School is a pain. Death is a pain. I really HATE death.

So one of the most important people in the world to me has died recently. So in the middle of a storm of grief, I clear out my semi-satisfactory ideas for a Gakuen Alice story, and land on this AMAZINGone. It's going to be a challenge to complete, because I don't have any idea where it is going yet, and how I'm going to be doing this all while on class board, captian of my field hockey team, and keeping up A's, but I shall try.

Reviews are the key to making me update faster, as I'm sure my more regular readers know. It would help me tons if you were to give me opinion on this story, and what you think of it.

so please, enjoy! Nice to be back on fanfiction again.

Love,

Baby

-x-

Prologue: Unlocked

Fingers, rough with work, messaged a creased forehead. The fingernails were clean, but utterly short, evidence that they were victims of severe chewing. Elbows lay unmoving on the bare mahogany table, empty chairs all around. Except for one.

Seated in the wooden chair with the stern back and the far too comfortable pink cushion was a young woman, younger than twenty-five it would appear with a glance.

In the background, a doorbell rang several times, triggering a wail of disturbance. The woman's eyelids fluttered open, revealing gorgeous olive eyes. Suddenly she didn't seem so young anymore. No, those eyes were aged with terrors only known by her own self. Swallowing, the woman pushed back her chair and walked swiftly out the room, into a hallway.

The hall was decorated with many photos. Almost all of them had the woman in them, though they showed her at an age much younger. They had been taken when her olive eyes were not burdened with secrets.

The others held pictures of mostly a teenaged girl with purple hair, coming just past her waist. The girl's eyes sparkled with a mischievous, wild glint and a smirk could be seen on her face. Another occupant of the photos was a teenaged boy with neatly combed blonde hair. In every one of his photographs, his hair was slicked back with gel and he had on a smile that would woo any dentist.

Two pictures were separated from the rest. They were outlined in gold frames instead of silver, and one had a slightly crack in the outer covering. The first picture was of a newborn baby girl. Her head had just barely wisps of blonde hair and her dark purple eyes were staring widely at the camera, wide and untrusting. The baby girl was slightly flushed, the cream blanket looking exceptionally dark against her pale skin. The second picture was of two children, just barely teenagers, the age of fourteen. They were dressed in black, red, and white sailor style uniforms. The girl, had her hair tied up in two pigtails and was clutching the boy's arm tightly. She was smiling widely at the camera, her grin crooked, but pure. The boy was staring at the camera blankly, but his crimson eyes showed the slightest bit of amusement.

The young woman stopped at the end of the hall, her hand grasping a golden doorknob and flinging it open, gaze hardening on who her eyes fell upon. The man before her was dressed in a black trench coat, his eyes covered by a simple white mask and covered with jewelry. The woman stepped backwards calmly as the man bowed to her in respect.

"Shiro Neko," He drawled out, almost mockingly. The woman sniffed and turned on her foot, walking back down the hallway. The man lifted his head smirking, and walked fully into the house, closing the door behind him and locking it. The man walked down the hallway slowly, absorbing every picture he passed along the way. Finally, he found himself in the dining room, gazing intently at the young woman whose back was turned from him. Her long brown hair was swinging, and the woman herself seemed to be bouncing side to side and murmuring under her breath. "I have never been in your home before."

The woman spun around abruptly, her hands clutching a bundle of blankets. The man blinked, surprised before his face turned blank. "What do you want?" The woman hissed, her olive eyes narrowing with mistrust. "Why are you here? You know I can't work for you anymore I'm all this child has left. I refuse for her to become an orphan."

"You could just send her with me-" He started, but was cut off.

"We have no idea if she is an alice or not. I'm not about to risk her freedom!" The woman proclaimed, rocking the baby back and forth.

"Her parents both had alices. There is a high possibility that she-"

"What do you want?" The woman repeated thickly, her gaze clouding over with anger.

"We have finished searching the Nogi home." The man announced. "Your friend seemed to be working on something that could be the key to winning the war, before… the incident she and her husband were involved in." The woman flinched, but listened on never the less. "We have recovered and perfected it. We need you to use it, right away."

"But I can't!" She exclaimed. "I told you I was done with the war! Done!" Her voice was rising with panic. "There's nothing I can do anymore, my healing abilities only go so far and you know he put a lock on my alices!" Her fist rose and a golden bracelet could be seen, tightened to the woman's fist.

The man strode over to the woman taking her freehand. The woman looked at the man shocked. He could not tell if it was, because of his words or his actions. "Please," He began his voice gentle. Gentler than she had ever heard it before. "Imai-san. Her invention will disable the bracelet for a few seconds. You'll have the power to go back and change. Change what happened to Imai, to Nogi, to Narumi, to Jinno, to Harada, to Ando, to Hijiri to… him." Persona's other hand reached up to caress her skin. "You could change even us. Please, stop this war." The woman leaned involuntarily into his touch, the baby in between them gone oddly quiet, watching the two people in front of her converse. The woman's eyes closed and her forehead rested against the man's, only fifteen years elder than she.

"Okay," She whispered, her breath dancing across both the baby's and the man's skin. The man took the baby from her arms, rocking it gently, and he held over a paper bag.

"Hand this note to my past self." The man instructed. "It will help with a lot." The woman nodded and took a small sliver disk out of the bag, fingering it carefully.

"This is it?" The woman asked nervously, and the man nodded sharply, all traces of kindness gone.

"You should go now, before it is too late to fix." He said quietly. Nodding, the woman slowly placed it on her bracelet, hissing with pain as the bracelet squeezed tightly then loosening greatly, before opening her palm and conjuring up a small flicker of fire. "Go."

The woman looked up from the flame to the baby, to the man. "Keep her safe." She whispered. "Goodbye, Serio." The woman disappeared.

Serio Persona frowned, looking at the spot the woman last stood. "Please don't screw up, Mikan." He said.

-x-

I don't know what posessed me to put Persona in but... this is definetly a NxM! it may have a touch of NXMXP, but it'll end up ultimatly of a NXM! if not, the MxP will be friendship/mentorish.

please, review!

Love,

Baby