Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Gakuen Alice and its characters are owned by its creator, Tachibana Higuchi. Only the story idea and some original characters are mine.

Author's Note: This story has been previously published here in fanfiction dot net. I removed it for some alterations within the story, and for proofreading and editing. To my previous readers, please check the author's note at the end of this chapter. Thank you. :)

Chapter 1: A Fateful Night

It was in the middle of the night that she decided to execute her plan. She slowly crept through the floor of her small room, and snatched a goat-skin satchel underneath her bed. She opened it and held it underneath the moonlight that seeped through her little window, with the see-through patterned draperies hung on the opening making beautiful dark patterns on her satchel. She opened it and quickly scanned its contents, making sure that everything she would need is there.

Good. Everything is here.

She then tied a long sash made of tied up sheets around her waist, and tied the other end to the intricate bedpost adorning her four-poster bed. She looked around, imprinting a mental picture of her room on her mind.

The wooden four-poster bed, the colorful rugs strewn across the wooden floor, the ornate dark wooden closets, the wide patterned ceiling, colorful hair ornaments and extravagant headdresses hung on a wall, the cluttered dresser - she looked at all of these as she tried to imprint the mental picture on her mind.

She really does not need to – she grew up there, after all. Since she was a child, it has been her space. And along with the long time she spent there came so many memories – of her beloved grandfather, of her Miu (the little servant girl who has been assigned to her since she was five), of the long dark nights during a storm, of the extravagant clothes that was strewn across it early this morning when she was prepared for the announcement of her engagement to the prince of the neighboring tribe, and of course, long treasured memories of her foster mother, Kalam. She closed her eyes to stop herself from crying and clenched her fists till her nails dug to her palms.

No. I will not cry. This is not the time for this. You have to do this, Mikan. You have to do this.

She then went to her window and drew the draperies covering it aside and proceeded to let herself out through the tiny opening. Slowly, she maneuvered herself down against the wall, letting the tied up sheets slide slowly from her fingers. Soon enough, she found herself nearing a tree, and jumped to land neatly on one of its branches. She readjusted the satchel around her waist and looked down from the tree through the leaves, and checked for anyone approaching.

Upon being assured that the coast is clear, she let herself down from the branch she was perching on and landed on the hard soil with a soft thud. She dusted herself off, and went to the small cottage at the end of their backyard. Upon going in, she took a lantern on the lone wooden table in the room and lighted it, doing so as she knelt to find a trap door.

Upon finding it, she lifted the wooden trap door on the floor to see a flight of stairs made of soil, leading underground. Slowly, she went down through the stairs and closed the trap door as she left.

She has finally done it. She is going to the place she has always dreamed of going to ever since she discovered about her biological mother.

Don't worry, oji-chan. I will find mother and bring her and the weapon she has taken with her back to our tribe. I will save our village. Goodbye, Makiba, my home.

Damn that stupid producer. Natsume Hyuuga angrily shrugged off his coat and loosened his tie. He then slumped himself on the sofa of his living room in his huge penthouse, massaging the bridge of his nose as he did so. He closed his eyes and furrowed his dark brows as he tried to push away the events of that afternoon from his mind.

Apparently, it was impossible for him to do that. The smirk of the snotty brat they call a producer, and the whispers behind his back as he tried to reason out with the said idiot was clearly etched in his memory. He has got one major problem – Luna Koizumi, the star of his primetime drama series, is pregnant. Just great. Fantastic. He can't believe this is happening.

He did not care whatever she does just as long as she did her job, kept herself pretty for the cameras and the snoopy paparazzi, and kept the ratings of his show at the top. He did not care how many men she gets involved in, or how many times she let herself get wasted. Of course, just as long as she does not let anyone see her that might destroy her innocent sweetheart image.

But this. This! How could she be stupid enough to get pregnant in the middle of a very important arc in the series? What's worse, she hid it from him! She did not even care to tell him that she's been pregnant for four and a half months already. If she has told about it sooner, they might have been able to do something about it –abort it or something like that. But no, the stupid woman chose to tell him at the last minute, where it would be difficult to find a replacement.

Sure, he could ask the scriptwriter to change some parts in the script so he could insert a new actress in the series. But to find a replacement in three days? They have got to be kidding him. That's bullshit. How the hell is he going to find a replacement in that short time? Sure, many actresses would jump at the opportunity, but not one of them is suitable for the role.

That bastard. The smirk of that bastard producer Andou irritated him more and more. He planned this. Maybe he even fucked that Luna pregnant so that he could get back at him. He's gonna pay for this. He's going to regret he ever chose Natsume Hyuuga to try to make fun of. He's gonna wipe that stupid smirk off his face. That bastard Andou could rely on that.

Now, to find that replacement. He has got to do something about it very soon. They'll see. No one has ever made Natsume Hyuuga fall. He will make them see that it was a mistake to think that he could ever fail in this project. He worked hard for this. He has already been this far. He's not going to hand this over to anyone else. This success will be his and his alone.

Mikan Sakura was never known for her sense of direction. She wasn't known for her intelligence either. If there is something she would be known for, that would be her stupidity and her damn clumsiness. That would perhaps be one of the reasons why it did not come as a surprise (even to her, for that matter) that she got lost.

She was able to reach the city after following the instructions her childhood friend gave her in order to reach it. It was a wonder how she did it, how she even got this far when all she had was that satchel with her and no form of transportation whatsoever in order to reach the city.

She walked. It's amazing how only through that, she was able to reach the city in a span of only one day.

Perhaps all that training for combat back at the tribe helped her improve her stamina. Moreover, she was used to walking long distances. After all, she has to climb two mountains every day to reach the neighboring tribe which was recently in need. As the princess of their tribe, she knows it was her duty to represent her tribe and to help neighboring tribes in need.

Now that she thought about it, ever since they helped them, their condition improved greatly and they are now able to stand on their own feet. She smiled at the thought and continued walking, despite her aching legs.

Where was she now, anyway? Ah, the city of course. The problem is, she does not know any place in the city, and where she could go to rest and stay for the night. She does not want to endure sleeping out in the cold night again, like what she did last night. She tugged on her short woven top which revealed much of her belly. The short woven skirt did not do much either to help warm her small body. She had her lion fur coat with her just a while ago, but she gave it away to the old woman she saw on the streets who was freezing in the cold. She knew the old woman needed it more than her, so she does not regret giving it away even if it was now her who was shivering with the cold instead.

She sighed as she rubbed her arms with her soft hands to try to keep warm. She has to find a place soon. If only someone would be kind enough to let her stay even just for one night. Gods of the earth and the moon, please let me find a place to stay for the night.

Meanwhile, a man with dark matted hair falling loosely on his face was watching this young woman all this time, observing her movements, checking if she was all alone. His eyes glinted with lust at the sight of her. He rubbed his stubbled chin thoughtfully and his thin gray lips curved to a smirk. Looks like he's going to have some fun tonight.

The girl is obviously alone, and came from a very far place. By the looks of her clothing, she came from somewhere very far. He hasn't ever seen anyone clothed like that. In this cold night, how could that girl be wearing so little? And those woven cloths, what is this girl? Some tribal woman or what?

Perhaps it was some kind of gimmick of a nearby brothel. But the girl is looking around the place, looking as if not knowing where to go. Right. She's definitely not from anywhere near here. And that girl's definitely not some whore. Oh, this night's going to be so much fun for him. How could he be so lucky?

He snuffed out the cigarette that was hanging from his lips and crushed it on the ground with his foot. He slowly stood up and walked towards the girl taking care not to be noticed. Apparently the girl's senses are heightened and quickly spun around upon sensing a movement.

Shoot. He was sure he was quiet, this girl sure is something. Then the girl did something unexpected. She smiled. She damn smiled. What girl smiles at strangers at night in a dark alley? So she is a prostitute after all. He returned the smile.

"Good evening, mister. I was wondering if you know of a place where I could stay for the night. Do you know some place?" The girl asked in accented Japanese. She looks so damn innocent with those big amber eyes of hers and that wide smile. How could she trust so easily? Well, perhaps he really is just lucky tonight. She's practically asking him to take her. This is so easy for him.

"As a matter of fact, I do. Come with me and I'll show you." He said and smiled in a way he hoped was a seductive way. It only succeeded in showing his few yellowing teeth making him look like some villain from a movie. But then the idiotic girl does not seem to notice it and the hint of what he said had instead made her smile grew wider, if that were possible. This girl sure is something, the man thought.

"Really? Oh, that would be good! Thank you so much, mister!" She cried happily and followed the man who already started walking. She was led to an even darker alley, uncertainty finally evident on her face.

"Uh, mister, whe-" she was cut off with the sight of a small pub, with a warm light seeping out from the small window. "Ah, so this must be the place. I'll be fine now, mister. Thank you very much for taking me here." She said to the man and went ahead to go inside the pub.

She was so tired and hungry and eager to rest. She did not even notice the stares the men inside the pub were giving her and was also oblivious to the whistles and cries coming from some of them. She simply went to the woman behind the counter and asked for a place to stay.

She was surprised to feel a rough hand caressing the soft bare skin at the small of her back before ending at her waist. She looked up to find the man who brought her there smiling suggestively down at her and felt goosebumps crawl up her spine. She tried to free herself from the arms of the strange man.

"Uh, mister, thank you for bringing me here. I'll be fine now, so you can leave me now." She tried to tell the man.

"Aw, but sweetie, won't you want to have some fun before I leave?" the man teased.

"Really, mister. I'm fine now. I'm tired and I just want to rest. Please leave me." Mikan replied, frustration now evident on her face. She must be really tired now. She never lost her patience this fast before. The man seemed unaffected, and came closer, intent on his purpose.

"Just one night. I know you won't regret it." His eyes were now darker than it was before, and the stink of cigarettes wafted from his mouth, making Mikan wrinkle her nose in distaste and move away.

"Mister, I'm tired. Please leave me, I want to rest." She spoke in that authoritative manner she used back at her home when conversing with their workers. She used to intimidate those she did not like, like those men who kept on making moves on her. Again, the stranger was unaffected, and to her surprise, the man quickly grabbed her waist, and slung her over his shoulder. She tried to get down and tried to kick the man, which only caused the man to grab at her buttocks. She was mortified.

"You! Put me down! I'm telling you, put me down! Or else –"

"Or else what, sweetie? You can't do anything, so stop resisting. You'll thank me later, I know." The man gruffly stated, which only irritated Mikan even more.

Then, all of a sudden, the man's knees buckled and he fell to the floor, bringing Mikan along. Mikan took advantage of the situation and escaped from the man's grip. She tried to run away only to feel the strong grip of rough warm hands on her small wrist. She stopped and angrily tried to free her wrist, without success. Really, how could this old man be so persistent? She thought angrily and again tried to free herself.

"Stop moving, Polka." A rich masculine voice said. She blushed at the thought that someone saw her underwear while she was held by the strange man.

"You –" She looked at her captor, and stopped midsentence as she was met with the most tantalizing crimson eyes she has ever seen.

Author's Note: To my previous readers, I'm really sorry for the sudden removal of this story. I acted on impulse, which I now regret. However, I am now able to correct the few mistakes I made on the first draft. There has been changes in this story as well (like the foster mother). I hope you bear with me. :)

To the new readers, I hope you liked this chapter.

Review, please?