Welcome to My World

Property of Nya

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice or parts that may (or may not) be taken from other books

...Chapter 1...

The Beginning

Snowflakes drifted gracefully in the air before they landed on the earth; it was going to be a white Christmas. A white blanket covered everything from gentle slopes to ancient trees to a small village that was the edge of civilization in this particular part of Japan. This village was minuscule compared to other parts of Japan with a population of only 200 people. Well, why is this village so special? one might ask. Well, this village is located at the bottom of a valley and is surrounded by hills and forests in different sizes. And this village also holds a very important secret…

The snow crunched under Mikan Sakura's snow boots as she and best friend, Anna, trudged up a steep hill to for a picnic. The air came out in white puffs as the two girls hiked their way up.

"Anna-chan, do you want me to help you with the basket? It isn't really fair that you have to carry it all the way up," asked the brunette.

"It's ok, we're almost there anyways," replied Anna.

For the next few minutes the girls hiked in comfortable silence; both girls were wrapped up in their own thoughts. It didn't take long before they found the prefect picnic place and started to make their little temporary shelter to shield them from the snow.

When Anna started to unpack their lunch, Mikan turned around to face their village. She breathed in deeply for the cool air helped her clear her mind and organize her jumble of thoughts. Mikan stared at the small little houses, at the colors of the decorative Christmas lights, and at the school that she attended to ever since she was a little girl. Then, her eyes scanned the hills, the trees, the snow; she wanted to remember everything before she left her home, her safe, protected village.

Tears threatened to fall as she went over all of her precious memories in her brain. Was she really going to leave this place just to go to an elite school somewhere in a big city in Japan? Did she really have to go? But Mikan knew it was useless to debate in her brain. She did have to go and asking herself these questions would only make it harder for her to leave.

There was a secret that her village protected for as long as anyone remembered for her village was special: her village produced witches or wizard also known as Alices. Usually Alices would be found out randomly, from all over the world, and sent to Alice Academy without any preparation beforehand or Alices would come from powerful Alice families who would (somehow) always pass on their Alice genes to their next generation. And most importantly, every Alice had a rule, no a law, which they had to follow: all Alices cannot let anyone that is non-Alice to know the secret.

But somehow, her village was different. Everyone in her village knew about these Alices ever since they learned how to talk and everyone in her village knew about the secret that non-Alices were allowed to be let in. Children started preparing to be sent to Alice Academy when they started school. Apparently her village was a special exception to the non-Alice rule and she didn't know why.

All the children in her village went through a… special educational program. In addition to the usual mathematic, physical ed, socials, science, and English courses, they also started learning about the history of magic, famous wizards and witches, types of spells, and so on. "Elementary school" was called pre-A school (which was short for pre-Alice school) was for students who aged from 5-15. At the end of the year, in December when most of the students have turned 15, Alice Academy would start sending out letters for Alices all over the world.

And she was chosen as one of the many new Alices to go to the academy which basically means that she had to leave her village before the end of December since Alice Academy has a funky school year that starts in January.

Her train ticket to AA was on the day after tomorrow, on the 15th of December. She would have to leave her safe, homey village tomorrow morning to hike up to the bus stop and bus 24 hours all the way to Tokyo train station where she would then board a train to enter the world of magic. It wasn't as if she didn't like magic or whatever. It was just the fact that she had to leave her village and wonder out into the big, dangerous world that made her a bit reluctant to go.

It wasn't easy for her to leave the world she had known all her life is it?

Mikan sighed and then mentally scolded herself for being slightly depressed. It could be worse, she thought. At least Anna was also accepted to Alice Academy.

This year, two out of the five 15 year olds had been chosen to go to Alice Academy: Mikan and Anna. The fact that Anna was also going to go to Alice Academy with her made her feel much, much better. At least her BFF ever since forever was going to be there when they're going to face unfamiliar buildings and faces; it was a small relief that lifted a lot of pressure off her shoulders.

"Mikan-chan, lunch is ready," Anna called as she walked towards Mikan. There was a slight moment of silence as the two friends peered down onto the small village underneath them. "Can you believe that we're going to leave this place tomorrow?" the pink haired girl whispered.

"I'm really going to miss our little sanctuary," the brunette replied.

Anna sniffed sadly as they both memorized the view before them and started eating lunch while talking about tomorrow's journey.

-

Welcome…

-

To My World

-

Before the sun rose the next day, Mikan was shook roughly, pulling her out of her delicious dream of eating a humungous, pink ball of cotton candy.

Grumpy and half awake she yelled a sleepy "two more minutes" to whoever that was trying to wake her up. Geez, do they even know how early it is? Mikan thought as she pulled the blanket up over her head in an attempt to block out the annoying shouting in her ear.

"Mikan! Get UP!" the voice shouted.

An "uhhnn" followed by a soft snore was the reply.

The owner of the voice sighed angrily before giving up in defeat. "Anna-chan, do you know a way that would successfully get my granddaughter out of bed?" the voice asked.

"Yep, I was prepared for this," answered another voice.

After a few moments, footsteps approached followed by a loud Splash was heard.

Then, the blockheaded brunette snapped opens her eyes to scream at her best friend. "Anna, what was that for!? I was going to get up in two minutes!"

Anna giggled a bit before saying, "Mikan-chan, you should really look in the mirror right now!"

True, the brunette defiantly looked like a mess with wrinkled, soaked PJs and a bird nest of brown hair sticking out in every direction.

"MIKAN, DO YOU KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS?" shouted a distressed, not to mention angry, grandpa.

The brunette widened her eyes with realization and became a blur in the room as she tried to brush her hair, wash her face, brush her teeth, do some last minute packing, and everything else before she could be late.

When the bathroom door slammed when Mikan went to change, Anna said, "I was pretty sure that we wouldn't be late. Mikan's really good with multi-tasking."

Jii-chan glanced at the bathroom door and at the pink-haired girl who was making her way to the dining room and thought I really hope they survive on their own.

-

-

-

"Jii-chan, don't forget that the chicken in the fridge will go bad tomorrow so be sure to eat it today, and I just went grocery shopping yesterday before Mikan and I went on our little picnic so you don't have to worry about grocery shopping," said Anna as she talked to Mikan's Jii-chan. They had hiked all the way up the hills surrounding their small valley and the hired bus for Alice students should be arriving shortly.

It was a sad day for Anna; there were so many good byes: to her classmates and friends and family. It had taken a lot of will power in order not to cry in front of her parents when they had said their good-byes back in the village. Only Jii-chan and some of the stronger, young men had hiked up the hill with them in order to help the two girls carry their luggage. Anna had insisted that her parents shouldn't come up and see her off because there would be too many people up and her parents were busy teachers… and the fact that it would make it that much harder for her not to cry.

Mikan's Jii-chan had practically been her Jii-cahn as well. She had known him all her life just like she had known Mikan all her life. She never knew her real grandparents but she never felt that she needed them all that much anyways.

Everyone in the village was so close with each other; it was like a big family. For as long as she can remember, she always imagined that Mikan was her sister and Mikan's Jii-chan was her Jii-chan as well.

There wasn't a day in her life that she didn't thank God that she was just so lucky.

Jii-chan sniffed and gathered the two girls in his embrace. "I can't believe that my two granddaughters are finally leaving the nest," he said.

"Aww, Jii-chan, you make it sound as if we're never going to come back," Mikan said with a small grin.

"Don't worry, we'll mail letters to everyone as soon as we get to Alice Academy and we'll write frequently," Anna said.

"And we'll have an owl delivering our letters! Won't that be wicked? Anna and I have been saving up money ever since we were little girls to buy an owl!"

Jii-chan sighed and smiled sadly. "My grandchildren are finally all grown up. It'll take a while for this old fellow to get used to your absences but don't worry about me; everything will be just fine."

"We know!" chorused Mikan and Anna. Then they looked at each other and smiled.

It was really comforting that Mikan was going to be with her every step of the way on this adventurous journey.

The soft rumble of the bus came into year shot as a sleek, two deckered bus came into view.

"Wow, I didn't know that the bus was this big," gasped Anna.

"Well, we'd better get used to it Anna," said Mikan. "Remember that we're witches now going to this wickedly awesome elite school."

The two gave their final good byes to Jii-chan and their neighbours and waved cheerfully to the small crowd before getting on the bus.

The inside was like nothing that Anna had ever seen and she felt that Mikan was amazed by the bus too. The inside looked so much better then the outside with a red rug covering the floor and matching spacious, red seats with a small tables in front of them. The bus driver was a beautiful young woman who was probably in her mid twenties.

"Hello, welcome aboard the AA Special Line that will take you directly to the Central Tokyo Train Station where you would be riding the 7th line that will take you directly to Gakuen Alice or Alice Academy," the woman said in a casual voice.

"I'll be dropping all the Alices off after we pick everyone else up and we should get to the train station tomorrow at around 11:30. The bus has two levels and all luggages should be put at the back of the bus. Each floor should contain a small bathroom and beside each row of seats should be a small fridge that will restock itself if it is ever empty.

"This bus is equipped with special seasonal tires so we would not be stuck or jammed or out of control so you don't have to be nervous of any kind of dangerous weather. I hope you enjoy this trip," she finished and started to close the bus doors behind them.

"Hey Anna, can we go to the top floor of the bus? I've never ridden at the top before!" Mikan whispered to her and she nodded. To tell the truth, Anna was starting to get exited about going to Gakuen Alice. The sorrowful good-bye mood was wearing off, being replaced by excitement. Anna couldn't wait to see this Alice Academy.

Slowly, the girls dragged/carried their bags and suitcases and crawled up the stairs to the second floor of the bus which was the exact same as the first floor with all the redness.

Then, the lugged their stuff and placed it gratefully at the end of the bus.

I thought I packed too much stuff. But I don't know what I would do without my mom's cauldron. It was just too useful to leave behind! And besides, I didn't bring my other pots and I can save some money now that I don't have to buy a new cauldron.

Mikan sighed and said "I guess we're not exactly light packers."

Anna giggled, "Guess not."

Then the two girls sat down at a empty row and started to chat away.

-

-

-

Sumire Shouda was not happy at all. In fact, not happy barely started to describe her feelings. She was fricking angry, annoyed, embarrassed and totally miserable as can be. This was totally NOT her day as she waited for the Alice Academy bus to pick her up at 9 o'clock in the morning. Not only was she waiting and standing out in the cold chilly morning, she didn't get enough beauty sleep today and not to mention that she had accidentally broke a nail and didn't have enough time to fix it before her father had hollered at her to go out and wait for the bus because she was going to be late and that would give the Shouda name a black mark.

On top of that, the bus was late, she had the most annoying savants carrying her luggage (they were either yapping away at the stupidest things or they would be trying to please her therefore annoying her to no end) AND she was didn't finish her 'back-to-school' wardrobe at all since her father had told her too much clothes were not necessary since she would either be wearing their school uniform or her witch's robe and hat.

AND her witch robe and hat had looked hideous next to her more elegant and extravagant clothing.

Now she was complaining in her head and the bus was… (she checked her 500 000 yen famous brand watch) 5 minutes late. This was totally not her day as she rubbed her temples in an annoyed way.

It was so unfair that the Shouda heiress had to wait for the AA bus when she could be in her comfortable limo speeding down to the Tokyo train station right now. But noooo, her father had again insisted against his daughter's wishes saying that the servants would get suspicious or something and that riding the AA bus would be the best choice to get to the train station not to mention the fact that she would meet new friends on the bus while they go around the world to pick up other Alices. And blah, blah, blah…

Sumire was breathing in and out deeply in order not to shriek in frustration. The Shoudas could be considered a powerful Alice family in the world of magic. Although many other families were much more powerful and rich, the Shoudas have always considered themselves to be the category of the higher and noble class.

And it was just disgraceful and embarrassing that the Shouda heiress had to wait for the Alice Academy bus like a commoner Alice. She shuddered and hoped that the Alices that were on the bus would be… civilized and hope that they would not dirty her air.

Anyways if some of her more snobby, non-Alice friends found out that she was on the bus with civilians who was probably more poor then them, she would hear no end to their teasing and mockery.

Come to think of it, were they even her friends?

Oh well, she was leaving them anyways so it really didn't matter. But what if some of the more powerful families found out that she got to AA on a bus instead of a limo, she would be so embarrassed!

The bus finally came into view and Sumire checked her silver watch again. It was 7 minutes late. It's really disgraceful to let the Shouda heiress to wait! Sumire thought.

When the bus door opened, she was just to enter the bus when one of her annoying servants also tried to get on the bus to relieve herself of the death weights of her mistress' bags.

Sumire glared daggers at the girl who almost crashed into her a few moments ago. "Did you not remember that the mistress always goes first and the servants go after her?" she asked in a freezing voice.

The girl whimpered at the glare and the tone of voice as she stepped down from the bus and cleared the way for her mistress who continued to glare at her through narrowed eyes.

"Be thankful you're not going to get fired for that but if this happens again when I come back, you're going to suffer," Sumire whispered to the girl as she climbed into the bus. Sumire headed straight for the stairs that would lead her to the second floor of the bus after she heard the little speech the driver made and after she made sure that all her luggage was carried to the back of the bus on the first floor of the bus.

When she got upstairs, she looked at the Alices with a small frown as she examined some of the students.

What is up with that guy chewing that piece of gum? Can't he just stop his twitching eye? And did that girl just glare at me? Sheesh, it wasn't as if I was doing something wrong. What is you problem girl?

She scanned the room with distaste until her thoughts were interrupted by a 'Hi' on her left side. Sumire's eyes dropped the pretty brunette who had greeted her. The brunette sat in a lazy position and stared at Sumire with her chocolate orbs. Sumire quickly glanced at her fashion style: worn out runners and black jeanes with a white tee and a somewhat matching hoodie and a winter jacket beside her... it's acceptable Sumire thought. Then she glanced at the pink-haired girl beside the brunette who was dressed in a more fashionable style with boots, black, stetchy pants. Normally, she wouldn't approve of weird hair colors but the pink hair really suited that girl.

Then, Sumire sighed with relief as she thought that these two girls had passed all her tests and now, she had two people that were possible for her to be friends with.

"Hey," Sumire finally replied in a cool voice.

The pink-haired girl grinned and said "Nice to meet you, my name is Anna Umenomiya and this is Mikan Sakura," and she made a gesture at the brunette beside her. "Would you like to sit with us for the rest of the trip?" she asked.

Sumire gave them a small smile. "I'd love to," she replied. "Sumire Shouda's the name," she told them as she sat down on the empty seat across from the two girls and thought that this trip might not be so bad after all.

------

Author's note: Merry Christmas everyone!! I guess I'm a bit crazy with new stories and that I should probably start updating my old stories instead of starting a new one but I CAN'T HELP IT!! I really had to get this plot out of my head and I worked on this chapter for the longest time coz I wanted to make sure that everything goes PURRRfect.

Now you can criticize me when you leave a review?