Only You

Chapter 1 Another Year

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice nor any characters besides any OC's I develop along the way.

[Authors note: OKAY so I am attempting to redo this fanfic so it isn't so…'dumb'. I am trying to keep it simple (such as no complex wording), follow the same story line as I made before even half of the manga was released, and easy to read. If I get good feedback I will continue to revamp this old fanfic of mine.]

Plastic cups clapped together while the cliques of the classroom got together to chat amongst each other. The casual celebration was interrupted by a brunette laughing manically from the center of the classroom, spilling her drink all over the floor as she bent over to gasp for air. Some fellow classmates turned to watch the humorous sight, but many went back to what they were doing. Everyone knew what would happen next.

BAKA BAKA BAKA!

She was sent into the floor, her laughter quickly being quieted. Above her stood her partner glaring at her fallen form with his flaming, crimson eyes, a frown glued to his hardened features. Next to him was his blonde best friend, showing much concern for the brunette's well-being in his crystal blue eyes.

The brunette whimpered when a body climbed onto her back, keeping her locked with the dirty floor. Keeping the Baka gun firmly pointed to the back of her head, the shooter blew the stray black locks that got into her face away. The shooter didn't remove herself when the brunette tried to roll over and get away. The brunette grunted in discomfort.

"Why did you hit me Hotaru?" She dramatically cried out, turning her head so her cheek laid on the floor instead of her nose. She couldn't see the glint of pure evil flash through her own best friend's eyes.

Pressing her heel into the brunette's back, she grinded it softly, "Keep your obnoxious voice down and I won't have to use force, baka."

Mikan huffed, bucking her friend off so she could roll over and possibly counter-attack the ice queen. However when she rolled over she was too far away for her to reach out to. She slinked back down to pout. Her night of having fun had now diminished into a dull headache she'd have to deal with for a few days allow with a few bruises she'd have to mend to. Hotaru really knew how to ruin a good time. "So mean…"

Natsume had already left the scene, non-amused by the display of child play between the two girls. Ruka watched as he set up his usual spot in the back of the room and leaned his body back against the bench to snooze. He'd be no help. Plopping down to sit on the back of his heels, Ruka eyed the spunky girl who had settled upon the classroom's floor in a depressed mess. Pushing away the butterfly flaps that appeared in his stomach he nervously touched her forehead to get her attention. "You better get up before sensei comes back and wonders why you are on the floor." When Mikan's chocolate eyes met his he felt that familiar tug in his already pounding heart. He could swear he was already flushing brightly in unnecessary embarrassment. After being around her for the few years she had been at the academy he should have gotten used to her girly charms she didn't know she emitted.

He was right; she didn't want to start another battle with her best friend by having their teacher investigate. Sitting up, Mikan nodded slowly putting a palm against her throbbing head. Offering his hand, Ruka waited for Mikan to grasp his and pull her up right. Getting to her feet Mikan dusted off her skirt and top, letting Ruka wipe away dirt that was smudged on her face.

Rolling her fingers over her tender temples, Mikan flashed a quick thankful smile to her blonde friend. "Thanks Ruka-pyon."

"Anytime." He replied back, smiling himself. Hers was so damn infectious. He watched as she slipped away to go join Anna and Nonoko's group rounded in the corner. As for himself, he decided to join the fire caster who was very much alone in the back of the room.

"Mikan are you okay?" Anna asked the brunette worriedly, scanning over her head for any noticeable injuries.

Rolling her head back, she felt a few vertebrae snap. Almost instantly the pain died down to a dull throb in the front of her noggin. She could feel her mood lift in relief. "Of course I am! My head is pretty tough." She emphasized 'tough' by bumping the side of her head with her knuckles. The group winced in unison. "How are you guys doing?" She asked, glancing over her friends with her usual smile.

Picking his cup up off of the nearest desk, Yuu raised it up a bit and grinned at the nullifier. "Just fine Mikan." Anna and Nonoko agreed with a nod, sipping on their own drinks.

Mikan was relieved to hear that her preparations with Permy earlier had turned out well. She wasn't too sure how everyone would react to their minimal decoration and customary treats. Her grin grew wider when she noticed others casually drinking the punch she made. For once she must have done something correct! Her mood was diapered when her skull began to sting and pulse. Putting her fingers back to her temples, she rubbed circles into her skin.

"Mikan, if you need a pain reliever I have some all-natural in my dorm room. Do you want me to go get you some?" Nonoko asked, frowning at her friend's obvious pain.

Mikan put her hand up to silence the chemist, keeping the other to her head. "No, no it's okay. I can go get some from my room." She wouldn't be in this particular predicament if a certain "best friend" hadn't hit her so hard. She couldn't stop giving the inventor an icy glare that stood peacefully by the dessert table. She'd have her revenge… possibly a killer hug or a sweet song she composed herself…

Anna and Nonoko looked at each other in concern before glancing over at Yuu. The illusionist shrugged, watching as Mikan gave Hotaru the evil eye. "Are you sure Mikan, you seem to be in a lot of pain…"

The dorms weren't that far away and it was a road she traveled on every day. Surely she was capable of getting to her own room just fine. It was warming that her friends were actually worried for her. Giving the three a small smile, Mikan waved her hand at their words, "This isn't the worse injury Hotaru inflicted on me! I'll be back in a few minutes." With that the young nullifier exited the classroom, careful to not draw any attention of the rest of her classmates. She didn't need to be scolded by Permy by leaving the party she organized. Maneuvering down the darkened hallway, Mikan bounced down the stairs and retrieved her winter coat from the coat closet. Winter was in full bloom only being about five degrees with a freezing wind chill making it below zero. Preparing herself to be hit by the sudden cold, Mikan shoved her hands into her pockets and pushed the door with her shoulder. As soon as the freezing weather hit her cheeks she felt her frame freeze and shiver. She could have cursed, but she didn't dare to expose her teeth to the blistering winds.

It didn't take long to reach the elementary school dorms with her running as fast as she could. Slamming the doors open Mikan threw herself into the warmth of the corridor and panted for air.

"Are you alright Sakura-san?"

Mikan turned to the familiar robot stationed at the dorm, Takahashi. She was lucky that she wasn't being questioned or scolded by the mother- figure-robot who seemed to always bug into her business. Straightening herself up, Mikan nodded. "Of course. Just back to pick something up and I'll be back off to the school." Relief washed over her when Takahashi told her to stay safe and be back before two am. As she wheeled off, Mikan climbed the staircase and made it to her attic room. Digging through her dresser, she easily came upon a bottle of pain reliever pills Nonoko had made for her prior. Opening the cap, Mikan popped two small balls out and threw them into her mouth. They quickly dissolved into nothing and left a fresh minty after taste. Putting the bottle back under her socks, Mikan left her room and hurriedly scurried back to the elementary school.

Halfway there her pain melted away into nothing, making Mikan sigh. Now she could enjoy a night of pure fun and celebration without any problems. Stepping through the tracks she had made with her boots earlier the nullifier let her mind wander in revenge plots against her best friend. She jumped when her boot suddenly crunched something. Leaping away to investigate she was dishearten to see that she had accidently squished a flower that had sprung up from the thin blanket of snow. She frowned and knelt down to get a closer look. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to." Attempting to magically bring it back to life Mikan straightened its bent stem, hoping its stay that way. Unfortunately when she pulled her hands away it fell back to the snow below. Her refreshed feeling turned into despair when she thought of killing such a pretty flower. She wondered if this is how a murderer felt. Surely by tomorrow its purple color would be faded and its stem would be dead. After not much thought, Mikan decided to pick it and bring it back to the classroom. Maybe it could also enjoy the party they were having.

Gently putting her fingers at the lowest of the stem, Mikan pinched and pulled. It didn't seem to break away. Mikan tried over and over but it seemed to just stay put and stretch. Maybe it didn't want to leave its home and go with its killer. Mikan could feel waterfalls of tears come to her lids as her mind played the picture for her in her mind: flower squealing in pain and asking her what it did to deserve such a painful death. Mikan's mouth dropped at the image. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Wrapping her whole hand around the flower, she attempted to use all her force to pull the flower out of the crack in the bricks. Throwing her body back she tugged at the dying flower with all her might, digging her feet into the cement as she pushed backwards. It didn't give way.

Letting her body sling forward, she couldn't help but let her depressed face be known to the world. "Let me take you with me, I swear it will be fun!" She was surprised to see the flower jump at her words. A smile washed away the clouds of gray. "That's right! There is a party in my classroom and they everyone wouldn't mind another guest." It tilted upwards, its petals broadening. "You just have to let me pick you." Mikan pulled again…but this time the flower pulled back. Yelping out in surprise, Mikan was pulled forward roughly, face digging into the freezing snow. "What the hell?" She groaned, instantly pulling her face up from the snow, ready to battle any force that was against her.

Quickly, a chord of some sort wrapped around her legs and ankles, causing her to become partially immobile. Pushing her body up and over, Mikan stared doe eyed at the objects wrapped around her body. The flower waited patiently at the top of the chords, tilted to the side as if to question her. She glared at the flower she tried desperately to save. "This is how you repay your savior…" she drifted off before realizing that she was also indeed the killer. Her face fell flat. "You aren't a normal flower are you?" She watched in amazement as the purple flower closed its petals as disappeared into thin air. "I wonder what that was…" Wiggling in her restraints, Mikan tried to escape its hold. She wasn't surprised to see it actually tighten more than loosen. Sitting on the ground, in a snow, on a freezing night, Mikan was stuck in between the dorms and the school. She could crawl either way and get help or stake it out till someone came across her. Tapping her chin in thought, her mind was made up when the melted water soaked into her coat and skirt. "Looks like I'm crawling." Flopping her front side back down to the ground she pulled herself forward and used her lower body as a caterpillar so she could worm her way back to the school.

When she made it a couple of feet she could feel why some people called her an idiot. Taking a hand and slapping it to her head, Mikan flipped her body back over to look at the chords one last time. It had dawned on her that she lived on Alice Academy property. Nothing on this property was of normal origins. It had to have been made by an alice! Luckily hers could negate other alice's. Focusing on her core, she concentrated on drawing it outwards to extinguish the other opposing forces. It took her a bit to actually draw up her alice, but when it woke it quickly dissipated the chords wrapped around her body. As she got up, she gasped when another chord made an attempt to strike her in the face. Her nullifying ability protected her body, drawing up some type of shield. When the chord struck the shield it dissolved into air. Bringing her hands to her chest Mikan gazed around the area, not sure if anymore would come after her. She blinked when she saw two very distinguishing males standing at a distance from her. Something seemed wrong about their sudden appearance at such an odd time. Mikan stepped back, keeping her eyes glued to the bodies. Maybe it was just paranoia that caused her to believe these men were aimed at her, but she decided she wasn't going to stick around to see if it was true or not.

Turning tail, the nullifier dashed back to the school's doors, keeping her shield up as a barrage of objects came rushing to her form. Shoving the doors open she escaped up the stairs and made a mad dash down the hallway. When she reached her classroom she skidded to a stop and whipped her head around to see if the men or things followed her. Too much of her relief, they didn't. Letting out the breath she held, Mikan nervously lowered her defenses and straightened herself up before walking back into the room. Surely her friends would question her wet attire and messed up hair, but what would she tell them? She couldn't accuse the unknown. Dropping a fist into her other hand she came up with the idea of accusing that creepy flower. Now that deserved negative credit. Glancing over her disheveled appearance once more Mikan slowly made her entrance into the classroom.