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Pleasure Slave	By : Capitalist Category: +. to F > Card Captor Sakura Views: 84321 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Card Captor Sakura, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 28
- 29
- 30
Chapter 29
‘rival’

Touya liked waking up next to Yue, though he probably wouldn’t ever admit it. The bed was soft and the sheets sinfully smooth, but it was more than the physical comfort that Touya enjoyed. Two years since his father’s death, and still he had never really acclimated to spending the night alone in his own bed. So often in the middle of the night he would wake up and reach for his sister, an instinctive action, like a child’s reflexive hug for his stuffed doll. But the warm presence that had soothed him for years in his childhood would be gone, on the other side of the cabin in what was her own bed now. He missed her, but knew she must be enjoying all her new space and never said a word about it.
Now the warmth had returned, if in a different form, and it was a relief to roll over in the middle of the night and find a body to cling to, even if just briefly. Yue never smothered him or stole all the sheets, as Sakura often had, and together they slept in companiable harmony. Come morning and he was usually gone before Touya even woke, but not today. The sky had barely begun to lighten when Touya settled himself comfortably atop Yue, chin resting on his hands, and stared.
The sun rose, golden shafts of light streaming over the mountains and into the valley, and Yue finally stirred. Muscles shifted underneath Touya’s weight, a confused frown flitted across his sleeping face, and languidly his eyes opened to find Touya looking directly into them.
“Finally.”
“Good morning, my slave.”
“Not your slave.”
“Is there something particularly troubling that you wish to discuss? Or are you simply drinking in the sight of me while I sleep?”
“Neither. I just wanted you to hurry and wake up so you can come through on your promise. Today is the day.”
“What day?”
“The day we go outside this castle. The day that I feel grass under my feet again, look around and see trees instead of walls. I could hardly sleep just thinking about it.”
Yue yawned. “Nonsense, slave. I told you I would take you outside when you perfected that music, and no sooner.”
“I’m ready to play as soon as you’re up.”
“Don’t be silly, Toya. You’ve only been practicing for one week, no one inexperienced could learn to play it so quickly.”
“Could and did.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Then get up and come listen, already. I perfected it yesterday, I know I’m ready to play it.”
His stubborn insistence appeared to amuse Yue, who was playing with a lock of his hair. “If you rouse me out of bed and cannot play it to my satisfaction, then I’ll be most annoyed. I may punish you.”
“Fine.”
“It’s a wager, then.”
A pompous and irksome smile tugged at his lips, probably because he was thinking about their last wager, and Touya returned the look haughtily. Maybe he shouldn’t have pressed so eagerly for a test; another day of practice wouldn’t have hurt… but too late for that now. This was a matter of pride.
Though his palms were starting to sweat, a little, by the time they’d reached the music room. Still in his robe, Yue drifted to the piano’s side and smirked at Touya.
“Come then. Impress me.”
Touya swallowed and seated himself on the bench, meticulously arranging the music sheets though they were already in place. He could do this, if it meant leaving the castle. He could do anything to leave this castle.
His fingers pressed the first keys of their own accord, without any conscious direction. That startled Touya but now he’d begun and had no choice but to continue, no choice but to move on to the next chord and hope for the best. Like clockwork his fingers moved up and down the keys, remembering, playing the chords and the trills and adding harmony to melody. He relaxed and fell into the beauty of the piece, playing softly or passionately as directed, crescending and descending in volume. He poured his soul into the piano, and it showed.
In triumph he played the final chord, allowing the music to resonate in the room as he tapered off the volume, and for the first time since sitting he looked up. Now it was Yue who was staring, wearing a stunned expression that Touya didn’t think he’d ever seen on him.
Silence.
Touya fidgeted on his bench. “Say something, would you?” he grumbled, starting to feel a little nervous. Maybe he hadn’t played that well after all. Maybe compared to a real artist he was just –
“Fantastic,” Yue breathed. “You- the music…” He shook his head, as if to clear away broken fragments of conversation, and laid his hand aside Touya’s face. “My precious slave, you truly amaze me. Is there anything you cannot do?”
The excessive praise made Touya blush, and he looked away. “I don’t know, protect my sister?”
“I would not be so sure of that.” Yue sank onto the bench beside him and drew him closer for a kiss, a kiss that was tender and demanding all at once. Touya didn’t fight it, still on a personal high from his successful performance and with his own adrenaline to burn, and met Yue force for force. It was like falling into his music, really, so easy to be swept away by the passion of it that he could almost forget he was a participant too…
Falling deeper, and he could feel the slight tug as Yue dragged him onto his own lap, their bodies nestled together as neatly as a pair of spoons. Yue’s lips moved to his neck and his hands moved to Touya’s groin, fondling and squeezing, eliciting a moan of delight from the latter. He almost curled forward and fell right off the bench, but Yue’s iron grasp held him close against his chest, held fast to his beating heart. Instead he thrust his hips into Yue’s hand, moans moving up a notch in volume when Yue’s hand moved inside his pants.
It was getting hard to breathe, Yue was holding onto him so tightly. Futilely he grasped at Yue’s forearm and panted for air, his flesh unbearably hot. He craved release, mentally he begged for it, and at last his body obliged Yue’s expert touch. He erupted, all over himself and Yue’s hand and his pants, making a terrible mess and not caring at all. Yue’s arm relaxed, and he gulped for mouthfuls of desperately-needed air while Yue worked his pants down and spread his knees wide. When he entered Touya, he didn’t have the energy to do much more than bite back a single yelp of pain. Yue’s hands guided him, arching his back for him, cradling his head to lie back against Yue’s shoulder while he penetrated ever deeper. When the climax came, both sagged backward in relief, with the result that Yue leaned on the piano keys and produced a jarring chord.
“Ouch, that hurt my ears,” Touya mumbled.
“My apologies, slave. This is your piano now; I shall strive to treat it more carefully in the future.”
“It’s mine?”
“Just as the library is. You have proven yourself more than intelligent enough to use both, after all.”
Feeling richer than he ever had in his life, Touya smiled in drowsy vindication. Then he remembered what had brought them up here in the first place.
“Oh! This is no time to be lying around, I want to go outside now.”
“It has to be today?” Yue murmured, nuzzling his neck.
“Yes, it has to be today.”
“Then we shall go. But I think, Toya, you will want to change clothing.”

In the end, Yue not only made sure that Touya cleaned himself and changed into new clothes, but also insisted he eat a full breakfast. A day could not be enjoyed on an empty stomach, and he sent an order to Ralen that a servant might prepare a picnic meal. Touya was hopping with impatience by the time Yue allowed him to descend the stairs; the little sister was just emerging from the bathing rooms when they found her.
“Sakura!”
“Onii-chan?” Surprised, she looked up just before he pounced on her with a hug, almost picking her up off the floor in his enthusiasm. “Oof! What are you doing here?”
“I’m collecting you, of course. Guess what we’re doing today? We’re going outside!”
“Outside?” the girl repeated blankly, looking from her brother’s overjoyed expression to Yue’s emotionless mask. “You mean, outside in the courtyard?”
“I mean outside the walls. Outside the whole damn castle, anywhere we want to go.”
“But how?”
“I was able to play- oh, never mind, I’ll explain it later. What’s important is that we’re going, and we’ll be gone for hours!”
Touya made to turn back to Yue, his hand on the little girl’s wrist, but unexpectedly she resisted his tug.
“Oh, Onii-chan, I can’t.”
“Huh? What do you mean, you can’t?”
Sakura’s smile turned sincerely regretful as she tried to pry his grip off her arm. “I’m so sorry, I’d really love to, but I can’t today. Meilin is coming, she sent a message days ago. I can’t possibly miss my lesson with Meilin.”
“Who?”
“My dance teacher!” She rolled her eyes. “She can’t come very often, and it takes her hours to get here. I simply have to be here when she arrives.”
If Yue had not been so thrilled to hear this, he might have felt sorry for his poor slave. Touya’s face had fallen from happy excitement to absolute dismay.
“You- you’re going to miss a chance to come outside the castle for a stupid dance lesson?”
She kicked him swiftly in the shin. “It is not a stupid dance lesson! It’s my favorite part of the week, and today she’s going to teach me a new dance. I won’t miss it for anything.”
“But I’m your brother!”
“Onii-chan! I won’t have Meilin ride up the mountain for two hours just to find that I’m gone!”
“Fine,” he growled, looking put out. “I guess I can put it off until tomorrow.”
“Oh, sorry, Onii-chan, but that won’t work either. Meilin always stays the night and gives me two days of lessons in a row.”
Touya swore rapidly under his breath. “Is there any day that your precious and wonderful Meilin is not here?”
Sakura scowled. “You don’t have to be so mean. It’s not my fault that she’s coming today.”
Touya made an unhappy noise in the back of his throat and backed away. “I’m sorry, Sakura. I’m just… disappointed, that’s all.”
“I really am sorry, Onii-chan. But if you don’t want to wait, you should just go on without me.”
“I won’t do that.”
“Really,” she pressed, squeezing his hand between her own. “I get to go outside every day in the courtyards, after all. I’m really very happy with that.”
Only Yue, ever observant, thought he saw something like a blush color her cheeks, but he could not be bothered to pay much attention to that when he was exulting at her words. His rival for Touya’s affections was backing off, willingly giving up her place to Yue. It was an opportunity not to be missed.
“Come, Toya.” With Sakura still holding onto Touya’s right hand, he took his left. “If she is busy, it can’t be helped. It will just be the two of us.”
“But I shouldn’t -”
“Onii-chan, I don’t mind at all. Maybe I can come another time.”
“That’s right, another time,” Yue agreed. “You will have other chances.”
Gently he tugged, and Touya allowed himself to be separated from Sakura at last. Reluctance and guilt still showed in his eyes, and impatiently Yue dragged him out one end of the corridor while the little sister took the other.
“I don’t know, this isn’t right for me to go without her.”
“Nonsense, she said it was fine. And didn’t you say you ‘must’ leave the castle today? You were so looking forward to it.”
Touya shrugged and mumbled something, which Yue took as agreement. At the entrance a servant waited with a canvas bag packed with food, which he hung on Touya’s shoulder, but the silly boy was still looking back when they left the building.
“I dunno… I worry.”
“About what? That she will not be safe if, god forbid, you leave her alone in my castle for one single day?”
“No,” Touya huffed. “It’s not about that. It’s just, sometimes I feel like we’ve grown apart so much since we got here. She has those awful dance lessons, of course, and friends that I don’t even know, and she just refused to come outside with me. She would have never refused me something I demanded, back in our old home. It feels like something has come between us.”
Yue could not have been happier to hear it, but his slave looked so troubled that he felt compelled to comfort him.
“She spends every moment within my castle walls, Toya, sleeps safe inside a locked cage. What could possibly have come between you?”
“My lord?” someone else spoke up, before Touya could begin to form an answer, and they both turned to see Li standing before them. The young captain looked confused, understandably so. Yue never appeared anywhere outside the castle in the day. “Is there something wrong?”
“Not at all, captain, you may continue your watch. I am taking my slave out for the day, and I do not know when we will return.”
Li’s eyebrows went up, clearly surprised, but unlike most of his servants Li knew how to mind his own business. “Shall I keep the gate open?”
“Unless you feel some danger threatens, that will be fine.”
“Lend me your bow and arrow,” Touya put in, with just a touch of a snide gleam in his eyes, “and I’ll bring you back some dinner.”
Li flashed him a nasty glare. “I’ll be fine, thanks. Can’t make much of a meal out of just vegetables, after all.”
Touya’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll be seeing you on the rooftop.”
“Any day, any time.”
“Captain, slave,” Yue admonished. “That’s quite enough. Do you want to go outside, Toya, or don’t you?”
“We’re going.” He threw one last contemptuous look at Li before lacing his fingers through Yue’s and marching through the open gate.
“Tell me, Toya, is it impossible for you to converse civilly with any of my servants?”
“The one time I did, if I recall correctly, you threw her out of the castle. And anyway, there’s something about that guy I don’t like. Why the hell did you pick a kid to run your guard?”
“I have my reasons, none of which are your concern.”
“I knew you would say th -” He cut himself short abruptly, and Yue looked up.
“Toya?”
He was staring, as if fixated, feet rooted solidly to the earth and hand almost trembling in Yue’s grasp. He exhaled with a shudder.
“I’m outside.”
“Yes, that’s right.” They’d just exited the gate and stood on the nearly flat ledge that overlooked the valley in all its splendor. It was not anywhere near the impressive view that Yue’s own balcony offered, but Touya’s eyes were not on Terriene. Instead, his gaze was riveted on the trees just steps away, leaves rustling in a midsummer breeze.
“I haven’t been outside in… god, it feels like years. Two months? Three?” He dropped to his knees and pressed his palms to the grass, looking ready to cry. “I haven’t touched a tree, the grass, even plain dirt in all that time. It’s so beautiful.”
His tone was so poignant, Yue felt almost uncomfortable to witness it. “Slave, it is only grass -”
Touya jumped to his feet and kissed Yue, with a speed that took even him by surprise. Hands slightly gritty held his face in place, probably getting him dirty, but Yue could not bring himself to care.
“Thank you,” Touya sighed, upon withdrawal. “Thank you so very much.”
“You are very welcome.” Yue had to clear his throat, mentally bracing himself for some unpleasantness. “However, Toya, you must know now that you do not have the total freedom to choose where to go. I forbid you from entering the city.”
“That’s fine.”
“It is?”
“Sure.” Touya shrugged and took his hand again, leading Yue away from the road and down toward the trees. “I didn’t like it the first time I was there and I don’t know why I would now; it’s noisy, filthy, and full of wretched people like the ones that sold my sister. I grew up in the country, and that’s where I want to go. Even if all I do is walk through the trees, it’s enough for me.”
Reverently he laid a hand on the trunk of a pine, before heading onward.
“Surely I have said this a thousand times, Toya, but you really are a strange creature.”
“As if you aren’t.”
And there was not really anything Yue could say to that.

The day went, Yue thought fondly, like a perfect date between lovers. He had been afraid Touya would whine if forbidden from the city, and be bored, but Touya apparently loved the woods more than he’d given him credit for. For hours he seemed content to drag Yue all over the hillside, climbing trees to inspect baby birds in their nests, watching beavers build a dam in the stream and rabbits nibble at the grassy stalks between trees. He amazed Yue by nonchalantly fishing a trout out of the water with his bare hand, explaining it was something he often did to put dinner on the table for him and his sister, but since the servants had packed so much bread and meat and cheese, he generously returned it to the stream. He ate, wishing aloud that he’d had food half so good to keep him fed while he was out before, in his old home. He also requested of Yue that he never mention that to Sakura.
Walking again, he demonstrated how he would have tracked and hunted those rabbits for dinner in the past, where he would have set snares, what high-hanging fruit he would have picked because he knew Sakura could not. It astonished Yue the number of chores his peasant slave was responsible for, all the work that these woods represented, and yet still he plainly adored them.
“See that?” Touya pointed to a young oak, splintered and broken at a right angle, its great crown of leaves smushed ignonimously to the ground. “Probably got hit by lightning in all those thunderstorms. If I were home, I would have used a controlled fire to break it off completely from that stump, then chopped it up into firewood for the cabin. All that wood would last a couple of months in the winter.”
“How would you carry it?”
“For something that size I’d have to borrow a cart from my neighbor, and his mule. Of course for that I’d have to repay him with some of the cut firewood, so I wouldn’t get the whole tree. It’d be worth it, though.”
“Mm.” Yue indulged himself with a vision of Touya cutting firewood, without his shirt on, before a question occurred to him. “Toya, my captain told me that you set a controlled fire in the woods to sneak into my castle, is that right?”
“Yeah.”
“Taking care to make sure it wouldn’t spread was what alerted him to the idea of an intruder. Why didn’t you just set the forest ablaze? You might have escaped that way.”
“Maybe.” Again Touya shrugged. “And if we did get out of the castle, how would we make our way through a wall of fire? Besides, my sister and I owe our lives to the woods; it’s how we got most of our food and income. I wasn’t about to burn them down.”
“Noble of you,” Yue murmured. “The men rushed out to save the trees, incidentally, because they know I am very fond of plant life. I would have been upset to find them all burned to a crisp. Thank you for sparing them.”
“Sure, whatever.”
He tried to pass it off as if he didn’t care, but Yue was sure the compliment had flattered him. Touya really was a young man with strong principles.
They continued to wander, moving up the slope’s gentle gradient rather than further down. It was the very middle of summer, the sun at its hottest, and Yue keenly felt the warmth on his alabaster white skin. He ought to have taken Touya out for the night instead, but humans had difficulty seeing in the dark and he would not have enjoyed himself so much.
“Toya, we must pause for rest. The summer heat is not my friend.”
“Huh?” Touya turned his face up to the pure blue sky, then checked on him. “You’re right, you do look flushed. It’s okay, I’m a little tired too. So long without exercise, I guess.”
He eyed the nearest tree as if to go sit in its shade, but Yue negated him with the wave of hand. “Not here. There is a very pleasant clearing just up ahead -”
He walked and spoke without thinking, guided by the habits of his feet, and it wasn’t until he stepped past the fringe of trees that all his memories caught up with him in a rush. Nothing about this place had changed: not the old giant chestnut tree with its spreading green foliage, not the thin stream winding its way around the edge to trickle on down the mountain, nor the waving green grass speckled with wildflowers. He’d forgotten all about this place, but his subconscious had not. To the very detail, his dreams were exact.
“You’re right, it is nice,” Touya appraised from beside him, and stooped to fill his canteen with fresh water. “How did you know?”
“I… often took long walks in the woods, many years ago.” It was unsettling to see Touya in these surroundings, just as he’d seen in his sleep, but then Touya stripped off his shirt and splashed himself liberally with the cool water. It was such an appealing sight that Yue relaxed, and shed his misgivings. He had spent so much time here, years ago, that it was only sensible the place should reappear in an occasional dream.
“Yue?”
“Hmm?”
“Are you just going to stand there?” Touya was watching him with a touch of uncertainty, and quickly he pulled himself together.
“Not at all. Come and join me under the shade, the chestnut makes for a particularly good resting spot.”
Indeed it did, with the soft tufts of clover lining all the earth cradled between great roots. Glad to be out of the sun, Yue reclined against its bark while Touya flopped down next to him.
“I can see why you think so. That’s some view.” Perched on the crown of a steep slope and with a break in the trees that would otherwise obstruct sight, there was indeed a fine view. The angle was more westward facing than Touya was used to, from Yue’s balcony, providing almost a straight line down the valley and toward that not-quite-visible ocean.
“Yes, it is.”
“This day has been so good,” Touya sighed, and rolled over onto his stomach so that he could face Yue, chin propped up in hands. “I’m not even all that sad that Sakura couldn’t come. I mean, I wish she had, but it isn’t so bad this way either.”
“Mm,” Yue agreed, noncommittally, though he could have kissed the boy.
“Your hair has little twigs and leaves caught in it,” he went on to observe, running his fingers through the long strands that had fallen out of Yue’s braid. “Look at this mess. Why do you have to keep your hair so long?”
“Why do you have to question me on every particular habit and preference?”
“Because in this case, you make me take care of it,” he retorted, though he’d already begun to pick out the small bit and pieces. Minutes ticked by and he combed out part of the long plait, rebraiding what he had picked clean. Yue grew drowsy, in the cool shade, watching his nimble fingers move through the task so efficiently.
“For a rough peasant so unacquainted with other delicate tasks, I did think you learned to look after my hair with remarkable speed. Why is that?”
“Um,” Touya muttered, “don’t tell anyone this, but when I was very young, I liked to help my mother brush and braid her hair. I only did it until I was old enough to start wrestling and racing the other boys in the village, and figured out that hair was a girl thing.”
It would have only been about eighteen or twenty years ago, which to Yue was almost no time at all. It amused him, to think of his muscular and tall slave as a little toddler.
“She had long hair as well, your mother?”
“All the way to her knees, almost as long as yours. It was beautiful.” Touya’s tone became wistful. “She was beautiful.”
“Your sister takes after her.” It was not a question; Yue could see the same look in his eyes now as he had when he gazed tenderly upon Sakura.
“Yeah, spitten image. She never got a chance to see, because she wasn’t yet two when our mother died. Some kind of infection in the lungs, they thought. Our village had no doctor.”
Touya finished his work and rolled over to lie on his back, resting his head in Yue’s lap. He seemed so at ease, in contrast to the subject of his conversation, that Yue all but ached to hold him and comfort him. Instead he settled for slipping a hand along the side of his face and down on his chest, absentmindedly tracing the faint scars there.
“What a dangerous, brutish existence you led in those mountains, Toya. Tell me what did this.”
“Did what? Oh, that.” Briefly Touya raised his head to look, then dropped it back to Yue’s lap. “That was nothing. Just a lynx that I met high up near the peak, when I was setting traps.”
“Just a lynx? That is nothing?”
“I surprised him just as much as he surprised me,” Touya argued. “It was only natural that he attacked. Once he’d pinned me to the earth and he realized I wasn’t his normal prey, he jumped off and disappeared in the brush.”
“Oh, slave.”
“Stop that. He barely drew blood. Don’t tell Sakura, though; I never said anything because I knew it would scare her. Our father hadn’t been dead for more than a month and she really didn’t need to hear something like that.”
Always so noble, and so determined to be brave. Yue felt an irrepressible upwelling of emotion within him and curled forward to kiss his precious slave. His precious, lovely Touya, who kissed him back so compliantly – he cringed to think of all the ways Touya could have met death before meeting him. But at least those dangerous years in poverty were over, and now Yue would always keep him safe. Nothing could harm him now.

The sky was a brilliant pink-orange, when Yue opened his eyes, and the air cooler on his skin. Confused, he shifted from his position of leaning against bark and stretched stiff muscles.
“You’re awake,” Touya observed, also leaning against the trunk without quite touching Yue.
“What happened?” Yue remembered making gentle love to Toya there under the tree, but that was midafternoon and now the sun was setting. “Did I fall asleep?”
“We both did.” Yue thought Touya had been looking at him rather strangely, but then he turned his face toward the horizon and the expression disappeared. His eyes showed only disappointment. “I just woke up. All those hours… we wasted so much time on my one day out.”
He was wearing such a long face that Yue squeezed his chin playfully. “Don’t look so melancholy, slave, there will be other times.”
“So you really meant that?”
“I really did. I enjoyed it as well, after all.”
“Mm.” Touya managed a smile, then rolled to his feet and took a few steps forward. They were both stiff, after falling asleep in such a posture, and Touya lifted his arms up to stretch. As if in afterthought, he turned to look over his shoulder and ask Yue a question.
“Who’s Clow?”
Like a cold stone the word dropped into Yue’s stomach, paralyzing his body. His heart did not beat, his lungs did not breathe. He stared, and fumbled to use his voice.
“Wh-what did you say?”
“Who’s Clow?” Touya repeated patiently, his gaze curious but unsuspecting. “You were mumbling it, just before you woke up. I thought maybe it was someone you knew.”
“I see,” he managed, after his heart managed a pitiful thump. “Yes, I suppose I did.”
“Who was it?”
“No one important.” Shakily Yue climbed to his feet, keeping one hand on the tree. “As you said, just someone I knew. Gather up whatever you brought, Toya, it’s time for us to return.”
“Already?” Touya’s shoulders sagged and his face fell. “But I wanted to watch the stars come out.”
“Do not argue with me, slave!” Touya blinked and drew back, and Yue struggled to get control over himself. “It is a long walk and I will not have you tripping over roots in the darkness, possibly injuring yourself. Come, we must get moving.”

In the summer late morning, the heat was sticky and uncomfortable. Meilin’s horse clopped to a halt in the stableyard and her owner slid off the saddle wearing a merry grin, far too merry for Li’s taste. He did his best to ignore it.
“Meilin.”
“Syaoran,” she replied, in honeyed tones. “How ever have you been? Busy, I should think, what with seducing the pleasure slave of the castle into your arms.”
Fuck. Li bent over to unlace Dancer’s saddle strap, partly to avoid her eyes and partly to hide the furious blush he knew had bloomed on his cheeks. “Word travels fast,” he muttered. “How did you know?”
“Tomoyo told me, of course. You don’t sit on gossip like that, not when you shop with the cousin of the guilty party. But, oh, how I was surprised! To think that the reclusive, girl-shy Li Syaoran, who spends more time grooming his horse than himself, would ever have it in him to embrace a pretty young thing and whisper sweet nothings. You do whisper sweet nothings, don’t you? Write poetry? Give her a rose, at least?”
Her only reply was a wilting glare, before Li slung the heavy saddle over his shoulder and started for the stable.
“Syaoraaaan, don’t be like that. You know I’m only teasing. Tell me how it happened, at least. I knew she couldn’t take her eyes off you, but did she really have the gumption to start things? Or did you fold first?”
Slam went the heavy saddle on the cobblestones, and Li swept a curry brush over the mare’s ribs a little harder than necessary.
“You might as well tell me,” she pointed out, practically. “You know I’ll get Sakura to tell me everything anyway. We girls are good at that.”
“I kissed her. There, happy?”
“Oooh, I can just picture it. All alone, under the full moon and stars…”
“It was raining.”
“Close enough.” Meilin peered over Dancer’s back, propping her chin on folded arms. “I’m sure she was thrilled. But Syaoran, isn’t it against the rules, or something, to touch someone else’s slave?”
“Yes. So it would be really great if you would stop talking about it.”
“Ah, forbidden love.” Meilin gazed dreamily off into nowhere, patently ignoring him. “It’s all so romantic. That is, until you get found out and suffer terrible shame and recrimination. You do know the collar around her neck will change if you -”
“Yes, Meilin, I did know that, thank you.”
“Well, just so long as you know what you’re doing. Oh wait – when have you ever known that?”
“Don’t you have a lesson to go teach?”
“Ah, true enough. Time for me to go milk my protégé of all the details that you so cruelly keep to yourself.   You’ll make sure a bed’s prepared for me, won’t you? Ta-ta.”
Li did not bother to look up, nod, or otherwise acknowledge her departure. But when she had gone, he exchanged a baleful look with her horse.
“And yet, somehow, we’re related.”
Dancer snorted. Li agreed.

Meilin, true to her word, wasted no time in extracting every last juicy detail from Sakura. Lightly blushing, she related all that had led up to their first kiss in the rain, and all that had happened since, while pulling on one another in their post-lesson stretching. She tried to, but found she couldn’t, withold any details since Meilin had some uncanny ability to sniff out any omissions. Eyes narrowed, her tone warning, she demanded to know everything and meekly Sakura complied.
“But that can’t possibly be everything,” she complained, when Sakura had finished. “Tell me about the things he says when you’re alone together. Does he whisper words of eternal devotion? Compare your heart to a precious jewel?”
“Never,” Sakura laughed. “I couldn’t imagine Li ever saying such things, he’s so practical. And he never speaks with more words than he needs.”
“Surely he must say something.”
“Umm…” Sakura wrinkled her brow in thought. “‘Good morning’, of course. And he’ll ask how I am, and then maybe ask if I want to brush his horse -”
“Ugh.” Meilin rolled her eyes and uttered a disgusted groan. “I suppose I should have expected as much, but it’s still such a letdown after waiting for my cousin to find a girl after all this time. His sisters would cry. Wouldn’t you prefer a man that had at least one romantic bone in his body?”
Sakura shook her head adamantly, perplexed by the idea that any man would be preferable to Li. “Not at all. He’s nothing like the princes and knights that I read about in my fairy tales, because they were always perfectly clean and handsome and spoke in poetry to the damsels they loved. When I was little I thought I wanted a man like that, but now I like Li’s way better. He’s more…” She paused, searching for the right adjective. “Real. He doesn’t have to tell me that he cares about me, I just know.”
“That’s Syaoran, alright. Always more with actions than words. Still, I’m surprised you could like a man that smells so much like horse.”
“Silly, that’s what I like the most about him. Well, no, maybe it’s the stubble on his jaw when he’s forgotten to shave. Or the rough skin on his hands -”
“Sakura, there is a fine line between divulging one’s relationship and offering up just a little too much nauseating praise. This is the boy that used to cheat and pull my pigtails when we sparred as children.”
“Sorry!”
“Don’t worry about it.”
A pause, in which Meilin gently pulled Sakura so far forward that her nose was almost brushing the hardwood.
“Meilin?”
“Right here.”
“How do you know if you’re in love?”
The tension on her wrists slackened, taken by surprise, and Meilin released her grip. “It’s a little early to be asking that, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know.” Helplessly Sakura shrugged. “That’s why I’m asking.”
“Uh – huh. Well, being in love isn’t really something you can explain. When you are, you just know.”
“That’s what Tomoyo said too,” Sakura sighed. “It isn’t a lot of help. For all the romance stories I read when I was young, I don’t seem to know very much about love at all. How can I know if I’m, um, in it?”
“Love is like talented dancing. You can’t describe it, you just know it when you see it.”
“Can’t you give me anything more?”
“Nope. Except that we’re done for the day and can finally take a bath. Because I don’t know about you, but I am definitely ready for one.”

Meilin left early afternoon of the next day, with both Sakura and Li present to see her off. Looking pleased with herself, she tossed a small purse with five silver coins up into the air before tucking it into a saddle bag.
“Got your payment, I see,” Li grunted.
“Couldn’t have been handed over with more hatred,” Meilin related, gleefully. “I think he actually tried to hit me in the nose with it, but of course he was no match for my reflexes.”
“Sorry about that,” Sakura mumbled, as if she were responsible for Ralen’s catty behavior. “He really wasn’t happy when Master Yue gave the order. I’m so glad Li helped me get up the courage to dance for him.”
Meilin shot Li a significant look. “Really? You were behind that?”
“Oh yes!” Sakura answered. “He even called Master Yue down for me, so that I would have the chance. And stayed with me for the whole thing.”
“I bet that must have been fun,” Meilin murmured wickedly, “for you.”
As usual, Li did his best to ignore her. “Your horse is ready. Better get going or you won’t be in Terriene before dusk.”
“When have you ever known me to be afraid of the dark?”
But she took her leave, thank goodness, embracing first Sakura and then him in farewell before mounting Dancer. The horse had not taken more than three steps, however, when she turned to wave a final time to Sakura.
“See you next week! And good luck with seeing it!”
She urged her mare into a light canter, and within seconds was out of the castle gateway and gone from view.
“Seeing what?” Li asked Sakura, who turned a bright pink.
“Nothing! Oh- here comes Ralen; he’ll be mad. I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Sakura was only too eager to escape Li’s company, after Meilin’s departure, sure that her blushing and stammering would just give her away. It was with some relief that she returned to her little cage, and spent the afternoon resting her sore body. Also searching her soul to find whether she ‘knew’ she was in love, but without much success.
Come evening she was glad to see her brother at dinner, as he’d been away the night before. He was munching on some cauliflower when she entered the room, and right away she noticed his skin had darkened with a new tan. More subtly, he seemed more relaxed and at ease than she could ever remember him being in this castle.
“Onii-chan, welcome back!”
“Oof,” he replied, when she hugged him. “Don’t make such a fuss, it wasn’t as if I was gone overnight.”
“Well you weren’t here for dinner last night, so how could I know? Did you go far? Was it fun?”
“Not really, but yes, it was fun. Neither of us wanted anything to do with that city, so I took Yue for a walk in the woods. We wandered around here and there, took a nap by a stream… it was nice.”
“I really am sorry that I couldn’t come,” she offered, though he no longer seemed upset. He only shrugged.
“There’ll be other times. Besides, you would have been tired just halfway through and pestered me to carry you.”
“Onii-chan! I wouldn’t!” She thumped his shoulder with a fist, and he just chuckled. “Just you wait and see. Learning how to dance has made me a lot stronger than I used to be!”
“Don’t talk to me about that.”
“But I -”
“Eat your dinner.”
She huffed at his stubbornness but tackled her dinner plate, hungry for calories after Meilin’s exhausting lessons.
He seemed hungry too, and together they ate in companiable silence. It wasn’t until she’d finished that a question occurred to Sakura.
“Ne, Onii-chan, why did Master Yue take you outside the castle? After all this time?”
“I earned it,” he mumbled through a mouthful of food.
“Huh? How?”
He swallowed, and grinned. “I learned to play something he didn’t think I could.”
“Play? What?”
“A piano.”
“A what?”
He laughed again. “Hang on – I won’t tell you, I’ll show you. Come on.” Eagerly he snagged her hand and pulled her off the couch. Ever since Touya’s frightening collapse in this room, all those weeks ago, Yue had ordered Ralen to leave the door unlocked during their mealtime and they left it freely. Grinning away like mad, he led her up one flight of stairs and then two others, down a corridor, answering her questions with only “you’ll see”.
She was starting to feel quite exasperated when he pulled her into a particular room, and tugged on the cord of a magelight.
“Onii-chan, for the last time, I- oh!”
“Yeah, I know.”
He nodded in agreement at her dumbfounded amazement, mouth hanging wide open as she took in the sight. Everything gleamed; Sakura was sure she’d never seen so many shiny things in one place before. Brass, silver, even the polished rich wood glowed in the soft light.
“What is all this?”
“They’re called instruments; they make music.”
“How?”
“I’ll show you. Watch this.”
He sat down on a small bench by the biggest of them all and placed his fingers on a row of white keys, pausing for just a moment as if to prepare.
Then his hands started moving, and Sakura realized she hadn’t even begun to be surprised yet. Somehow – in some way she didn’t quite know – her brother’s motions drew music out of the object, music that was even more beautiful and miraculous than that of the sphere Meilin once lent to her. Miraculous because that was her brother, the man that chopped wood and fixed sheds, creating art with sound.
She didn’t even consciously decide to move her feet. But Meilin had trained her to dance to the sound of music; it was a natural reflex. And anyway this was too beautiful to simply stand still and listen to it, this demanded more appreciation. Like silk she slipped into a dance, not knowing what step would come next but simply taking her cues from the unfamiliar melody swirling around her. Meilin would have called it improvisation. Meilin would have called it perfect.
Touya was concentrating on the piano, and it was a while before he noticed what his sister was up to. A flash of motion eventually caught his eye, and when he saw her twirling in the center of the room he almost stopped. Days of intense practicing had molded his hands into machines almost independent of his body, however, and they continued their familiar motions. She… really wasn’t all that bad, now that he was looking. In fact she looked rather pretty, moving to his music like that, light and graceful as a floating feather. Imagine, his klutzy little sister who used to make such a mess in their cabin, looking like this. He wasn’t going to admit it, ever, but this night Touya realized Sakura was a beautiful dancer.
He was not the only one looking. When Ralen called complaining that both brother and sister had fled the room, Yue’s hunch had led him here. His initial intention, to banish the girl to her cage at once and give Touya a sound spanking for his indiscretion, died the moment he laid eyes on the siblings, however, and against his will he simply stood and watched.
At first he stood entranced. He’d known Touya could play beautifully, and he also knew that the little sister was a promising dancer. But it hadn’t occurred to him that those two particular talents would enhance one another in this way, music and dance combined into a performance that could take the breath away. They were a stunning pair.
Sadness stole into Yue. The connection between them was evident to anyone with eyes, a link too strong for anyone to break. They fit together – music and dance, strong and gentle, handsome and beautiful. Together they were perfect, and in that perfection there would never be room for him.
The music dwindled to a stop, and Sakura eased into her final pose. Though it was hard, Yue raised his hands and clapped. Both slaves flinched with surprise, Sakura’s cheeks coloring a bright pink when she realized what Yue had seen.
“Oh! M-master Yue, I – uh…”
“How long have you been there?” Touya demanded.
“Long enough. It was a lovely performance; I’m impressed.”
Sakura ducked her head bashfully. “Thank you, Master Yue.”
Touya just grunted, and Yue couldn’t tell whether he was flattered or irritated.
“I suppose since you excused yourself from dinner to come here, you are capable of returning to your cage alone?”
“Yes, Master Yue.” She curtsied and scurried out of the room, and Yue notified Ralen through his gem to meet her there. Touya had not moved from his place by the piano, idly tapping his fingertips against the keys.
“Gonna punish me?”
“You do deserve it, but I believe I will let you off this night.”
Touya raised a skeptical eyebrow at Yue, sliding onto the bench next to his slave.
“You’re not mad?”
“No… perhaps just a little sad.”
“Why?”
“It’s not important,” Yue lied. Tenderly he cupped Touya’s head in his hand. What was important was that Touya was still his in deed, still here at his side and leaning in for the kiss he knew his master was about to give. Still his, not the sister’s.
It was sweet, and tender, and did a considerable job to lift Yue’s mood. He opened his lips, inviting Touya to enter and his slave took him up on it, the two of them molding against one another in the deepening kiss.
“Onii-chan! You forgot to give me my goodnight k -”
The two of them broke apart as if the kiss had been snapped in half, but it was too late. Sakura stood frozen like a statue in the doorway, eyes round and wide in shock. A violent blush spread across her face, and she stumbled one step back.
“I- I’m sorry. I didn’t mean -”
“No, wait, Sakura!” She turned and fled, and Yue had to tighten his grip on Touya when his slave jumped to follow.
“Let go of me!”
“Stay here, slave, I want you to stay with me -”
Touya wriggled out of his grasp and sprinted after his sister. He left Yue, alone, in the room, and so there was no one to see him curl his hand into a fist and slam it into the bench.

“Sakura, wait!” Touya had long legs and could run faster than anyone in his home village, but he had to push to catch up to his sister. “Sakura, for crying out loud, stop running!”
He snagged her arm and circled around to block her path; hastily she averted her eyes.
“I’m sorry, Onii-chan, I didn’t mean to interrupt, I didn’t know -”
“I’m not mad, Sakura! You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I intruded on your moment.” Sakura stopped trying to wrestle away from his grip and subsided, her eyes still lowered. “I didn’t know you and Master Yue have been kissing.”
So she really did see. Touya flushed and hoped she wouldn’t notice.
“You don’t have to be embarrassed,” he said firmly, not sure whether he was speaking to her or himself. “The kiss – it doesn’t mean anything.”
“It doesn’t?”
“Sure. It’s just, um, part of the job. Kissing makes him happy, so I do it. It doesn’t mean anything to me at all.”
Hiding just around the bend in the corridor, Yue heard every word and wished that he had not. He was not prepared for the pain that exploded in his chest, how hard it was to breathe, or even to stand. Touya said…
He could not endure anymore of it, and left.

Sakura did not appear to be convinced. Her flustered expression had melted away, leaving her looking more thoughtful than anything else.
“Onii-chan?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you, perhaps… love Master Yue?”
Touya hadn’t thought this situation could get any stranger. He was wrong.
“What?”
“Do you love Master Yue?”
Touya gaped. “Do I- what? No! No! A thousand times no! What in God’s name would make you think something like that?”
Meekly Sakura shrugged. “It’s just that- the way you were kissing, you were both…” Her voice trailed off, but a little smile tugged at her lips. “Like the perfect dance. You know it when you see it.”
“Huh?”
“Never mind, Onii-chan. I know the answer now; thank you for showing me.”
“What?”
“Goodnight!” She kissed him on the cheek and skipped away, leaving a very bewildered brother behind. Maybe dancing wasn’t such a good idea after all – not if she was going to start spouting nonsense like that every time. Scratching his head, Touya backed away and returned to the music room, only to find Yue gone. So he went on to the bedroom, where Yue was sitting in his chair and gazing at the fire. No book, no wine. A hand rested on his chest, as if he’d been hurt there.
“Um, hi.”
No answer.
“I’m sorry that I ran away like that, but I just wanted to make sure my sister was okay. She looked really upset.”
“Of course,” Yue muttered.
“What?”
“Of course you must go after her. She is your sister after all. The only one in this world that you see.”
Touya was starting to get tired of no one making any sense. Irritably he sighed. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“You see her,” Yue snarled. “You see only her, would desert anyone to run to her side. What did she ever do to earn such devotion?”
“She’s my sister!”
“Sibling,” Yue scoffed, rising to his feet. His eyes were glittering with frustrated rage, and Touya had to nerve himself not to back away. “Other humans have siblings. They don’t hover and worry and protect like you do. You love her too much, Toya. Why must it all go to her?”
“Stop it!” Touya cried, exasperated. “I can’t understand anything people say to me tonight, I’m confused and I’m tired and I don’t know why you’re angry. What do you want me to do?”
Yue clenched his fists, cold determination settling into his expression. “I want you to look at me with the eyes you use to look at her.”
Touya had to swallow. Yue was a picture of terrifying strength, in the flickering firelight, glowing with magic and power. He was beautiful, but even so Touya knew he could not comply.
“She’s my little sister; I’ve known her since she was born. We’re all that’s left of our family. You… you destroyed our lives and imprisoned us. What did you expect?”
A menacing growl welled up in Yue’s throat. “How your sister frustrates me. If any other person in this castle touched you like she does, if any other was the object of your affection, I would eject them from the castle in an instant. I can’t make her go but I want her gone, gone forever so I can have you all to myself -”
Touya struck Yue on the face with a slap that stung his hand, so strong that it turned Yue’s face aside. The room turned deathly silent, Yue’s hand on his face and expression astonished and enraged all at once. This time it was Touya’s turn to clench his fists.
“Stop it, you sound insane and you’re scaring me. Do you really see her as a threat? She’s a helpless girl! And if you ever try to hurt my sister then you will have to watch me die protecting her.”
One hard gaze met another, unyielding and dangerously violent. The face-off lasted for what felt like forever, but in fact was probably no more than a moment. It was Yue that broke first, though, turning aside and marching out of the room before Touya could even react. The door slammed shut behind him and Touya threw himself at it, only to find it would not budge.
“Yue!” Helplessly he banged his fists againt the door, but there was no response. “Don’t you hurt my sister! Don’t you dare!”
But his words fell only on an unfeeling door.

Ralen was full of grumbles when he returned to the cage, where she stood waiting to be locked in for the night. She had no business leaving the tea room, who did she think she was, who did her brother think he was, why should he have to roam the castle looking for her when she knew what was expected of her, and so on.
“I don’t know why Yue hasn’t given you a good hard spanking,” he muttered, upon turning the key. “But you can bet, slave, that once you’re mine it’ll be the first thing I do. You’re in desperate need of it.”
He smirked and backed away, only to turn around and find himself facing the lord of the castle.
“Y- Lord Yue! You startled me… is there something you need?”
If he’d heard any of Ralen’s comments, Yue did not give an indication of it. Dispassionately he nodded toward Sakura’s cage.
“You may unlock that door. Now,” he added, when Ralen simply stared.
Sakura’s heart began to beat faster and her palms sweat, rightly wary of any change in her usual routine. It was nighttime, why was Yue here demanding she be let out?
Ralen opened the door and Yue beckoned to her with the curling of a single finger.
“Come. Walk with me.”
Now Sakura’s heart dropped into her stomach. He knew, surely he knew, somehow he’d found out everything about her and Li and what happened between them. Why else would he be here?
Woodenly Sakura stepped out of her cage and came just within three paces of Yue. If he noticed her stiff behavior, he said nothing about that either.
“You are dismissed, Ralen.”
“Yes, my lord!”
In stark contrast to his earlier cranky attitude, Ralen beamed before bowing his head in farewell.
Yue began walking, a stately and measured pace, and nervously Sakura scuffed along beside him. He seemed upset, but it was difficult to tell because he would not look at her. For what seemed an age they walked, traveling through the castle and into corridors she’d never seen. Every second of it only compounded Sakura’s dread. Would a whipping hurt?
“You are a confounding creature,” he said at last, and Sakura jumped at the sound of his voice. “I do not know what to do with you.”
“Ee?” she squeaked, inarticulately.
“So small, so fragile, it would be the work of a second to destroy you. You stand between me and everything I want, but if I hurt you I would lose him forever. It is the unsolvable quandary.”
“Uhh…” Sakura floundered, not sure whether this was good news or bad.
“If only your brother didn’t love you quite so much. Of course, then I would have never had him in the first place.” Yue sighed, looking terribly unhappy, and Sakura stared.
“You’re talking about my brother?”
“Naturally.”
He glanced at her, surprised, and Sakura fumbled to nod. “Oh- yes, of course. My brother!” She cleared her throat. “Did something happen? Did you fight?”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry about that. Onii-chan really does have a temper, you know. We’ve fought lots of times.”
“I suppose he always forgives you.”
“Of course!” She smiled brightly, but that didn’t seem to comfort Yue any. “Um, why were you fighting?”
“I said something that made him very angry. And scared him.”
“What did you say?”
Yue studied her face for a long moment, but he did not answer. Instead he asked a question of his own.
“What do you think of me, child?”
“Er…” Under Yue’s direct, unblinking gaze Sakura scrambled for an answer. “You are very beautiful, Master Yue. I’ve often thought that you look like the magical fairy princes of my stories, with your silver hair and your eyes. I’ve never seen anyone that looks like you.”
He grunted softly, and placed his fingertips against the pane of a window. “I am not always beautiful,” he murmured, and Sakura saw that he was looking at his reflection in the darkened glass. “No, there are times when I am so ugly that I frighten myself. Your brother brings out a sordid jealousy within me, and I have said things I am not proud of. It is no wonder he despises me; I am cruel and terrible.”
His eyes were so pained, at that moment, that Sakura felt an overflow of sympathy for him. “But- that’s not true, Master Yue! Inside, I know you are a very kind person. You let me go outside every day when you saw that it made me happy. And you allowed me to have dance lessons. You also took Onii-chan outside. I think you are very generous, Master.”
He looked at her, and his expression reminded her of the day when she gave him flowers. Surprise and- gratitude?
“You seem sincere. It isn’t true, but your faith is gratifying.”
“It is true,” Sakura insisted.
“I wish your brother felt the same.”
“Onii-chan thinks you are good too.”
“Has he said so?”
“Not exactly,” she had to admit and unhappily she watched a shadow of disappointment cross his face. “You know, Onii-chan is very stubborn. When I first started learning to cook, my dinners tasted terrible and he always complained. But I learned, and after a while my food tasted just as good as any other girl’s. He still complained though, even though he ate everything, and would never allow that I’d gotten better. He was just too proud to say so.”
Yue blinked and then smiled – in fact, Sakura could swear he chuckled.
“I see now.”
“See what?”
“Once before, I asked what it was he saw in you. Now I think I know.”
And without any warning at all, Yue took her hand, bowed, and kissed it. Instantly Sakura turned crimson, heart thumping madly inside her chest.
“You are dismissed. Good night, Sakura.”
“G-good night!”
He left with a flourish, and only after he’d disappeared did she realize he’d called her by name. It was the first time he had done so.

Touya was already on his feet by the time Yue finished pushing open his door, hands balled into fists, shoulders tense and eyes wary. Yue felt a rich stroke of guilt just looking at him, knowing how worried he must have been.
“You may relax, Toya, I have done nothing to harm your sister.”
Touya hesitated, uncurling his fists slightly. “Really?”
“I swear it. We only talked.”
He settled himself in his chair, and Touya squinted disbelievingly. “You – talked? With Sakura? About what?”
“Her cooking.”
“Huh?”
“Come here.” Yue gestured for Touya to come sit in his lap, which Touya did cautiously.
“You really did scare me, you know. I thought you were going to kill her.”
“I know. I am sorry.”
“She is my sister,” Touya repeated, firmly. “I promised my dying mother that I would always look after her, and I won’t break that promise. Even if it makes you angry.”
“I know.”
“How do I know you won’t lose your temper and threaten her again?”
“Oh, Toya.” Tenderly Yue combed his fingers through his slave’s black hair, as if the action alone would soothe him. “I will always be jealous of the closeness between the two of you. But I cannot hate your sister for it, not anymore. She is impossible to hate.”
Something about the tone in his voice prompted a half-smile from Touya. “You really did talk to her. She tends to have that effect on people.”
“Indeed. I would never take her away from you.”
Touya exhaled, relief plain on his face. “You don’t know how happy I am to hear that.”
“Mm, I think maybe I do.” Yue wrapped his slave in his arms, holding him close to his chest, and Touya did not resist.
“I lied,” he mumbled, “to my sister tonight.”
“About what?”
“I told her I don’t feel anything when we kiss.”
He didn’t say anything more, but when their eyes met a lazy smile spread across his face. Yue’s heartache vanished in a thrill of delight, and in one moment he knew the entire frustrating night had been worth it.
They kissed, and this time no one interrupted.

Ralen’s clippers were poised over a piano string when Li leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms.
“Not that I really care,” he drawled, and Ralen jumped and squawked. “But what do you think you’re doing?”
“Captain!” Ralen recovered his grip on the tool and shot him an affronted glare. “What are you doing up here?”
“You walked into the gardening shed, helped yourself to a pair of clippers, and went inside the castle,” Li explained dryly. “Of course you were up to no good. I just followed you because I couldn’t imagine what the hell you wanted them for, and was curious.”
“Well it’s none of your business. If you think your job is to protect the people in this castle, that’s fine, but I know you don’t care what happens to a silly piano.”
“Not directly, no, but I do care about why you want to break it. Seems pointless, even for you.”
Ralen huffed and turned away from the exposed strings, hand on hip in an insulted posture. “I overheard Yue threaten his peasant slave that if anything ever happened to the instruments in this room, there would be dire consequences. I’m just helping those ‘consequences’ along, more or less.”
“Yup, that’s pretty low.”
“You’ve got no reason to stop me,” Ralen continued. “You hate him too, everyone knows it.”
Li grimaced and let his head fall back against the doorframe. Ralen was right about that, at least. Every day that he grew closer to Sakura was another day he resented and despised that overprotective brother of hers all the more. It hadn’t become an issue, yet, but one day he knew it was bound to.
“That slave and I – we’ll probably get in a fistfight someday. I have a feeling. And when we do, I’ll pound him into the ground. So I’m not interested in trying to take him down like a sneaky coward, behind his back. I’ve got more spine than that.”
Ralen scowled. “You really are just like him, you know. You both think you’re so strong and tough, you think threatening everyone with your fists will get you your way. He tried to threaten me too, talking like Yue would take his side, but I don’t think so. I think Yue’s finally getting tired of the uppity thief.”
“And what would make you think that?” Li asked, started to get bored with this.
“Because Yue, not thirty minutes ago, came to the girl’s cage to collect her. Promising, don’t you think?”
Abruptly Li tensed and stood up straight. “He what?”
“Only a matter of time now,” Ralen predicted gleefully. “If he’s moved on to her, then he must be done with the mountain boy. I’m just in here to speed things up.”
“No.”
“Excuse me?”
“He can’t be – Yue can’t be moving on to the girl.”
Ralen lifted an eyebrow, and Li had to struggle to bury his fear and jealousy. “What makes you say that, captain?”
“Because… because there’s a lot more going on between Yue and his slave than you know. He sleeps in Yue’s bed.”
As a jewel of gossip it had more than the desired effect; Ralen’s mouth fell open and his eyes went wide, then narrowed in disbelief.
“Where did you hear that?”
“Kinomoto himself told me,” Li answered, not untruthfully. “You really think Yue would do that with a slave he was getting tired of?”
Ralen hesitated, and in that moment the gem on his wrist glowed with magic. “Ralen, you may return to my slave’s cage and lock her in,” Yue ordered. “You are dismissed for the night.”
“Yes, my lord.”
A picture of nonchalance, Li stepped backward with a shrug. “Well, you do whatever you want to do. Not as if I care about a piano. But if it does lose a string or anything else, I will tell Yue who did it. Your call.”
He turned and walked away, but not so fast that he didn’t hear Ralen mutter an oath, or stuff the clippers back into his pocket. A shadowy alcove presented itself and he ducked into it, melting into the darkness just before Ralen strode past. Silently he followed the blonde back down the stairs, into the grand corridor, and hid behind a column while he locked Sakura back into her cage. Only after his footsteps had faded completely away did he approach her.

“Sakura.”
Well and truly tired from her long day, Sakura was just preparing to lie down when a voice in the darkness startled her. Her heart thumped apprehensively, but then Li stepped out into the moonlight and she relaxed.
“Li! What are you doing here?” She jumped to her feet with a smile, but he didn’t return it.
“Is it true?” he demanded. “Did Yue come here and take you away with him?”
Rather taken aback by his tone, Sakura blinked and nodded. “Yes. How did you know?”
“Never mind that. What happened? Did he touch you?”
“What? No, of course not! All we did was talk for a little while.”
The effect on Li was immediate; his shoulders dropped and he exhaled in relief. “Thank god. I was so worried.”
“Worried about me and Yue? Silly.” She laughed. “Master Yue only thinks about Onii-chan. He came because they had a fight, and he wanted to talk to me. I’m still not sure if I said anything that helped, but he seemed happier when he left. He even said my name. And he kissed my hand.”
A warmth tingled inside her when she remembered it, and delicately she touched the area with her fingertips. Li’s eyes were narrowing again.
“Kissed your hand.”
“Mm! Just like a prince from a fairy tale. It was rather exciting.”
“Exciting? I don’t want you to be excited by him!”
“Hoe?” Again she blinked in confusion. “Li, you can’t mean – you’re jealous of Master Yue?”
“Don’t be daft. Of course I’m jealous.”
“But why?”
“Why?” He pushed his bangs up from his brow and rolled his eyes. “Well, he is powerful and wealthy beyond human comprehension. And yes, even if I am a man, I know he’s kinda pretty to look at. I didn’t like to watch you dancing for him, and I don’t like to hear about him kissing you on your hand or anywhere else. How do I know you won’t be swept off your feet and fall for him?”
Sakura could only smile at his petulant question. “Because, Li. He is Master Yue, and you are you. And I love you.”
“And if he- huh?”
He froze and stared, prompting a shy blush to bloom across her cheeks. So many days spent wondering, only to see exactly what it looked like when she caught her brother and Master Yue kissing. How sad, that she would never be able to thank either of them for showing her.
“I love you, Li. She said I would know it when I saw it, and I know. That is what I feel for you.”
Silence reigned in the moonlit throne room, long enough for Sakura to become self-conscious. She was opening her mouth to speak again when he cut her off.
“You should call me Syaoran.”
“Hoe?”
“All the women I love call me Syaoran.”
He reached through the bars and took her hand, and for the second time in one night a man kissed it. Li – Syaoran – chose to kiss her palm, though, which somehow felt far more intimate and thrilling than Yue’s chivalrous kiss. Fire raced up her arm and into her heart, igniting a heat that coursed throughout her entire body.
His hand slipped along hers until they were parted, Syaoran backing away into the shadows again.
“Goodnight.”
“G-goodnight,” Sakura stammered, sinking to the floor once he had gone. Sleep now? Not a chance. Sakura would lie awake, gaze at the stars, and think about she was the happiest girl in the world all – night – long.

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Disclaimer: I do not own these characters

Brownies for everyone who predicted that A) it was Clow and B) Sakura would inevitably dance to Touya’s music. I shouldn’t reward people when it’s my fault I’m so predictable, but oh well. Brownies also for everyone who participated in the census! Seems I’ve got about 330 readers, which is awesome. Going by the review count, that would mean every reader has left me an average of 1.1 review per 14 chapters. Um, thanks. Well, you know who you are if you haven’t, and if you’re the reserved type that doesn’t like to leave a review until the whole thing has been satisfactorily played out – that’s fine. But I do want a review at The End! It’s not polite to show yourself out without so much as a word. Speaking of reviews…

Tori gets the prize, for this:
I have a feeling that Yue is going to be more than happy about Sakura and Li. I mean, it works perfectly. He gets Touya, has no worry about Sakura getting in the way, and as long as the girl and Touya are happy, Everyone is happy!

Except Ralen.
But forget him.

Cracked me up. Which doesn’t mean it’s entirely accurate, Taboo, so don’t worry about that. If anything… you’re both a little right. Have fun figuring that out.
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Pleasure Slave