Opening Note(s): I'm glad I've made some of you laugh... albeit I'm afraid the humor won't be constant 'coz you see, the category here is Romance/Adventure. Don't worry, I'll try to humor you once in a while. ;)

Rules of Abduction
Written by: Snow Sparkle
Chapter II – Lucky Seven

Rule 2: When three was added to four the sum would be seven. Hurts the brains to do simple math, yeah?

"You're going to stay here?" Ruka queried wide-eyed, stumped at Natsume's behavior. When Natsume didn't respond and merely looked at him as if to say Go on! Ruka helped himself observe his best friend, speculating what had possessed Natsume. It wasn't like everyday when the captain refused to get some shore-fun whenever they have the time to spare. Well actually they weren't on the shore to have fun, they were to collect their other crew members.

Believe it or not, their head count were not always three. Not a great addition when it comes with the number yet it was Quality over Quantity. There were other four members of Raven Ridge who have their own distinguishing alice. It was only that they were having a break from work that the original trio members (almost akin to the big bosses albeit Natsume was the head of the head) were left to do all the dirty works. Paradoxical wasn't it?

Testingly, Ruka attacked Natsume's Achilles' heel. "There are restaurants down the dirt road, sure you don't want to come?"

"Yes. I'll stay."

Incredible. What was the force that made Natsume refuse the most tempting temptation?

"We'd done grocery and only few more miles we'd be out of Hame so there'd be more seafood for us."

Aha! So that was why. However, Ruka couldn't give up just yet. He liked dawdling around with Natsume and he needed some break without Hotaru by his side like a guardian devil. "But you kno—"

"Zip up, Nogi." Only one person would call Ruka by his surname and that was Hotaru. "He and Andou had a fight remember? Can't force someone to welcome his antagonist with open arms."

At the mention of the reason, Ruka couldn't help not to roll his eyes. Not again with those two having trivial, paltry and childish arguments. "What was it this time?"

Natsume simply kept fuming around the ship's deck, chewing over their last fight. Having reminded of how Tsubasa Andou sinned to him, he lobbed furiously the poor, pitiful android of Tsubasa that was invented by Hotaru to prevent any unnecessary fistfight among the two. In fact, there was also a Natsume android lying somewhere around the ship for Tsubasa...

"You punk!" he growled darkly at the android, holding it captive with the android's shirt. He wasn't satisfied with the android as his stress and anger reliever, he wanted the real thing and his desire to pound the actual Andou increased when the android merely blinked back at him innocently. "I swear! I'm gonna powder Andou's balls when he get back here!" His glare intensified at the androids another blank look. "For now, since your stupid void face pisses me off, you'd do!" Then he beat the living daylights out it.

Turning his head away from the far too gore scenes, Ruka sighed like a mother then stared at the remaining sane person on the ship. Typical. Left alone with Hotaru again— The human girl with the same expressions as her androids.

Nevertheless as annoying and irritating the feeling might get, he couldn't help his heart skip a beat in anticipation of spending time with her.

He must be crazy.

A sound of creaking wood was the sound Mikan had been aware to when she regained her consciousness. Her eyes were closed but her other senses were starting to cope up with the living.

Her head ached like hell and it was either she lacked sleep or she had abundant of it. Since there was no light offending her eyes that time, she presumed it was that she lacked sleep and that it was only two to three hours since she lost her head into some nice fluffy clouds.

Another creaking sound kept her awake.

"Must be mother..." Mikan muttered half-lethargically and half-indignantly. She kept her eyes shut, hands thrown over her ears to prevent the noise that was snapping her awake. Either that or she was preparing for her mother's prying. "I bet she's gonna berate me about my walking out and send me back forcefully to the freaking ball..." Then with a sadder tone she added, "It isn't like she's here to kiss me goodnight..."

Groaning, she noticed her body was hurting in all places and gradually being aware that she was lying down on a hard floor.

Thinking she'd fallen out of her bed, she'd let her hand meander around her perimeter to grab her sheets only to grab something else.

Mikan blinked slowly and for a moment she thought she wasn't even blinking, as all she saw were obscurity. Was she still sleeping and having a dream? Gradually her vision began to get better to make out silhouettes of boxes, barrels and other cargos yet not better enough to walk without fear of bumping into something. Her option for now was to ponder her situation and hence she helped herself to sit by her elbows at first then by her ankles whilst she shifted her foot behind her.

How on earth did she manage to get there, she had no idea. All of a sudden, a queasy feeling came and she held her head for moral support as if to say Hang on! Was she having amnesia? There was only one way to find out...

"My name's Mikan Sakura. Freshly turned sixteen. Being biased aside, I believe I'm the prettiest girl on earth while O'Hara's the biggest jerk in the whole universe..." Mikan uttered dully, orienting herself. So she remembered the basic facts. Good. Finding her memory of the night would be a walkover.

She stood up but unprepared to the sudden drunken shake of the floor, sending her smacking against the wall. Oh dear, she felt like she was hovering over the air.

Hovering... the word whirled a strange feel of déjà vu.

Last night... last night she walked out from her very own birthday banquet, all thanks to the freaking 'special announcement' of her being engaged. It was utterly atrocious.

Most of Frayland's romantic folktales often told about a young beautiful maiden of the age of sixteen that was set to marry her prince charming. But those were tales! This was reality!

Sixteen was too young of an age to get into the dutiful honeymoon. She was sure as hell knew she didn't want cervix cancer, thankyouverymuch. Heck if O'Hara would be the patient gentleman to wait for his little wife to grow up before touching her— not that she would want to have sex with him if she was past eighteen. But that was beside the point, men were all impatient— specially if we were talking about mangling a girl's body.

Bile rose to Mikan's throat.

Sweet sixteen, hunh?

Now where had that come from? Whoever added the word 'sweet' there must be burned alive (if he/she was still breathing), the way how the medieval witches catch flame under the tormenting vicious circle of wood.

Screw it! She wasn't in the slightest mood to be sweet.

Five days to seven... she reckoned as soon as the recollections of the night flood over her brain cells. She had long ago planned an escape attempt and luckily a crimson-eyed boy came to fulfill her dreams like a genie and just when she needed it— Just the time when she got vocally engaged to O'Hara.

At the span of five or seven days, her mother's unshaken façade would shatter into millions of pieces. Queen Yuka might be cold-hearted but Mikan was still her child and no mother would want her child (specifically her daughter) to get severely hurt. This would be her expression rebellion. If she was lucky, her mother might even cancel the engagement.

That'll be enough for them to find and ponder about the note I left— A jolt of horror and realization interrupted her plan's evaluation.

With shaking fingers, she brought them up into her mouth and nibbled her nails. "I-I never did write a n-note... I was so caught up about escaping that I—"

She shook her head with determination. This was no time for berating herself. "I've got to get out of here. I can't let all these trouble be for naught..."

Afraid she might bump into something if she stood up and walk up-right, she began to slither her way to whatever direction she thought where the exit was. It wasn't too long when she came into an abrupt stop; her right foot was caught into something.

Nonplussed and trepidation rising, her hands skimmed over her aching part at the juncture of her right ankle and lower leg and was staggered to feel a cold metallic object clasped around its perimeter. Attached to the cylindrical steel were chains and quickly she found it tied into a lone rectangular pole.

"What's this?!" she said tetchily, trying to break free as she pulled the chains away from the pole, her legs entrenched on the pole was supporting the pull. Needless to say it was all but a worthless, energy-consuming struggle. Heck, it wasn't like her biceps were bulky... thus she got on to the part where she was good at.

"Hey!! Can you hear me Mister Kidnapper!?"

No response.

"Unfoot me now!"

Still no response.

"Release me, scumbag!!"

Yet another silence.

"I swear, I won't shut—"

"Oh shut up, you sod." Mister Kidnapper, Natsume, replied out of the darkness. Mikan immediately located him only leaning against the pillar where she was chained. "I'm taking a nap here."

"Tough!" was her immediate response, making an annoyed kick on the chains. "Why am I being tied here?"

It took seconds before an answer came. "You're an abductee." he stated the obvious whilst scoffing. "I thought you had brains to compensate for your ugly face?"

If you know anyone who wouldn't be angry if a stranger called her ugly, please do introduce her to Mikan Sakura and me. "What do you mean ugly, git-faced!"

"Exactly." he pointed out wryly and sighed as if talking to her was a waste of time, much to Mikan's confusion. "See? You can't even understand a simple word. What else is the definition of ugly?"

Mikan fumed silently, glaring at him. "That was a rhetorical question, thankyouverymuch. Now I'd appreciate you more if you release me." she said, head on air and pretty much like a demanding, spoilt princess that she never thought that was in her.

He shrugged, nevertheless grinned in slight amusement. "Can't and won't."

"Why?" she persisted, albeit knowing the answer.

"We're on shore. An ample opportunity for a run off."

"I won't escape," A little white lie couldn't hurt... However she was aware how sham her tune sounded so she went on stating a fact to cover up her blunder. "I went with you willingly, didn't I?"

"Like hell you won't. You just did. That was why you noticed those chains."

Mikan's mouth rounded a big O. The kind of face you'd make when you caught your sweetie making-out with your best friend. The betrayed look. "I thought you were taking a nap?"

"Nap. Not sleep. Now shut up."

"Aha!" She snapped her fingers in assumed triumph. Too bad the snap was soundless that Natsume wouldn't appreciate her pathetic endeavor to gloat. "Now that you said it, no way I won't. Release me and I shut up! And I'm telling you, I'm whine like a lost, freaking puppy." Okay, hurting her very own ego was a little hard but so what? The sooner she got out of the place, the better. Then perhaps she could get back here? Well, where the hell should she hide if she had left to leave a note?

"No deal."

Mikan pursed her lips together, thinking of ways to bribe him. Few seconds after, she brightened up after thinking of the bribe and said, "I've got this—"

A golden pocket watch with semi-precious stones dangled right at her eye-level, cut through her mouthblab. "Are you going to bribe me with this pocket watch?"

How he got it and how he knew it was the item Mikan was referring to, was a mystery to a non-scoundrel like her.

"You thief!" she exclaimed as she tried to swat back her timepiece but to no avail. "Get that back!"

"You're very demanding, princess." he said with dark flippancy. He started to inch closer to her, mentally noting her nervy look with a smirk. "I don't think you understand your situation. I am the bad guy here and I can kill you whenever I want."

Mikan pealed her eyes away. He has the way of smirking and threatening people at the same time convincing. "You don't scare me!" she bit back, although it might have done her a little justice if she hadn't squeaked.

"Did I just hear a little mouse squeaking?" He sniffed haughtily. "You're not convincing me. And just so, this is what I can do to you." He again met her eyes and through his index finger came a flame and burnt her stray hair impishly.

Mikan distractedly and jumpily put out the trail of flame that was consuming her hair. When she decided it was all-safe for her now, she glared at him with all her spite. "Bull!"

How the hell he did that, she had a slightest clue.

He could be an Alice— a certain individual that has/have special supernatural ability/s. But she never knew much about them since there were only one out of hundred people that had been blessed with Alice.

Mikan not in the very least, have thought of meeting one and to her misery, it was even her captor.

Maybe she wasn't lucky like she thought she was. Nevertheless you couldn't blame her for saying the next set of words.

"Is that all? Fire?" she contrived a scoff, pretending yet again that she was not intimidated. "Well here's for you to envy; I know Taekwondo, Karate, Judo, Boxing and anything that concerns with martial arts." A lie of course but Natsume needed not to know that. And Natsume needn't not to ask to know she was lying. She was a bad fibber.

She inched farther in case he intended to burn her hair again for her next set of words. "Nevertheless I give you credit. Your power suits you well since you're like Satan himself."

He gave her a bland, humorless grin and tried to close the gap between them just to spite her. "You flatter me."

She grinned back with equal blandness although it was hard to when he was sitting way too close for personal air. "Rules of Courtesy say you should flatter back the person who flattered you. Except that I don't need words. Actions would do." she drawled slowly, crinkling her manacles to give him a hint.

His hand moved slowly and Mikan thought that he was going to release her. However he had seized her jaw, vise-grip, this time no more sham grins and he was glaring at her. "Nice try. As price, let me tell you this, you're interesting, but not that interesting. So you can drop your fantasies of earning your freedom by distracting me with your stupid mind-games." His fingers on her jaw seized further, making Mikan yelp in pain. "Understand?"

She averted her eyes in defiance. "No. My IQ is too low for this."

"Still. Stop these mind games. My IQ's too damn big for you." Just then he was going to crush her jaw further to get the response he wanted, he became distracted with a voice of a furious male character stumping his way towards them.

Promptly, he withdrew his hand and stood up. He seemed to know what was the entire ruckus about that he directed his glare at the location of the door, grinded his teeth and clenched his fist.

Alas! the door whipped open with an atomic bang, consequently allowing some of the moon's light and there stood a guy, two to three years older than Natsume, glaring equally at him with his heliotropic eyes. He was lean with reasonable posture, his hair looked black that night yet it was in fact, a dark shade of cobalt. There was a star tattooed on his right cheek.

"You!" both of the males raged simultaneously.

"How dare you get your dirty ass back into this ship, Starfish!"— Natsume.

"Call me Daredevil, Dirtbag. I'm here to kick your much dirtier and stinky ass."— Tsubasa.

Both parties took a fighting pose. Alice-wise, Natsume wouldn't stand a change against Tsubasa Andou's shadow manipulation. More light, more shadows. Tsubasa, on the other hand, hated taking advantage to his opponent's weakness. If they had to beat the crap out of each other, it must be at something they were mutually good at. Simple arbitrary man-pride logic. Hence every time these two brawl, they never use their alice, just their brute strength.

This time however an addition of two characters stepped into fight ring and stopped Natsume and Tsubasa before they could lunge.

"Stop it Tsubasa! He's our captain!" A brunette girl that resembled an older Mikan and who was near Tsubasa's age restrained him with her two arms sandwiching Tsubasa's limbs.

He didn't struggle under her control yet he did retort. "Who cares Misaki?! He doesn't deserve it!"

"No you don't deserve to serve me!" Natsume barked across, also being restrained by another Misaki.

Mikan gave herself a virtual and actual slap across her cheek to do some reality checking.

Another alice-user... Where the hell was she?

Both Misakis sighed miserably. "Okay, what is it this time that you've fought about?"

"He's a thief!" Natsume kept fuming, pointing an accusing finger at Tsubasa.

"Heck. We're all thieves! Pirates to be exact!" Tsubasa pointed out matter-of-factly.

"Yes we are but stealing something from your shipmate, much less than your captain, is a sin!" Natsume retorted evenly, a smug look on his face.

Misaki narrowed her eyes admonishingly at Tsubasa, taking naturally the captain's point. "What did you steal?" the Misaki holding Tsubasa interrogated in an accusing bad-cop manner.

"I didn't steal! I just took back what was rightfully mine!" was Tsubasa's defense. "Dirtbag over there got it illegally!"

Natsume kicked as long and as hard as he could, as if the wind he kicked would create a hurricane and cut Tsubasa. Either that or he was expecting his leg to lengthen suddenly and clout Tsubasa. "Illegally?! I won fair and square!"

Tsubasa imitated his kick. Intentions too. "Yeah? You think I'm an idiot not to notice you picked something not from your deck?"

"Why would I cheat to someone like you?! You're not actually the hard one to beat! That card merely fell of FROM my deck of cards and I used it!"

"No fair! You lying never-do-well loser!"

"Yeah? Well you're no sportsman!"

"Cut it out!" Hotaru monotonously scolded. "Andou, grow up will you? You're twenty-one still you act like a child and fight with this eighteen-year-old idiot." She glanced briefly at Natsume for indication that he was the eighteen-year-old idiot, earning her a snarl. Tch. Like she cared. "Get back to Natsume what he wanted."

Misaki released him, silently giving Hotaru a Thank You! look. If there was anyone in the ship who could control anyone, it was Hotaru. Mikan was immediately in awe of the girl.

With a bitter and angry scowl, Tsubasa fished out of his pocket a Yugi-Oh card. "You want this?" He beckoned at the Blue Eyes White Dragon card. "I rather tear it apart than to give it to you!" he declared then was on the verge of ripping it when he slumped weakened into the ground and began to whimper with no tears involved. "I-I can't! It's too precious! This has rainbow foil coat!"

Hotaru rolled her eyes. "And the plot thickens." she remarked dryly, as if the whole Yugi-Oh card thing was the story's turning point. "Get over it, dumbass."

"Fine!" Tsubasa snapped, grumpily walking to Natsume, the happy bunny. "Here!"

"Thanks." He grinned patronizingly, making Tsubasa growl but then grinned back after seeing the childishness they made. "I'll make use of this card better than you. Welcome back to the group."

"Hey great!" Mikan suddenly interrupted, a little peeved for them having forgotten about her. "What a touching moment, hunh? Why don't you release me first so I can join the group hug?"

Natsume's glare at her told her he was in no mood for her stupid jokes.

"Who is she?" another boy with dirty blonde hair with a seemingly permanent Cheshire cat like grin said. All heads turned in astonishment at the boy. How long has been there, they had no idea.

"Go figure yourself, Koko. You can read minds." Natsume grouched.

Koko kept his grin up. "Why, I'm humbled of your confidence in me!" He bowed at Mikan lowly. "Hello princess, I'm Koko. Nice to meet you... ah, yes, you don't have to say Nice to meet you too. I heard you the first time you thought of it."

Mikan widened her eyes at the boy. When Natsume said he could read minds he did not meant literally, didn't he?

"It's actually literally." he answered cheekily her unspoken wonder.

"Oh stop it, you're freaking her out." Yet another character appeared, this time a girl with amazing emerald eyes and frilly hair. With a scrutinizing glare, Sumire, the aforementioned girl, walked around Mikan, arms folded in a forged intimidation. "So you're the princess Ruka-kun told us about?" She raised a brow of concealed insecurity. "Well you don't look like a princess to me."

Koko gave Sumire a teasing nudge on her side. "You're the one who's freaking her out."

Sumire easily dismissed him with a conscious elegant flick of her hand.

"This girl doesn't look special to me. Whatever does Persona want of her?"

Mikan huffed indignantly, glaring at Sumire. "Well I'm sorry for being average, bet you can't stand me. So why don't you do us both a favor and set me free!"

"No shit, princess." Natsume eyed her dryly spiting the word 'Princess' as if it was venom.

Mikan mopped silently, tracing the floor pattern. For a moment or two, she reflected how she missed people respecting and being nice to her. This motley crew didn't give a shit of who she was. Was this really what she wanted? Was this what she longed for all her life? Somehow, the answer that was given to her said No! 'Hell no' even.

"She's no alice?" Mikan's ears caught Sumire's conclusion. It seemed that while she was spacing out others were talking about her.

Tsubasa scratched his neck reflectively. "Well Persona's evil dome's more like two weeks away. We should at least make a good use of her."

Natsume nodded stiffly, approaching Mikan and hunkering down her eye-level. "Any talent?"

"Except from the said martial arts no. I think I don't."

"Hobbies?" he ventured.

"Cooking!" a high-pitched Koko responded energetically and avidly. "Mikan-chan can cook!"

All of shock faces turned to Koko then to Mikan. If it was Koko who was talking, then it was quite reliable since he could read minds.

"F-For real?" Misaki couldn't help not to tear. 'Finally someone who can cook!'

Of course Mikan has a talent but she wasn't well aware of it for the reason that she simply saw it as her hobby. Her personal slave was once a cook and taught Mikan the techniques and recipes she knew of whenever her mother was too busy to care for her. Good thing there was Koko to read her mind and exposed her.

Helping the ones who kidnapped her wasn't on her plan but seeing all those puppy faces save for Natsume (who was good in hiding his emotions) and Hotaru (who didn't have emotions in the first place) were shinning with unspoken hope like Mikan was their savior or something... and all that Mikan could do was to smile sheepishly, earnestly nodded.

Perhaps if she got their trust well enough they could feel confident of her dawdling around without the chains and then she could escape.

Yet another plan she had yet to mess up with.

Ending Note(s): — And that is how you lousily end a chapter. Hope you learn so much from me... Sarcasm aside... Yay! Second chapter finished...! I like the first chapter better than this one though. XD For others who don't recognize Yugi-Oh... seriously, you don't? Or was it just a strange dream I had last night that Yugi-Oh was quite famous? It was even released on Shonen Jump. Anyways, go ask your brothers or male colleagues. You could Google it too.

It's review time now. Criticisms are accepted, although I can't say I want to receive them 'coz correction hurts but hey, the pain's good, yeah? It'll do me good... hopefully. XD

Before the curtains close I'd like to thank these following people for their reviews:

QuickStar, rockchic, My Hopeless Romantic, Mistress Symphony, aegyo, KMAC 08, love-love, senhime, dominiqueanne, and rockerfaith.