Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice.

Shameless fluff set in medieval times.

Mikan had never been the brightest of her bunch in regards to academics. If her teachers had to describe her with one word, sure, "bubbly" and "lovely" would be definitely be popular, but "slow" would be at the back of everyone's mind. However, when it came to her grandfather, Mikan was surprisingly efficient.

Within a day, she had managed to harass every friend her grandfather had in the village about his potential whereabouts, bully his good friend Hitoshi into drawing up a map to the rumored "Hot Springs of Youth," clean her house, prepare for her quest, feed a stray cat, and have a short, restless sleep.

If her teachers recalled correctly, Mikan had always arrived predictably late to her first class of the day and to every club meeting. Yet, when the issue was about her grandfather, she had risen before the first rooster crowed and was already geared up and ready to go as the sun began peeking over the hills.

So imagine Narumi Anju's surprise when he found his favorite former student, cheery and awake, at the crack of dawn with a backpack, looking as though she were going on an adventure to slay some dragons.

"Mikan-chan?" he called out cautiously. Was that really her? Maybe a ghost had possessed her body? Was she being kidnapped?!

But when she turned around at the sound of her name, the smile on her face was definitely Mikan's, bright and confident.

"Narumi-sensei!" she called back, waving enthusiastically.

"Mikan, what a happy surprise to see you again! Welcome back!" He embraced her tightly. "But what are you doing up so early?"

"Well, you see…" and Mikan started her wild tale detailing her adventures after a tender farewell from Hotaru's new home in the city, her small mishaps on the road traveling back, the elation she felt returning to her beloved village, the despair and agony she had felt upon discovering the absence of her precious grandfather, and then her frantic preparation to quest to find her grandfather and bring him back to her! "And I will not give up until he is safe at home with me!"

She pumped her fist in the air, eyes shining.

"Ah, but Mikan-chan," said Narumi worriedly, "what if you get lost? What if you encounter thieves on the road? Or worse!?" He shuddered at the possibilities.

"Don't worry, Narumi! I can take care of myself! And…" she pulled out the map Hitoshi had made for her. "I have this map! It'll tell me exactly where to go."

It was a very poorly drawn map.

There was a picture of a house and a series of dotted lines leading to a triangle (mountain?) with an X drawn on it. And also some very crude drawings of trees.

"Er," said Narumi with hesitation. "I think we all would feel better if you brought someone along to help you. Like Tsubasa, maybe?"

"Tsubasa has his own family to worry about," Mikan reminded, referring to his heavily pregnant wife and rowdy three year-old twins. "I can do this. Besides, I'm sure Grandpa remembered that I was coming home soon so he's probably super eager to see me!"

With that, she bid farewell to her favorite former teacher, her beloved village, and began her quest to bring her grandfather home!

Nonno Sakura was super eager to finally see his granddaughter again! Though he was getting old, he had carefully kept track of the days and weeks in his head and surmised that his lovely, beautiful Mikan was returning home today! (Give or take a couple of days.)

"Can you stop pacing?" Natsume said, eyes still glued to the book in his hand. "It's annoying as fuck."

"Sorry, Natsume." Nonno leaned against a boulder, scanning the wide horizon and gentle blue sky. Was she out there?

"Why are you so restless today anyway?"

Judging by Natsume's personality, Nonno was sure the young dragon would react badly if he knew he was trying to match him with his granddaughter. "Stop meddling in my fucking business!" Natsume would roar, breathing out gigantic flames, burning Nonno into a pile of ash. Sure, maybe he would feel guilty and grieve for Nonno after the fact, but Nonno wasn't really in the mood to die any time soon.

Not when his precious granddaughter still lived without a husband!

"I'm an old man, Natsume. I'm exercising to keep my body working." He did a few stretches.

Natsume scoffed and continued to read.

Eight minutes later, Mikan Sakura was lost.

"Maybe I should have asked Hitoshi to put directions on here," she muttered, trying to figure out which tree in the forest corresponded with which line on the map. She turned the map upside down and right side up, over and under, wondering which direction she should have even been headed toward in the first place.

Then she looked up.

"Oh!" she cried. "There's a mountain!" The "mountain" was more of a glorified hill; it was definitely an exercise to climb it, but it wasn't unscalable. It seemed fairly close by, more than half of it visible over the treeline.

She nearly smacked herself as she remembered there was only one mountain around the village for miles. With his old age and laziness, of course her grandfather could only make it to the closest one!

Suddenly Natsume sat up, surprising Nonno with how alert he looked. His ears imperceptibly twitched and he looked up and around the clearing in suspicion. "Someone's coming."

Nonno almost squealed in excitement. Was it his precious granddaughter?! He knew she could do it! Good work, Mikan!

"Coming here?" Nonno inquired innocently, barely masking the energy in his voice.

Natsume turned his head this way and that way. "I'm not sure… But someone is definitely coming up this mountain. I think they're going toward the caves. Probably going to get lost, stupid idiot."

He relaxed back onto the ground, content with letting whoever it was wander around before deciding to return to wherever that person came from.

Nonno started to panic. He needed to make sure they met! He needed Natsume up and ready to woo his Mikan!

Slyly, Nonno planted the idea in his head: "Toward the caves where all your treasure is hidden?"

There was a pause as Natsume's mind worked out the implications. He suddenly pounded his hand on the ground and stood up, throwing his book to the side.

"My gold!" Natsume snarled before transforming into a dragon and whooshing off to the caves.

Nonno watched with amusement and joy as Natsume rushed off, probably going to sweep his granddaughter off her feet with his sharp claws and powerful teeth.

Wait…

Nonno nearly stopped breathing as he realized what he had just done. What if it wasn't his precious granddaughter? What if it was just some lost traveller and now whoever it was had to face a furious dragon? Did he just kill someone? Natsume was not known for having an even temper, even much less so when his gold was concerned.

Even worse, what if it was Mikan? Nonno had lavished Natsume with all of Mikan's wonderful qualities, but he had forgotten to mention what she looked like! What if he just ate her up without even letting her explain!?

"Oh no," he moaned, slumping down, head in his hands.

Should he really have unleashed a ferocious beast?

Wow, was Mikan's only thought. When Mikan had visited Hotaru, her best friend had already gained quite a reputation and was starting to accumulate wealth. Mikan had been momentarily dazzled by the money and the jewels and the finery Hotaru had shown her, but this…

"This is incredible!" she shouted, her voice echoing back in the spacious cave. Mountains of gold coins, gold crowns, gold jewelry, gold everything lined the walls of the cave she had stumbled into. She hadn't really been certain which way to go on the mountain to find the hot springs, but she had followed her instincts and sure enough, they had led her into a series of tunnels that eventually turned into a vast cave filled with gold!

"I wonder who lives here," she mused to herself, still admiring the sight.

Then she nearly smacked herself again. "You're not here to look at pretty things! You're here to find your grandpa!" she chided. "Grandpa? Are you here?"

A huge, deafening roar answered, causing Mikan to scream.

"Grandpa?!" she cried out again. "Is that you?"

A blast of air sent Mikan tumbling to the ground as she saw for the first time the source of the roar.

An enormous red scaly beast stomped into the cave, its body taking up most of the space and suddenly Mikan felt trapped. It let out another roar, much louder than the last, making Mikan cower and run for cover. Its eyes looked straight at Mikan and pierced her. It was a freaking dragon!

Then it charged toward her. She jumped up and ran away.

"This is my gold!" the dragon howled, tail flailing about. "Mine, mine, mine!"

A set of claws swiped at her, and Mikan nearly lost her head as she ducked just in time.

"Wait! Mr. Dragon - Mr. Dragon, please, I just - " She avoided a swing of his tail. "Could I please - Ah! - Mr. Dragon!" Moving quickly, Mikan soon realized that his movement wasn't erratic and saw that Mr. Dragon actually wasn't trying to kill her anymore.

Mr. Dragon clambered onto his pile of gold, sending a few items clanking to the ground. He roared again as he beat his wings once. Mikan braced herself. The dragon crouched protectively over the mountain of gold, claws and wings extended.

"This gold belongs to me and only me!" he growled as he glowered at Mikan with vivid red eyes. Mikan almost lost herself in them, scared witless, until he puffed a breath of smoky air into her face. "So go away before I eat you!"

"Mr. Dragon, wait, please don't eat me!"

"I am going to eat you! You're trying to steal my gold!"

"I'm not going to steal your gold! In fact, I can give you some if you want!"

Mr. Dragon stopped flailing about and peered at Mikan incredulously. He drew his face closer to hers, and Mikan froze in her place, not daring to move. He exhaled through his nostrils, hot air blowing against her face.

"Show it to me," he demanded, watching her carefully.

She pointed at her bag a few meters away, which she had accidentally let go of in the ruckus. "It's in there."

"Show it to me," he repeated impatiently.

Mikan shakily nodded and slowly walked over to her bag, where she was sure some gold coins were inside. Thank Hotaru for her rare moment of generosity!

"Take better care of yourself, you idiot," she had said flatly while pressing the money into Mikan's hand. It wasn't too much, but a gift from Hotaru should always be appreciated!

She dug around in the bag, but she hadn't packed too many things, and it was obvious after a few moments that maybe she had accidentally left it at home...

Mikan chuckled weakly and flashed a quick smile at the dragon. "It's pretty deep in the bag."

The dragon moved until she could feel his head hover above hers, breathing steam into her hair.

"You have ten seconds to tell me why you're here or I'll eat you." Mikan nearly screamed as she felt the dragon gently fit his mouth over the top of her head. "Stop crying!"

Gulping down her tears, she hurriedly explained, "Um, Mr. Dragon, please, I'm looking for my grandpa. His friends from our village said he came here looking for the hot springs. Have you seen him? He's pretty old, wrinkly, and has white hair."

The dragon drew its head back, and Mikan sighed with relief, as a new, strange look came to its eyes, as though he were appraising her. She tilted her head back to look at Mr. Dragon. "He would have come by around nine days ago."

"You're Nonno's precious granddaughter?"

Mikan's face brightened. "That's him! Is he around here somewhere?" She eagerly awaited his reply.

But the dragon didn't say anything; he just kept looking at her. Finally, he spoke, "He didn't tell me how ugly you were."

It took Mikan two seconds to process what he had said before she stood up to face him and smacked the dragon's snout. "Hey! What's that supposed to mean? Huh?!"

Instead of eating her or burning her, the dragon merely snorted. "It means you're ugly as hell." Mikan put her fists on her hips. "Also, the way he was talking about you, I could have sworn you'd be nicer. Why would you hurt a poor, defenseless creature such as myself?"

"Because you're being rude! You can't just tell a girl she's ugly! Especially one you just met!"

The dragon actually rolled his eyes and started to lumber away from her, having discovered she wasn't really a threat. Just a nuisance.

"Wait, Mr. Dragon!" she called after him. "Where are you going? Where's my grandpa?"

"You're so slow, too." Mikan made an indignant sound at the back of her throat. "Follow me. I'll take you to your grandpa."

Forgetting his insults, Mikan cheered up and smiled, running after the dragon as fast as she could. He made no effort to slow down for her human legs so she had to jog to keep up with him.

"My name is Mikan Sakura!" she managed to say between breaths. "What's your name?"

The dragon continued to ignore her as he led her back out the tunnels and down a different path around the mountain.

"Hey! You're supposed to say your name back when someone tells you their name!"

The dragon suddenly stopped and whirled around, pushing his face right against Mikan's. She instinctively flinched. "And you're supposed to shut up when a fucking dragon that can still eat you decides to be nice and help you find your grandpa," he snarled before whipping his head back around and continuing down the path.

"Wow, you're a really grumpy dragon," she muttered before she decided to comply with his order and shut up.

Nonno fretted and paced even more. Natsume hadn't been gone for too long, but he was gone long enough to have eaten someone!

Then, from a distance, came a "Grandpa!"

Nonno broke into a wide smile as he stood up and saw one giant dragon sauntering down and one beautiful, lovely, precious granddaughter running towards him!

"Mikan!" He opened his arms, and she ran straight into them, hugging him tightly. He kissed the top of her head many, many times. "I missed you so much!"

She rubbed her face affectionately against his chest. "I missed you, too, grandpa!" she shouted right into his ear.

Then she pulled away and scowled at him. "But I would have missed you less if you had been home when I came back! I was really worried, you know."

Nonno nervously laughed. "Sorry, dear, but I couldn't stay cooped up in the house all alone!"

"But you wouldn't have been alone! You have friends, and neighbors, and I said I'd return in two months."

He waved his hand at her to dismiss her logic. "The mountain has been good for me. I get fresh air, exercise, the relaxing hot springs, and this," he gestured to Natsume, who had laid down on his belly, all stretched out, "wonderful person has been keeping me company."

Natsume rolled over so his back was towards them. "I didn't want to. You just pushed your way into my home."

"Eh?" Mikan gaped. "The dragon? But he's so grumpy!"

Nonno laughed. "That's just how Natsume is! He's actually very kind and generous and has the warmest, gentlest heart you - "

A spurt of flame came close to Nonno. Natsume had gotten back up and gave Nonno a dirty look.

Mikan giggled to herself. Now that her grandfather mentioned it, the dragon hadn't actually hurt her or her grandfather, and even though the dragon said some mean things, Nonno looked at him fondly and playfully. Surely, if the dragon were truly mean, her grandpa wouldn't act that way with him; he would treat any wicked person with coldness. She didn't doubt the dragon had a tender heart. After all, if her grandfather had really been disappearing here all this time, then someone had to have been helping him.

"Mr. Dragon," she said politely, and he swung his head toward her. She bowed low, and when she stood up straight, she beamed at him. "Thank you for taking care of my grandfather!"

Natsume acknowledged her thanks with a dip of his head. Then he used his tail to push and slide Nonno and Mikan toward the edge of the clearing. "Now the two of you can go on home and leave me alone forever."

"Natsume!" Nonno protested. "I haven't even shown my granddaughter around."

Natsume insisted, "You don't have to. You're leaving now, and you're never coming back anyway."

Something clicked inside his head and he looked at the dragon tenderly. "I see now."

Natsume paused. "What?"

"You've come to enjoy spending time with me, and now you're sad to see me go so you're pretending it doesn't hurt," he explained gently. Natsume instantly scoffed.

Mikan gasped softly and placed her hand over her heart. "Aww," she cooed.

God, this was sick. They were looking at him which such...such...mushy-ness.

He glared at the both of them. "No. Stop saying such lies. I really do want you gone."

"A couple of days, Natsume, let us stay for a couple of days," he pleaded, "and then we'll go back home."

Mikan blinked. "A couple of days, grandpa? Are you sure?"

"See? Even your own granddaughter doesn't want you to stay here," Natsume pointed out. "Now off you go." He nudged them with a couple of claws.

They both ignored him. What the fuck? He pushed them even more, but they swatted at his claws, lost in their own conversation.

"Mikan, since I've been up here, I've never felt better in my old age. I feel much healthier than when I was in the village. Just look at me," Nonno said, paying no attention to Natsume's persistent pushing.

Mikan examined her grandfather more closely as she slapped the dragon's pushy paw away. She had to admit, her grandfather seemed more energetic and more lively. He stood up straight with bright eyes and a healthy complexion. She remembered the days when she literally had to pick him up from bed to drag him to go somewhere, anywhere. She was so anxious back then, thinking every little sign of sickness, every cough, every sneeze could mean the end. But looking at the old man in front of her, he seemed far from death.

"Okay," she relented, nodding slowly. Nonno cheered and clapped his hands. "We can stay here."

"No, you're not," growled the dragon. "This is my home, and I want you both to go."

Nonno wrapped his arm around his precious granddaughter and pushed past the dragon. "Mikan, over here is the quaintest little cabin you've ever - "

Natsume's tail came down right in front of Nonno, blocking his path. "We're staying in the caves," he said firmly.

"So we can stay here!" Nonno cried excitedly. Mikan smiled at her grandfather's trick and at his energy. He was right: staying up here had been good for him.

The dragon stared at him and started shaking. Suddenly, he tilted his head back and roared, sending a great swirling column of fire into the air. Nonno, used to Natsume's outbursts, merely laughed; Mikan, on the other hand, trembled.

"Damn it!" he grumbled. "Go get your things, and your precious granddaughter can bring them up."

Nonno gleefully went to retrieve his things, leaving Natsume alone with Mikan.

"So," Mikan started, her fear of the dragon quickly evaporating, "your name is Natsume?"

He swung his head down to her eye-level, pushing his snout so close to her, it almost brushed against her nose. "Look, I really don't want you or your grandpa messing around my home much longer so you two are going to stay a couple - maybe just one - of days, and then you are leaving. Got it?"

Mikan gently pushed him away from her face and coughed. "Ugh, you breathe out a lot of hot air, you know that?"

Natsume pushed his snout right back, ignoring her comment. "And furthermore, we need some ground rules. Number one is you don't bother me. Number two is you don't fucking touch my gold. You don't steal my gold, you don't look at my gold, you don't even come anywhere near it. It's my gold," he said viciously.

"Okay, okay," Mikan said. "I get it. It's your gold."

"And lose the attitude or I swear I'll eat you." He finally pulled his head away.

Mikan smiled at the dragon. "Don't worry, I'll try to make it as bearable as possible." Then she had a thought. "Hey, has anyone ever ridden you?"

"Jesus Christ, are you going to be asking questions all the time?"

Mikan frowned. "It's just a question!"

Natsume was about to respond, but Nonno interrupted them with a happy, "I'm ready to go!"

Mikan's eyes widened at the amount of things her grandfather had brought with him. "Why do you have so many bags?!"

"It's just four," he said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, but what do you have in them?" she exclaimed. "How are you supposed to carry all of it up to the caves?"

"I mainly have medication and important things like my special herbal ointment, my xiangqi set, some pictures of you, pictures of your mom, pictures of me," said Nonno as Mikan's jaw dropped in disbelief, "and I'm still an old man so you and Natsume can carry it up!"

"Fuck no," said Natsume instantly. "Your precious granddaughter is here. You said she likes to help people. Sounds like a job for her."

Mikan glared at the dragon. "Are you not going to help?"

Natsume shook his head stubbornly.

"Why can't we just climb on top of you and ride you back to the caves?" Mikan suggested. "We can put the bags - "

Natsume's tail smacked Mikan lightly on the shoulder. "I'm not a mule," he said fiercely. "He's your grandpa. Now pick it up and carry it before I eat you."

Mikan rolled her eyes. "Your threats are already getting old. There's no way - "

Natsume opened his mouth, letting Mikan view his sharp teeth.

"Okay, okay, here I go," said Mikan hurriedly, picking up the four bags. "Hey, this isn't so bad, just a little uncomfortable. Natsume, you should - "

"Go," he commanded, pushing her forward with his tail.

Mikan went, looking back over her shoulder. "Are you guys coming?"

"Go on ahead, Mikan," said her grandfather, "I'm going to be slow with these creaky old joints."

"I'll help him up," reassured Natsume.

Mikan beamed at Natsume again. "Aww, you really are a sweet -"

Natsume puffed a little flame at her.

"Okay, okay, I'm leaving."

Natsume waited until she was far up the path before he flashed back into a human and turned to Nonno with a "What the fuck?" look that transmitted many thoughts, such as, "What the fuck are you trying to do and why do you have to bring your annoying-ass granddaughter into my home when you both could have just left and I could have just had some goddamn peace and quiet? Also, fuck you. Also, your granddaughter is not as great as you described her."

Of course, Nonno couldn't read Natsume's mind or fully translate his meaningful looks so he only caught the beginning part. He held his arm out for Natsume, which he took gently as he always did, and they began the slow trek up.

"So what do you think about her?" asked Nonno innocently.

Natsume kept his eyes carefully on the path. "Your ugly granddaughter?"

A surge of protectiveness washed over Nonno. "Hey!" he cried out in outrage, but he could tell it was in jest.

Natsume smirked, and Nonno sighed. He would never get him to admit what he really thought about Mikan, and Nonno wanted so badly to know. He could tell he had opened Mikan up the idea of a sweet and gentle Natsume, but he still had a ways to go with convincing Natsume to go for his granddaughter. During the time he spent with the dragon, he had dropped innocuous little inquiries about Natsume's love life and what type of woman he liked. Natsume had shut that kind of talk down immediately. Natsume may be the right man for his precious granddaughter, but she would have to learn how to put up with his brooding quiet and his stubbornness.

Wanting to provoke more talk out of the taciturn young man, Mikan's grandfather whined, "I hate sleeping in the caves. It's so drafty in there, and the ground is hard to walk on."

Natsume nodded understandingly. "That's because it's made out of rock."

"Natsume!"

Natsume huffed, taking into consideration exactly zero of Nonno's concerns. "I don't want her poking around the cabin any more than she has to. An you know just as well as I do that the cabin is too small for the three of us. It barely fit us two since I had to sleep outside most of the time."

"That's okay. I have an idea. I can sleep outside and enjoy the nice summer breeze just as I did as a youth, and Mikan will obviously take the bed since she is my precious granddaughter, and since you're complaining so much about sleeping outside, you can take the bed with her."

Natsume snapped his head to glare at the old man so fast, he would feel a crick in his neck for days to come.

Nonno looked back innocently. "That sounds like a reasonable compromise that works for everyone so let's just turn around…"

Natsume sighed and almost hung his head in exasperation as the old man tried to hobble back down the path. He held on firmly to Nonno's arm and steered him forward the other way, the right way.

"I am going to hate living with the two of you," he told Nonno straightforwardly. Nonno simply smiled.

Author's Note: Each chapter will most likely be unedited, and I tend to write individual scenes that I later connect so please let me know if there are any continuity issues! I don't reply to reviews, but I certainly read, consider, and appreciate them. Thank you!