This is a remake of Alice Academy by xfurbyx. I have changed my account from xfurbyx to Lostkey. I am sorry for the problems that this might cause.
It was the beginnings of a new day. The birds were chirping their sweet chorus, while students groaned at the prospect of having to go to school. Parents shared a small morning greeting amongst themselves before heading out for the daily day of jobs and chores. However, not every house was experiencing such simplicity.
In a small modern house, a not so pleasant story was occurring. "Wake up brat!! You better get breakfast ready in ten minutes or you know what will happen!" screeched a pudgy middle age woman with a big nose and oily shoulder length hair.
The brat whom she was yelling for went by the name Mikan Sakura. The poor girl gave a shudder of disgust at the voice as she slowly got up. 'Like I got any sleep. The way you snore is probably worse than a pig.'
However even without the snore, Mikan knew she wouldn't have slept. She had another beating. It left her wide awake throughout the night. Her body was covered with bruises and cuts. Although the pain had subsided to a dull throb, it still hurt incredibly hard to move. She moved from her makeshift bed, which was really a pile of bed sheets and a ragged towel. She had long forgotten what it felt like to sleep on a real bed. Her room wasn't even a room. In fact it was an attic. There wasn't a lot of space either as most of the attic was taken up by boxes and antique monstrosities and relics.
She bee-lined her way out of the attic and stumbled down the stairs of the house to the kitchen. It was a rather painful trek; her sides were beginning to hurt again. But she continued nevertheless, taking out the pans and items to make the breakfast. It wasn't like she had a choice in this. She tried many times to leave, run away but she always failed.
'It's not like anybody is going to come and help me' she thought bitterly as she smacked the pan onto the stove. She then tipped a spoon filled with oil onto the warming pan and began to crack eggs in preparation for make an omelet. The faster she finished cooking the food, the higher the chance she might have avoid that obnoxious person. As she began to beat the eggs, her thoughts ran back to her grandpa… 'Grandpa….I miss you.' She thought wistfully as she poured the mix into the now hot pan, a tear threatening to leak from her eye.
Life was not always like this. It had been great before this. She had a loving grandfather who was funny and caring, teaching her the values of life; always enlightening her with his never-ending stream of knowledge. She didn't know who her parents were, but from what her grandpa said, they were great people and that was just fine with her. Everybody in the neighborhood was nice and really fun to be with. Never did she feel alone when she walked the street. She also had a wonderful best friend, Hotaru Imai, whom she still remembered vividly.
Though initially, there was rivalry, after they got over it, they just clicked. Though sometimes they would get into small squabbles, it was friendly ones. Mikan smiled with nostalgia, as she remembered a particular incident where they were having a fight over who would have the last piece of watermelon. In the end neither of them got it. In fact Mikan's grandpa snatched it from right under their nose. It was a wonderful dream that was never-ending, until that day that everything shattered.
Mikan frowned as she plopped a cooked delicious omelet onto a plate and began to put sausages on to sizzle. Ever since that day, her reality was shattered and she was dragged down into what she called 'hell'. Before Mikan had time to even mourn or cry her 'Aunt' came a forced her to leave her village. Nobody even knew that she disappeared. She couldn't even say goodbye to Hotaru, much to her distress. When she entered her aunt's house she was degraded to nothing more but a slave. Every passing day was a scary experience, a nightmare. No longer was she fed daily, in fact, she would get beaten if she spoke out of turn and made even the slightest mistake with cleaning or cooking. Heck, she wasn't even allowed to go to school!
The numerous times, Mikan attempted to run away, she would never get far since her aunt's boyfriend would always catch her and drag her back. Those were the worst times where she would be punished and starved for days, locked in the backyard shed. No one ever heard her when she screamed for help. Either that or they chose to ignore it for the fear of what the aunt would do to them. Her life was miserable… But she never cried or became downhearted, choosing to be optimistic. She always told herself to never give up. 'I will leave this place one day…I refuse to be broken by her. What would grandpa think if I gave up?' That thought alone kept her going for days, making her think of new plans. She took all the beatings without a sound refusing to let her aunt hear her shed a single tear. She hid her fear, pain, and anguish behind a smile.
Mikan took out the sausages and placed them down on the table that was laden with a multitude of assorted food. She eyed the food hungrily but did not touch any of it, for the fear of the woman finding out. She was thin to begin with, but after months at this horrid place, Mikan knew she lost a lot of weight. Though it was not enough for her bones to show and jut out, it was enough for her to notice. Her clothing was hand-me-downs that were two sizes too large and how she hated them. They were thin and shapeless.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang, jolting her out of her thoughts. She quickly closed the stove and went to get it, wondering who would be here this early in the morning. Her aunt's friend usually came when it was late at night. Those friends were just as bad as the aunt, some even worst. She opened the door, timidly, only to find a blond haired man with two small moles under his left eye and a rather sweet smile.
She plastered on a smile and politely asked, "Hello! Are you looking for the owner of this house?" The man did not notice the fakeness and gave her a really kind and cheerful smile, and replied "Actually I'm looking for a girl named Mikan Sakura. I was told that she lives here?" Mikan's smile froze on her face as her eyes widened. Someone was asking for her? Was this a joke? Was it possible that… She nodded "I'm Mikan Sakura! How may I help you?"
His smile widened. "Well child, I'm here to pick you up. The government found that you are an 'eligible student' for entering the prestigious Alice Academy to develop your skills." Mikan's eyes widened even more and her jaw almost dropped in surprise. Was this a dream? She had heard of that school. It was said to be the most prominent school out of all of the schools in Japan. Only the most talented could enter such a school. Once upon a time, Mikan would have believed it right away but now she wasn't so naïve. She eyed him warily. What if this was some scheme by her aunt? "I don't believe you. I have no special skill and I'm only a child. There's no way I possess such a skill." The blond man seemed surprised by her actions but he quickly hid it, though Mikan still caught the look.
The man ran his hand through his hair, as if thinking "Don't tell anybody this. The fact is that it is only called a school for geniuses as a guise, but the real meaning isn't about being a genius. It is a school for those who have a talent that is very special and unique. It's called an Alice. We have found that you possess the Alice of nullification." Mikan stared in disbelief. What in the world was this man talking about? "What?! How come I never knew this? What is this nullification? What does it do? And anyway how would you know? I never even met you before! Why-?" The man held up his hand and couldn't help but chuckle at the barrage of questions, "Hold on dear. I can't answer every question if you don't give me time to explain." Mikan blushed a bit and remembered herself surprised that she, herself, talked so much. She mumbled a quick apology but it was clear that she was forcefully holding herself from asking more questions as her eyes were practically glowing with questions.
Suddenly there was a nasally shout, "Brat!! Where are you and why haven't you finished making breakfast?! Do you REALLY want a repeat of what happened YESTERDAY?!" Mikan involuntarily flinched, that did not go unnoticed by the blond man, and looked back into the kitchen. There stood her aunt in her bathrobes. Her hair was a mess, as if she just rolled out of bed, a walking balloon. Her face was bloated and was an unhealthy shade of puce. Her fingers were pudgy and her nails were thing and long like a rake. Sakura hated this woman-, no this monster with a great passion.
The aunt then seemed to realize that there was a guest. She took one look at him and was all over him in a matter of seconds. "My, What a beauty you are! Why don't you stay and have breakfast handsome? If you need a job I can get you one at the bars" she purred lewdly. Never mind that she already had a boyfriend. The man looked at her with disgust clearly written in his eyes. From the way she shamelessly tried to flirt with him and offered him; the way she treated Mikan and the way the girl acted, he had a clear impression on how this woman was like.
"Actually I think I'll just be leaving and I'll be taking Mikan with me." The aunt narrowed her eyes as her advances were brushed off. "No, you can't. I have rights to her since I am her only blood related relative. Who are you to think you can just come and take whatever you want. However, if you need anything you should ask for me" she said fluttering her eyelashes. It was disgusting.
Mikan wanted to gag at the way the woman portrayed herself, but she looked down to her feet avoiding her aunt's eyes. The blond hair man sighed in barely concealed aggravation before holding up a suit-case and offering it to the woman, "This is the amount that I can give you for the relinquishing of your niece...." As he opened the case the aunt's eyes seemed to bulge out in shock. In it were rows of cash. She moved towards it like a zombie. But before she could touch it, the man closed the case and held up a piece of paper. "I need you to sign this first." The aunt did not even look as she scribbled her signature and greedily took the case. "Take her."
The man took Mikan by the arm and dragged her out of the house quickly. Mikan could only follow in shock. Just like that, she was leaving this place. Finally, she was leaving this place. She gave a small smile of triumph, a real smile. "I'm Free."