Author's note: Thank you guys so much for the reviews. Guest, here is your update and thanks for being my first reviewer. Newroz, good to see you again and thanks so much for your review. I always appreciate them. And other Guest, I loved Fault in our stars and I'm glad you found this story interesting. Also, Latin I chose of what the aliens will speak. I've been using a google translator, so I deeply apologize if I mess up on some of the Latin.
Here's a long chappie for you guys. I will be updating next week, just to let you guys know.
Disclaimer: Don't own Gakuen Alice, Atriens, or Defiance. I just love spending more time with the characters.
Enjoy you guys!
Chapter 2:
The feeling of a big bump jolted me awake in heavy alarm. I rubbed my eyes tiredly and let out a huge yawn. I took a glance outside my window before I felt a gasp get caught in my dry throat. We're on a wooden bridge and below us was a sea of black water. What really caught my eye was a speedy train that glided through the water like a dolphin.
How was that possible? Trains don't glide across the water; it's just unheard of. Where were we anyway?
"Welcome to Alice City, Mikan!" My Uncle Narumi exclaimed excitedly, which brought my dive attention to the front.
Oh. My. Goodness.
The entire city glowed like a twinkling star of the night. It almost reminded me of the American movie I watched called 'Wizard of Oz'. The part where Dorothy was in front of Emerald City and the sizzling, adrenaline she felt by running towards it. The city winked at me like a rabbit coin. It beckoned me to it like a lighthouse; guiding me towards my hidden destiny.
"Can you go faster, Uncle Narumi?!" I asked him while I immensely jumped in my seat like a little kid.
He laughed heartily at my eagerness.
"We're almost there, Mikan, but we have to play this smoothly…" I froze when his tone became serious.
"What do you mean?" I piqued curiously.
"They don't really allow outsiders coming to their city. However, I was born a citizen here, so we probably won't have a problem getting in... I hope." He began to tighten the steering wheel with a hint of anxiety.
Oh. Boy.
When we pulled up to the gate; we both became eerily stilled like mannequins. I heard my Uncle let out a sigh relief when he noticed the guard was a human and a woman through the little window.
How do I put this nicely? You could say my Uncle Narumi was labeled as a ladies man. However, who could blame him, he was a very attractive man. He had shoulder length, blonde hair, with green eyes, and he was tall like a runway model.
He rolled down his tinted window, smiling at the woman flirtatiously.
"Good evening, pretty lady. May I help you?" His voice became thick as honey.
The woman giggled at this as she opened the window. Right at that moment, I knew she was caught under his captivating spell.
She was a total goner.
"I just need to prick your finger. Oh, and also your daughter... I presume?"
"Oh no, this is my niece. She has lost her parents and I'm the only one she has left now." I stared at him wide-eyed when he said that.
Great. He's pulling the pity card upon her.
"Oh my goodness, I am so sorry to hear that. Having sudden deaths in this city is quite unheard of, you know. How did they die?" She piqued intrusively.
She's really into our business now.
"Oh, that's the thing. They weren't residents from the city, they were settled in Hollows Hill. But you understand how rapidly people die there," He said to her grimly.
She nodded her head in agreement.
My Uncle put his hand out the tinted window, so that she can prick his finger with a huge needle that I've only seen doctors use. I found myself suppressing a shudder. I hated needles. No, scratch that, I loathed needles with a fiery passion.
The little bit of blood she collected from him glowed like a firefly. She gave him a smile before she opened the gate by pushing a big red button. He smiled at her when she didn't ask my blood to be drawn also.
My Uncle Narumi was one slick man.
Once we safely drove past her, I gave my Uncle a sideways glare.
"Really, Uncle, Hollows Hill! Can you get anymore morbid?" I threw my hands in the air in exasperation.
"Well, Mikan-chan. If I didn't say that particular place, you would probably be getting your finger poked by now. And the results wouldn't be pretty…" He said ever so rightfully.
"I know…" I admitted to him quietly.
I didn't mean to get huffy with him. My whole life has always been living a lie and being secretive. I couldn't even portray my true-self to the world because I'm a half-breed. It's like I have to always wear a mask and the only thing that's genuine was my smile.
"Welcome to Alice City, Mikan-Chan!" My Uncle's booming voice pulled me away from my perturbed thoughts.
If I had a thesaurus with me right now; I would use every word to describe how memorizing, Alice City looked. The humans and aliens were acting like buzzing bees, also the buildings looked so high-tech and advanced. It was almost like I'm an episode from the Jetsons, given by the flying shuttles and sidewalks that were moving on its own.
"So what do you think, Mikan?!"
Before I could answer him, my stomach rumbled hungrily.
We both laughed at this.
"Don't worry, Mikan. I know a great place with delicious food, good section of music, and a way for us to make money under an hour."
"What is this place called, Uncle Narumi?" I asked him fervently.
"It's a club called Wanderlust Wonders! I used to go there a lot when I was a crazy teenager, just like yourself." He smiled to me in a daze.
He was probably reminiscing his youth. I wonder what he was like as a teenager? I didn't really know because he always kept his childhood and his relationship with my mom very confidential. However, I knew it's not really nice to pry, and he would probably come around and tell me eventually… I hoped.
XOX
Wanderlust Wonders had quite an eccentric personality, given by what the inside looked like. Hazy, animated colors blinded my vision, upbeat music pounded into my eardrums, which replicated my racing heart, and it gave me a taste of a tease when I had a sip of wine for the first time.
"This place is extraordinary, Uncle!" I exclaimed to him like I was drunk with happiness.
"You go find us a table, I'm gonna go and get us something to grub on!" He yelled back before he faded in the masses of people.
My eyes scanned the area before I spotted a secluded table. Perfect. I made my way over and waited patiently for my Uncle to come back. I'm happy I brought my journal because I can bring this club come alive on blank paper through my drawings.
I tapped my foot along to the beat. An alien, I mean, an Atrien song blasted through the speakers instead of a Japanese song .
"Da mihi in astra….
Ave tristitia…
Ego iustus volo vos scire..
Quia puer es optimus.."
My first language is Japanese. Somehow though, I'm available to grasp the Atrien tongue with no struggle. It's almost like when you learn how to ride a tricycle, or when you learn how to tie your shoes, and even when you learn how to snap. Those things somehow will be memorized in your brain and will come naturally like breathing. That's how it was for me when I speak and understand the Atrien language.
I found it quite fascinating how diverse this city is. The way I grew up, humans and the Atrians don't live in the same city or same town. The only thing we're somehow connected was the continent were settled on, but that's about it. Since my mother and Uncle were human, I had to hide my Atrien characteristics from the outside, so that I could live with them and not get killed of course.
Maybe this place would give me the chance to express my Atrien side on the outside. I wonder if I could now without anyone looking…?
Suddenly, I heard a huge commotion that made me froze from drawing.
What's going on?
Curiously, I followed the crowd to a secluded room to see what all the commotion was about. What I saw didn't surprise me one single bit. My Uncle was in some kind of arena, with his shirt off, and was about to fight an Atrien Alien that was quite fit.
Oh. Hell. No.
He was out of his mind if he thinks he could fight off an Atrien. My Uncle is quite a superior fighter, but all fighters have their weaknesses. Like for an Atrian and Human to fight with one another, a human winning was always a long shot.
Somehow, my Uncle noticed me gaping at him through the crowd because he waved at me obnoxiously.
Has he been drinking?
"Oi, Mikan-Chan! Make sure you bet a lot of money on me, okay. I'm going to kick this Atrien's ass!"
Oh. My. Kamisama.
My Uncle is going to get eaten alive.
I mouthed out 'Are you crazy!" to him, but he stopped looking at my direction.
I heard a lot of muffling of the people around me. They betted on my Uncle's opponent was going to win and I didn't blame them of their choice.
I studied my Uncle's opponent and felt a blush rising through my cheeks.
He was attractive.
He had Atrien tattoos that glittered all over his naked chest and he looked like a warrior based on his persona.
He must have detected me gawking at him like an idiot because our eyes met. His eyes were red like fire. Also, they were swirling with little specks of stars that all Atriens held behind their eyes. He smirked at me arrogantly and I turned my head away from him in embarrassment.
The bell rang; it was time for them to fight. My Uncle ran to him and surprised his opponent by giving a hard punch on his jaw. Sadly, the punch didn't hurt him one single bit. Quickly, like a panther, the guy grabbed my Uncle and threw him like a sack of flour. Luckily, my Uncle got up quickly and caught the guy off guard when he hit him in the stomach.. Hard.
Oooh, now the tables have really turned now. Go Uncle Narumi! I never doubted you for a second.
The fight continued for awhile now. My Uncle was an advanced fighter, even when he was acting like a drunken fool.
I smiled proudly when I heard the audience surprised that my Uncle lasted this long. I found out that my Uncle's opponent was named Hyuuga Natsume. A fighter that has never lost a challenge… unless my Uncle somehow pulls off beating him.
And I have high hopes that he probably would.
Suddenly, I had a gut-feeling of a dangerous Alice being heightened. My eyes landed on a 30-something-year old man, who sat on a chair like it was his throne, and he was fiddling with his earing.
Weird.
What was he doing…?
I felt myself gasp when Hyuuga lit a flame in the palm in his hand and his eyes looked very distant. He looked directly at my Uncle and was about to throw it at him as his target.
Before I could stop myself, I ran to Hyuuga and pushed him out of the way like a mad girl. I hissed when my legs came in contact with the ground. Yep. I'm most definitely gonna have some blisters later
I froze when I noticed what position I was in with him. It was like the part in one of those awkward, Shoujo mangas where the girl was on top of the guy.
I screeched so loud that my voice became hoarse. I untangled myself from him and made a good distance to be far away from his as possible.
"You're not allowed to use your Alice," I heard my Uncle criticize to Hyuuga as he came over to me.
I wanted to say it wasn't his fault, but I kept my mouth shut. Hyuuga was helped up by a Atrian blonde that kind of reminded me of a prince coming to the rescue. The blonde Atrian was such a cutie, but I restrained myself from giggling like an obsessed, schoolgirl.
"Now, now, let's all remain calm," I heard a compelling voice say.
That voice. Something feels off about it, but I couldn't explain why.
The voice belonged to the man I saw fiddling with his earing earlier. I glared daggers at him, but he seemed indifferent to it.
Jerk.
"I sincerely apologize for my nephew's behavior. He can be quite a sore loser..." The man said coyly as he walked towards us.
"Who are you?" I asked him without thinking.
"My, you don't know who I am. You must be new comers I reckon. My name is Hyuuga Reo, pleasure to make your acquaintance," I resist the urge to roll my eyes at his fake chivalry.
"Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Hyuuga-san. Now, how about we discuss about me keeping quiet about your nephew's brutal behavior, so that I won't have to press charges on him." My Uncle said so casually, it was almost like we we're discussing about the weather.
"What do you want?" Reo asked him.
Uncle Narumi opened up his hand, "My winnings of course!" He exclaimed cheekily.
So in the end, we got a lot of Rabbit coins that would probably last us for a few months. Before the Hyuuga family left the ring, along with Natsume's blonde friend. Natsume glanced back at me with a hint of perplex.
He's probably wondering how I stopped his fire, which was thanks to my nullification Alice. I gave him a sugary smile, which seemed to really irk him, but I couldn't find it in my heart to care.
"Well, Uncle. Now.. what?" I asked him with a yawn.
"We're going to get some grub, then I'm going to find a hotel for us to sleep in that doesn't have bed bugs." We both shuddered at the memory.
Unknown to me, I completely forgot about my journal that laid unforgotten on the floor, and someone picked it up with a full intention to see me again for answers.