Akatsuki-hime: Natsume's reason for doing missions for the academy are to protect Mikan and ensure her happiness in the academy, to find the organization responsible for his father's death, and to find the real parents of Mikan. What a good guy. He will do anything for his beloved brunette. Expect more interactions from L here.
Disclaimer: Gakuen Alice doesn't belong to me. Aikawa Hinako is a crossover character from Bitter Virgin. L Bradford here is a character I borrowed from Love Monster.
Plot Summary: They were in love with each other, but everyone didn't approve of it. Enter the lives of Mikan Sakura, a popular and well-admired girl, and Natsume Hyuuga, a genius yet an outcast detested by many, as they try to overcome obstacles and protect their love.
Chapter 08
What Natsume just told her surprised her. So, Natsume was putting his life on the line for her sake again. Natsume did promise to protect her, but she can't stand seeing Natsume suffer because of her. Natsume was like her valiant knight and she was just a damsel-in-distress, a princess who was always told to wait. Moreover, Natsume was searching for her real parents. She did want to know who her real parents were. She was silent for a while before she spoke up to him. "Natsume, why couldn't you've told me this earlier?" she asked him, her voice a little shaky. "Why do you keep things from me now? You never kept anything from me before." Yes, she was disappointed in him. They've been together for so long that they knew each other from head to toe. It hurt her a little that the closest person in her heart had kept secrets from her.
Natsume understood what she was saying, but he had a perfectly good reason why he kept his mouth shut about his purpose and missions. "If I had told you, I'm sure you'll bug me till the end of time," he said nonchalantly. "I don't want you to get into any trouble and we're supposed to act like strangers here. How many times do I have to tell you?"
She shook her head rapidly and hugged him. "It's so hard to pretend, Natsume. I want to act normally when I'm with you in front of others."
"I know it's hard, but bear with it," Natsume said, stroking her hair gently. "I want you to have a normal life in this academy. People may treat you differently if they find out that you and I are…"
Mikan looked up at him, a frown deeply greasing her lips. "This is all because they think you're a murderer. If only they knew the truth, then we wouldn't be having such a hard time. I guess it can't be helped." She pulled away from him and turned around. She didn't want to let him see her almost-neared-to-tears eyes. She knew how much he disliked it when she cries. "Natsume, those missions you're taking…I know they're dangerous. You can't expect me not to worry about you. As much as I want to stop the academy from making you do missions, I know I don't have to power to do so. Even if I talk to the headmaster, it won't do any good. In addition to that, you're doing these missions to look for my parents. Natsume, how sure are you that my parents are still alive? Your father didn't say mention anything about them to me."
"The headmaster told me himself," Natsume replied right away. "I don't know how but he seems to be very familiar with your parents. If he didn't tell me about this, I wouldn't have probably gone on missions willingly."
"My parents…" Mikan clasped her hands together against her chest. "If they really are alive, then I would want to meet them."
"We already lost our only parent," Natsume said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "And I want to get back at those guys who took away his life."
The brunette sighed as she turned to look at him. "Is it necessary for you to take revenge?" she asked, her eyes softening. "I know you're angry at them, but it's not good to hold grudges."
It was so typical of her to say that, Natsume thought. Mikan really was a kind-hearted and friendly girl. She was always willing to forgive others—even if they hurt her. Unfortunately, he couldn't force himself to be as forgiving as her. His father was brutally killed in front of his eyes and he wouldn't rest until he finds the sole responsible for the murder—the one behind those guys in black suits. "It's time for me to go…"
Mikan grabbed hold of his arm. "Natsume, don't tell me you have a mission?" she asked.
"What do you think?" he replied nonchalantly, brushing his arm away from her. "Now, go back to the dorm and do whatever you usually do."
"Seems like I can't really stop you from going."
"Don't tell anyone about this. Remember, we don't know each other in this academy." Natsume had his eyes covered under his bangs. Though he was putting up such a strong and cold front, he was actually sad inside. "So, don't do anything stupid to blow our cover. I already have loads of problems to worry about."
Mikan looked down at her feet and sighed deeply. "Natsume…" she muttered his name softly. When Natsume set his crimson eyes on her, Mikan lifted her head and gazed upon him. "Come back to me in one piece, okay?"
Natsume shrugged. "Who do you think you're talking to, polka-dots?" he said in a rather cocky tone, and Mikan just smiled back at him. "I can take care of myself well during missions. I'll probably be back late, so don't you dare stay up and wait for me. I don't want you to trouble me with your early-morning crankiness, polka-dots." He said those things so smoothly and coldly without changing his stoic appearance.
She pouted cutely and lightly punched Natsume's arm. "You sound like a dad, Natsume," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Just be careful, okay?"
He raked his raven hair with his fingers. "You don't have to tell me that, polka-dots," he said, and Mikan got a little pissed because of the nickname. "I should be the one telling you to be careful. Listen, don't ever talk to Bradford again. He's nothing but bad news." And he doesn't want L sticking so close to Mikan. After L kissed Mikan on the temple, he really wanted to castrate him, hang him, or strangle him to death. L was such a flirt and he had to flirt with his Mikan, Natsume thought wryly.
Natsume wasn't at all happy with his attire. The yellow Chinese outfit on him was so bright and eye-catching. He hated the color. Black, Blue, and Red were more of his preferences. However, his darn partner, L, took the blue outfit before they went on the mission. In addition to that, he was forced to wear geeky thick glasses and to act like a nobody.
The mission was fairly simple for the night. He and L were just going to attend the party and mingle with the crowd while they keep an eye on the son of the Prime Minister of Japan, who was actually an alumni Alice Academy student. So far, so good, there weren't any signs of suspicious people in the party. Natsume was doing a good job watching the son of the prime minister, while his cocky partner was flirting with the girls. Well, it was more like the girls were flirting with him, but Natsume wanted to burn him to a crisp for leaving him to do all the work.
"Damn that Bradford," Natsume muttered under his breath. He took a glass of champagne from the waiter and took a sip. "I wish this stupid party would end." He was never used to the fancy life. It was too extravagant for him. He would rather have it simple.
"You look a bit tired, Mikan-chan," Aikawa Hinako said to Mikan the next day as they walked towards the elementary school building. She had fixed Mikan's hair again, using two pink ribbons to decorate both side of her head. One thing she noticed about Mikan since the moment she stepped into her room earlier was the sad aura she was emitting. Hinako had the Alice of Empathy, so she was sensitive about other people's feelings. Even though Mikan was putting up a lovely smile, Hinako knew something was wrong. "Is there something bothering you? Maybe I could help you with your problem?"
The brunette rapidly shook her head and chuckled to ease up. "I'm fine. Look, I'm happy! There's nothing wrong with me." It was such a lie. She wasn't good at lying but she hoped Hinako would buy it. She can't tell Hinako about Natsume or else she'll be dead. "And maybe I just look tired because I slept pretty late last night to study my lessons. I must keep my grades up."
Hinako wasn't convinced but she guessed that Mikan doesn't want to talk about her problem. "I know studying is important, and I'm rather proud of you for working hard," Hinako said. "But don't overexert yourself, Mikan-chan. You don't want to get sick or anything."
"Don't worry. I'll take good care of myself." Besides, if she'll get sick, a certain raven-haired boy will be so worried. She didn't want to add up to Natsume's problems.
As they've reached the elementary school building, a duck scooter flew out of one of the windows, with Hotaru riding it, followed by a big eagle that had Ruka hanging from its feet. The two of them were at it again. Hotaru must have been selling and spreading Ruka's pictures again, and the blonde kid was trying to stop her. It was the normal routine for the two of them. The other students weren't even bothered by their chase.
"I pity Nogi-kun for having to deal with Imai-san everyday," Hinako said with a small giggle.
Mikan nodded her head in agreement. "Hotaru is so serious when it comes to money, but she also likes to tease Ruka-pyon." Upon saying that, Hotaru and Ruka suddenly past them, and this time the aforementioned was throwing fliers around and the latter was chasing her while riding a bear. Mikan sweat dropped as she grabbed one of the fliers. She took one good look at it and blushed madly. "WHAT IS THIS?!"
Hinako had checked out the fliers, as well as the other students present in the hallways, and all of them were surprised at the picture printed on them. It was a picture of Mikan standing out on the terrace of her room, watching a beautiful view. Her silky flowing hair was being blown by the gentle wind and the smile on her face was brighter than the sunshine. To top it all up, she was wearing her light pink night gown.
Her hands shook as she kept staring at the flier. "This…This was taken the other day…early in the morning…" she said.
"Oujo-sama, you're very pretty here," Hinako said, and Mikan blushed.
"I didn't know Hotaru took a picture of me during that time," Mikan said, scratching the back of her head. "How did she take the picture? I didn't even notice anyone around. Was she invisible or something? And why is she spreading this around?"
Hinako giggled and pointed at a particular notice in the flier. "Ojou-sama, please read the flier," she said.
Mikan did what she was told and gasped in surprise. "What the…?" She looked up at Hinako with a perplexed face. "This can't be."
As if on the cue, Hotaru appeared again, riding her duck scooter, and pulled out her megaphone. "Attention to all Mikan fans," she started. "There will be a big sale of Mikan-related merchandise beside the Technical Class lab. Twenty percent discount on all items. The main feature later will be the picture on the fliers. I hope to see you later." After that, Ruka spotted her, and the chase continued on.
The fans were thrilled with the announcement. Twenty percent discount on all Mikan items! That was so great.
"Mikan-sama, we'll definitely buy your items!" one fan boy said.
Another one approached Mikan with heart-shaped eyes and held her hands. "I'll buy 20 copies of your picture in the flier. You can count on it." He then pranced off while humming a tune.
"Hotaru, how can you sell out your best friend?!" Mikan uttered, flailing her hand up and down.
Just then, Hotaru bumped into her on purpose, making her fall to the floor. "You're so noisy," the inventor said coldly. "Didn't I tell you that you're my money-maker? So, stop complaining."
Mikan cried waterfall tears. "You're so mean, Hotaru," she exclaimed, and Hotaru just rolled her eyes away.
"This nonsense crying won't change my mind, dummy," Hotaru said, pointing her Baka Gun at Mikan. "If you're not going stop, I'm really going to shoot you. Your crying face makes you 30 less graceful to me."
Of course, Mikan wasn't really crying. She would just get really teary-eyed. "But Hotaru…That picture in the flier…And that sale…"
Hotaru heaved a sigh. "Business is business, dummy," she said.
"IMAI, YOU IDIOT!"
"Oh, he finally caught up," Hotaru said, turning to the direction of the voice. "What took you so long, Ruka-kun?"
Ruka was panting hard and he had some leaves on his shoulder and head. His blonde hair was kind of messed up. "You did it on purpose, didn't you?" he said in a controlled voice. "You purposely led me to Misaki-sensei's greenhouse where there are man-eating plants!"
"I didn't expect you to follow me there," Hotaru said nonchalantly. "What an idiot."
Ruka drew in a deep breath to calm down. "I can't believe you," he said. "I'm sick and tired of chasing you."
"Who told you to chase after me in the first place?" Hotaru said, maintaining the stoic appearance. "You know, you can't catch me. Well, I have to go now." And with that, Hotaru went away in a flash on her duck scooter.
"That Imai….She's really an idiot," Ruka said, brushing off the leaves from his shoulders.
"Let me help you with that," Mikan said, taking the leaves from Ruka's hair. "Ruka-pyon, even though you and Hotaru don't seem to get along, you two are still friends, right?" She gave him a smile.
Ruka mildly blushed as she looked at her. "Yeah…we're friends…" he said timidly. "It's just that she bothers me so much with the blackmailing and the pictures she's selling. But you don't seem to mind if she's selling your pictures."
"I do mind, but what can I do?" Mikan said with a giggle. "Hotaru is just being Hotaru when she does business. She's so serious with it."
Well, he had to admit, Mikan was being right about the inventor. "Imai's love for money…She's really greedy," he said, gracing his lips with a handsome smile.
At lunchtime, Ruka went off to the Northern Forest. It was the best place to hide from Imai and her camera. To be honest, he can never have a peaceful lunch with Imai watching your every move and with the fan girls gawking at you at the next table. It was best for him to have lunch with his animal friends in the forest. He sat down on a log and pulled out a sandwich from his pocket. Two birds came and landed on top of his head, while three squirrels came up to him on the ground. Ruka smiled at the animals and started eating his lunch in peace.
All of a sudden, he heard an animal cry for help. It sounded like a monkey. Ruka gave the sandwich to the squirrels and ran off to the direction of the cry. When he got to the place, he saw the monkey trapped in an ankle snare. The monkey was panicking and screeching wildly.
Ruka approached the monkey with caution and knelt down. The monkey tried to scratch him, but Ruka didn't flinch or move away. Carefully, he reached out and patted the monkey's head. The animal looked angrily at him at first and then it calmed down. Ruka's Animal Pheromone Alice was at work. "Now stay still, while I'll get you out of the trap, okay?" he said. It took a little while before Ruka freed the monkey from the trap. "There you go…" The monkey was thrilled that it was free but its leg was a little injured. What Ruka did next was to tear a part of his handkerchief and wrapped it around the monkey's leg. In a leapt for joy, the monkey hugged Ruka and did a dance to thank him.
"You're welcome, monkey," he replied, lightly laughing.
As the monkey left, Ruka glanced back at the ankle snare. "Why are there traps here?" he asked. "This shouldn't be allowed." He decided to take the ankle snare back to school and report about it. He didn't want his animal friends to get trapped again. But when he picked up the trap, a net suddenly captured him. Before he knew it, he was hanging from the tree inside the net.
He felt like a fish that got caught. He had nothing he could use to cut through the net. No one was around to help him either, so he decided to ask help from his animal friends. But before he could emit his pheromones, he saw a guy walking out of the bushes. To his surprise, it was Hyuuga Natsume. Rumored has it that Hyuuga was a murderer and a cold-hearted person. No one would befriend him because of indifferent personality. He hoped Hyuuga will not see him. The guy will surely not help him anyway.
Hyuuga sat down under the tree where Ruka was hanging from and looked above. Ruka swallowed hard to see his serious crimson eyes focused on him. Those eyes seemed to have a murderous intent in them.
"You must be really stupid to get yourself caught," Natsume said, placing his arm on his bent knee.
Ruka grimaced and turned his head away. "It's not my fault," he said. "I didn't know there was a trap here."
Natsume narrowed his gaze at him. "So, what are you planning to do?" he asked. "Don't tell me you intend to hang around there all day? Why don't you use your Alice or something?" He pulled out a manga, opened it and started reading.
Animal Pheromone Alice. Yeah, he could use it at any time. However, he didn't want Hyuuga to see his affections towards animals. "I don't want to use my Alice," Ruka answered hesitantly. "I'll figure out a way out of here myself."
"Hmph…You must be some kind of an idiot," Natsume said with a shrug. "Do you really think you can get out of there depending on your own abilities? You don't even have a weapon to cut through the net. What are you going to do?
Ruka was normally a very patient person. But for some reason he was getting pissed. "You…You…talk so big," he said, lowering his head. "Let's see if you can get me out of here…"
"So, you're asking for my help." Natsume didn't even take his eyes off the manga as he talked.
"Not really…"
Natsume closed his manga and stood up. "You're troublesome…" he muttered. He spun around and started walking away. When he reached a certain distance, he peered over his shoulders and looked at Ruka. "Don't hesitate to ask for help, dummy." With one flick of his finger, a fire was conjured and it burned through the net.
When Ruka landed roughly on the ground, Natsume was already gone. "Where did he go?" he asked, rubbing his sore butt. Once he was back on his feet, he looked around and found no Hyuuga. "He really did help me…But why…? I thought he was…" Maybe Hyuuga Natsume wasn't such a cold-hearted bastard that everyone thought. If Natsume was really bad, then he wouldn't have bothered to help him.
End of Chapter 08
Akatsuki-hime: Ruka and Natsume are going to be friends soon. That I can guarantee. I just love writing about Hotaru and Ruka chasing each other. Although I don't like Hotaru, I still love the humor she brings. Of course, Mikan is still my favorite and I'm planning something for her and Natsume in the next chapter. A fair warning for the readers: this story actually has a Male Harem theme. This is probably the influence of La Corda D'Oro. Hehe… Anyway, I hope to see you in the next chapter. Please review. No flaming.
Preview for the Next Chapter:
"Imai-san, you're going to receive a failing mark again in swimming."
"I think Invention is not the only Alice you have. Maybe the reason why you can't swim is because you have the Non-Swimming Alice."
"Don't put me in the same line as that freak."
"Onee-chan is mine."
