First and only disclaimer in this fic: I do not own Gakuen Alice. The fiction and idea belong to me. Do not copy or plagiarize. I do not allow anyone to make a sequel to this story without my consent.
If there's any problem with wording and error in my old fics, please mention it, because I do revise everything every now and then. If some stories seem awkward on the first few chapters, please note the publish date, because it was most likely they were old. Later chapters of the same fics won't have this issue. Please tell me by PM or review, and I'll be sure to clean them up.
Cerespallas' Note, 6 January 2009
– If you have read Fluff Puffs before, this is the revised version. I am also working on the next chapter to the Seven Days to the Worst Wedding Ever. For those who don't even know that this exists, feel free to click the above link to my profile.
Written for, and in regards to illutia mist (original), niceladysakura and Cutepukite (revised version). Thank you for your endless support.
Edited 11 April 2012
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Fluff Puffs
By Cerespallas
Part one: Forgotten Birthday
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Will he ever come back?
Mikan Sakura, ten-year-old, leaned her body against the wooden door and glanced toward the end of the dorm hall. The wait was long; the soles of her feet were numb. She was bored, and the material of the uniform she had used since the morning started to prickle her back. An hour ago she started wondering if he would ever come home.
But she kept waiting.
After all, a birthday came only once a year.
A faint sound thudded inside the room. Picking up the dull echo, Mikan frowned and turned her head back to the door as it opened. She fell on her rear against the floor; her back hit something behind her. Mikan looked up toward the bony pillar she leaned on.
Natsume stared at her. He was still in his uniform, his hand on the door handle and his hair was nothing more than a mess of raven nest on top of his head.
…I guess he's coming in from the window…
"What are you doing here?" he said.
"Natsume!" She composed herself, braced her body up and stood, turning towards him. She smiled at him. "Happy Birthday!"
The black-haired boy gave her a vacant look and glanced down at his watch.
One A.M.
He pulled his body back and slammed the door close—right on her face—and turned the key to the right until he heard two clicks, ignoring the raw yelp from the pigtail girl. The boy toddled to the bed and dropped his drained body down, landed face first against the sheet.
A second after his head touched the pillow, he fell asleep.
-x-x-x-
Had you ever felt so tired, the whole world seemed to work against you?
I feel like crap.
Natsume jolted awake at six forty five. He sprinted to shower, wore his new uniform, took a glance in the mirror (only to make sure his coo—average face was all right after the night mission, he said to himself) and while cursing Persona in between, he hit his knee on the edge of the cupboard in an effort to check the back of his body in the mirror. Then, on a miserable attempt to hold one of his feet while standing up with another, he hit his head to the same cupboard.
After kicking the guilty cupboard and making sure the bump on the side of his head was covered with his hair, he glanced at the wall clock and cursed when the short needle pointed to seven. Natsume crossed the room and moved outside, to his balcony, and jumped towards the trees that he often used to hop on to reach the class' window.
One way or another, today he ran out of luck. He managed to leap on three branches. The fourth cracked under the boy's weight, removed itself from the tree it's supposed to stick onto, and fell down along with the means of the disjoint.
If only he and the poor branch fell to the ground. Destiny, fate—or whatever you called the goddess who spun the transparent thread that played with human lives—directed them to fall onto the bush. A bush that was proud to call itself Poison Ivy, due to the fact it had the itchiest leaves some unfortunate humans ever experienced. Yelping, Natsume jolted up, threw the branch away and darted towards the infirmary.
Whoever planted that stupid plant would taste his Alice later!
He barged into the infirmary, simply to find that the doctor in charge was not available. He had to break the glass door, attached to a massive wooden cabinet, to obtain his cure. Grabbing the jelly tube and an all-anti-allergic bottle, he ran away to the boys' restroom.
Fifteen minutes later, with a composed feature and calm countenance, he ambled out from the restroom, strolling toward his class with light red— but no longer over irritated—hands inside his pockets.
Sure, the exposed skin itched like hell, but he would not confirm it to anyone. He was Natsume… forever stoic and scary, but cool. Not even yesterday's failed job made him mad.
...Natsume? Being irate over something that was someone else's fault? Like, Persona's fault? You have got to be dreaming.
He entered the class at seven thirty, a second before the bell rang. Everyone was sitting at their rightful position, and as usual he strode toward his seat in the far back.
When he passed by Mikan's chair, he frowned.
Wait a minute…
Something was wrong here.
Natsume seated himself in his chair, ignoring the same old good morning from Sumire. He stared straight at Mikan's back.
She did not greet him!
Natsume glimpsed around, making sure he was not dreaming. Nope. Ruka sat next to him; Hotaru was sitting next to Mikan, ignoring the tattletales from the cheerful girl.
Then why did Mikan not greet him? She had never done that!
Natsume frowned. Was it because of yesterday?
Well, he was exhausted. Considering that day was his birthday and his act was not something he had never done before, Natsume thought it was ridiculous.
Go sulk if you want, Polkadot. He snorted; you will talk to me before lunch anyway.
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…It was lunch time. And she still wouldn't talk to him. In fact, Mikan never came to the Sakura tree where they always ate their lunch together. Natsume sat alone, staring at the sandwich that he bought. He turned his gaze towards the entrance of the garden.
There was no sign of Polkadot. Not her hair, not her pants. Not even her high-pitched-extremely-annoying voice.
Scowling, Natsume stood up and threw his sandwich away as he passed the garbage bin. He travelled into the cafeteria and gazed around the crowded room. But there was no sign of his partner.
He stopped in front of Hotaru's table, where she sat across from Ruka and his rabbit.
...Wait! he thought, I can't just ask where Polkadot is!
Ruka glanced up, smiled and patted the seat next to him while caressing the ear of a white big rabbit that slept on his lap. He sat, failing to see Ruka's eye that winked to Hotaru who gave a slight nod.
Ruka handed Natsume his unopened bottle of chocolate milk. Natsume unscrewed the cap and sipped the milk from the bottle with a straw. He was waiting for one of them to say something about Mikan's whereabouts. But ten minutes passed, and they still ate in silence. Natsume began to wonder if this was what happened if Mikan never entered the school.
The bell rang and Hotaru stood up. So did Ruka, and Natsume was forced to follow them back into the classroom.
Do they know where Polka-dot is? Why don't they tell me, or at least say something about it?
After an hour sitting in the class, listening to the lesson and hoping Ruka would say something about Mikan's whereabouts, Natsume gave up. He turned his head to his benchmate as Misaki-sensei strolled out of their class.
"Ruka… where is Polka?"
"She's in the Mr. Bear's house. Kaname is back. Haven't you heard?"
Kaname? Natsume stared at the ceiling as he leaned his back against the chair. Oh, the doll-maker?
Hotaru ambled towards them after the teacher was out. Ignoring Natsume, she said to Ruka, "Let's go."
Go? Natsume stood up, ready to follow them. Ruka held up a hand, showed him a perplexed expression.
"Mikan wants us to go, not you," Hotaru said. "She said she didn't want you nearby."
…Okay, if Natsume was not considering the fact that almost everyone in there listened to their conversation, he would have jaw-dropped.
But, since he was the stoic and cool Natsume, he shrugged and sat back on his chair.
I swear if I have my hand on that girl, I'll…
Wait. Natsume blinked a few times, stood up, marched to the door and caught up with Ruka and Hotaru in the hall.
"You know what day it is, don't you?" he said, stopping the duo in their steps.
Ruka and Hotaru turned back to stare at him, then Ruka said, "…I know."
Natsume waited.
"We all know what day it is. It's Wednesday," Hotaru said.
Then, without waiting for Natsume's reaction, they walked away. The birthday boy stood dumbfounded in the hallway.
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He lay under the Sakura Tree, arms crossed behind his head. The afternoon sun was striking and the air cold. He shouldn't lie on the grass in this season, but he didn't care for any logical reason at the time.
Is it autumn or is it winter already? How do I know its winter season if there is no snow? Why am I thinking this?
…Whatever.
At this time of the day, Mikan habitually sat beside him, and rambling things, so he would not get bored. But as of now, he couldn't even think about another worse day of his life that could match today.
Even though Natsume wasn't that fond of his own birthday, he never expected Ruka–of all people—would forget his birthday. Even Hotaru... No one in his class said happy birthday to him.
And the only one who did, he closed the door right in front of her face.
Natsume knew he sometimes hoped that he had never been born, but he had never hoped for anyone to not remember that he, too, had been born in one day ten years ago. It was even sadder if the birthday boy remembered what day it was, but no one else did.
Well, one person did remember—
"Natsu…"
Natsume turned his gaze to the right, where he saw Yoichi toddled to him. The three year old sat next to him as Natsume pushed his back up and leaned his body against the tree.
"Hn." Natsume glanced at the toddler. He held a brown paper bag. Realizing Natsume's stare, the toddler opened up the paper bag and showed him a half-eaten Fluff Puffs.
Natsume nodded, knowing how much Yoichi loved the candy. Mikan loved the candy as well.
Wait a minute… Natsume looked at the toddler, who was now busy gobbling the candy.
"Yoichi, what day it is?"
Yoichi looked up and said, "We-nesday."
Oh yeah, he didn't know. "It's also my birthday." Natsume felt better when Yoichi squealed and opened up his small arms to embrace him, even though the melted candy made the shoulder of his uniform sticky.
"Konlatulation!" Yoichi smiled. Natsume nodded.
Well… it's good that you have a birthday greeting. But he congratulated you because you told him.
Now Natsume felt worse. He sighed, looking down to Yoichi who sat on his lap and gobbled his Fluff Puffs.
He made up his mind. The black-haired boy moved Yoichi down from his lap, stood up and said to the toddler, "I'm leaving. Bye."
Yoichi waved goodbye to him as Natsume walked away, before continuing wolfing down his candy.
Natsume checked his wallet. Good, enough money.
He gawked up to the trees and cringed. But the poison ivy didn't create a rash anyway, and he had to leap up to the tree branch, if he was about to sneak out and buy Fluff puffs for Mikan.
She would talk to him again after that, right?
He hopped onto the tree, hoisted himself up and began to leap on the branches, all the way to the outside of the gate. As Black Cat, he knew which path to take if he wanted to sneak out.
Thus began: Natsume's journey for Fluff Puffs.
Or actually: his journey to get a bribe so Polkadot would forgive him.
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Natsume strolled through the streets of Central Town, his eyes glanced around the store. The candy store would be somewhere… right—
Oh, there it was.
He entered 'Rabbit Puffs' store and stopped when he saw the sign:
'OUT OF FLUFF PUFFS'
Scowling, Natsume turned his body and marched out.
Five minutes and one hundred fifty footstep later, Natsume barged into 'Puffy Candies'. He looked up towards the bearded shopkeeper behind the display counter.
"You have Fluff Puffs?" Natsume asked.
The shopkeeper shook his head. "Sorry, we ran out of it a few days ago. A curly haired girl bought it all. You might find it in another store. Do you want another candy?" He waved his hand to the display. "We have Chibi Puffs, Buff Puffs and Kitty Puffs too."
Natsume stared at the display.
Two minutes later, he walked out with a transparent plastic bag filled with two Chibi Puffs for Yoichi. He looked around and wondered where he should go next, when he heard a shout.
"There he is! Capture the Black Cat!"
Damn! Not now!
Natsume sprinted to avoid the group of men-in-black running toward him. However, since he was ten (let us not say the real reason is that his feet are short) and the men were twice his age, they caught up to him.
Natsume took a stride to his side when one of them bent forward to tackle him. He raised his foot to stomp on the instep of one man, and punched the man's nose with his fist when the captor bent down in pain. He stared at another man and in a second, burnt his suit with his Fire Alice. When the said man ran away yelping in flame, Natsume slid the sole of his foot to thud another captor's knee, and thumped the adult's neck with his small elbow when the man fell down to the ground. Leaving the unconscious man, Natsume threw his Flames to the two last men, who was just trying to tackle him down.
When all the damage had been done, the small Black Cat scurried away into a small lane behind the row of stores, leaving his latest victims.
Natsume hid behind a green garbage can while the men ran passing his hiding spot trying to catch up to wherever they thought he was running to. He peeked out, making sure his would-be-kidnappers had gone before he left his hiding spot.
He looked down to his Chibi Puffs and pouted. The candies had been smashed. Being perfectionist that he was, he threw away the puffs into the garbage can. The young boy hiked out from the small lane and continued his mission for Fluff Puffs.
…
Two hours and ten candy store later, Natsume still had not found ANY Fluff Puffs. Not only did they run out of it, it appeared that the rest of them were being bought by a curly haired girl, with a strange attitude and scary laugh. Or so the shopkeepers said.
Natsume crossed his arms and looked up to the sky. He had a good idea who the curly haired girl was. Maybe he should just talk to her and ask for one candy. Although the idea of doing anything in return for her made him squirm.
Natsume was ready to go back to the school, when he spotted a bright coloured poster on the front wall of the store. He studied the poster and nodded to himself. Then he ripped the poster from the wall and tottered away.
The poster said:
'Fluff Puffs are made by a well-known home industry in the fifth street of Central Town. Do you LOVE Fluff Puffs so much? Join us in the work lesson in making Fluff Puffs for one hour and we will give you the candies that you make in return! Children are welcome too!'
Natsume paced towards the fifth street, trying to locate the Fluff Puffs Home Industry.
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To Be Continued
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2012 P.S.: I lost my two edited chapters in my burnt HD. If you see the second chapter in this series sometime later, I overcame my grief. If not, let's just say I'm still mourning and not actually being lazy, given that I don't even remember the plot anymore.