Card Captor Sakura Fan Fiction ❯ Dreams of Amber ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

Chapter 3

 

 

“I might come to Hong Kong soon, you know. My mom has to go there often as part of her job, so we won't be apart for long. Don't forget to e-mail me.” Sakura looked out of the plane's window, remembering Tomoyo's parting words. It would be great to see Tomoyo if she ever came to Hong Kong, but she wondered if she'd be allowed to. And she doubted she would get access to a computer to send her an e-mail.

 

She marveled at the beauty of the sea below, over which they were flying. But suddenly she was hit by a pang of sadness. Would that mean she would be cut-off from her family and friends for two years? She had not thought about that…

 

Her thoughts were interrupted by an announcement by the flight attendant requesting the passengers to fasten their seat belts. They were nearing their destination.

 

Sakura scanned the numerous faces at the airport. The interviewer at the job agency had told her that Mr. Li would be sending someone to pick her up. And sure enough, she spotted a placard with the sign—Kinomoto Sakura.

 

She walked up to the person bearing it. “Hello, I'm Kinomoto Sakura.”

 

The placard was lowered to reveal a young man. He widened his eyes. “Wow! The boss always manages to get the most beautiful women to work for him!”

 

She blushed at the comment. The guy must have been in his early twenties, dark-haired with sea-green eyes and an accented voice. She could see that he was not from these parts.

 

“Oh, by the way, I'm Dan Blake, the great Li Syaoran's driver, been sent to pick the lovely lady up,” he said, bowing elaborately. Sakura couldn't help but smile at him. “And before you ask, your luggage has already been taken care of. So shall we?”

 

Sakura nodded.

 

~

 

 

“Oh don't worry. You don't have to be nervous. You'll soon get used to this place.”

 

Sakura glanced at Dan and bit her lip. She was not used to seeing such tall skyscrapers and so many lights and noises. Tomoeda was a silent, little town and it was the first time she was coming into such a big city. She found it very intimidating and a bit frightening.

 

“You know, I know how you must be feeling. I was quite lost when I came here too,” he continued, as he drove on nonchalantly.

 

“So you're new here too?”

 

“Been here only a month, I'm originally from England.”

 

“Oh.” England immediately reminded her of Eriol, which reminded her of Tomoyo, which reminded her of Tomoeda and Touya and dad and Yukito…

 

“You must be feeling homesick. But that happens. Once you start off with those children, you won't have time to think about anything,” he grinned.

 

“Are they difficult?” she asked nervously.

 

“Difficult would be an understatement—especially for the boy.”

 

Sakura gulped. “I heard the last nanny was sacked.”

 

“Hmm… I don't know about that. But I'd bet she was driven away by those children.” He chuckled at the look on her face. “Looks like I've made things seem a lot easier for you now.”

 

“You sure did,” Sakura said sarcastically, frowning and pale-faced. This was her first job and she wanted to do well. Not to be thrown out by a couple of kids. This was going to be much more difficult than she had thought it would be.

 

“I was just preparing you for the worst. Most girls would probably think working for the Li's is all glamour and fame. It's not. But then you should see it as a challenge. The kids need someone…” he trailed off, frowning. “And there's also the whole business about Chang Fu…”

 

“Mr. Li's ex-wife? What about her?”

 

He looked at her. “You don't know? Well she… or maybe I'll tell you later, we're there.”

 

He stopped the car and Sakura finally got her first look at the Li mansion, standing behind a big and well-maintained lawn. She felt the car moving again as the gates opened.

 

Sakura was too engrossed in looking at the house to notice Dan stopping the car in front of it and getting out to open the door for her. He smirked at the awed look on her face. “You think this is big? Wait till you see the Li fashion house.”

 

 

~

 

 

“Master Yuan, Miss Lien, your new nanny is here.” The two young children, busy playing in the garden, turned to look at the newcomer who had been introduced. “Why don't you introduce yourselves to her?” continued the maid, Lu.

 

Sakura smiled at the brown-haired, blue-eyed twins. “I'll start first.” She kneeled down and said, “Hi, I'm Kinomoto Sakura. And you are?”

 

The girl looked at her tentatively. “My name is Li Lien.”

 

“Pleased to meet you, Lien.” She turned to the boy questioningly.

 

He frowned. “You already know my name—you heard Lu. Then why are you asking me again?” Sakura was caught off-guard by his reply.

 

“Master Yuan, that is no way to talk to your nanny!” Lu exclaimed.

 

Yuan folded his arms and looked away. “I don't need a nanny.”

 

“Oh well, then we'll just be friends I suppose,” Sakura said with a half-smile. He didn't answer.

 

Lu turned to Sakura. “Come with me, Miss Kinomoto, I'll show you to your room. You should freshen up a bit.”

 

Sakura felt her confidence ebbing away as she followed Lu. She had wanted her first impression on the kids to be good. Well Dan had warned her…

 

“Here we are. And don't you worry about the young master. He's always like that with everyone. You'll take time to get along with him, but you need patience.” She giggled as she opened the door. “Only those who survive Master Yuan can survive in the Li household. That's something that every nanny who left will remember all her life.”

 

“You mean to say there has been more than one?”

 

“You are the thirteenth.”

 

“Thirteenth?” Sakura gulped.

 

“Well, yes. I'm surprised no one told you.” She led her into the room. “Oh, I forgot. Master Li and Miss Ross will be here for dinner this evening. So you better be dressed properly.”

 

“Miss Ross?”

 

“Miss Lauren Ross, the world famous supermodel, Master Li's fiancée. Didn't you read about them in the tabloids?”

 

“No, I don't get much time to read them nowadays. I just know that he's divorced from Chang Fu.”

 

Lu suddenly lowered her voice. “You better not mention her during dinner. Don't want the master all upset. He has enough troubles already.”

 

“Oh, okay,” Sakura said, wondering what the whole `Chang Fu business' that Dan had mentioned was all about. Maybe the relationship had ended on very bad terms.

 

So Li Syaoran was engaged. She wondered what Tomoyo would say to that. She'd probably have a heartbreak. “Oh Sakura, that's so unlucky! Going all the way to Hong Kong just to know that he's off the market…” she could imagine Tomoyo saying, and she inwardly smiled. Then she suddenly remembered something.

 

“Lu, do you think there's any chance I can get access to the net? You see, I need to keep in touch with my friends and family at Tomoeda.”

 

“Sure, there's a computer with connection in the servant's common room for our use. You can use it during your free time.”

 

“Really? Wow, that's great! I never expected that.” Sakura felt a lot better after realizing that she would be able to talk to Tomoyo after all.

 

“I'll go now. You can call me, or Dan, or Wei if you need anything.” Saying that, she left.

 

 

~

 

 

Sakura ran a hand through her blue dress, checking her reflection in the mirror. It was a simple, satin dress and one of her favorites from Tomoyo's creations. She felt it would be perfect for wearing that evening, in front of Li Syaoran and his fiancée.

 

A knock on the door shook her out of her thoughts. “Come in,” she said.

 

It opened to reveal Dan, who looked at her and said immediately, “Whoa, you should give a poor bloke some warning before looking like that.” He gave an indulgent grin at her blush. “I've come to escort you downstairs. Mr. Li is here,” he continued, offering his hand and she took it. “You know, you do look pretty in that dress. Miss Ross shouldn't accuse you of trying to overshadow her.”

 

Sakura laughed. “I don't think a supermodel would worry about a nanny in a three-year-old dress,” she said, and wondered if Dan was so charming with every girl he met.

 

When she came down, she spotted three people sitting in the living room. Two of them were busy scanning through a bunch of papers. She guessed the brown-haired man was Li Syaoran, but she couldn't recognize who the black-haired woman, talking enthusiastically to him, was.

 

“That's Li Meiling,” Dan whispered. “She's Mr. Li's cousin and assistant designer. I didn't know she was coming as well.”

 

The third person was a beautiful woman with a faultless figure, flawless features and hair set in perfect blonde curls. She had a bored expression on her face and Sakura immediately recognized her as Lauren Ross.

 

Dan led her in and announced, “Here she is, Mr. Li, all the way from Japan—your new nanny.”

 

Meiling looked up at her and smiled with a “Hello” while Lauren gave her a condescending stare, looking her up and down as if scrutinizing her. Sakura didn't like that look at all.

 

She then turned to Li Syaoran, who still seemed busy sifting through papers. “Good evening,” he said without looking up. “Please sit down. Help her to a drink, Dan. I want to finish going through these designs before dinner.”

 

Sakura felt hurt. He hadn't bothered to even look at her. Dan immediately sensed her dismay and spoke just loud enough for the other man to hear. “Mr. Li's always so busy. Don't worry Miss Kinomoto, he doesn't really mean to be rude.”

 

She widened her eyes and blushed at his boldness. He shouldn't have said that, their boss would definitely be furious now.

 

But instead, Li Syaoran smiled and laid aside his work. “Please excuse me, Miss Kinomoto. That was unforgivable and Dan was right to remind me of my manners.” His voice was deep and oddly familiar. “I'm Li Syaoran, as you know. I hope you had a pleasant journey.” He looked up to directly meet her gaze, and she gasped.

 

'Amber-eyes.'