Disclaimer
I do not own Gakuen Alice and its properties.
Gakuen Alice belongs to Tachibana Higuchi.
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Since this is my first Ruruka fic, please be nice :)
Enjoy!~
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Special thanks to Fuu and Lili-senpai! I love you!
This chapter has been beta-read! Yeey! XDD
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.: 10 Questions : Chapter 1:.
. The Rules .
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One day, in the imperial kingdom, the people were celebrating over the fact that the queen had given birth to twins. Both of them were boys. That time, nobody had ever thought that they would bring a very sad tragedy to the kingdom – or maybe the entire world.
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Far above the sky, behind the collection of white clouds, among the thousands of stars, there was a land named Alice. At the first glance, life here was not much different to the life in the human world, from the people's appearance to the animals. Even food and drinks were the same. However, there was one special thing here; magic. It was not foreign to the community in the land of Alice. Every day they used magic to simplify their daily activities, ranging from transportation magic, the mind-reading magic, cooking magic, shape-shifting magic, and various other magic. In the land of Alice, the Magic was divided into seven main groups, namely Impetium Magic, Pro Magic, Imperium Magic, Commutatio Magic, Tempore Magic, Sanitatem Magic, and Rune Magic. The introduction of these Magics were written inside every Lectio Books that were used to some people to learn more about these Magics.
The names of Magics were taken from a very old and the very first language in Alice; the Sacra Language. Impetium Magic was used to attack something or even somebody, Pro Magic was used to protect yourself or others—generally, if someone mastered Impetium Magic, he/she be would be weak in Pro Magic, and vice versa. Imperium Magic was used to control over somebody's magic powers. Commutatio Magic was used to transform oneself to something different. Tempore Magic was the magic to stop, rewind, or advance the time. Only the direct descendants of the royal empire family could use this Magic. Sanitatem Magic was used, of course, to heal oneself from any physical pain. However, this Magic was unique – it could only be performed in certain situations. Rune Magic; many people said that this was the most difficult Magic to be mastered, because this Magic fused two or more Magics from the other main groups of Magic.
Moreover, to learn, master, and get a license to use these Magics, one must enter Alice Academy; the only school in Alice that gave people lessons about magic. There were three divisions, C Division for children aged one to twelve years old, B Division for children aged thirteen to fifteen years old, and A Division for children aged sixteen to twenty years old. And finally, at the age of twenty-one, one would transform into a full-fledged Wizard.
And thus, our story starts here...
Inside the building of A division, the Top Level Class students, which was a class for children who would undergo the final exam to become an adult Wizard, assembled. They were all now in the biggest hall in the building, which was approximately 500 x 1000 m; the gold-covered wall showed how special this class was. A huge chandelier was hanging over the room. The students filled the hall wearing black coats and their standard uniforms. Most of them repeatedly glanced at the clock, which seemed to move very slow as they bit their lower lip and closed their eyes, clenching their hands and putting them in front of their chests, muttering words that others could not interpret. One thing was certain here: they were worried. Uh, if we observe carefully, some students did not reveal a sense of dismay on their faces.
One of them was Hotaru Imai.
Everybody knew her. How not, look at her. Her amethyst eyes could sink anybody that stared into them, full of serenity and beautiful. Her mysterious aura made her look even more fascinating. Her white skin was like porcelain, adding more charm to her. Smooth, slick short black hair gave the impression of a cool and elegant girl. Although her height could be said an average height of girls in general, it did not stop many eyes from being lead to her. In addition to being beautiful, Hotaru Imai was also a genius. She could understand all the literary works she had read once, and apply it to her inventions. In other words, she was a very young inventor. Unfortunately, she did not always rank number one in her school and she chased Ruka Nogi from the very moment they entered the school together until today. And Hotaru hated this. That was why, other than a pretty face and high intellect, she was also famous for her ability of blackmailing people.
And that was what Ruka Nogi hated about Hotaru Imai.
Ruka Nogi. Almost everyone knew him as a kind-hearted, beautiful boy. True, his physical appearance was no less beautiful than Hotaru's. His blue eyes radiated gentleness and warmth in contrast to the cool and spicy Hotaru. But his eyes were also able to wash away people who look at him. Blonde hair and white skin. Kind to everyone. He was really an ideal prince in fairy tales. He's also skilled at sports, proved by the fact that he became the president in several sports clubs in school. His brain? Without a doubt, proven over the years he and Hotaru always turned to be ranked one and two in their school.
Ruka Nogi was now being surrounded by girls. Striking indeed, he was the only guy among dozens of girls.
"Nogi-san, I'm really scareeeeed ..." A purple-haired girl chirped as she tried to hug Ruka. Other girls did not want to lose; they were all fighting to be able to embrace their dream prince.
"Wh-What are you doing? LET GO OF ME! "Ruka screamed in the crowd of girls, trying to block the hugs from the girls – very crazy girls.
Hope is futile.
Poor, poor Ruka.
Click. Click. Click.
Ruka sculpted. Those voices...
"Imai ..." hissed Ruka when he saw Hotaru.
"Well hey Nogi, say cheese." Hotaru said flatly. The girl genius, somehow, was always managed to keep track of where Ruka was and always there to take a picture of his humiliating moments.
Take a picture.
Sell it.
Or maybe…
Make it a blackmail material.
Making money sure is easy for a Hotaru Imai, huh?
Ruka, with all his strength, finally got out of a crowd of girls who followed him, and immediately headed toward Hotaru, who was holding a camera that was shaped like a mini winged cat. The camera then flew over Hotaru's shoulder, and when Ruka arrived in front of her, he could still hear a 'click, click, click' noise from it.
Roughly, Ruka took the camera cat. He then directed a low-leveled Impetium Magic; and exactly one second before the flame touched the camera, Hotaru took it.
"The hell, Imai. Give me that stupid thing." Ruka said as he tried to take the camera that was now in the hands of Hotaru.
"Oh? How about if I say 'NO', Nogi?" Hotaru said calmly, trying to hide one of her money-makers. Oh please, one photo of him could give her enough money to live for a whole week.
"I'll make you do that." Ruka said, continued to pursue Hotaru, and finally, trapped her against a wall. Ruka then placed both hands on the wall, blocking Hotaru's way to escape. A glimpse of panic was on her face, but she quickly managed to hide it with her calm demeanor.
"How?" Hotaru asked, staring at Ruka's cerulean eyes. Their faces' distance was about five inches… yet they still glared at each other.
They did not realize that the some other students were staring at them with smirks on their faces.
A green-haired girl whispered to the girl next to her, "Told you, they are dating."
The girl beside her replied haltingly, "But they said they are enemies."
The green-haired girl squealed, "Then, why the hell would they flirt with each other?"
The girl's voice was loud enough to snap both Ruka and Hotaru, who immediately sent the deadliest glares to each other, which was enough to make the green haired girl's head dropped and sulked behind her friend's back.
Before Ruka and Hotaru could blame each other again, the only clock in the room chimed, making the students grew even more anxious.
Yes, the top-level students were waiting since eleven, and now, when the clock reached twelve, the test that will determine their fates will begin.
The gates were made of woods with silver carvings; the most striking carvings were the two Pegasi, each flanking one side of the door, which was the symbol of Alice Academy.
The students walked out past the gravel roads with the green grass and flowers that existed since the moment Alice Academy was founded. A cold wind blew but was defeated by the fear of the students. They walked in the form of a single line, passing the pine trees. After ten minutes had passed, they arrived in the middle of the forest. They then stood on either side of a lake. The water reflected the light of the moon in the sky. The moon in the land of Alice appeared larger than in the human world, so it was not surprising that the lake was now shining brightly.
And, amid lakes, there was a very large mirror, with carvings of ancient magic letters of antiquity and diamonds as decorations. A string of top-level magic had surrounded the mirror, forming a thin gold chain.
Not long after, came two famous figures; Izumi Yukihira and Rei Serio, representatives of the World's Greatest Wizard. Both were dressed in contrast. Izumi Yukihira dressed all in white, and Rei Serio dressed all in black. This time, both were serious. They then walked to the side mirror, each on opposite sides, as if to keep each side.
Yukihira then closed his eyes for a moment, and then spoke in a voice that seemed to have given a magic to resonate, "Welcome to the Beginner Wizard Final Examination. I, Yukihira Izumi-sensei, and Rei Serio-sensei will describe some explanation about this test. The first portion, you will work in groups of two people. Determination of the partners will be conducted at random after this. Then, each group is free to determine a human who would become the object of doing the questions that will be given. Those humans will be called Fafa-ue. There are 10 questions in the book that you must answer within one year ahead."
Rei Serio, or as they often called Persona, then continued, "We call Fafa-ue's book as Sasho-ue. And be careful when arriving in the human world, because the first human you see will be the Fafa-ue, whoever she/he is. And while you're there, each one will wear the limiter item, a device to minimize the power of your magic, so that every day you can only use up to three magical powers. In addition, there are 10 questions in Sasho-ue, and individually we will give you people questions too through a limiter which items you have us install communications equipment in it regularly. "
Both Persona and Yukihira looked at each other for a moment before continued, "If you're identity as a Wizard is discovered, except by Fafa-ue, you existence will be exterminated from this world."
Silence.
Not a single sound was heard in the forest. An obviously tense atmosphere filled the woods by now. Even Hotaru and Ruka, who had been sending each other death glares even though they stood side by side, were silent.
Yukihira cleared his throat again, and then start talking again. "All right, partner determination is simple. The last person you talked to is your partner."
Hotaru and Ruka twitched, eyes widened in disbelief. Oh God, this is impossible.
Persona and Yukihira then lift their index fingers toward the top, then collectively utter the spell, "On behalf of Yukihira Izumi and Rei Serio, The Great Wizards, I order you, Verum Magic, show them their partners in the human world."
Then, sure enough, a glance at the little finger of each student was a subtle magic thread shimmering silver, which connected each person to their partners. Some children were thankful for the last time they talked was to their good friends, and some are regretting the last person they are talking was to their enemies, including Ruka Nogi and Hotaru Imai who were now muttering some incoherent words under their breaths.
"This is totally YOUR fault," hissed Hotaru at Ruka who was now looked frustrated. Just imagine, his enemy all throughout the years was his partner in the human world! Everyone except her, he'd agree to be partners with!
"MY fault? Who was it who the last time said, 'Shut up Nogi, they are talking. You are noisy.' huh? And, I would not have fussed if you did not continue to take pictures of me with that damn camera! " shouted Ruka, still glaring at Hotaru.
"And why don't you just shut your mouth, Nogi?" Hotaru shot back.
They glared at each other. Again.
Yukihira cleared his throat, "So, let's start then."
Yukihira and Persona muttered a long spell at the same time, which after some time finally showed the results; the giant mirror was now connected to the human world.
Then, one by one, The Top Level Class students went into the human world for a year with their partners.
~ TBC ~
Well ...? How was that? Please gimme a review and share what do you think bout this story. You know, I do love my reviewers.