Author: GrapeSmshr
Rated: K+
Coupling: Sakura/Yue
Timeline: 10+ years after the series ended (no important background info needed...)
Disclaimer: Insert reality here.
Posted on: March 11, 2007
A/N: Woohoo, I'm branching out! The last time I attempted a CCS fic was.. uhh... almost 8 years ago?? Hehehehe... So anyway, I hope this is up to par! It took a loooong time to write before I was finally satisfied enough to post it. So... read on and enjoy!
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She slammed the door to her bedroom, stomping angrily over to the bed and violently throwing her satchel on it. A moment later the door was yanked back open, and she turned to shoot a furious glare at the intruder. "I have nothing more to say to you," she said icily, revolving back around with a determination to ignore him.
"Well, I have plenty to say to you, Kinomoto Sakura," he retorted, bristling when she showed no response of even hearing him. It was one thing to argue, but it was certainly another to be ignored. "Sakura. Sakura!"
And suddenly she was so close to him they were almost touching. She may have been substantially shorter than him, but that did nothing to abate the terror of her being angry. Over the years, he had so very rarely been the victim of her anger, and he didn't enjoy it one iota when he was. Although he did have to admit that she was quite extraordinary when she raged on.
"You can keep your comments to yourself, because I couldn't care less," Sakura hissed, inwardly seething. How dare he act this way toward her. Especially after all that had happened. Had she not proven to be capable of taking care of herself? She voiced this out loud.
"Then what would you call today's almost disastrous outcome?" he countered with a challenging glint in his eyes. She may have believed that she was invincible, but he would be damned if he just stood idly by and watched her behave recklessly. He wouldn't always be there to save her, no matter how much that thought pained him. Even years later she had not quite grasped the concept of thinking before acting.
"I could have handled it," she muttered more to herself than to him. The truth was, she had been struggling, but she never liked to admit that she needed help. With each passing year her stubborn streak grew, rivaling that of his.
No wonder they'd had so many clashes over the years!
He couldn't help but scoff at her words. "You could have handled it?" he repeated in disbelief. Was she insane? "You were about to get seriously injured!"
"Good thing you were there to protect me, then," she answered snidely, removing her coat and tossing it harshly onto her floor.
"Well, someone has to," he should back with a snarl. "It is my job, after all."
"Then at least you'll never be bored if I'm so careless and dangerous!" She threw her hands up in frustration.
Suddenly she froze, face paling almost instantly. She looked down at her stomach, where a large crimson stain was forming on the front of her shirt. "Yue," she breathed before her eyes rolled back and she collapsed.
"Sakura!" he screamed, catching her before she hit the floor. Cradling her gently, he lifted her shirt to expose her wound. His eyes widened at the large gash across the pale skin. How had she still been standing after receiving such an injury? He inwardly cursed himself for not sensing her pain before. Some guardian he was...
Setting her gently on the bed, he sat down beside her and raised his hands above her stomach, drawing out his magic, concentrating on healing her. He felt more than saw the tendrils of magic slowly weaving her marred flesh back together until finally the only evidence of her ever being wounded was a very faint pink scar across her stomach and the bloodstain on her shirt.
With a small shudder, Yue fell onto the bed beside her and screwed his eyes shut. Healing took a lot of strength out of him. It wasn't until just recently that he discovered he even had such a gift. It must have been bestowed upon him as Sakura, whose magic continued to grow, sustained his life force as well. The process of healing his mistress greatly winded him, but he didn't care as long as she was all right.
His eyes fluttered open as a hand gently carded through his hair. He glanced at his mistress, who was smiling tenderly at him while keeping her hand in motion. "Sakura?"
She didn't quite know how to arrange her thoughts, so she settled for a simple but heartfelt, "Thank you." She knew how draining healing was for Yue and felt immensely guilty about their previous argument. No matter what happened to her, he was always looking after her and making sure she stayed in one piece.
He silently let out a breath he was unaware of holding. The sincerity in her eyes, her angelic and grateful expression, they tugged at his heartstrings and delivered a swift punch to his gut. She was so...
Beautiful.
And amazing. He had grown to respect and admire her since the Judgment all those years ago, where she proved herself worthy of the Clow Cards a thousand times over. Though he never admitted it aloud--especially not to her--he cared for Sakura very much. In fact, he wondered if he cared for her too much.
He wryly mused just why it was that he tended to fall in love with the holders of the cards.
With Clow Reed, the feelings of devotion and love were returned to a minimalist degree. The man was, after all, devoted not to a person but to his magic. While not exactly the ideal situation, Yue accepted the circumstances wholeheartedly and virtually kept himself at a distance. He didn't want to burden his master with such trivial things as matters of the heart.
But Sakura, she was the complete opposite. When she loved, she gave her whole heart and devotion to that person. He had watched her do so twice, both times leaving her with a heart that needed mending. Though he didn't think she realized it at the time, he had subtly been feeding her waves of comfort to help ease her pain. It was his way of helping from a distance.
He didn't know when the line shifted from her being the one he admired most to the one he loved most, but he was content with keeping his feelings to himself. He never was one to express such things.
Plus, he feared her response.
The last thing he wanted was to alienate her with such a confession. She would be nothing but sweet about it, but he would know that some part of her may resent him for it. And he wouldn't want that.
At all.
With the smallest hint of a smile, he murmured, "You're welcome, Sakura." His eyes closed once again as her hand continued gently through his hair, the soothing motion making him sigh contentedly.
He must have dozed for a moment because the next time he opened his eyes, she was lying directly next to him, their bodies almost touching, faces mere centimetres apart. Yue blinked rapidly, but she was still beside him. A slight movement indicated that her hand was resting against the nape of his neck. "Sakura?" he said her name cautiously, unsure of how the following moments would proceed. He had received embraces from her before, but this position they were in was quite... intimate. And Sakura, being rather dense sometimes, may not have realized such a thing.
"Yue..." she whispered, thumb stroking his soft skin as she pressed herself the slightest bit closer.
All right, so maybe she did notice what kind of position they were in.
He eyed her warily. Her actions were so forward that he almost considered pulling away. Almost. He was rather enjoying the closeness, after all. But he still wanted to know what fueled this change.
"Yue..." she said his name again, this time with a waver of uncertainty. "I need to tell you something..." She already had his full attention, so she didn't give herself a moment to lose her nerve. Leaning over, she brushed her lips softly against his. She quickly pulled away without giving him a chance to respond, burying her face in the soft fabric of his robes.
To say Yue was shocked would be an understatement. Sakura had just kissed him! His brain was reeling, partially from the hope that she may return the feelings he had secretly harbored and partially from receiving his very first kiss. The gesture, while simple in itself, stood for so much more to him, especially considering he had a general problem with anyone being both physically and mentally too close to him. But Sakura was currently close physically and mentally, and Yue wanted nothing but for her to be closer.
A muffled jumble of words came from the woman, who had no desire to show her face after launching herself at him. She was horrified enough at her brazen actions. She couldn't stand to be horrified by his disgust as well.
"Care to try that again?" he asked with slight amusement.
Her head shot up, wide eyes staring back at him. "The kiss?" she squeaked in shock.
"Well, I meant for you to repeat the words you spoke into my shoulder, but I would be more than happy to try the kiss again. Not that the first one was bad," he quickly amended, cheeks reddening.
"Oh... but... I didn't mean--"
"You didn't mean?" he interrupted, boldly wrapping an arm around her and squeezing her to him. Leaning into her, he whispered sweetly, "I hope you did mean." He closed the remaining distance between them and captured her lips, determined to pour his entire soul out to her in that one action.
He could feel his magic flowing through his veins, spilling out and combining with Sakura's magic, crackling and surrounding them as wave after wave of white-hot pleasure washed over them. To finally be allowed to hold her in his arms was... indescribable. Better than he imagined. Perfect.
They fit together perfectly.
Slowly easing herself back just a bit, Sakura found her dazed expression matched by Yue's. But nothing compared to the genuine smile that was aimed at her. She just wanted to melt into him and stay there. He was always watching over and protecting her, but this was a different feeling of protection. True, he had carried her in his arms to save her from some dangerous situation, but it was entirely something else to be in an intimate, loving embrace. And whether he knew it or not, his magic was radiating love into her.
This wasn't like her first love. When Syaoran had confessed his love for her, she had been shocked and nervous and unsure of herself and how to respond. It was--while not to downplay their feelings for one another at the time--naïve love. A part of her would always feel that way for Syaoran.
With Yue... she was still shocked and confused by his feelings toward her. It was, after all, the first time he had shown such an emotion. And for Yue to love her, of all people, was...
Actually, it was somewhat fitting. They already spent most of their time together since they lived together. When Sakura had expressed her need for independence and had moved into her own apartment, she had gotten a second bedroom for Yue. Of course one of the stipulations from Touya for her to ever be allowed to leave the house permanently was that Yue had to move in with her for protection purposes. It worked out perfectly since Yue and Yukito had just become separated at the time. But Touya wanted to make sure that Sakura would be all right at all times.
Boy, would Touya kill the both of them if he saw the way the two were currently occupying Sakura's bed, arms wrapped around one another. But was Sakura concerned about that? Not in the least. Right now the only thing on her mind was Yue. Yue, with his fathomless stare. Yue, with his ever reassuring embrace. Yue, who didn't vocally tell her that he loved her but let her know through his tender caresses.
And she wasn't quite sure just yet, but she may very well love him, too.
With a timid smile, Sakura said, "Hi." She could have kicked herself for making such a stupid comment after what had just conspired between the two. Honestly, could she at least have pretended she had some sort of brain function?
It was relieving when Yue returned, "Hi." He grazed a finger up and down her spine, eliciting a shiver that traveled the length of both their bodies. The way the simplest touch from him could result in such a response from her was... thrilling. But he could understand how this might be too much for her, too fast. He didn't want to scare her off.
As his smile morphed into a contemplative frown, Sakura could feel her stomach drop. What if he regretted kissing her? What if things would never be the same way between them? "Yue?" she asked hesitantly.
Startling out of his thoughts, Yue saw the nervousness in her eyes and immediately tightened his grip around her in reassurance. "Yes, Sakura?"
She wasn't sure how to begin. At such a moment, she didn't want to say the wrong thing or come out looking like a fool, which she was pretty sure he had already done. But arguing with herself never got anything accomplished, so she decided to bravely express her thoughts. Settling herself more comfortably against him, she said, "I can honestly say that I wasn't expecting to do that, to kiss you. And I certainly didn't think you would respond in kind." She held his gaze. "I don't regret anything."
Yue's heart swelled at those words. He would have been devastated if she had refused him. He was so elated that he gathered up his courage and told her softly, "I love you."
She briefly touched his cheek and said, "I know." The she snuggled up against him, closing her eyes.
He wasn't concerned that she didn't return his words because her actions spoke volumes, and that was good enough for him. Things would never again be the same between them.
And that was a good thing.
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The end! Yay! Sooooo...::looks around:: How'd I do? Imho, there aren't nearly enough S/Y fics out there. C'mon people, jump on the ship and join me! You know you want to!
Anyway, thanks for reading!