Well, here's the next chapter. I'm plowing through these, making pretty good progress. Hope you all enjoy it.

3/24/2010: Rewritten/Edited

Disclaimer: Once more, I have the tragic fate of not owning any of Gakuen Alice.

"If I remember right, the person who created the Gulliver's candy was a technical Alice in the junior division. If we go to the technical building, we might be able to find something in one of the rooms." Natsume explained in a hushed voice as he led Mikan in that general direction. Mikan simply nodded and ran along with him. A shudder ran through her body as a cold breeze blew right through her thin summer uniform. Natsume looked over his shoulder at her, concerned, but she waved him off, smiling and trying not to let her teeth chatter. They ran through grass and abandoned paths until they neared their destination. The technical building look ominous as it loomed in front of them, a great dark mass against the night sky.

"Usually this place is off limits to the elementary and junior divisions at night, but they leave it open for the high school division to work on larger projects as much as they need too." As he said this, Mikan noticed a light coming from one of the windows on the side of the building. Someone was here. Natsume put a finger to his lips, and then beckoned her to follow him as he climbed in through a window on the first floor that had been left unlocked. Mikan hopped once, twice, three times, before falling on her backside. She frowned up at the window sill. How had Natsume gotten up there so easily? Then again, how was he able to jump out of a second story window and land perfectly fine? He was just special like that. She pouted and glared up at the dark void of the open window, frustrated. Rolling his eyes, Natsume reach out, clasped her hands, and helped pull her into the room. They landed in a heap on the floor as she came through the window and smacked right into him, knocking him over. She pushed herself off him, muttering apologies under her breath. Ignoring her silly apologies, he rose to his feet, dusted himself off, and let his eyes orient to the room. It was even darker inside than out.

The room was filled with all sorts of robotics parts. He heard a sharp intake of breath beside him and spun around just in time to slap his hand over Mikan's mouth before she screamed. Right in front of her hung a disembodied head, eyes wide, starring. She trembled against his hand as she stared at the floating, pale face.

"Silly girl, it's just a robot. Relax."

Natsume moved his hand from her mouth when he felt her calm, and went back to observing the room. However, he gently slide his hand into hers, reassuring her. Mikan blushed lightly at the feel of his hand wrapped comfortably around hers. Shaking her head to get herself to focus, she let her eyes adjust and took in the rest of the room. Nothing about the room seemed to indicate that there might be age changing candy in here. Nevertheless, they perused it, just to be sure.

When Natsume felt certain their desired item were not in this room, he pulled Mikan toward the door. He stood just inside it, listening carefully for any sign of movement on the other side. When he felt certain the coast was clear, he slowly turned the handle and swung the door open. The hall was as empty as he had anticipated it being. Carefully, he guided Mikan across the hall and into a door on the other side. It was a stair well. Leaning over, Natsume whispered into her ear.

"The rooms for technical Alices related to food are on the second floor. That's probably our best bet."

The climbed quietly up the stairs, wincing every time one creaked under their foot. Just as carefully as earlier, Natsume waited inside the door, listening. When things once more proved to be silent, he led Mikan into the hall. Mikan stared down the hall feeling a little overwhelmed. There were so many doors. How long would it take them to figure out which room it was in? Natsume led her through the next door closest to the stair well. This room was full of pots and pans and various other cooking paraphernalia as well as several stoves and ovens of varying sizes. Mikan released Natsume's hand and began to cross the room, intent on reaching the cupboards. She failed to notice a stack of pans on the floor in her path. Seeing the danger, Natsume reacted quickly, grabbing Mikan's arm and pulling her back against his chest.

"Be careful," he hissed. "If you make a racket, we'll get caught and then we'll both be in a world of trouble."

She stared wide-eyed, wondering what she'd done. Sighing, he beckoned to the dark obstacle that she had been just inches from knocking over. He released her as she nodded in understanding. Carefully, she tiptoed across the room and began searching through cupboards. Once certain that she wouldn't get in any more trouble, Natsume turned to search as well. He had relaxed too soon. No sooner had he turned around then he cringed to hear the clattering of pots falling out of a cupboard.

"Kuso!" he cursed under his breath, spinning around and darting across the room. Quickly grabbing Mikan, who was still standing frozen in shock, he shoved them both into a tall nearly empty cupboard. He shut the door just as he heard the door to the room being open. He held his breath as he listened to the whirring gears of the patrol robot looking around the room. He was hyperaware of Mikan's body pressed snuggly against his. In most cases, that would have made him quiet happy, but he was too tense to enjoy the moment. Their close proximity was making Mikan turn redder by the minute, but he was so warm it was actually rather comfortable being this close to him. Unconsciously, she leaned her head forward and rested it on his chest. The presence of her small head nuzzling against him made Natsume's heart skip several beats, but he forced himself to focus on their current situation and the robot searching for them outside the door. They waited, silent, for a good many moments after they heard the robot leave before Natsume pushed to cupboard door open and they pried themselves out. He preempted Mikan's attempt to apologize, putting up a hand, ducking his head to try to hide his bright red checks and heightened breathing.

"Just don't do it again."

Mikan nodded, despite the fact that Natsume had his back to her and couldn't see her response. They finished searching the room and moved to the next. They searched room after room and of course, despite Natsume's admonishment, they had to hide three more times after Mikan had made some ruckus or other. Both their nerves were wearing thin, and Mikan's hope was dwindling as room after room revealed nothing useful. She was about ready to give up, when Natsume opened the door to a room that looked very promising. From wall to wall, the room was full of different types of candy, some in the experiment process and others in their completed forms. As Mikan scanned the labeled jars on the walls, she realized that each one did something different and had the name of a different person as the creator. There was candy to make you shrink or get bigger. There was candy to give a person sweet dreams. Ironically, there was even candy to prevent cavities.

"Mikan! Here!" Natsume called out in a quiet, excited voice. Mikan carefully picked her way over to where he stood looking at a jar. The label on the jar read:

Gulliver's Candy – Imperfect

Dangerous side effects. More testing required.

Excitedly, Mikan pulled down the jar. Reaching her hand in, she pull out a handful of the carefully labeled packets.

"Now, we are gonna need a bunch of the add 10 years ones." She whispered as she tried to squint at them in the darkness, attempting to decipher which candy was which. She looked up, surprised, when a soft, flickering glow lit up the room just a little. Natsume gestured for her to continue as he held a small flame in his hand so that she could see. She frowned momentarily, worried about him using his Alice, but turned back to the task at hand, knowing he wouldn't want her to make a fuss. Sitting on the floor, she poured out the contents of the jar and began picking through the labels. She grinned in success as she held up a handful of eight of the required candies.

"It's a good start, but it's probably not enough." He mused softly, putting out his flame, now that they no longer needed it. "I have one more idea where we might be able to find more."

They piled the extra candy back in the jar, placed it back on the shelf and turned to leave. Gasping softly, they both immediately tensed as they took in the tall silhouette of a figure in the door. Even before the painfully familiar voice filled the room, Natsume knew exactly who it was.

"Such a racket that the pair of you are making. What kind of mischief could you two escapees possibly be about this time of night? I'm certain your benefactors are not aware of your sly plans," Persona sneered at the preteens.

Thinking quickly, Natsume grabbed Mikan around the waist and ran at the window. He shielded her with his body and they flew through the piercing glass shards and slammed into the ground twenty feet below.

"Natsume! Nastume!" Mikan yelled franticly as she scrambled out of his arms. He rolled to his side, violently coughing up blood. Cringing in pain, he forced himself to his feet, nearly falling over from the pain in the process.

"Mikan…we…we have to run." He coughed violently again as he tried to explain, even now encouraging her to move forward. "If he catches us, he…he'll take us straight back to the Elementary School Principal." After struggling to get the words out, it was all he could do to put one foot in front of the other.

Mikan nodded her head in understanding as she stared at him, horrified. He was covered in cuts and bruises were already beginning to form. Her heart ached to see him this way. Quickly, she forced herself to focus and rushed to his side, put his arm over her shoulders, and helped him run. They stumbled a few times, but were making good progress when two other figures loomed before them in the night.

"Obaka-chan," Rui's obnoxious voice called out teasingly. "Where do you think you're going? And with your little girlfriend. It's so cute the way she helps you stay on your feet."

Natsume sneered at the sound and was ready to lunge at the he-she's throat when he felt the returned presence of that person he so despised behind him. Any pity he had felt for the young Serio Rei who had had the world against him was gone the second Natsume had seen that wretched masked face again. He might have been pitiable once, unwitting of his actions, innocent and used, but Persona was an adult now. Regardless of what had happened to him as a child, he had chosen his path, and Natsume felt nothing but despise for him. If that made him coldhearted and uncompassionate, so be it. Without a second thought, he pushed through the intense pain that ripped through his body and forced up a barrier of fire around them. He removed his arm from around Mikan's shoulder and positioned himself in front of her as best he could. Keeping Persona, Rui and Hajime in his line of vision at all times, he stood, tense, ready for the first attack.

"Silly Obaka-chan. Why fight it? You can barely stand on your feet. How long will you be able to hold us at bay?" Rui cooed playfully.

"If you give in, the principal will be merciful." Persona tone was ice. Mikan felt her heart go cold with fear. It was so hard to see that broken child in this calculating and malicious man. "Things will be much easier for your accomplices, who even now are locked up and under careful watch. You'll never get away if you try to run, especially in your current health…" a smile twisted on Persona's lips as Natsume nearly fell to his knees from the strain, as if to prove his point. "And even if by some miracle you should, think of whom the principal's wrath will come down on instead. Isn't it better for all involved if you surrender? The principal can be very kind if you follow his wishes."

"Don't listen to him Mikan. You can't let them take you. Nothing good would come of it," Natsume hissed out through the pain, strengthening his stance and reinforcing the flame wall around them as sweat covered his face. Mikan stood, frozen. She was torn as she watched him suffer, fighting for every second. Persona's words wrapped themselves around her heart. As they did, Hī-sama's words from earlier sprang to her mind, "you people…the consequences for this rebellion…do you people have enough to pay for it?" Could she pay the price? Could she risk the others that way? They were already imprisoned, all her friends, all those who helped her escape. Even if she and Natsume ran now, they wouldn't be spared – rather, the two of them fleeing would probably only increase the other's suffering. But then, she had seen the past, seen what her mother and the other's had been through, seen who the Elementary School Principal was and of what he was capable. It was a no-win situation. She could see no right choice, no choice that wouldn't involve those around her getting hurt, even killed. If not her friends, than surely her mother, her uncle would end up in the crossfire. She knew they'd continue to fight. If she surrendered to the principal, it would only make their situation worse, would only put them in greater danger. While the principal may be merciful to her friends, perhaps even to Natsume, surely he would not let her mother – as well as those other grown-ups that went against him – off so easily. She couldn't move, couldn't act. There had to be some other option. There was always another option. She had always found it before. Why couldn't she see it now?

Eager to break Natsume down, Rui reached out with his Curse Alice, sending it slithering toward the pair. Mikan saw it coming before Natsume did, and seeing him in danger, she snapped out of her freeze, jumping in the path to block it. Her movement distracted Natsume, who turned to stop her, losing his already tenuous hold on his concentration. The flames disappeared and before he could put them back in place, Persona had moved in for the final blow, intent on incapacitating them. Desperate to save him, Mikan pushed Natsume out of the way. In a bright burst of power, her Nullification Alice collided with both Rui's Curse and Persona's Mark of Death. The force of the collision sent all three flying. Natsume barely registered as Persona and Rui flew backwards, landing painfully, Persona on his back and Rui on his side cringing and winded. All the fire-user's attention was on Mikan, whose now limp body flew through the air, until she slammed roughly into the ground, smacking her head against a rock with a load crack. Then she went still…terrifyingly still.

"MIKAN!! Mikan! No, no, oh please no…"

Natsume was on his feet in a second, all his own pain only an afterthought in the back of his mind as he scrambled frantically for the girl, for Mikan, his Mikan, his bright smiling beautiful girl. He reached her in an impossibly short amount of time. As he looked over her he noticed the rapidly growing red stain on the back of her head. Ripping his shirt in desperation, he gently lifted her head and wrapped it, trying to staunch the flow of blood.

"Mikan! Mikan! Mikan, come on! Wake up!" He called anxiously to her, but she did not respond. Placing his head on her chest he realized she wasn't breathing, and even worse than that, her heart had stopped. His body acted of its own accord. His hands quickly placed themselves on her chest, pumping. Occasionally, he bent over to breath into her mouth. Come on, Mikan. Don't die. Come on. Don't die. You can't leave me, Mikan. You can't. Come back to me. You made me promise I wouldn't leave you, so how can you abandon me now? Come back. This isn't right! This isn't how it's supposed to be.

He was so focused on his task that he was unaware of the calling of several voices as they ran up to him. His mind didn't register that Persona and the two students from the dangerous abilities class had disappeared. Nor did it register Narumi, Ruka, Hotaru, and many of the others, as they rushed to Natsume's side.

"Natsume! Natsume! What happened? Imai! Quickly, help Mikan! She's unconscious!" At Narumi's shouting, Subaru ran towards the limp girl. Carefully, Narumi and Sakurano pulled Natsume off of Mikan so that Subaru could take over tending to her.

Natsume knelt, defeated, in the cold wet grass, barely aware of the activity around him. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. He knew the truth. They were all too late. She was dead. He had felt her lifeless body in his arms, under his palms. Mikan, the sunshine that lit up his dark world, was gone, snuffed out forever in a meaningless effort to save him. Meaningless, because, without her, life was empty for him.

As he knelt there, staring at the limp figure held carefully in Subaru's arms, he felt a burning build up in his limbs, spread throughout his body, and fill his mind. His entire body trembled with rage. How dare they? How dare they take her away?! How dare they hurt her?! A red haze settled over his eyes as his mind set on one purpose. One final purpose. He would destroy those bastards.

No one noticed as Natsume rose to his feet. So focused was everyone on the unconscious Mikan, that none were aware as the fire-eyed boy disappeared into the shadows, stalking purposefully towards his goal.

Kuso – shit

Well, I moved the rating up to teen for Natsume's bad mouth. As much as I don't care for swearing in stories, with certain characters it just can't be avoided. So this chapter was a bit on the dark side. Oh well, bear with me. Sooner or later, things should start looking up for them…hopefully. As always, R&R.