Prompt: Birthday
Other characters: A little bit of Tsubasa, Iinchou, and Anna.
Other pairings: None.
Notes: As it's stated in the manga, students graduate from Gakuen Alice at the age of twenty. I'm a little unsure whether that means they have two extra years of high school, but I've assumed that to be the case while writing this. Also, ages were never cleared up by the end of the manga, but since Tsubasa is about four years older than Mikan, I'd say he was roughly twenty by the end – and in this fic – which means he has yet to graduate.
Warnings: I forgot to say that these drabbles have no guarantee of being spoiler-free, so if you're not caught up with the manga, I suggest being careful when reading them.
Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to Animefreak2000. Thank you for the prompt! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice or any of its characters.

This coming New Year's, everyone was a little subdued.

Tsubasa gazed at all the forlorn faces in confusion. This certainly wasn't the reception he had expected after reuniting with his underclassmen. At the very least, he'd expected the bubbly bundle of energy that was Mikan to come barreling right into him for a hug, with her stewing boyfriend close behind, but they were both nowhere to be found.

He stopped Tobita in the hall for some much-needed answers. "What's wrong with everyone today? Did Jinno-sensei give back a test?"

The timid class representative shook his head frantically, a little intimidated by the figure caging him into the wall. "N-Nothing like that! It's just...it's hard to be cheerful when Mikan-chan isn't smiling like she always is."

His gaze fell to the ground in dismay, while a passing Anna heaved a sigh so heavy it seemed to sap her body of its soul. Tsubasa watched the entire scene with worry. It made sense that Mikan's mood effected the class so strongly, for her smile was always the one thing that kept everyone from falling apart even in moments of weakness, and over the years, anyone who knew her had become fiercely protective of it. He would march into her classroom himself this instant if she didn't already have a certain fire-caster by her side.

Scratching the back of his head helplessly, Tsubasa could only hope she would return to normal soon.

Must be thinking about Hotaru...

.. ღ ..

That was almost exactly what was running through Natsume's mind as he approached his sullen girlfriend.

The classroom had emptied out long ago with the end of class, but she either did not realize it or simply did not care, because she had yet to move from her seat. That much was strange enough, as she was usually the first one to run out, more than excited to escape the torture that was school. Instead, she had her cheeks cupped with both hands, elbows on the table so she could tilt her head back and gaze aimlessly at the ceiling. Occasionally, a sigh passed through her lips, along with a dazed, glassy look through her eyes.

"Oi, Mikan," he called out to her, taking the seat in front so she had to look him in the eye when her gaze finally left the ceiling. "You want to tell me what's on your mind?"

"Nothing's on my mind," she tried unsuccessfully to end the conversation.

He only snorted. "As much as I'd usually believe that, no one turns the entire classroom into a ghost town with nothing on their mind."

She finally noticed exactly what state their surroundings were in, perhaps for the first time, because her face registered shock at the dreary, desolate classroom around them. "I did this?" When he only gave her a pointed look, with an incredulous raised eyebrow to match, she relented with a sigh. "Oh, all right. I was just thinking that...well, my birthday is coming soon."

"And you think we forgot?" he asked flatly, remembering the last time they had pretended so, simply for the sake of surprise. "Mikan, I'm not going to forget to get you a present–"

"It's not that," she whined. "It's just that now I know it's not my real birthday."

He let that sink in for a moment. It was true. They'd discovered that to be the case four years ago, and now that Mikan's memories had returned, she could finally remember the truth for herself.

"I only celebrate it on New Year's because that's what Jii-chan did, but my real birthday should be some time in May," she went on sullenly, looking up at him with helpless eyes. "What do I do, Natsume? I don't even know when my own birthday is."

He rolled his eyes. "Is that what's eating at you? Just go ask your uncle, or Shiki, if you're that worried about it. If anyone knows, they do. See? The answer was that easy, moron."

She mulled it over in her head. "I guess..." But it was obvious something was still eating away at her. She suddenly refused to meet his eyes any longer, gazing helplessly at her palms instead, and he sighed. Honestly, this girl was so much trouble.

"What now, Polka?" he demanded, reverting back to the old nickname in his irritation. "Someting still bothering you?"

"We-ell." She dragged it out, taking the extra time to peek at him from behind her lashes. "I'm older than you."

The other eyebrow went up. "So? We've always known that."

"B-B-But, the prince has to be older!" she exclaimed, flushing all the way down to her neck but keeping her eyes steadily planted on his face.

"Prince?" he repeated, the word dry on his tongue. His stare was just as flat. "What the hell are you blathering on about now, Polka?"

"The prince in all the fairytales is always older, Natsume," she explained pointedly. "Ever since I was little, I've always dreamed about living in a fairytale and marrying a prince. But the prince has to be older than me! And you're not!"

He folded his arms on the table and leaned forward, so close that their noses almost touched. He heard her sharp intake of breath, so soft that it would have escaped his notice had he not been so close. Neither of them could turn their eyes away from each other's. Finally, Natsume ran a hand roughly through his hair and sighed.

"I never claimed I was a prince, Mikan," he mumbled.

"But you are one," she whispered back, a drizzle of red running across her cheeks. "Don't you remember when I was in that tower, Natsume? When you gave me the fairytale of Rapunzel and promised you'd come back to save me? That's when you became my prince."

That caused him to pause, before he gruffly looked away in his embarrassment. How did she manage to say such sappy, romantic things when even holding his hand was too much for her sometimes? He never quite knew how to respond when she showed him such an affectionate side of her without precedence.

"So now you've decided I'm not your prince anymore because I'm not old enough?" he demanded, still awkward and gruff.

"Of course not!" she retorted, her voice shrill. One look from the corners of his eyes confirmed that her entire face had turned an unhealthy shade of puce. "I-I just meant...well, it's just – ugh, how did talking about my birthday turn into this!"

"You brought it up," he sniped back, but there was no malice in his words. Instead, a smirk graced his lips as he reached over and cradled her hand in his own. If she was back to being the stuttering fool and he was in control, then they had reached familiar territory. "Princes come in all shapes and sizes, Mikan. And ages," he added on for her benefit.

"I-I guess..." she relented unsurely. She certainly didn't want Natsume thinking she no longer considered him her prince, because he most certainly was and always would be – of that much, she was certain.

He rolled his eyes, tugging on her hand to pull them both up. "Let's drop this moronic topic. Only you would talk about something like this, anyway."

"Where are we going?" she asked curiously, allowing him to lead her out, her mood significantly lighter than when she'd walked in that morning. Many of the students in the halls noticed she was no longer so somber, and they all breathed sighs of relief, silently thanking Natsume in their heads.

"To the High School Principal," he replied, "to find out when your real birthday is. Maybe then you won't forget about our study date again."

As Mikan flushed and spluttered apologies to her boyfriend, the fire-caster simply thought back to their conversation, realizing that it bothered him more than he cared to admit. It wouldn't do at all for Mikan to stop looking at him with stars in her eyes; then any older man could simply snatch her away, and he would be cold and dead in his grave before he let anyone take his Mikan.

Somehow, he'd have to teach her that princes and heroes came in all ages.

Perhaps, this coming birthday, he'd present her with the tale of Peter Pan.

A/N: This one took a little longer than I planned for it to, but only because I had trouble with the ending. Still not happy with it, urrggh.

And I keep trying to keep these short, but somehow they still end up 1000-2000 words long. Why can't I ever drabble? ;w;