure are alot of blonde horse riders. What’s with that?

One called to the other, and they slowed down, walking close to each other. The spoke softly, and progressed riding toward the bank. "Hello?" The brown haired one called.

Sakura looked at Syaoran, who kept his eyes fixed on the horses. "Don’t say anything." He whispered harshly. Sakura shrunk away and looked back at them.

"Do you need any help? What are you doing out here?" The girl called.

"You know you are on my property! I could shoot you!"

Sakura looked at Syaoran worriedly. They’d have dry clothes, no more of being freezing. Who cares if he doesn’t want me to show ourselves. Sakura scrambled up the bank before Syaoran could get a firm hold on her ankle to pull her down. "Hello!" Sakura called, waving her arms, despite the fact that they were only about ten feet away. The riders continued towards them cautiously. Sakura spoke again. "We’re sorry to be on your property, we didn’t know where we were. I guess you could say we are kind of lost." Syaoran cringed behind the bank at the word "lost".

The blonde girl nodded and hopped off her horse, walking over to Sakura. She held out her hand to shake. "I am Jenny."

The other girl walked over. She smiled. "My name is Georgie. Do you guys need help? We live not too far from here, you can call your parents from there."

Jenny frowned. She leaned in and whispered to Sakura. "What’s with your friend? Is he afraid of us or something?"

Syaoran started up the bank, hearing the ‘is he afraid’ part of the sentence.

Sakura smiled. "Just precautious." She realized the conversation . "Sorry, you are probably wondering what my name is. I am Sakura." She looked over at Syaoran, who was brushing himself off to see if he would introduce himself. After seeing that he was just going to glare, Sakura took the responsibility herself. "He is Syaoran."

Georgie wrinkled her nose. "Those are cool names. I have never heard them before."

Sakura smiled sheepishly. Syaoran would kill me if I told them we are from Japan and bla bla bla. "Yeah, we get that alot."

"Oh! You are brother and sister? I get it. You too are twins, right?" Jenny looked at both of them.

Sakura was about to answer when Syaoran cut her off. "Yes we are."

Sakura gave Syaoran a confused and shocked look, but quickly shook it off as his eyes asked for her to play along. Sakura smiled again at the girls. Jenny was staring a bit oddly at Syaoran, with a kind of love struck look in her eye. Georgie broke up the silence.

"You two are probably freezing! We should head home." Georgie walked over to the two well trained horses. "You two can ride him, and we’ll ride this one."

Sakura held back a gasp. WHAT!? us TWO? ride ONE horse? What has he done! They think we are siblings, that we can handle this. She gave a desperate look to Syaoran. He just shrugged and walked over to the horse. He held the horse for Sakura waiting for her to get on. She gave him one last pleading look before facing the horse. She gasped yet again. "No saddle?!" She asked out loud.

Georgie looked over, about to mount. "Is that okay? We won’t be going more than a walk. These horses are well trained, nothing scares them."

Where have I heard that before? Sakura looked at the horse unsurely. Syaoran laced his fingers and made a stepping stool and threw Sakura onto the horse. She landed softly this time, settling in to the bony yet soft horse beneath her. She looked with despair as she watched Georgie hop on the back. They are sitting so close and we;ll have to sit like that too...

Syaoran looked around on the ground for a log to help him get up on the horse without trouble. He had been doing a great job of containing the nervousness inside him, very terrified of riding double with Sakura. Finally finding a log sturdy enough to hold his weight, he walked the horse over and stepped on it, carefully landing as far back as possible without touching Sakura. He smiled triumphantly. It won’t be that hard to sit away from Sakura. The horse started walking after Jenny and Georgie’s horse, unsettling Syaoran. He tried to hold himself back but he kept drifting closer every step. Syaoran gave up and let himself fall forward, still leaning back as much as possible.

Sakura sat quiet and very stiff. He keeps moving up. By the time we reach their house, I will be halfway up the horses neck. She shifted position, pushing herself and Syaoran back a bit. This is miserable. Oh well, at least he doesn’t put his arms around me to balance. Good thing we only have to walk.

They walked on the same way for a while before they were in sight of a house, a modest house with a good sized pasture on it and a small red barn to the side. Georgie turned positions until she was sitting backwards on the horse, back to back with Jenny. She smiled at Syaoran and Sakura. "That’s my house. Jenny lives down the road. we always ride together, this horse is practically hers." She patted the horse on the rear. "You can borrow some of my clothes Sakura. And..."She frowned looking at Syaoran. "Syran?"

Syaoran glared over at her. "Syaoran." He put emphasis on pronunciation.

Georgie blushed. "Sorry. Syaoran. Got it. Okay then Syaoran, you can wear some of my big brother’s clothes for now. Will your parents be able to come get you soon?"

Syaoran nodded.

"Alright. Then we can just call them when we get there."

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"See, we were visiting her house, and we went hiking and got lost, but we didn’t know her phone number by memory." Sakura explained to Jenny, who was a bit confused on why they were asking for Amy’s number instead of their parents.

Jenny nodded. "I know Amy. She goes to church with us. Her number’s 365-2734."

Sakura nodded and punched in the numbers. Jenny stood patiently by the phone with them while Georgie took care of the horses. She smiled at Syaoran, who stood quietly by the phone.

"So do you live around here?" Jenny asked, giving her most appealing smile.

Syaoran glared at her antics. "No. I live far away."

Jenny nodded. "So I am going to have to make you move here." She grinned.

Syaoran glared harder. "You can’t make me do anything."

Jenny shrugged, laughing. "Just playing, just playing. You are one funny guy."

Sakura ignored the talking beside her, planning out a fake conversation. No one was answering at Amy’s cabin, but she figured she could make up a fake conversation She started talking, feeling a bit funny talking to a dial tone. "Hey! We got lost, sorry about that." She paused, as if listening to Amy.

"Uh huh. Yeah. Well we are at Georgie and Amy’s house." She paused again. Jenny, who noticed the conversation Sakura was having.

"O! Lemme talk to her!" Jenny reached for the phone.

Sakura tightened her grip on the phone, horrified of what was going to happen. Syaoran stepped in and intervened. "Let her finish the conversation."

Jenny shrugged. "You are really cute, Syaoran."

Syaoran cringed. She couldn’t even pronounce his name right, and yet she was already crazy about him.

Sakura knew she had to end the conversation. "Till tommorrow? Alright. Right now? Okay I understand. Goodbye."

Jenny frowned. Sakura faced her. "Sorry, she had to go, right away. One of her horses was, uh, stuck in a fence. She is going to be gone till tommorrow bringing him to the vet. Is that okay?"

Jenny beamed. "I’m sure Georgie would be okay with it! She’ll be back any minute." She smiled innocently at Syaoran, who ignored it and stared out the window.

Georgie came in the door, some leather straps over her arm. "Sorry I took so long, one of the saddle was broken in the tack room and I was trying to fix it. So did you call your parents?"

Jenny jumped into the conversation. "They were actually staying with Amy."

Georgie smiled. "Amy’s a great rider! We share lessons sometimes. She has a nice horse." Georgie stopped herself from talking to let them finish.

Sakura spoke. "Amy is going to be gone until tommorrow, and so...Is it okay if we stay here?"

Georgie thought over the idea. "My parents will be home soon, I am sure they won’t mind." They stood for a few seconds. "Well, let’s get you guys into some nice dry clothes."

Sakura nodded quickly, anxious to be warm again. They took off their shoes and walked up the carpet stairs, following Georgie into her room, very spacious and had a computer in the corner. Good, maybe I can email my dad and tell him I am alright. I don’t know how I will explain all of this though...

"You can wear this-" Georgie threw Sakura a soft flannel shirt with some clean jeans and an extra pair of socks. "-And you come with me." She motioned at Syaoran. He followed her out of the room. Georgie turned to Sakura before walking down the hall. "The bathroom is on the left, go ahead and change. You can take a shower or a bath if you’d like. Towels are in the closet in there." Sakura smiled graciously and walked towards the bathroom.

Georgie walked into her brother’s room, littered with car posters and other normal guy stuff. She looked through the closet, trying to find something decent enough to loan. "Alright, is this stuff okay?" She held out a green sweat shirt with some black sweat pants. Syaoran nodded, a bit satisfied that at least the sweatshirt was green.

"Okay. Sorry about my brother’s very limited waredrobe. He is a bit...weird. Anyway, There is a bathroom downstairs. It has a shower, but no bath. If you want to wait for Sakura, go ahead, but I think she will be a while." Georgie said, hearing the bathwater running. Syaoran nodded and headed down the stairs. Sakura gets a nice bath and I get a little tiny shower stall. It’s not fair.

Jenny passed Syaoran on the stairs, then stopped. "Oh my...What did you do to yourself?" Jenny walked over and widened her eyes at the black and blue bruise peering out from the back neckline of Syaoran’s shirt.

Syaoran shrugged and continued walking down the stairs. Jenny ran down after him. "No really, that is horrible!" She caught him by the shirt and started examining his bruises. "Oh my..." she said as she looked at them. She moved around and faced him. "What in the world did you do to yourself?" Syaoran shook his head. "Take off your shirt." She commanded. Syaoran shook his head again.

"Come on, you can’t tell me that doesn’t hurt! We might be able to help it."

Syaoran shrugged and tried to pull away. "I am fine."

Jenny shook her head and lifted up the back of his shirt, gasping. "Did you know your entire back is black and blue? Green, even. It looks horrible, how can you even walk? How can you move?"

Syaoran sighed and turned, pulling his shirt back down. Well you see I was dragged by a horse for about ten feet then jumped into a freezing river to save Sakura (who’s really not my sister), who had been thrown off a horse because it was spooked by a ghost. He shrugged. "It doesn’t hurt (it’s not fatal) and I’ll be fine (I’ll just have to make sure no one hits me on the back.). Let me go take a shower." He glared at Jenny.

Jenny smiled admiringly at him and stepped back. He walked away and found the bathroom, ready to be warm and dry.

Jenny sighed and walked up the stairs to meet Georgie. "He is so hot, such a brave man. Why can’t all guys be like that?"

Georgie laughed. "He is really cute. His sister is too, I bet Jordan will fall in love with her!"

"Of course! Your brother even liked ME for a short time!" Jenny laughed. She looked towards the bathroom Syaoran was in. "He is so cute. I thought that girl was his girlfriend, but then we found out they are brother and sister. I must say I was a bit releived to hear that. You know you have to let me stay over if they do, we can all camp out of something."

Georgie rolled her eyes. "I don’t know, probably. But I don’t think my parents are going to like Syaoran. Just a feeling."

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Syaoran shifted in his seat. Will he ever stop?

"But how exactly did you end up in the brook?" Mr White; Georgie’s dad asked.

Syaoran looked down at his plate, then back up into Mr White’s judging eyes. "Sakura’s horse spooked." He said a bit spitefully.

Mr White glared at the tone Syaoran’s voice had taken. "So how exactly did you get into the river?" He said, his voice clearing raising volume.

"Royce, quit badgering the boy with so many questions. He has spent the past two days keeping hisself and his sister alive. Be thankful they are okay." Mrs White scolded.

Syaoran relaxed a bit in his chair and started fingering at the food in front of him. He looked over at Sakura, who seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"What exactly is this?" He asked, staring at the blob of gelatin like combination of chicken and other anyonomous foods.

Mrs White looked up, a fire starting to blaze in her eyes as well. "It’s a three generation recipe of quiche (*author note* that’s pronounced Keesh-if you’ve ever heard of it. Some people like it but I think it’s GROSS!*) and it has served meals for over a hundred years." She kept her widened eyes on the boy, watching him to make sure he ate it. He looked desperately across the table at Georgie. She gave him a pleading look and shoved a spoonful into her mouth, immediately followed by a large drink of water.

Syaoran spooned out some of the most normal looking peices of recognizable food and shoved it into his mouth. This is disgusting! The food was very soft in his mouth, very close to the texture of jello. He forced it down and glared back at the woman.

"Do you like it?" Mrs White asked.

Syaoran was about to tell his honest feelings when Georgie gave him another pleading look. He sighed. "Love it." He mumbled.

Mrs White smiled in approval and went back to eating. Syaoran grabbed his glass of juice and washed down the remaining taste in his mouth. He looked at Sakura, who stared uncertainly at her food. She looked at Syaoran for an answer. He shook his head. Don’t eat it Sakura! It’s so gross!

Mrs White looked up at Syaoran and Sakura. "Do you two have anything to wear tommorrow?"

Syaoran shrugged. Sakura shook her head. "Well, our clothes are in your washing machine, and then we have these borrowed clothes."

Mrs White looked at the clothes incrudeously. "Georgie dear, see if you can find them something for tommorrow."

Georgie nodded. She looked over at Syaoran and Sakura, who both looked ready to leave the table. She looked over at Jenny, who was staring intently at Syaoran. She sighed. Why can’t my parents be normal?

Jordan, Georgie’s brother, looked up from the table, eyes resting on Sakura. "So, Sakura, do you want to go for another horseride after dinner? We have some really pretty sunsets out here." He looked at Syaoran. "I know brothers must seem pesky every now and then, you need a break sometime."

Syaoran glared at Jorden across the table. I guess it would be ‘unbrother-like’ to deck Jordan for that. I shouldn’t care, because I am supposed to be her brother. I have to keep this brother mentality.

Sakura looked at Jordan unsurely. "I am a bit tired. I am sorry."

Jordan managed to get his eyes to fall just the right amount, a master at deceiving looks. He made sure she thought he was trying to hide his hurt. "Oh, don’t be silly. It’s my fault for asking, of course you are tired.

Sakura looked at him with sympathy. "Well I am sure we can do something else." She smiled.

Syaoran clenched his fists under the table at held his teeth together. Jenny started talking with him.

"We should do something about your bruises, you know." Jenny said under the Sakura and Jordan’s conversation.

Syaoran shrugged and tried to keep an ear in Jordan’s flirting session. "Whatever." he mumbled.

"I am sure you can sleep on a couch. A floor would be much to hard for your back. I mean, did you see it? It’s literally black in some places. Really, what happened?" Jenny asked.

Syaoran breathed out angry air and looked at Jenny. "Who cares? It’s not like I am dying! I felt much better before you started fussing about it!" He said, trying to contain the volume in his voice.

Jenny’s eyes glazed with hurt, the slightest tears in the corners of her eyes. She looked down at her food. "Sorry." she said quietly.

Syaoran sighed but looked back over to the other conversation. So what if she thinks I am mean. I think she’s annoying.

"...So we were state champs two years in a row. We really loved football." Jordan finished his short life accomplishment speech.

Sakura smiled, trying to look amazed, but finding it hard. Why is that so hard to beleive? I wish he’d stop talking to me. He’s really quite annoying. Oh well, he is just trying to be nice.

Georgie dreaded the next speech about to exit her brother’s mouth, and quickly put a stop to it. "Mom, dad, is it okay if we lay out the sleeping bags to go to bed? I am sure these two are very tired."

Mr White looked at Syaoran with a bit of wariness . His eyes still held a grudge against him. "Yes, go ahead."

Georgie quietly walked away from the dining room before speaking again. "Sorry about the food. I know it was gross. I am sure we can sneak in the kitchen and find something to eat durnig the night."

Sakura smiled, liking the idea. Her smile faded within seconds, as Jordan entered the room. "Hey guys! Can I interest you in a board game or a movie before we hit the sack?" He held a game of trouble underneath his arms and a movie in his hands, one Sakura didn’t recognize.

Georgie shook her head. "Jordan, be quiet. They want to sleep."

Jordan shrugged. "Don’t get grouchy lil sis, I am just trying to be a good host."

Jenny smiled at his antics but looked over at Syaoran. "I always drink a glass of milk before I go to bed. Do you want one?"

Syaoran looked over, seemingly exhausted from avoiding people and hiking. He shook his head. "We just ate. I am fine."

Jenny shrugged. Her eyes lit up remembering the topic she had been thinking about. "Have you guys seen Syaoran’s-"

Syaoran cut her off. "Well I am going to bed. Is it alright if I sleep on this couch?"

Georgie smiled warmly. "Sure, whatever is good to you."

Jenny watched him for a few more seconds then remembered what she had been saying. "Anyway, did you see it, Sakura? Your brother has bruises all over his back. It looks horrible! What happened?"

Sakura frowned. "What’s wrong with Touya?" She came to realization. "I mean, I didn’t notice any bruises. I mean..."

Jenny frowned. "How couldn’t you! They are like bright green and stuff! Weren’t you with him the whole time you were lost?"

Sakura searched her mind frantically for an idea. "Oh! Those bruises! Yes, um, the horse he was riding tripped and he fell and got dragged."

Jenny and Georgie widened their eyes. "Wow, that sounds horrible!"

Syaoran, who was laying on the couch now, pulled the blanket over him and rolled away from them. "Quit talking about me." He said, the sound coming a bit muffled through the blanket.

They looked over at him for a moment, then gave their attention to Jordan, who was setting up a game of Checkers against Georgie’s will. Georgie sighed. "We are going to sleep Jordan, leave us alone. Play checkers with mom or dad or something."

Jordan shook his head. He smiled at Sakura. "Do you want to play checkers?"

Sakura looked at the checker board warily. I hate games like that! It’s not fair he’s pressuring me into this. He knows I don’t want to hurt his feelings. Sakura sighed. "Yes, I guess."

Georgie shrugged. "You don’t have to play if you don’t want to Sakura."

Sakura shrugged and walked over to sit on the floor next to the checker board. At least this will pass time. I am really not that tired, all things considered. I’ll play a couple games and then go to sleep.

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After beating Jordan for the seventh time, Sakura’s eyes started to weigh. I hate it. Why does he think he has to let me win? Or is he really this bad? "Jordan, can we quit now? I am getting really tired, and everyone else has gone to sleep."

Jordan looked at his watch. "It’s 8:30. I don’t understand how Georgie and Jenny are so tired, but I can understand why you are so tired. Here, let me make a bed for you." Jordan got up and walked over to the empty couch and laid some blankets over it, then set two pillows down.

"Thank you. Goodnight." Sakura walked over to the couch and sat, yawning and stretching her arms. Jordan walked over and sat next to her, very close to where she was.

He smiled. "Don’t you want a goodnight kiss?"

Sakura’s eyes widened. She laughed nervously. "No, I-I think I will be fine without one, thank you."

Jordan persisted on, giving her puppy eyes. "Just one?"

Sakura’s stomach churned at the sick display of affection. Why won’t he go away? Sakura looked at his large saucer eyes that glistened with faint hope. How does he get such a convincing stare? Their stare continued, Sakura’s desperate look for escape, Jordan’s desperate look for the kiss.

A loud tap made a small crack in the window. Sakura and Jordan both jumped at the sudden sound. Jordan frowned and got up, walking to the window. He studied the crack and frowned more.

"That’s really odd. It’s like an owl stabbed at the window or something." Jordan shrugged, then walked away and up the stairs into his own room.

Sakura bit her lip, her imagination running wild with the possibilities that could have caused the bang. She looked over at Syaoran, who lay still and asleep, turned away in the same position he had been in a few hours ago. Sakura gulped down her fear and got up, walking on the balls of her feet and evading any noise she might cause.

She opened the kitchen door quietly and stepped onto the hard frosted ground with her bare feet, shivering uncontrolably but perceding on towards the window.

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Syaoran pulled his sweatshirt to it’s warmest position. I hate that kid. Syaoran glared down at the window from his perch on the tree, still armed with several more rocks. If I hadn’t of thrown a distraction at them would she have... Syaoran looked down to see Sakura walking quietly towards the window. She slowly inspected the window and the surroundings. Sakura likes everyone. Why would I think she just likes me? She depends on my knowledge of magic, nothing else. I should stop trying to make her like me and just be the stupid friend she wants me to be. Syaoran sighed at the resolution. He watched Sakura walk back over to the door, walking quietly back into the couch and onto her couch, pulling the blankets over her and seeming to fall fast asleep.

Syaoran lowered himself down the tree with natural agility, then walked around to the back door, making sure not to be seen coming back inside. The warmth of the house felt wonderful to Syaoran, and he was able to get to his couch without much trouble. Syaoran pulled the pillows out that had been serving as a double for his disappearance and threw them up at the headrest. He sank into the soft couch and quickly fell asleep into unknown dreams.

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"Guys hurry, wake up! We’re late!" Jenny shook Syaoran out of his restful state.

Sakura frowned and sat up groggily. "Late for what?"

Jenny looked at her incredously. "For church! Duh!" Jenny ran out of the room to finish getting ready.

"Church? What is that?" Sakura looked at Syaoran who was holding a blanket over his head to block out the sunlight in the room.

"You know, praying and stuff. Really boring." Syaoran rolled over and tried to fall asleep. Jenny came by the room, yanking the blanket off Syaoran. He shivered and angerly slid off the couch. Georgie rushed into the room, looking at Syaoran.

"Come here, Syaoran. I think I found something you can wear." Georgie grabbed his limp and heavy arm and pulled him upright.

He frowned at her with his eyes half open. "Why can’t I just wear this?"

Jenny walked over and widened her eyes. "We need to fix his hair before we leave! Look at it, it looks like he fell out of a bird’s nest. Come on, Syaoran, we only have ten minutes or so. Time for a miracle." The two girls dragged Syaoran out of the room, half pulling him up the stairs.

Sakura yawned and looked around the room. Why do we have to change? Georgie ran down the stairs and looked at Sakura. "Okay I have a skirt for you. Come on, we have to hurry!

Sakura slowly slid off the couch, stiff from all the grueling hiking done the day before. She got up, slowly becoming aware of everything around her, and walked over to Georgie. "Why can’t I just wear this?"

Georgie smiled. "Are you kidding me?! Come on, we have to hurry."

Sakura made an effort to hurry, her feet still feeling very heavy. Georgie ran into her room and was already ravaging the closet for clothes. She threw a few outfits on the bed. Georgie looked up at Sakura, who was already examining the clothes. "Alright, pick from any of those-quickly please!"

Sakura looked for the most appealing one, and spotted a green skirt with a white shirt and darker green overshirt. She picked it up and ran to the bathroom, where Jenny was running out with a brush in her hair. Sakura noticed Jenny was very dressed up, and looked a bit prettier than she had the day before. Her lively blonde hair hung at her shoulders, setting off her pretty blue eyes. Sakura also noticed the thick layer of eye shadow and lip gloss she wore.

Sakura walked into the bathroom, dismayed at her own reflection in the mirror. She shut the door and began working on her hair. The curling iron lay on the counter, still plugged in. Sakura picked it up and experimented with a few peices of hair, and liking the results, continued quickly with her hair while staying prudent and cautious to avoid unnecessary burns to her head.

She pulled on the clothes, finding the white shirt rather tight, and the skirt about short than Sakura’s usual modest waredrobe, but did think she looked sharper than usual. I need to start dressing more my age. She looked at her figure in the full mirror on the back of the door. She shrugged and went back to finishing up her hair, which now had a princess type appeal with long curls hanging down around her face. (**AUTHOR’S NOTE: I think you might have already figured- but I am making everyone around 13 or so-Sakura’s hair has probably grown out since then. Just in case you were wondering***!)

Sakura, satisfied enough with her appearance, shut off the light and opened the door. The second her foot touched the hallway floor, Jordan swept by and shut the door of the bathroom almost on Sakura’s back. She frowned by the rude gesture, but continued down the stairs by Georgie’s rushing calls.

Syaoran stood at the doorway trying to ignore Jenny, while she persisted on with compliments. Jenny looked at him with big eyes. "You will come by here again, right? I think we’ve all become good friends despite the short amount of time. You’ll come back, right?" She added a good puppy dog lip.

Syaoran sighed. I am sure you and Meilin would get along just fine. "No, I am moving to Asia in a week."

Jenny frowned and was about to retort when the parents ushered the kids to the car. Sakura jogged over to the car to try to catch up, with Jordan following a ways behind her. Sakura bit her lips in a desperate attempt to keep from laughing when she saw Syaoran. It seemed that Jenny had chosen Syaoran’s outfit, a very nice looking tuxedo that Sakura found a bit awkward looking on him. Syaoran saw Sakura’s stifled laugh and gave her an annoyed glare. Sakurabit back her smile and slid in the van’s seat next to Syaoran.

Syaoran made a quick sideglance at Sakura. What in the world did she do to her hair? It looks midevil or something from the dark ages. Knights and princess stuff. Syaoran shurgged to himself and looked back at Jenny, who was starting up another conversation about her personal acheivements and awards.

Jordan jogged over and, looking a bit dismayed that there was no room left to sit by Sakura, sat himself behind her. The instant he got in the van, Sakura’s nose tickled. Georgie, from the back seat, looked with amusement at her brother.

"Put on enough cologne there buddy? We are going to church for petes sake. You don’t need to be hitting on all the girls there-" Georgie said, but was interupted by her father.

"Georgie, don’t talk filth like that. Your brother is quite alright. He didn’t say anything about your friend’s hair."

Sakura widened her eyes and tried not to gasp from the insult her new friend’s father had just said. She stumbled with a rebound.

Syaoran frowned, he didn’t like the dark hospitality they had been getting from Georgie’s parents. "Excuse me sir, but I think you should reconsider the way you are insulting my sister and I. We haven’t done anything to-"

Georgie’s dad slowed the car to the heated arguement. "Shut your mouth son! I have no reason to even tolerate the likes of you! I know your type, you-"

Syaoran was beginning to show the first signs of rage. He brought his polite voice up to a louder shout. "You don’t know anything about us! You have no reason to glare at us and make us feel uncomfortable! Hell, you make your own children uncomfortable!"

The use of profanity brought Georgie’s dad into uncontrolable anger. "You have no right to be talking about my children! They are my business! The worst thing they have ever done is let you strangers stay at our house! I don’t know where I taught them wrong, but I will correct them from ever doing it again."

Syaoran was about to continue the yelling match when Georgie jumped in. "He’s right, dad! Why can’t you be normal? You try to act like we are high class snobs! Why can’t you just admit to yourselves we are normal people? You guys are worse than the snobs you see at the country club. At least they have money."

Mrs. White came out of her silence. "That is enough! I don’t want to hear any of you-" She turned around and gave incredous glares at Syaoran, "to say another word till we get to church. Sakura, Syaoran, we’ve loved having you, but I am afraid you can’t come back to our place after church. It shouldn’t be relevent, though, you said you were meeting Amy there." She turned around and glared out the window.

Georgie sighed and looked at her brother with a worried and angry gaze. He looked at her, unfazed, and shrugged. Georgie sighed again and looked out the window, anxiously awaiting to get out of the car.

______________________________________________________________

"Jordan, won’t you show our guests to their seats? We have some things to discuss with Georgie." Mrs. White said through her teeth. It was obvious to them all that Mr White was still far too angry to speak.

Jordana shrugged and pushed his way out of the car, waiting for Sakura to follow. He fell in step with her and blocked Syaoran out of the private conversation.

He smiled at Sakura. "Amy won’t be here until the later service, so we will have to sit through one first. It’s very boring."

Sakura looked at him as they walked. "Oh, like school-boring?"
Jordan nodded. He grinned and snaked his closest arm around Sakura’s waist. "Of course we could find a way to skip out. There’s nothing wrong with it."

Sakura smiled nervously and pulled away from his sly grasp. "No, I, uh, I am sure the service will be fine." She said uncomfortably.

Syaoran scoffed from his behind veiw. He’s worse than Mark! I can’t let him sit next to Sakura in this ‘service’ thing. Syaoran frowned into the back of Jordan’s head for a few moments, than looked back at the parked car. Georgie and her parents still sat in the car, having their discussion. A sudden wave of sleepiness swept into Syaoran’s eyes.

Oh no. He fought for consciousness, and the sudden sleep seemed to dissolve for the time being. Something’s going on. I might be alright for now, but who knows. He looked up at Sakura, who was walking a safe distance beside Jordan silently.

"Sakura, come here." Syaoran said, taking pleasure in the way he was interrupting Jordan and his little ‘plan’ to hit on Sakura.

Sakura frowned and slowed down beside Syaoran. Oh no, he saw that! He can’t say anything- can he? I mean it’s not his business but...Why do I get so mixed up? Why do I want it to be his business? Sakura looked at him with a worried question face.

Syaoran glared at Jordan, who was trying to listen in, and lowered his voice. "Something’s going on." Syaoran looked and emphasized with his eyes the meaning behind the small sentence.

Sakura frowned, confused, and looked at his eyes for a second. Realization hit her, and a scared look shown through her face. "Oh." Sakura frowned and followed Jordan into the church double doors. "Like now?"

Syaoran shurgged and recovered the closing door from crushing him into the wall. He quickly caught step with Sakura and they walked quietly through the small sea of people and followed Jordan into the auditorium.

Sakura immediatly spotted a fimiliar face. Samantha sat towards the front, talking with a small boy, maybe 5 or 6 years old. Sakura motioned for Jordan and Syaoran to follow her as she quickly made her way over.

"Samantha!" Sakura said, smiling and pulling one of her curls out of her eyes, along with the longer peice of her bangs.

Samantha looked up and frowned for a second, then recognized them. "Sakura! Sy-uh.. Syran? I am so glad you guys are alright! Where did you guys go!? How in the world did you get here!?"

Sakura smiled and filled her in with the important parts of the story. Samantha nodded at some parts. "Yeah, I know Georgie! She’s really nice! She always has that one girl hanging around her though...um...Jenny. Jenny’s kind of annoying at times. I feel bad for Georgie. The only normal one in the bunch."

Jordan glared at Samantha. "Watch your mouth, girl."

Samantha shot to her feet and pulled back an arm, threatening to punch. "I’ll say what I want, Jordan White."

The intense stare went for a while, making Syaoran and Sakura a bit uncomfortable. Syaoran was quite impressed with the girl’s willingness to fight. Sakura broke the awkwardness with her sudden thought. "Where did Jenny go?"

Jordan broke his stare and looked around. Syaoran, who was finally looking a bit relaxed, frowned at the Jenny’s name. "Who cares?" Syaoran muttered, barely audible.

Samantha looked around and quickly spotted her. "Over there by the chick in the yellow."
Jenny was talking to another girl around her age, and pointing at Syaoran. The other girl looked over and stared dreamily at Syaoran. Jennny stared as well.

Syaoran rolled his eyes and threw his arms in the air. "What IS IT with you freaking people!" He saide a bit loudly. The preacher standing within earshot of Syaoran bulged his eyes and gave Syaoran the disapproving eye. Syaoran looked down at his feet warily and started shuffling them.

Jordan glared at Syaoran. "Smooth one genius. You just can’t keep your mouth shut can you? You and your sister really do have some problems."

Syaoran’s eyes shot up and meet Jordan’s glare. "Our problem is little people like you that drive our nerves up the wall because you have some obsession issues. I can’t beleive what you try to do. You are just a dog on your parent’s leash." Syaoran sarcastically softed his glare. "It’s sad really, to be so dependent on your parents."

Jordan glared away for a moment, then sighed and slumped his shoulders in defeat. He laughed. "I was just kidding. There’s nothing wrong with your sister!" Jordan tickled Sakura’s stomach, who giggled unsurely and pulled away, trying to keep the light air.

Samantha stood quietly to the side. Syaoran glared at Jordan. Sakura seemed to be reeling in her mind with thoughts. Jenny and her friend in the yellow shirt continued to stare and make comments on Syaoran. They stood like that for a couple minutes before they saw Georgie coming through the door, looking very glum. They all started walking to meet her. Jenny and her friend also ran over to Georgie.

Sakura was the first to talk. "Sorry if we got you in trouble, we didn’t mean to cause any harm-"

"No, it wasn’t you. My parents have been like this so long, it drives me crazy. I knew I’d blow sometime." Georgie said, giving a weak smile. Her smile quickly faded, and she looked down to her feet with a forlorn look. "They are sending me to boarding school. They said this was the last straw and..." Tears filled the bottom of her eyes and she stopped for a moment. She frowned away the tears and looked up with an angry determined look on her face. "I don’t care what they want me to do." She stopped her talk right there, seeing her parents walking through the door.

The piano player started a song, signalling for everyone to sit down. They followed Samantha into a back row. Georgie sat next to her, followed by Jordan. Syaoran’s attempt to seperate Sakura from Jordan was futile, and he got stuck in between Sakura and Jenny, who was rapidly talking with excitement to her friend. Syaoran sighed and sat down.

"Good morning everyone. Can anyone tell me a blessing they’ve had this week..." The preacher started.

Syaoran’s eyes began to weigh again, very heavy this time. He struggled to recover, then looked at Sakura. She was intently staring up at the stage. Syaoran elbowed her softly. She imediatly looked over.

Syaoran put his hand over one side of his mouth so Jenny couldn’t see what he was saying. "I don’t know if I can stay awake through this. I am really tired." He whispered.

Sakura moved back and looked him worriedly in the eye. "Do you think she’d come...here?" Sakura’s eyes widened with the frightened thought.

Syaoran frowned and whispered back. "Ghosts don’t go in churches." or at least I think they don’t. He said reassuringly. Sakura looked at him with a bit of worry still in her eye, then looked back to the stage.

The preacher lead a few hymns and then began his sermon for that day. "Today, I’d like to talk about an evil arisin in our society. There is witchcraft being taught in our schools. Magic sorcery being held to the highest regard. I’m tellin you there’s an evil arisin!" The preacher’s voice went along to climax his enthusiatic speech. Men and women in the crowd shouted replies back and started an applause.

The preacher continued. "No longer are we worshipin the power of our God, oh no, we are worshipping the power of ourselves! I’m telling you folks today, magic isn’t gonna save my life! Is it gonna save yours?" People shouted along, completly enthused in what he had to say.

Georgie got up from her seat, looking angry and on the brink of tears. She slid out of the row and headed to the back doors of the sancuary. Sakura watched her worriedly, then decided to follow. She elbowed Syaoran, who’s eyes were halfshut, and tugged on his arm as she got up. He got the hint and got up as well, doing his best to make a quiet exit while his legs seemed to heavy to stay silent.

Once they were out of the sancuary, they saw Georgie outside, sitting on the steps. They started walking towards the doors. Sakura looked at Syaoran. "Do you think we are evil? Like that guy said?"

Syaoran eyes remained half shut. "mmm." He shrugged in response. They stopped their conversation when they got to the door, and quietly sat next to Georgie. She looked at them with dry eyes, looking very determined.

"I am going to run away. I have two hundred dollars in cash, and I am sure I can find somewhere to go." She stared back out into the country setting.

Sakura looked at her concerned. "I know you don’t want to go to boarding school, but you can’t live on two hundred dollars."

Georgie sighed and looked down at the ground. "I know, but...I was wondering, could I stay with you at your house for a while? Not for that long, just a couple weeks or so, and I could get some more resources? I have my drivers permit, and I can take our car. I might take my horse instead though, I can’t stand thinking about losing my horse."

Sakura frowned and looked at Syaoran. He seemed completly oblvious to the conversation. Sakura stumbled with an excuse. "Well, um...we live really far away-like out of country. We are just staying at Amy’s for now and..." Sakura was interrupted by a distant scream, coming from several fields and woods away. Sakura thought quickly and deeply. Oh no! Not this! I sense it, I sense the magic. A clow card has gotten all the way over here and..

Syaoran’s eyes opened, and he looked towards the field. He hopped to his feet and began running towards the sound. Sakura hopped off after him, followed by Georgie. Sakura frowned as she ran. How will I explain this to her? ...

... The magic began to get very strong after running for about a half mile. Sakura looked at Syaoran and ignored the fact that Georgie was there. "Do you sense it? It’s here. It’s very close."

Syaoran frowned deeply and concentrated, then nodded. "It’s very strong. I am not sure where... It’s making me very tired. I can’t think straight."
Georgie frowned and looked at them. "What do you mean? Something’s here? Like a criminal or something? What are you guys doing?"

Sakura didn’t respond to Georgie’s question, but started walking quickly. "Over here. Right..."

Another scream, this time just a few feet away, caught their attention. Sakura looked up and gasped. "Amy! What happened!?"

Amy knelt on the ground, eyes glistening with tears, and many gashed all over her body. She looked around blindly, then got up, going into a full run. A sword like gash appeared freshly on her arm. Amy screamed and jumped, but ran full force into a tree.

Sakura gasped and ran over to her side, where she lay on the ground. "Amy what’s wrong? Why aren’t you answering us?"

Amy made no response showing that she had heard Sakura, but painfully rose to her feet again, trying to run, but collapsed again onto the ground. Syaoran ran over.

"Hold her still. She can’t see us. Something’s chasing her. I don’t know what card it is but it’s definitely pretty powerful."

Sakura grabbed Amy’s slashed arm and held it still, restricting her from getting onto her feet. The second Sakura touched Amy’s hand, a black enveloped her.

Sakura frowned and looked around. Everything was black. She looked at her hand, but could not see it. Darkness is the absense of light. There truly is no light here. Where is this horrible place? Am I dreaming? Something’s wrong here. Someone else is here. A bright light shown far away. Sakura desperately tried to walk towards it, but something weighed her down. A sharp pain stung through her left leg. Sakura looked down, but couldn’t see it. All she could see was the white pinlight that shown so happily just a hundred steps away. Sakura tried to move once more, but another pain came, a sharper and deeper pain. Sakura cried out in frustration and continued into a restricted jog. She felt her hand start to ache. What is wrong with my hand? It feels like it is holding on to something. I need to let go. Sakura opened her hand, and the light immediately consumed her, sending her falling down into reality.

Sakura shot open her eyes and looked around, and realized she was still sitting next to Amy. Georgie sat beside Sakura, panting.

"The second you touched Amy, you blanked out. I pulled on your arm till you let go. You really scared me for a second."

Sakura gave a weak smile, then looked at Syaoran and Amy. Syaoran was just pulling his hand off Amy’s arm. He fell back then sat back up, gasping for air. "She’s possessed with the Dark card. The Dark card and something else." Syaoran looked at his arm and looked at his arm, which was dripping with blood.

Sakura widened her eyes, then looked at her own arm and leg. Her leg, bare because of her Sunday dress, had a large gash in it. Sakura gasped. "What kind of Dark card is that? The Dark card isn’t that powerful! I thought I was dead! Look, it cut both of us, and sent poor Amy into hysterics! She ran into a tree!"
Syaoran nodded. "Do you have your light card? Is it still contained?"

Sakura bit her lip. "I am pretty sure it’s still working, but it’s in their car. We’d have to run all that way... We might not have enough time..."

Georgie frowned, then shot to her feet. "Hang on, I’ll get it in no time. Don’t touch Amy again, you guys have to stay conscious. I’ll be right back."

Sakura sighed worriedly, and looked down at her leg. If the clow cards are getting energy from Syaoran, they must be using alot of it. But then-if I were him I would probably be asleep by now. He must have very powerful magic to support all of this. What if they use up all of his energy? Would he...would he die?

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Alright there. Cliffhangers, I know everyone hates them. But see I had a deadline set for myself to finish this chapter, and I didn’t want to be more than four days late. So I ended with a cliffhanger cause I didn’t have enough time to write! I am sure you all are thrilled. Anyway, I’ll try and pick up the pace with chapter 6. Loving comments at [email protected]

ALRIGHT!