Akatsuki-hime: This is the older sister of sakurahimeno. I got hooked with Gakuen Alice and I decided to write a story here. I'm no Natsume fan and I kinda like Ruka-pyon much better. But rest assured because I'm also a NatsumexMikan fan. I'm also a good friend of JC-Zala who is a very popular author here. I usually get so many ideas from her.

Disclaimer: Who do you think I am? I can never own the series. All rights belong to Higuchi-sensei.

Plot Summary: They were in love with each other, but everyone didn't approve of it. Enter the lives of Mikan Sakura, a popular and well-admired girl, and Natsume Hyuuga, a genius yet an outcast detested by many, as they try to overcome obstacles and protect their love.

Attire: Mikan- White top, pink sweater with hood, yellow pleated mini-skirt, and pink-white sneakers. Natsume- black shirt with red linings, tan shorts, and black rubber shoes. Narumi- white polo, blue jeans, black leather shoes.


Chapter 01

The late spring rain was heavy and chill. Some of it was seeping through the roof. The children huddled together to keep warm. The father's body lay on the floor amid a pool of blood that was now blackening. The stench in the house had already numbed their nostrils. The wind howled in a frightful way, and the little girl whimpered, pressing herself closer to the young lad.

12-year old Hyuuga Natsume focused his brain again as he had these past two days. How was he going to save his precious one from certain death? His father was dead, because he was murdered by unknown people who broke into the house. Their house was isolated from the town, for people treated his family indifferently.

They needed to be warm, Natsume thought. He lit up a fire in his palm. He had the power of fire in him, a fairly strong one indeed. His power was the main reason why the people in town didn't want him around. He tried to warm the brown-haired girl with his fire, but she used her own power and nullified it. He understood perfectly well why she did it. It was for his sake. He merely sighed at her kindness and looked out through the window. If only it would cease raining. The damn weather had been bad for the past two days. Natsume hugged the girl tighter against him when she whimpered again.

"What are we going to do, Natsume?" she complained to him. "Otou-san is dead and we have nowhere else to go." Her salty tears streamed down her smooth cheeks. Her heart was suffering so much pain. The man who was dead in the living room might not be her real father, but she still considered him as one. After all, Natsume's father took care of her as if she was his daughter. She had loved that man, but now he was dead.

Natsume honestly didn't know what to do. They didn't have relatives. Even though the brunette had friends in town, they would surely not help a guy like him. Everyone detested him and his father.

Suddenly Natsume's ears picked up at the sound of footsteps. The steps grew closer and closer until it was outside. The door to the house was opened, revealing a blonde man. He stepped quickly inside, his gorgeous amethyst eyes sweeping about the room. Seeing the children huddled together in the living room, he asked them, "What happened here?"

"Who are you?' Natsume questioned the blonde grimly.

"My name's Narumi and I am a teacher from Alice Academy," he replied, approaching the children.

Natsume shot him a deadly glare. "Alice Academy? What the hell is that?" He shoved Mikan right behind him and stood up with clenched fists. "If you're here to kill us, then I swear I'm going to kill you first."

Startled at the venom in the child's voice, he looked down at the floor, seeing the dead man bathed in blood. He felt like puking at the sight, but he remained strong and calm. "I'm not here for that," he said. Noticing the crying girl behind the boy, Narumi knelt down and looked kindly at her. "I came here to take you to someplace safe."

Natsume lit flames on both of his hands. "And why should we trust you?" He can never trust anyone anymore, not after what had happened to his father. And if the man will try to hurt the girl behind him, he won't hesitate to burn him alive. "You should just go now."

Narumi hung his head low. "And what will you do if I'll leave you two? How are you going to survive?" He looked up at the lad seriously this time. "Isn't that girl important to you? Remember, you're just a child. How are you going take care of her? It's impossible."

The flames on his hands grew brighter. Natsume understood what Narumi was saying, but he can't trust him right away. He glanced back at the girl, who had tears coming out of her hazel eyes, and he felt the urge to hug her at that point. When he turned back at Narumi, he lowered his hands and put out the flames. "Tell me one good reason why we should go with you…" he said. "How do we know that you're not just pulling our leg?"

Narumi showed a gentle smile. "I mean you no harm," he said. "And the place I'm taking you is a school for children like you—children with special powers."

"A school for kids like us…?" the girl muttered as she slowly stood up. She leaned on Natsume for support and looked at the blonde man with a confused face. "There is such a place?"

"Yes. In that school, you won't have to worry about the people judging you because of your powers."

The expression on the girl's face softened. She turned to Natsume, her hands on his arm, as looked at him with her innocent hazel eyes. "I believe in him, Natsume," she said. "Let's go with him. Besides, we don't have anyplace to go anymore…" She lowered her head, letting her silky brown hair fall from her shoulders.

She was right, Natsume thought. As much as he hated admitting it, their lives had been thrown into the abyss. They had no place to go and they only had each other. Pulling the girl close him, he looked back at the blonde teacher. "All right, we'll go with you. But you have to give me your word that nothing bad will ever happen to her in that place." Same crimson eyes glared coldly at the teacher.

Narumi nodded his head firmly. "You have my word."

They went out of the house, the teacher first then the children, and thank goodness the rain had finally stopped. Natsume had an arm draped over the girl, keeping her close to him, and the girl had her head low, as they walked towards the limousine parked in front of their once lively home.

Narumi opened the door and looked back at them. He pitied the children for going through a tragic ordeal. He pulled out a clipboard from the car, which contained the data of the children. "Let's see… Hyuuga Natsume-kun and…" He shifted his eyes on the brunette girl and continued. "Sakura Mikan-chan…"

Natsume narrowed his eyes at him. "So, you did some research on us?"

"That's because the Academy has been keeping an eye on you two for 10 years now," Narumi said. "The Academy could've gotten their hands on you years ago if it weren't for your father. He made a bargain with us to let you live with him for 15 years, and then he won't have any regrets handing you over to us. But, unfortunately, this tragedy happened. Therefore, the Academy can't leave you two alone, especially Mikan-chan who has a rare Alice."

"Otou-san knew about Alice Academy?" Mikan muttered. "But he never told us anything about that school."

"He had his reasons for keeping it from you." Narumi gestured his hand towards the limo. "Now, please hop on. It's going to be a long ride to the Academy."

Natsume and Mikan were about to board the limousine when several guys wearing black suits appeared all of the sudden and cornered them. They quickly recognized who they were, because they were the same group that broke into their house and killed their father.

Narumi removed his earring prevention device and pulled out a bean from his pocket. "You two, get into the car. I'll handle these guys."

"I'm not backing out." Natsume stepped forward and conjured flames in his hands. "I'm going to make these guys pay for what they did and don't you try to stop me," he said through gritted teeth.

"Natsume, don't!" Mikan exclaimed, grabbing onto his arm. "Please don't do it. What if you'll get…" She didn't want anything to happen to Natsume. He was the only family left for her, and she didn't want him to die in the hands of those guys in black suits.

Natsume understood her concerns, but he felt the need to fight them just to avenge his father. "I won't let them beat me. Get in the car and wait for me."

"Natsume…" It wasn't the time for her to be stubborn, Mikan knew that, yet she still didn't want Natsume to fight. However, knowing Natsume's stubbornness, Mikan was fully aware that Natsume can't be stopped once he decides on something. "Please be careful…"

He gave her a quick nod before setting his blood-shot eyes on the enemies. He was prepared to burn them all and to protect Mikan from them. Though the teacher disagreed with the fact of him fighting by his side, Narumi had to comply with him. Thus, the both of them started fighting when two of the enemy men charged at them.

The bean Narumi was holding was actually a bean whip and it was an effective weapon. The man who attacked him had the Strength Alice, but Narumi was able to defeat him with the bean whip easily. Narumi turned out to be more than just a guy with a pretty face, for he was a fairly decent fighter.

On the other hand, Natsume was doing a good job fending off the other guys. He didn't hesitate to burn them, turning them into ashes. He was killing them mercilessly. Natsume was angry at them for killing his father. He can't forgive them. He continued doing his brutal attacks on them until every one of them was dead. He even took out the guys fighting Narumi, which surprised the teacher much. Before he took out the last enemy, the guy outwitted him and forcefully made him swallow a small stone. Natsume, enraged by this, swiftly kicked the guy in the stomach and killed him with his flames.

Mikan clamped her mouth with her hands, as her hazel eyes were as wide as saucers. She had never seen Natsume so angry before. Her heart felt heavy after seeing him killing those guys. She didn't think he would kill them but he did. It seemed so wrong for Natsume to kill people because of revenge. She wished she closed her eyes before the fight. She didn't want to see such massacre. It was gruesome—even for Natsume.

"Natsume-kun, you didn't have to kill them," Narumi said, putting his bean whip away. He approached the young lad and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Killing won't resolve anything. It won't bring back your father." He put on his prevention earring again and sighed. He didn't get to use his own power in the fight.

"Tch…You don't have to tell me that," Natsume grunted, walking back to the limo. "It's their fault in the first place. They left me no choice." There was no hint of regret in his voice, just pure malice.

"Scary guy…" Narumi heaved a sigh.

They all rode the limo and took off. Mikan looked back at her home where she spent her happy childhood days with Natsume and his father. Though the people in town despised the Hyuuga Family, she was still able to live the good life with them. Mikan's heart was grieving as she silently bid goodbye to her home.

Natsume pulled the brunette closer, letting her lean her head on his shoulder, as he held her hand. He, too, felt the pain of leaving home. It also pained him to see Mikan so sad. The girl was always smiling before, always carefree and energetic. But because of his father's death, the smile has faded from her face. If Mikan won't smile, then he wasn't capable of smiling either. As limousine reached a part of town, Natsume started to feel strange all of the sudden. It was like he was burning inside.

Narumi was scanning through Mikan's and Natsume's records and when he was done, he placed the papers beside him. I'm not sure what the Academy will do to Natsume-kun once they'll hear about his offense. Those people were the enemy, but killing them was still wrong. However, he only did it because of revenge. It's understandable. He looked at Natsume and noticed beads of sweats dripping from his head. "Natsume-kun, what's the matter? You don't look too well."

Mikan lightly pushed herself away to get a good look at Natsume's face. "You're sweating a lot. What's wrong, Natsume?"

Natsume didn't know what to say to them. He himself didn't know what was going on with him. He was definitely burning up inside and somehow a little pain was pricking his heart like a needle. Just then, his right hand got lit up by his fire. Everyone gasped in surprise—even Natsume widened his eyes in shock.

"That's dangerous. Put out your fire right away," Narumi told him, but Natsume merely shook his head. "Eh? What's going on with you?"

"I can't put it out," Natsume grumbled, as the flame in his hand grew bigger. Through gritted teeth, he said, "STOP THE CAR!" And the driver quickly stepped on the brakes. Once the car pulled to a complete stop, Natsume dashed out without thinking.

"Natsume!" Mikan called and went after him. "Natsume, wait! Where are you going?!"

The raven-haired boy stopped and faced Mikan. "Don't come any closer. My fire is going out of control." He failed to realize the people around him, and he only noticed them when somebody started bad-mouthing him.

"Isn't that the son of Hyuuga-san?"

"His hand is on fire!"

"Others did say that they possessed the power of demons."

"That child is the son of the devil himself."

"What is he doing here? He should return to where he belongs."

Not giving a damn care about those people, he concentrated hard to put a stop to his fire. Try as he might, it was no use. What was worst was the fact that it was spreading around him. The people were getting more afraid of him by the minute and some of them were demanding him to stop the fire. Unfortunately, even though he wanted to, he simply cannot.

"Natsume, please stop the fire!" Mikan shouted, getting more concerned.

"He's a devil! A Devil!" People were running about just to avoid the scourging fire that was after them. Before they knew it, the fire had already reached the homes of those people. "You devil-child! What did we ever do to you?!" Three people started throwing things at Natsume, but they just got burned. It was unintentional for Natsume's part, however the other folks thought otherwise.

"N-Natsume!" Mikan yelled out. She was about to run towards him when Narumi grabbed her arm. "Let me go, sensei! I can stop Natsume's fire. I can do it!"

"It's too dangerous now, Mikan-chan," Narumi told her. "I know what's going on with Natsume. Remember, one of those thugs made him swallow a stone during the fight. I'm guessing that the stone is something that can make one's power out of control."

Mikan was more perplexed because of what he said. "Natsume's fire is out of control…?" she muttered, turning back to look at Natsume. "Then I better help him!" She tried to make a run for it, but the teacher held her tight.

"You'll only get hurt if you act recklessly," Narumi said.

"I don't care! I have to go and help Natsume!" Mikan finally freed herself from his grip and ran towards the blazing fire. Using her own power, she crossed the fields of fire without getting burned. By the time she reached Natsume, the fire had spread throughout half of the town and many people were screaming for their lives. "Natsume!" Mikan lunged forward and hugged Natsume tight.

"Mikan, get away from me!" Natsume demanded, shoving her away. "I can't control it anymore. You might get killed." He was dead serious and his eyes were vicious yet concerned all at once.

"No, I won't!" She hugged him again, and this time even tighter. At that moment, Mikan glowed in a warm blue light and unleashed a strong power big enough to engulf half of the town in split seconds. Natsume and Narumi were speechless at the sight of such power, and Mikan was putting all her heart into it just to save Natsume and everyone. After a while, the blue light died down and Mikan was found unconscious in the hands of Natsume.

The burning sensation inside Natsume had disappeared and his fire was back in his control. He gazed down at the beautiful brunette and caressed her cheek with his hand. "Mikan…" he muttered her name softly. He felt guilty and pathetic for putting her in danger. The girl had risked her life for him. "You protected me again…"

Narumi approached them and knelt down before them. "Natsume-kun, are you all right?" he asked, yet the raven-haired lad gave him no reply. He merely sighed and took a look at Mikan. He then checked for her pulse. "She's all right. She's just unconscious. She did use up a lot of power to put out the fire. As expected of the girl with the Nullification Alice, she has the power to cancel out any Alice."

Natsume slapped his hand away and shot the teacher a death glare. "Don't touch her as you like," he said.

"Protective, aren't we?" Narumi teased.

"I don't have time for your nonsense." Natsume carried the brunette bridal style and walked towards the limo. "Just take us to that Academy before something else happens…"

Narumi narrowed his amethyst eyes at the boy and heaved a sigh. "Natsume-kun, this incident is not something easy to cover up," he said in a solemn voice. "A lot of causalities got hurt and killed because of your fire. I'm sorry to say this but I don't think the Academy will treat you adequately."

"I don't care," Natsume retorted without looking back at Narumi. "Just as long she gets a good life, I don't care what happens to me."

Brushing his hands through his blonde hair, Narumi had to admit that the amount of care Natsume showed for the girl was great and admirable. Yet, he was beginning to fear for Natsume's life in the Academy. Moreover, he can't assure him if he's able to be with Mikan. Knowing that this incident was highly unpredictable, the Academy will surely place Natsume in a tight position.

End of Chapter 01


Akatsuki-hime: So, how was the first chapter? This chapter basically featured Natsume and Mikan's tragedy before they went to Alice Academy. There's going to be a lot of angst in this story. The next chapter will feature their lives in the school, and things are not going to be easy for Natsume. That's all for now, I don't accept flames. Reviews would be good.

Preview for Chapter 02:

"You are pretty adorable, Ojou-sama."

"Who is she?"

"Is she a new student?"

"Hey, she's kinda cute…"

"But I really wish you were with me, Natsume."