Work Text:
The park wasn't too bad of a place to be when one wanted to be alone. The trees cast large shadows, perfect for shade from the sun, and the grassy patches were soft. Sakura had picked out the best parts of the park for himself, and whenever he got kicked out of his current foster-house he'd walk the familiar path— past the smelly dumpster and the broken bike no one's bothered to fix— and make his way to his personal oasis. It wasn't the greatest park, truth be told, there was only one non-broken swing, the slide had dirt caked all over it, and the seesaw was cracked in half. The only part that was semi-worth it was the jungle gym portion, it was the cleanest part of the park, the only downside is the metal was hot when the sun was out.
Sakura tended to prefer being in the wooded area around the park, so the broken equiptment didn't mean that much to him. He enjoyed being able to explore the area near the trees, sometimes he'd pretend he was on adventures to find new land and make discoveries. He'd use big sticks to pick up worms, he'd climb the trees as high as he could.
It was fun, but it was lonely.
Sometimes other groups of kids made their way to the rundown playground, disappointment on their faces when they saw the dilapitated park, but they played together nonetheless. Tag, hide and seek, sometimes they'd bring chalk and draw on the sidewalks. Sakura never joined them, he had tried early on, but he learned that no kids wanted to be friends with a freak like him, so he stayed in the shadow of the trees and kept his distance.
Today was another example of a normal day for him. It was the weekend, so he didn't have school as a semi-escape, and his foster-mom woke him up bright and early. He was given a single slice of toast as his breakfast, made to take the trash out, and then promptly kicked from the apartment so they could have a free day away from him. He knew what that meant— it meant they were having a movie day as a realy family, or going out to an amusement park, or just enjoying the silence without their demon foster-son.
He was used to it, he had planned for it somewhat. Last weekend had had found a long branch, a little taller than him, and he had hidden it in an opening at the base of a tree. He felt like a wizard when he carried it, and he was happy to find when he got there, his fake wizard staff was still present. Despite the hours that ticked by, and the gnawing feeling of hunger in his stomach, Sakura was having fun by himself, casting imaginary spells on the trees, pretending he was carving himself some type of wooded family.
Sakura's happiness, as it usually was, was short lived. He had laid down on a grassy patch, panting from how much he'd been running about, when he heard the crunching of leaves under someone's foot. Startled, he sat up, hand reaching out to grab his stick nearby. Sometimes his foster-siblings came to find him, angry they were sent out to bring him back, and sometimes it was kids who heard about the mysterious forest demon and came to poke fun of him.
He didn't recognize the kid before him, so it was safe to assume the kid was either new in town, or new to the playground. He looked roughly the same age as Sakura, even if he appeared to be a bit taller. His hair was combed back, and it looked dark red in color. His eyes were a light brown, and for a moment, the pair just stared at each other.
Finally, the new kid spoke up, "Hello."
Sakura sat up straighter, doing his best to settle his face into a glare to get the kid to back up. The new kid said nothing, but stepped a bit closer, moving towards Sakura like he was a startled animal. "What are you doing out here?"
"Playin'," Sakura responded quickly, fist tightening around the branch, "What's it to you?"
The other kids head tilted, gaze unwavering as he stared at Sakura, "Playing what?"
"Wizard."
"Wizard's aren't real."
Sakura felt his cheeks heat up, the familiar anger of being made fun of welling up in his chest, and he couldn't help the annoyed tsk leaving his mouth, "I know that! I'm playin' pretend!"
"Oh." That answer seemed to throw the other kid off, and he moved closer, kneeling to sit himself across from Sakura on the grass, "Is it fun?"
Was it fun? It was more fun than sitting there, waiting for the sun to set before walking back to the apartment, and it was more fun than doing nothing. Sakura shrugged, "Kinda."
"Are you a wizard 'cause of your hair?"
"No!" Sakura shouted back before he could stop himself, pushing himself to stand up, towering over the other kid who sat there, unphased by his outburst, "Shut up about my hair!"
"I didn't mean—"
"Shut up! Just leave me alone!" He didn't wait for a response, turning on his heel and dropping his stick, marching out of the woods as fast as he could carry himself.
Why did the kid have to bring up his hair? If he had been born a real wizard he could make his hair whatever color he wanted— he wouldn't choose to have been born the way he was. Absentmindedly, he reached a hand up, fingers tangling at his roots as he yanked at the white side of his head, as if wishing he could rip it out at the roots and start over. It wouldn't work— he's tried before, but he hated how badly it hurt. He couldn't go back to the park today, or the woods, if that weird kid would be hanging around. He spent the remainder of his day hovering near the apartment, keeping an eye out for when it seemed acceptable to return. Evening fell, and finally, Sakura was allowed back in, giving a small plate of dinner, and sent to his room.
The kid probably wouldn't be back tomorrow.
—
The kid was back today. He had arrived shortly after Sakura did, hands clasped behind his back as he approached a now tense Sakura. Neither spoke, Sakura glaring at the other kid, and the kid just staring at him silently.
"I'm sorry." Sakura blinked at his words, mouth parting in shock as the other kid bowed, "I didn't mean anything mean about your hair yesterday."
When had anyone ever apologized to him? He didn't know what to do with the scene before him— and he found himself sputtering nonsense, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, "It's- you don't have to say sorry."
The other kid stood up, "I do though, I hurt your feelings. I didn't mean to. I just thought your hair looked cool so I thought it's why you decided to be a wizard."
"No, I was a wizard 'cause of my staff," The stick was gone, some other kid had probably found it and took it off to who knows where, "My hair makes me a demon."
"A demon?"
Sakura nodded, kicking at the moss near his feet, digging the toes of his faded sneakers into the dirt, "'n' my eyes."
He looked up, staggering backwards when he came face to face with the other kid. He had stepped forward so silently Sakura hadn't noticed, and was peering at Sakura's eyes curiously. "Wha— back up!" He threw his hands up into make shift fists, body tense and heart racing at the close proximity.
"Your eyes are pretty though," Sakura felt himself freeze at the words, fists still raised by eyes wide, "And I think your hair's cool."
"Wha—"
"Do you wanna be friends?"
"Do I—"
"My name's Sun Fei. What's yours?"
Sakura's mouth was open, arms having fallen to his side as he stared at the kid— at Sun Fei— with shock written all over his face. "I- uh- Sakura—"
"Like the flowers?" He stepped closer again, and Sakura stumbled back.
"B-Back up!"
"Oh. Sorry," Sun Fei stopped moving, taking half a step back, "My master says I need to understand personal space a bit more."
"Master—"
Sun Fei reached forward, grabbing Sakura's hand in his own, tugging him back towards the playground, "Come on. We can play wizards together today."
—
The pair fell into a routine of sorts. Whenever Sakura was put out of his foster home, which was more often than not, he found himself at the park, only this time he wasn't spending his time alone. Sun Fei seemed to show up shortly after Sakura did, and Sakura had grown to expect to see his friend. The hours went by faster now that Sakura had a friend to spend them with. Sometimes Sun Fei even brought them snacks, and Sakura was growing used to not feeling as hungry as he was used to.
There was the occassional time where Sakura was alone at the park. Sun Fei had explained that he had chores and responsibilities he was being trained for, and sometimes they took him longer than he wished, which was why he got pulled away sometimes. Sakura hadn't really understood what he meant, but he didn't want to question it too much, in case it made Sun Fei leave him entirely.
He had forgotten how lonely it was to be by himself.
"Hey, freak!"
Somehow, he had also forgotten what it felt like to be surrounded by kids who were cruel.
Sakura turned around, glare already plastered on his face as he looked at the kids from his neighborhood. He didn't know their names, all he knew was they were friends with his foster-siblings, which likely means that they had been told all the ways Sakura was a horrible kid— a 'demon child'.
He puffed his chest out, trying to look bigger than he felt, "What?"
This was how it usually went when the other kids showed up. They called him names, he argued back, and eventually, they threw the first punch. Sakura had long since learned how to fight, had learned how to roll when the punches landed and to block out the pain so he could fight back. The bruises and scrapes from last time had healed and faded, so it made sense they wanted to add new ones to the mix.
"Can't believe someone like you was born," The biggest of the kids spat, reaching out towards Sakura's crumpled form and grabbing him by the roots of his hair, pulling his head up to face him, "My dad says that you killed your own mom. That's why your dad doesn't even want you."
"Shut up," He swung blindly, feeling smug for all of a few seconds when his punch landed and he heard the kid yelp, letting go of his hair.
He was facing the three now, trembling where he stood, fists raised high to protect his head like he'd learned to do. The three were bigger than he was, they were ten years old, opting to pick on a seven year old and feeling smug when they made him bleed. He hated people like them— people who chose easy fights cause they knew they'd win, people who saw him as weak and hurt him cause they could. He could feel the tears weeling in his eyes, fists trembling as he waited for one of them to move.
"Aw, look at the little baby— you gonna cry?"
"No one even wants you here— why don't you jump off a bridge already?"
"Oh?" The voice was familiar, and Sakura found himself whipping his head to turn and look, seeing Sun Fei walking up behind him, hands clasped behind his back and the familiar smile on his face, "Those are pretty mean words coming from someone like you."
"Wha— who the hell are you?"
Sakura felt himself settle, even if only slightly, when Sun Fei was next to him. He didn't pay any mind to the three older kids, eyes looking Sakura up and down, taking in the bleeding cuts and the forming bruses. His smile faded, and the kind look Sakura had grown used to died out. He looked angry— angry in a way that made Sakura's stomach churn.
"A three-on-one is pretty unfair, don't you think?" He turned back to the three, his question addressing the older kids, "Only weak people need to group themselves up against one person."
"Who are you calling weak you little shit?"
Sun Fei laughed, high and airy, "You, isn't it obvious?"
Sakura wasn't sure who moved first, but the next few minutes were a blur of movements. The other three, anger and embarrassment coursing through them, had moved to continue their beating, and to add Sun Fei to the mix. It didn't last long, however, and Sakura had a front row seat as his friend turned the tides, each of the three older kids unable to land a punch on him, being tripped and flipped until they were panting on the ground. Sakura couldn't help but stare at his friend, mouth agape and awe on his face.
"Who the hell are you?" The leader of the three spat, pushing himself on unsteady arms to stand up, staring at Suo with wide eyes, "You can't seriously be friends with this freak?"
"And if I am?" He stepped closer, voice quiet.
The kid sneered, "A freak like him doesn't deserve any friends."
While Sun Fei's movements had been smooth, knocking each kid over time and time again, his reactions now were anything but. He didn't verbally respond, but his step forward was quick, grabbing the kid by the front of his shirt, throwing a balled up fist that connected sharply with the bully's nose. Sakura watched as the kid yelled out, blood gushing down his face as he fell backwards, crying out in pain and trying to scoot himself back.
"Wha- what—"
"You speak so highly for someone like yourself," Despite being on the ground, Sun Fei wasn't stopping his pursuit, stalking forward and grabbing the kid by the front of his shirt once more, landing a second punch to the kids face, "And yet when the tables are turned, you can't do anything to even defend yourself."
"S-Stop it dude!"
"You'll kill him!"
The other two were crying out now, terror on their faces as they scrambled up, but didn't move to step any closer. It was easy to see they were scared they'd be hit next. Sakura watched, a mix of awe and horror swirling in his chest. Those three always seemed so big, loarding over Sakura with cruel hands and sharp words.
But they now seemed so… small.
"Sun Fei," Sakura stepped forward, almost clumbsily, placing a hand on his friend's arm, "S-Stop."
His punching had stopped, as had the older kid's crying, and he turned back to look at Sakura, eyes sharp, "Have they been the ones to hurt you?"
Sakura nodded after a moment, "They- they weren't the only ones."
Sun Fei hummed, turning back to look at the unconscious ten year old, and Sakura wondered how a kid his age had gotten to be so strong. "Just… leave him be."
There was a beat as Sakura waited, unsure in his own actions to stop his friend from continuing to beat up the bully. Slowly, Sun Fei's fist unclenched, and he let go of the shirt, letting the kid drop into the dirt with a hefty thud. His friends didn't hesitate to rush forward, shaking him in an attempt to wake him up. When that didn't work, they grabbed him by each of his arms, half-carrying, half-dragging him away, tears running down their cheeks as they scrambled off.
One of the kids, through his tears, called shakily over his shoulder, "Freaks! You're both freaks!"
Sakura found himself flinching at the word, but Sun Fei didn't so much as move as the three scrambled down the sidewalk, disappearing out of sight. The silence between the two felt suffocating. Sun Fei turned around, a smile on his face, eyes closed from the sheer size of his grin.
"There! Now they won't bother you again," He reached out, patting Sakura's cheek with the same hand he used to punch the other kid, fresh blood still on his knuckles.
"You didn't have to do that," Sakura spoke quietly, gaze dropping down to the dirt, stuck staring at the empty space between them.
Sun Fei shifted, crouching down so he was in line of Sakura's gaze, waiting for the two to make eye contact, the smile never leaving his face, "But I did."
"Why?"
He watched his friend tilt his head, an almost confused look crossing his face as he processed the question. "They hurt you," Was what he landed on, tone indicating his answer was obvious. Maybe to Sun Fei, it had been.
Sakura remained silent, staring at his friend. He didn't know what to say, didn't know how to respond. No one had treated him with the level of kindness Sun Fei had treated him with, and no one had ever stepped in between Sakura and the people who had hurt him. Most of the time adults acted like stopping other kids from hurting Sakura was a waste of time, and would often tell him he likely did something to deserve the other kids' anger, like Sakura was someone who deserved to be hurt.
But Sun Fei had not only been mad that Sakura had been hurt, he had fought back to stop the others from hurting him. Sakura's chest felt tight, and he couldn't help but reach up, gripping at the front of his shirt.
"Oh," Sun Fei's voice cut him out of whatever spiral he was starting to go down, "You're bleeding."
He had reached a hand out, brushing clumsily against Sakura's cheek, barely touching the new scrape there, the feeling having Sakura hissing and flinching away. His own hand and came up, fingers brushing against his cheek, pulling back and seeing the fresh blood there. He frowned at his hand, already knowing his foster-parents would give him an earful for getting hurt.
Sun Fei made a triumphet noise, and Sakura looked up, seeing him pulling out a bandaid from his pocket, holding it out proudly, "Here we go," He didn't wait or question, just stepped forward and unwrapped the bandaid, pressing it against Sakura's cheek, "All better."
The sting was still present, but at least the bandaid would stop the bleeding. Sakura pressed against the bandaid, wincing at the sting, turning to look at his friend incredulously, "You carry bandaids with you?"
"My master says it pays to be prepared." Sun Fei reached out, grabbing Sakura's hand and tugging him along, pulling him away from the playground into the more secluded shade of the trees, "Come on, we can play now."
Sakura stumbled after him, mind still half-dazed as he let himself get dragged along, "Slow down!"
By the time the pair stumbled into the woods, the tension from the fight had all but dissipated, the pair falling into something familiar. The rest of their day was spent together, and it was easy to ignore the ache in his injuries as they ran around, basking in the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the shade together.
It was an easy routine for the pair to fall into, and it was one Sakura had begun to look forward to each time. He no longer minded being out of the apartment for the entire day, not when it meant being able to spend time with Sun Fei. Being lonely was becoming an almost forgotten feeling, and his usual mantra of anticipating the worst began to crumble, which was why when life became cruel once more, it hurt more than it used to.
Sakura's foster family had hit their limit with him. They told him, tones venemous, that they were tired of paying to feed an extra mouth, especially when said mouth did nothing but get into trouble at school and in the neighborhood. He was used to this, being packed up and shipped away like he was nothing, but this time it hurt worse. He had made a friend— a real friend, who he couldn't even say goodbye to. He asked, he begged, to have an extra hour to rush to the park in hopes that Sun Fei was there, but all his tears did was get him one final smack to the face. He moved to the car silently, fighting back tears as he watched the neighborhood grow smaller as they drove away.
That had been the last foster place that had some silver lining, that had had some sense of goodness for him. Each other household reminded him he wasn't someone who deserved kindness, and he began wondering if he had made up his friend, if Sun Fei had never existed. It's not as if he could confirm it himself, so he clung to the memories of them together, letting them be his oasis when he dreamt.
His few months of happiness with his childhood friend became distant as he grew older, and by the time he moved to Makochi, they were nothing short of a dream he clung to. His first ever friend always hung around in the back of his mind, and as he met Kotoha and Nirei, he was reminded of his first friend. He wonders if he would have gotten along with the others he'd met since arriving, but he was quick to push that thought from his mind, focusing on more important matters.
He was about to meet his class for the first time.
"W-What are you doing?" Nirei's voice was higher pitched than normal, and Sakura sighed as he stood up, stretching his arms out.
"Warming up." As weirdly nice as Kotoha and Nirei had been, he doubted he'd get the same hospitality from the others.
Nirei continued to ramble, panic seeping out of him as Sakura paid him no mind. He was stronger than he was as a kid, he could take whatever was thrown his way. He stepped forward, throwing the classroom door open, glancing around the room at the sheer amount of students before him. He heard Nirei's panic worsen, but Sakura just stepped forward, glancing around the classroom. "Not bad."
"Hey— you must be Sakura-kun." The person who stepped forward first had Sakura's breath catching in his throat, and his palms grew cold.
He was a bit taller than Sakura, and the most striking thing on him was the eyepatch covering his right eye. His hair, though, was a familiar shade of dark red, styled perfectly. He walked in such a similar fashion, hands clasped behind his back as he moved forward. He blinked, unable to get his thoughts collected in a way that made sense. His mouth moved without permission, voice low as he responded, "What if I am? Who the hell are you?"
Before the other kid could respond, Nirei stepped in front of Sakura, forcing his fists down to his side, "Wait! Don't! I'm sorry," He turned to the other person, and Sakura just blinked at the blonde, feeling stunned momentarily, "He gets easily excited!"
He stepped forward, the anxiety from before melting into something that looked like excitement, "Anyways! You- you! With the red hair, the black eye patch, the lonog tassel earrings… there's no doubt about it! You're—"
"Leonardo DiCapprio, yup!"
Nirei's ranting was cut short, and for a moment he and Sakura just stared at… the guy. Confusion laced through Sakura as he stared at the familiar, yet unfamiliar person in front of him. He had begun to hope, for a moment, that fate had been kind for once and the person before him had been… But that was a stupid dream, wasn't it?
"So… you're from overseas?" Sakura put his hands in his pockets, head tilted as he studied the person— maybe they just looked alike? Hair that color wasn't common, but it wasn't impossible. And his friend didn't have an eyepatch, he would have remembered.
"Oh, no, I'm Japanese."
Sakura's eye twitch, annoyance already flowing through him. Nirei cleared his throat, "You're Suo-san, right?"
Suo. So close to his friend's name, but different. The small spark of excitement, the momentary hope he had let himself feel fizzled out entirely. His shoulders slumped slightly, and he glanced over to Nirei, missing the flash of something in Suo's eye.
"Yup. Everyone calls me that." Sakura gritted his teeth, keeping back a scoff as the guy— as Suo— continued to talk, "By the way, this eyepatch is a seal to keep an ancient Chinese spirit inside."
"Wasn't it because of a past accident?"
"Yup! That's what everyone says!" His cheerful tone was starting to get under Sakura's skin, and he did little to hold back his annoyance. How dare this Suo look like his childhood friend, and how dare he sit there and joke like this, talking as if he and Nirei were idiots.
As he stepped forward, voicing his annoyance, much to Nirei's chagrin, he paid little mind to Suo. He missed the expression on his face softening slightly, before being replaced by the superficial smile once more. Suo, on the other hand, couldn't keep his eye off of Sakura, studying the way he moved, the way he spoke. He had grown stronger since the last they had seen each other, that was much was obvious. It had also been obvious to him that when he saw him, Sakura had recognized him momentarily. He looked similar to how he had as a child, but different enough that being introduced as Suo Hayato was enough to throw him off.
I'm sorry, Sakura-kun, Suo mused to himself, watching as Sugishita and Sakura's fight began, feeling Nirei tremble against his leg, But I'm here now. Don't you worry.