Polka...

Polka...

Polka...

Polka!

POLKA!

I gasped awake.

I panted.

No...

No...

NO!

I groaned and rolled off my bed. I got ready.

I went to class.

Her death broke me into pieces.

I want her back.

I want her back.

I want her back!

While walking to the class, I felt dizzy, stumbled, and fell.

I groaned but got up.

I went to class with no more trouble.

I slumped into my seat.

"Are you okay today?" Ruka asked as usual. He was quiet as usual.

Ever since she died, he's been quiet.

Ever since she died, Imai has been murderous and ruthless. Cost-y.

And ever since she died, I've been depressed and clumsy.

I can't pay attention to anything.

"Nn," I grunted in response to his question.

"Can you answer?" he asked.

"... No..." I slurred out.

"Hm. W-Well, I'm sure she'll get off your mind."

"Nn..."

Nowadays, the amount of speaking I used to do seems like I was blabbering on.

I barely talk.

Narumi went on with a boring lecture.

As usual, once in a while, I'd moan.

I told you I couldn't pay attention, right?

I can't even think.

I was quite literally broken to pieces.

My dull orbs just stared in front of me. I probably looked like I was Special Needs.

I was just hurt that badly.

It was the worst death.

Worst...

The fourth bell rang, and I slumped away.

I slowly put food in my mouth and ate.

Polka...

"Natsume? Are..." Ruka sighed, knowing the answer to his question.

After I was finished, I slumped into class.

Then in sixth period, we went to gym.

Ruka just played with his animals.

Hotaru just threw the basket ball in no apparent direction.

When someone placed the ball in my hands, it rolled out.

Lifeless is what I was.

Lifeless...

Then in eighth period -it was Wednesday- I slumped to DA class.

I just stared as Persona rambled on about a new mission.

When he was finished, I slumped away, but Persona caught my arm.

"Use your alice," he instructed.

"..." I just stared in front of me the same way. I let out a weak fire.

"You should be in a normal class now, Natsume."

"Alright..." I slurred out lightly. I then went away.

I slumped on my bed and stared at the ceiling.

I moaned.

Soon enough, I fell asleep.

And went into my usual nightmare.

"Natsume... help..." she said, the lava filling the right side of her body.

"Polka!" I screamed, but I could not move.

"Natsume... I'm DYING. Why won't you help me?"

"Polka! Polka!" I struggled against the odd hold of something invisible.

"Natsume... Natsume... Natsume...

"I NEED YOU. FIND ME, NATSUME. PLEASE. I CAN'T HOLD OUT MUCH LONGER."

And the lava devoured her.

"POLKA!"

I gasped awake.

That one was different.

She never told me to 'find her'.

I groaned and rolled to my other side.

Polka...

Polka...

POLKA...

Burning hot tears streamed my cheeks.

It burned.

I hadn't cried in years.

Just like when she died, the foreign feeling burned wherever it touched.

Polka...

I heard a noise from my window and turned to it.

LETTERS were appearing.

It read:

HELP ME NOW

OR I SHALL TRULY DIE.

NATSUME, I NEED YOU.

PLEASE COME TO ME.

COME TO YOUR SENSES

AND FIND ME.

The words disappeared right after I read them.

Help WHO now?

Who would 'truly' die?

Come to WHO.

And what's with the words 'find me'. It's what POLKA said in my dream.

What is with those words?

The next day, in my dream, Polka was nude, but she had scars everywhere. She was pale.

She looked HORRIBLE.

And she told me to find her.

As soon as I could.

And when I awoke, words once again, appeared.

Today, it read:

LIKE AN ANIMAL SEEKS PREY,

DEATH SEEKS ME.

WHEN THE WOLFS HOWL,

I LAY AND MOVE NO MORE.

NAKED AND BARE,

PALE AND BEATEN,

I LAY WHERE WE MEET.

FIND ME

WHERE MY NAME GROWS.

YOUR HEART CAN GUIDE YOU,

BUT ONLY IF YOU FACE THE TRUTH.

I AM NOT DECEASED, NATSUME.

BUT IF YOU BELIEVE IT,

IT WILL BECOME NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH.

FIND ME,

YOU PERVERTED GROPER BOY.

Wolfs howl...

In the full moon?

Where we meet?

Where their name grows...?

WHO? WHO'S not dead?!

And...

I felt tears stream my face.

Perverted groper boy...

It's what SHE called me.

Polka Dots.

That's when I got it.

Where we meet- the sakura tree- is also where her last name grows.

SHE is dead.

But she isn't?

How?

The body was clear in sight.

It was clearly her!

She isn't dead...?

Who owns the body we found then?

I'll have to find her and ask her.

If it's truly HER that's sending these messages. {Oi, MASSAGES? o.O :P My fingers mess up.}

I quickly got up and scurried away.

To OUR sakura tree.

I found nothing.

I was about to leave when I heard something that sounded...

Like a DOG'S whimper.

Knowing Ruka would probably want me to help the dog, I sighed and looked around.

It whimpered again...

From the sakura leaves.

I looked up and saw something that didn't fit.

Something that looked like SKIN. HUMAN skin.

My heart thumped faster and louder.

Was it her?

Was it HER?!

I climbed up the tree, and all my hopes faded.

It WAS a dog. A tiny little dog with no fur.

ALL the life in my eyes faded.

I took the dog and dropped it on the floor.

I sat in the tree.

How pathetic.

And to think I believed that POLKA could be up here.

She DIED.

We all saw the body.

She is anything but alive.

"Nat..." I heard. "Natsume...?" the voice croaked. I looked behind me and saw polka-dotted panties.

My whole face constricted in something that looked like fear.

POLKA...

I hesitantly tapped the panties and felt the fabric.

It wasn't my mind playing tricks on me.

I picked up the panties and held them in front of me.

I pressed them to my face and breathed in.

It smelled like HER.

Yet it smelled like death.

More tears streamed my cheeks.

By now, I was getting used to the burning feeling they had.

I held them in front of me again and saw words emerge.

THANK YOU.

FINALLY YOU UNDERSTAND.

I'M NOT GONE, NATSUME.

I NEED YOU TO FIND ME.

AND QUICK.

I NEED YOU, NATSUME.

PLEASE, BEFORE WOLVES HOWL,

FIND ME.

The words disappeared, and new ones emerged.

WHERE I LAY

IS DULL.

MY NEXT CLUE

IS ALL BRIGHT.

THOUGH IT'S SMALL,

YOU NEED TO FIND IT.

WITHOUT IT,

ONCE YOU FIND ME,

I WILL NOT LAST.

FIND OUR PROMISE.

FIND THE SMALL THING LEFT

THAT SHOWS OUR DEVOTION.

THAT SHOWS MY GULLIBLENESS.

The words disappeared.

It's bright yet small.

It's their promise. The thing that shows their devotion and her gullible-ness.

What is it?

Her tiny alice stone.

It's the only thing it could be.

But WHERE is it?

More words showed up.

THE PLACE WE FIRST KISSED

IS FILLED WITH MEMORIES.

AFTER THAT DAY,

THE PLACE WAS A MESS.

ALL WAS CLEANED.

BUT SOMETHING LIES THERE.

SOMETHING IMPORTANT.

THE THING I NEED TO SURVIVE SEEING YOU AGAIN.

TOMM HAS MY NEXT CLUE.

Her alice stone, the thing important, is where they first kissed-

The place that the Christmas party was held.

Natsume then traveled to that place, wondering why...

Mikan was giving him CLUES instead of saying it straight.

In the middle of the room, he saw something shine. He ran over and picked it up.

Her alice stone.

'Now what... WHO.

THE F*** IS TOMM?!' his mind hollered.

Growling, he kicked dust and went to the classroom.

It was already eight in the morning.

He slammed the door open, "IMAI!" She turned her head to him. He stomped over.

"WHO. THE F***. IS TOMM."

"Tom?"

"Yes, TOMM. T-o-m-m. Honestly, she's so stupid! Tom is spelled with only one m!" he snarled, and Hotaru raised an eyebrow.

Nonetheless, she answered, "That way of spelling is often used as an abbreviation for tomorrow."

"What?"

Tomm has her next clue...

"So she'll give me the next clue... tomorrow?" he asked himself.

"What are you talking about, Hyuuga?" she asked him.

"D*** it. What's with the darn clues? I thought she was dating someone else..." he muttered to himself. "Wolves howl though... Imai, when is the next full moon?"

"In a couple days."

"HOW many days?!" he growled.

"About two." Natsume's eyes widened.

"I only have that much time?! D***! Why the h*** didn't she contact me sooner?! And by 'tomm', I'll only have one!" he whispered amongst himself, but the silent class heard it all.

"Natsume?" the animal-lover came up. "Why weren't you at school this morning?"

"Polka's making me wander around to find stupid stuff," Natsume replied. "Now then. First her underwear in the sakura tree. Next her alice stone in the Christmas party. I call her by her panties; we kissed in the Christmas party. What will be her next clue?" he muttered to himself. "Alice stone and panties... Shouldn't it be where she is next? Pretty sure... Either that or the reason she's supposedly gonna DIE in two days. Now then, where would Polka lie? Her death... Her death... The place where the body lays!" he exclaimed quietly. "But what if I find her, and I was supposed to get a DIFFERENT clue? And of course, it could be somewhere else like- her room! The attic! And of course, it could easily be where her funeral was! In fact, we should probably have a NEW funeral for the person we mistake as Polka."

"N-Natsume, what are you rambling on about?"

"Hey Ruka, do you think Polka has gotten out of the Academy?"

"Huuuh?"

"Because if she has, she could've gone to her grandfather's. D***. Why the h*** hasn't she been straight? She could've easily said 'find my panties in the sakura tree, find my tiny alice stone in the place where the Christmas party was held, then find my body in wherever it is'! Honestly, the baka."

"Natsume, how on earth can Mikan write on those?"

"Hn?" Natsume said as everyone, including him, turned to Koko. "I dunno, but I'm pretty sure it's her, considering I found her PANTIES in the place that her last name, Sakura, grew and her alice stone in the place we first kissed. I mean, after all, I haven't KISSED anyone else, whether on accident or purpose."

"But the body-"

"Who cares about the body? Obviously, it wasn't her. I plan to ask her who the f*** it was when I find her, and she better not answer with MORE clues 'cause that's just f***ing stupid and annoying."

"Uh..." the mind-reader said, "Well, you should probably also ask her why she's hinting you- the clues are pretty deep."

"Yeah, except for the Christmas kiss one. It's pretty hard to imagine that POLKA is the one giving all these clues. I mean, she's f***ing stupid!"

"Eh?"

"Hm?" Natsume looked where he was looking.

More words... They read:

YOU ANNOYING LITTLE PERVERT,

DON'T INSULT PEOPLE THAT AREN'T THERE.

DON'T TALK ABOUT THE TALK.

IT IS FOR YOU ONLY.

NO ONE CAN KNOW.

IF YOU CAN HELP IT,

TELL NO ONE AT ALL.

PLEASE,

I BEG OF YOU,

THEY CAN'T FIND OUT YET.

OR THE WOLVES WILL HOWL EARLY.

'Why?' Natsume questioned in his mind.

"Fine, but tell me now! Or else I'll only have a day to figure it out!" he screamed.

TRUST ME,

A DAY IS ENOUGH

IF THE WOLVES ARE DESTINED TO KEEP THEIR HOWL.

IF YOU CANNOT FIGURE IT OUT IN THAT TIME,

THE WOLVES WERE DESTINED TO HOWL.

NO ONE CAN FIGHT DESTINY, NATSUME.

EVEN IF I TOLD YOU NOW,

IT WOULD ONLY RESULT IN DISASTER.

THE WOLVES WOULD HOWL EARLY

AS DEATH TAKES ITS DESTINED PREY.

"Polka..." he muttered.

And he kept quiet the rest of the day.

Then when he laid on his bed the next day, words appeared once again on his window.

They read:

DON'T LOOK FORWARD, NATSUME.

YOU CAN'T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS IN THIS,

OR I WILL PERISH.

THE PLACE I LAY IS CONTROLLED.

THE ONE WITH MY NEXT CLUE CAN'T BE CONTROLLED.

YOU MAY WANT TO SNEAK

OR TAKE MY FRIEND WITH YOU.

THE ONE WITH MY CLUE IS WEAKENED BY WATER.

THE ONE YOU MAY WANT TO TAKE WITH YOU HAS A FULL SET OF HAIR,

AND IS MOST POWERFUL IN SHADOWS.

THE ONE WHO HOLDS MY NEXT CLUE

IS FEARED BY MANY AND CREATED BY ONE WHO LIVES MOSTLY IN THE HOSPITAL.

NATSUME, THE ONE WHO HOLDS IT MAY PROTECT IT,

OR IT MAY GIVE YOU IT THE SECOND YOU ASK.

NOW THE THING HE HOLDS IS MY REDEMTION.

BEFORE WE MEET,

YOU MUST LEARN WHAT HAPPENED.

NATSUME, BE CAREFUL.

THIS IS WHAT'S DANGEROUS.

BEFORE CAN BE CALLED LIFE'S LITTLE GAME.

THIS, HOWEVER, DETERMINES WHERE I GO.

THIS CLUE DETERMINES IF I'M SUCKED UP OR NOT.

IT DETERMINES WHO IS TO WATCH OVER ME.

So the one who holds the secret to what happened, he guessed, was someone who is weak at water and is feared by many-

MR. BEAR!

And the friend with a full set of hair and is powerful in shadows is her upperclassman- Tsubasa.

Natsume'd rather go without that jerk.

But what did she mean by the place she lay is CONTROLLED?

Oh well, he can't think about that now.

He ran into the Northern Woods and found Mr. Bear chopping some wood.

"Hey!" he called, and the stuffed bear turned to him. "Do you know what happened to Polka Dots?" His eyes shined.

He stopped chopping wood and went inside.

After a few minutes, he came out with some pieces of paper. He gave the pieces to Natsume and resumed chopping.

Natsume read the papers.

Tasi Tompe

Age 14

Gender Female

Alice Weather

And it had a picture of the same girl they'd found.

It had more irrelevant information like where she was before the academy and such.

I don't know what'll happen to me. I don't really know what's going on.

But this I know- I have to write it down.

Just a few minutes ago, many things went on.

At first I thought it was me, but at a closer look, I realized it wasn't.

It was extremely messy.

I had been wandering around for a walk and had seen a knife. Instinct cut in, and I hid.

I watched from the bushes.

The men were oddly familiar, and I finally recognized it.

Reo. My uncle. Persona.

Persona was the one with the knife.

They said that no one must know.

What no one must know, I don't know.

But they also said that someone needs to take her place.

Who her is, I don't know.

They said the girl was to replace her though.

Persona struck the girl down.

He hurt her so many times, she was less recognizable.

I assumed Reo had brought the girl there.

Wait, did I make a sound? They're turning to where I am!

Oh no!

Ah, this is Mikan Sa

So Mikan had seen the girl's death... and was kidnapped?

And Reo, Persona, and her uncle was in on it.

But where was she now?

Then he saw words lighting up on the paper.

It read:

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED.

NATSUME, I AM LONELY.

BE CAREFUL, NATSUME.

THEY ARE DANGEROUS.

YOU NOW KNOW WHO IS KEEPING ME.

BUT YOU STILL MUST BE CAREFUL.

WHERE YOUR SISTER LAY,

THAT IS CLOSE TO WHERE I AM.

NATSUME, HELP ME.

THE ONE THEY WERE REPLACING,

IT WAS ME.

THEY WANTED NO ONE TO RAISE SUSPICION OF MY WHEREABOUTS.

NATSUME, I DON'T KNOW WHO TO TRUST.

WE CAN'T TRUST ANYONE.

BECAUSE THEY MAY BE A PART, TOO.

THE GIRL'S DEATH WAS BLOODY, NATSUME.

WHERE I LAY IS ALSO BLOODY.

IT'S EERILY SILENT

AND I CAN'T GET OUT.

I NEED YOUR HELP, NATSUME.

PLEASE, WITHOUT ANYONE KNOWING,

SAVE ME.

GOOD-BYE, NATSUME.

THESE MAY BE MY LAST WORDS TO YOU SO

I LOVE BOTH YOU AND HOTARU.

DON'T FORGET ME.

LET DESTINY LIE WHERE IT MAY...

~POLKA DOTS~

Natsume, for the first time since he was three, cried. The tears streamed helplessly.

She didn't think she'd live.

She LOVED him.

"How can I forget you? Stupid Polka Dots..."

So she was kept near his sister.

He took a deep breath and began walking.

To where Mikan was.


He stepped into the hallway where his sister was.

Ignoring the weakened, unconscious girl with a lump in his throat, he looked around the cell. He could see nothing.

Mikan... wasn't here.

But since he was already here, he may as well...

"Aoi?" he said, his husky voice breaking. He reached his hand into the cell and tapped her forehead. He swayed her hair out of her face. "Aoi," he repeated, tapping her face again. "Aoi, wake up." The girl stirred, moaning and opened her eyes.

"Onii-san?" her eyes widened. "What are you doing here?"

"Shh. I just heard that a certain person was near you. Has there been any cellmates around here? Perhaps she was taken away?"

"You didn't come for me...?"

He pressed his lips together, but answered honestly, "Since I was coming, I had planned to visit you after I found the girl. But I can't find her right now, so I disturbed your sleep."

"Oh. Well, I do not believe anyone has come by in quite a while." Seeing her brother's frightened face and pressed lips, she added, "Other than food of course. My needities." He laughed without humor.

Her brother tried to hard for her...

"That isn't a word."

"Brother, you needn't worry of me or hide darkness so I will not get sad. But Onii-san, will you break me out?" He turned darker. She said before he said anything, "It is fine! I know the Academy is hard. You could not hide me or anything."

"Yeah..."

"Well, brother, I wish you luck on your search. But may I ask who this girl is?" He turned away.

"An angel," was all he said, making Aoi even more confused, but before she could ask, he walked away.

Or almost did.

He heard Aoi cry in shock, "Ah!" He turned immediately, only to see bright letters.

They read:

The wolves are howling early, Natsume!

You must hurry, or I will surely perish!

As with a hunt, there is a chance to pry the wolf's fangs away

But you must hurry

Before my blood runs out

Before my body goes cold

Before my heart stops

Natsume, I need you.

OUR tower

Find me.

Now.

Our tower?

So Mikan had been taken away, but...

Their tower? Surely that was where they confessed to each other, but what does that have to do with anything?

Then it hit him-

That's where she was now.

He ran out, Aoi screaming at him from behind, but all in his mind was to save Mikan...

Before the wolves howled early.

He ran to the familiar spot and froze in place.

Naked and bare,

Weaken and weary,

Unconscious and scarred,

Mikan lay...

On a cross.