Ruka and all the other students in his class are now 13 years old. Which means they are in the Middle School part.

In My Heart, I Have Come To Love You

' I always thought I loved Mikan,' Ruka thought to himself while sitting in class watching his once crush from behind. Mikan no longer wore her hair in pigtails, but now let her hair flow around her shoulders.

"Ruka-pyon!!!" Mikan shouted waving her hand in front of his face," Ruka! Is anyone in there!?!"

"Huh?" Ruka asked looking up at the very hyper, cheerful girl in front of him.

" What's the matter with you? You have been sighing all day and staring out the window," Mikan inquired with a worried expression on her face.

Ruka didn't reply he just looked down at the fizzy white bunny in his lap. Ruka has the Animal Pheromone Alice which makes all the animals go ga-ga over him (that's how I think of it). Hotaru used to blackmail him for it, but lately she just stays quiet and stares at her desk. I mean quieter then the usual Hotaru is.

A soft hand went on Rukas forhead which made him blush a really deep shade of red.

" You're not warm," Mikan said taking her hand off his forhead," So what's the matter then Ruka-pyon?"

" Oh, it's nothing Mikan," a blushing Ruka replied while he stood up to leave," I was just thinking about something thats all. Well, I've got to go check on one of the animals, so see you later!"

"Okay! See you later Ruka- pyon!" Mikan shouted giving her world famous grins. When she saw him go out the door she frowned.

' I may not be the smart like Hotaru or Natsume, but I know when something is wrong,' Mikan thought to herself.

She gathered her books and set off to go in search of the inventor who actually brought her to this school.

Meanwhile...

Hotaru was sitting at her desk in her big and amazing lab, but she wasn't building anything. She was just sitting there looking down at her notebook which she used to brainstorm new ideas. Hotaru had a new idea on an invention, but she didn't work on it. Truth be told, she was really sad and she felt as if her heart was breaking with in her. Yes, the sneaky, blackmailing hotaru had a heart...well at least for now.

See Hotaru had installed a communication system with her parents and other relatives before she left. It is a rather like a pager, but it looked like a large ladybug.

' invention # 236 the Lady Bug Com. This invention is a communicator that can send messages back and forth between people with one. You can type a message on the small keyboard or you can dail the pen code of the other person you want to talk to.'

Anyway, she had just received a message from her aunt that her parents had died in a car wreck. They were on their way home, but a drunk driver hit them head-on...well you get the point.

Hotaru hasn't been herself since then. Now, she sat staring into nothingness. Hotaru never showed her feelings, not even when she was alone by herself. Now though, a crystal-like tear ran a wet line down her pale cheek.

"Hotaru!!!" Mikan shouted banging on the door," Hotaru, are you in there?"

Mikan continued this action for five minutes, but the inventor just sat there. She neither said a word nor did she move from her spot on the seat.

"Huh..That's strange. Usually she heads her after class.Oh well, I'll go ask Yuu if he has seen her," Mikan thought aloud. With that she left to go find Yuu.

"Why..." Hotaru whispered clenching her fist against her skirt, "Why did they have to die?"