Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara! and never will. This is a story I wrote just for fun because I am a fan of Shugo Chara!.

A/N: Let me just warn you now: If you're an avid Amuto shipper and hates anyone who even so much as has a different opinion on the ship, this is not the story for you. Close out of this story now if you know you'll get upset.

Well, this is a story I originally wrote when I was thirteen, and now this is the revised version. I haven't watched the Shugo Chara! anime in years, so I hope everyone here is in character. XD

I had no idea what time period in canon this is supposed to take place while writing this, but I think it would be best fitting if it took place about a year or so after the anime series ends. This story also contains my fairly unpopular opinions about Amuto. (Key word: opinion.)

Meh. I'll leave the rest of my rambling for after the story. Enjoy~

Moving On

"Ikuto," Yoru purred anxiously, gazing at me with concern in his large, yellow eyes, "are you sure you're okay, nya?"

I stared straight ahead at the endless turquoise sky, focusing on the view from the rooftop of the high school instead of my Guardian Character's gaze. "Yeah," I lied. "I'm fine."

Saying that was surprisingly easy, but in all honestly, I wasn't fine. The girl I loved had chosen someone else, so how could I be okay?

The only subject on my mind was her. Her soft pink hair, her bright yellow eyes that shone like the sun, her kind and innocent smile.

Her name was Amu Hinamori, and falling for her in the first place was a mistake.

She was now in middle school, but when I met her, she was only a fifth grader at Seiyo Elementary. At the time, I was still employed by Easter and was assigned the task of stealing her then unhatched Guardian Eggs. She was nothing more than a target, a little kid whose Eggs I had to take.

The age difference between us, and the fact that I was considered her enemy—two glaringly obvious reasons as to why our relationship could never work out. But of course, that didn't stop me from slowly falling in love with her kind heart, and her golden eyes, and the way she was so fun to tease…

Another problem between us was the Kiddy King—er, Tadase Hotori. She always had a thing for him, and I was aware of it from the start. And I was aware of Tadase's growing feelings for her, as well. But this interference didn't stop me, either.

Flirting with Amu to get on the little boy's nerves became a fun little game for me, and a part of me hoped that it would help turn her feelings in my favor. My efforts were in vain, though; no matter what I did, she was still fixated on the Kiddy King.

For the longest time, I couldn't figure out what she saw in him. He was just a scrawny, whiny little kid who thought his puny little staff could hurt me.

...But pushing aside my grudge, I could see why she would love him: he was kind, cared for everyone around him, and was a proper gentleman. He even respected Amu enough to ask her permission for him to fall in love with her.

Unlike me, I realized, who came on too strong and sexually harassed her for fun…

"Ikuto…?"

My mind pieced every fact I had pondered on together. I knew falling for Amu was a bad idea. The significant age difference was an issue, as was my attitude toward her.

She would want someone closer to her own age, who respected her and actually had a more personal connection with her.

"Ikuto?"

The last words Amu had said to me ran through my head: "I think I know who I truly love now." Though my exterior didn't show it at the time, that statement shattered my heart. Thinking about it now still caused a stinging pain in my chest…

But it was bearable. Because I knew she was talking about Tadase, and he made her happy—happier than I possibly ever could have made her.

"Ikuto!"

Of course, my feelings for Amu still remained. I could clearly feel them. And the pain from her rejection lingered, though not as intensely.

Amu is happy, I told myself, finding comfort in the realization. And if I truly love her, then—

"Ikuuutooo!"

I flinched as my cat-like Guardian Character suddenly appeared right in front of my face, shrieking my name like a house cat demanding attention from its owner.

"What is it, Yoru?"

Yoru sighed. "You were spaced out for about ten minutes, nya. I tried getting your attention, but you didn't seem to hear me…"

"O-oh... Sorry about that. I didn't mean to worry you."

"So, nyaa…" he began, fidgeting nervously with his dark blue paws as he moved to perch atop my head. "You starting to feel better about this whole Amu thing…?"

I hesitated for a moment before answering. "Yeah. I think I am. I gave it some thought, and I think it's time I move on from her. She's happy, anyway."

My Guardian Character purred happily. "Good! No point in dwelling on it, nya. You gotta move forward and face the future!"

His optimism was surprisingly uplifting, and I couldn't help but smile. "You're right, Yoru…"

"Alright! For your first step toward moving on, how about we go find some fish? I'm starving!"

Of course he's just thinking about food… With a low chuckle, I took a step toward the edge of the rooftop. "Alright…"

Finding food for Yoru and I was my current priority, and it was the subject that conquered my mind as I hopped down from the roof and drifted to the asphalt below, crouching as my feet touched down on the ground.

A sudden scream then tore my attention away from that.

My eyes snapped upward in confusion, facing the source. Standing just a few feet away was a girl not much younger than me, with platinum blonde hair and light blue eyes that were wide with shock. I didn't even notice her presence before. That didn't really surprise me, though, considering my thoughts had been elsewhere and affected my observation skills.

"Oh. Sorry… I didn't see you there." I stared at the girl as she calmed herself down. She seemed achingly familiar, but I couldn't figure out where I had met her before…

As I tried to remember, she looked up at me with a puzzled expression.

"Ikuto… Tsukiyomi?"

Her red-haired, purple-dress-clad Guardian Character peeked out from behind her.

Suddenly, it clicked. She once worked for Easter, around the same time that my stepfather was manipulating me through my violin in his desperate attempt to find the Embryo.

"Oh." I paused, trying to match a name to her face. "Lulu, right…?"

Her lips curled into a smirk. "Oh~? So you remember my name, after all this time?" Though it was subtle, I could hear her French accent as she spoke in my native tongue. It was… actually kinda cute.

"Yeah. I don't think we really talked much back when we worked for Easter."

"No, but I did save you once, ya know!" The adorable smile still displayed on her face, Lulu wagged a stiff finger at me.

Memories of the World Music Fair—from a time that I wished to forget and tried my hardest to suppress into the back of my mind—came flooding back. Though it wasn't for long, she managed to help me escape from Easter way back then.

"Oh, yeah, you did…" I remembered back to how grateful I was for her actions, but then guilt quickly washed over me. "I don't think I ever thanked you for that…"

"Nope," she replied. "But it's not necessary. I just couldn't let you find the Embryo before I did! Speaking of which, did Easter ever manage to get their hands on it?"

I chuckled slightly. "No, they didn't. They've actually discontinued their search for the Embryo altogether."

"That's great!" Lulu's Guardian Character suddenly piped in with her grating voice that reminded me of nails on a chalkboard. "Then y'all still have a chance o' findin' it!"

Lulu giggled. "Highly doubtful, Nana. Besides, I don't think I really have much reason to keep searching for it anymore."

For a moment, I became lost in my thoughts. She said she didn't care if I thanked her for saving me that time, but I still feel like I should show her my gratitude in some way… I really do want an excuse to spend more time with her, too…

"Hey," I spoke up, regaining her attention, "there's a new French-style café here in town that just opened up. Would you maybe like to meet up there sometime?"

She blushed slightly. "Wha…? Y-you mean like… a date?"

The edges of my lips twitched upward in a slight smirk. "Sure. If you want it to be one."

"W-w-well… this is so… sudden!" Lulu was giggling hysterically now, covering her crimson face with her hands.

"Well, I feel the need to thank you for what you did for me way back then. So, what do you say?"

Her mouth opened to respond, but only a small squeak came out. She nodded furiously instead, her lips pressed firmly together.

A warm sensation spread from my heart to every other part of my body. It was familiar—the same feeling that when I was around Amu. "Great. Wanna meet there this Tuesday at noon?"

Another eager nod in response.

"It's a date, then. See you there." I started making my way past her, giving her a simple wave as a goodbye.

After making my way around the corner of the building, I heard her Guardian Character squealing, "Wow, Lulu! Ya got yerself a date!"

"Ikuto, nya?" Yoru said, paws digging into my hair. "Why'd you do that just now?"

My wide smile and pleasant feeling of warmth remained as I answered him: "I'm moving on. Now, let's go find you some fish to eat."

The End

A/N: I was honestly a little scared of posting this story, but a part of me just doesn't care.

However, I still don't want hateful reviews on this story. I hope the veterans in the Shugo Chara! fandom has grown up enough to not do such a thing, but after scrolling through the Tadamu tag on Tumblr a bit, I've discovered that apparently not everyone has matured very much.

I'm fine with mature reviews that present their own opinion (i.e., "I understand why you feel this way about Amuto, but here's why I think differently...," etc. etc.). Name-calling, death threats, and hate-filled tangents on why you hate Tadase and why Amu belongs with Ikuto instead, however, won't be tolerated. At all. I may allow guest reviews on my work, but if you try to get away with insulting this story, trust me, I will delete your review faster than you can even post it. :)

Sorry for this little tangent, but I just wanna make it clear that I don't tolerate immaturity. Especially in this fandom.

For anyone who enjoyed this story, please leave a review to let me know your thoughts! :D

~Hayley

Note: Please read the notice on my profile before reviewing. Just as a final warning. :)