Disclaimer: I do not own Infinite Stratos nor any of its characters...

replies!

an1995616 - HAHAHHAHAHAHA~ xD I was laughing all the way at your response! Yup, I have to agree, it was hard to make it subtle yet obvious. Finally, you'll get the answer in this chapter~ =]

Flame - MWUHAHAHAHAHAH~ I am a sadistic devil! XD Why stab her? Because Ichika is horribly dense, and won't admit his feelings for her unless he's driven to a corner! So, yes, blame Ichika for being dense! =D hEHE, me being evil. -Poor Ichika- Thanks for the tips (yes, unrelated but much needed!) I will definitely follow them and get an A for MATHHHHHHHHHHH!

hignum - Thanks! Im glad you liked it! ^^ Hope you enjoy this chapter as well! =]

RandomReview - Hello Mr, or Miss Random Review-san! Fanservice is a good thing right? XD ehehehe~ Yup, gotta agree about the jumbled up part, I added loads of not-included-in-the-real-anime-but-i-just-made-it-up info (^_^), so its a bit difficult to catch om with. Nonetheless, hope you enjoy! =D

I enjoyed writing this chapter because I like writing fluff, especially about Charlotte and Ichika! So, enjoy enjoy ENJOY~!

As I have said before, I'm searching for a supporting character for this story. Basically, the story revolves mainly around Charlotte and Ichika. But, I'm thinking of adding another character to be further exposed in the story... Houki, Cecilia, Rin or Laura! But, of course, I intend to have reviewers get a part in the formation of this fanfic, so I want you guys, yes, YOU, to tell me who you would want to get more parts in the story. Please place your choice in your reviews! Thank you!

Author's Rant:

VOTES... houki(1) laura(1) rin(0) cecilia(0)

Charlotte POV, then Ichika's then Ichika's dream, then finally Ichika's POV again. ^^


I didn't know what went through me. All I could remember was the Byakushiki standing mid-air in all its glory, but... but with a sword pointed right at its pilot's neck. My voice was raspy as I whispered our silent protests, unheard and unnoticed. My heartbeat was mooving faster with every second. And then...

I just couldn't stand watching anymore.

The pain of being stabbed wasn't as painful as I thought. Just pure numbness at the start. I could feel the sharp weapon diving through my flesh, tearing it apart. Nonetheless, as gruesome as it sounded, I was so numb with fear... it felt like nothing. I flinched from the sudden impact, aware of the blood gushing out of my now-tainted white uniform. But, all that I could think of was the girl in front of me. The fear and panic evident in her lilac eyes, her mouth agape. For a while there, I was apologetic of having shown my little sister such a bloody scene as this. Then, I heard it. A voice, screaming yet silent in its own ways. That was the voice that always reassured me after my nightmares, the voice that promised me a future of hope. Unknown to me, hot liquid was coursing through my cheeks, in little drops that sank into my uniform. As usual, upon hearing that voice I loved most, I turned my head to face the male pilot, my classmate, my friend, the one I loved the most yet never knew if he loved me back.

I saw the confusion, fear and pain in his eyes, dragging me back to reality. It was then that the pain from the stab began to convulse through my body, from my stomach spreading itself to my entire body. Unstoppable pain, unmeasurable pain. Amongst it all, I kept a face of perfect calmness... I was trying to, at least.

My voice was hoarse as I turned to face my family member in front of me, whose hands were still gripped nervously around the murderous sword. Clearing my throat once, I spoke,

"A month..."

It came out softer than I thought, so clearing my throat once more, I reiterated,

"Give me a month..." this time, it seemed coherent although croaky, "A month and I'll return."

I could feel him staring daggers at me from behind, wondering whether to come to my aid yet still in disbelief if this was really, really happening.

Lifting a hand with all the effort I could manage, though with each movement sharp jolts of pain ran through my body, I placed it on the petite girl's shoulders.

"I'll come back in a month," I spoke more coherently this time, panting once or twice, "So leave my friends out of this, Genevieve."

I didn't know what happened after that. All I remembered was my voice suddenly faltering, my body growing weaker and before I knew it, I was falling and falling.

"Charlotte!" I heard his voice once more, and before I could respond...

Darkness.


I remembered screaming out her name over and over again, holding her in my arms, tainting my fingers with her blood. I saw Chifuyu-nee, striding towards us. Even though she looked as cool and confident as always, her eyes betrayed her immediately. She was shouting out instructions everywhere, shaking me to my senses. Among the words were 'ambulance' and something about 'not breathing'.

Even though I was half unconcious, I couldn't stop myself from thinking long and hard about a certain violet-eyed girl. The last images I saw were an injection needle and some unknown person lifting the slender girl off my hands.

No... Don't take her... away... from me.

Darkness.


"Ichika, are you awake?" I heard her sweet, honey-coated voice call for me.

Trying to act calm, I began to straighten myself up, forcefully stopping my body from shivering and wiping the cold sweat off my face with the back of my hand.

"Y-Yo, Char, back?" I attempted to reply normally, but obviously, that backfired on me.

I exhaled slowly, hoping the blonde didn't realise a thing. I didn't want her to find out about this, not because of my own selfish reasons... but I didn't want her to be worried. Suddenly, a cold shiver ran down my spine and I pulled the blankets surrounding my body even higher to cover my face.

It was cold, so very cold. My throat was getting seriously itchy, but trying not to startle the girl, I stifled a rather awkward cough.

"Yup, ate dinner already, Ichika?" finally facing me, her expression changed as she looked at mine.

Almost like an instant reaction, I turned away in order not to face her. The heat was getting to my brain... my head was screaming hot, my body screaming cold. I could feel tears form in my eyes but blinked them away as fast as I could. I was a man... a grown up man. And I definitely wasn't going to lose my cool over some common illness. Well, not in front of Charlotte I couldn't.

"Ichika, what's wrong?" sensing the problem, I could feel her stare at me, worry filled in the violet orbs of her eyes.

I wanted to reply. Opening my mouth, I tried to mumble an okay but all that came out was a squeak. Yes, a squeak. Like a tiny, helpless, vulnerable little mouse. Pathetic, right?

I heard loud footsteps running towards me. The petite girl was trying to pull the blankets away from me, to reveal my weak inner self. But, no way was I gonna show her this! No way in hell! She pulled, and I pulled back. She pulled once more even persistently. So did I.

"Ichika," she stated my name aloud, authoratatively.

I couldn't refuse. I let go.

Her eyes seemed to burn with that of annoyance, and anger. See? This is what happens when you show the girl you like your unmanly ways.

"You idiot,"

I opened my eyes in shock. Did I just... hear that? The petite girl in front of me sighed. I shifted my gaze towards her. Tears. I could see those tiny pools of water forming in her eyes. Her cheeks were red against their usual pale colour. She was crying...

Lifting a finger, I wiped the single teardrop that fell down her cheeks. Why... was she crying for me?

"You big idiot," she continued, facing me with eyes wide, now with worry descending across them, "When will you stop worrying about others, and worry about yourself more?"

She gripped me on the arm, pulling me upwards into hers as she held me in a close embrace, cheeks brushing against mine. With her hands rubbing my back soothingly, she whispered in my ears in sweet whispers,

"Its okay."

"You'll be fine..."

"I'm here for you."

"You don't have to suffer alone anymore..."

I could feel myself leaning into her embrace, letting my weigh fall onto her shoulders. Hearing those words reminded me of the past, when I was a boy, when I was ill and only Chifuyu-nee would be there to keep me close and lull me to sleep.

Similarly, her words eased me of my discomfort. I felt myself sigh into her hair in relief. I knew I should probably tell her that I was feeling better now, but no... I wanted her by my side.

"Ichika," her voice aroused me from my nearly sleeping state, " I'll go get medicine, so be a good boy and stay..."

Before she could end her sentence I lifted a hand to grasp her tightly into the hug. No, I wanted to tell her but was too tired to even speak, I don't want you to go. Just stay here, next to me. Please...

Almost as if she had read my mind, she began to stroke my hair.

"All right, I'll stay. Lets get you under the covers..." the blonde responded, smiling warmly towards me as she pushed me lightly back onto the bed and pulled the blankets over me.

Surprisingly, she slipped under the covers too, snuggling close to my body, sharing her warmth. I felt my cheeks flush red, even redder as she wrapped her slender arms around my waist and leaned into my shoulders. It felt good, nonetheless, to have someone beside me, but then a sudden thought came to mind.

"Char..." I whispered hoarsely into her ears, "What if you catch the fever?"

"I don't care," she replied, not sparing a thought even, "I want to be with you for the entire day. Can't I?"

With this, she opened her eyes a crack to look at me. I was smiling. Although I had asked her that, I wanted her to decline. I wanted her to tell me she didn't care. I wanted her to tell me she'd stay with me. And she did. Unconciously, I leaned my cheek against her messy blonde hair, sighing contently, as she snuggled even closer to me than before. Placing a gentle hand atop hers, I closed my eyes in an attempt to finally get some well-deserved rest. Just then, I felt a warm sensation against my left cheek for a split second. A kiss...

"Goodnight Ichika."

"Goodnight, Char..."


I didn't want to open my eyes, I didn't want to shrug away from the beautiful memories between me and her. Even if it was just a dream, I wanted it to last longer. But I have to open them. I have to.

I can't open my eyes. I can't scrub the image of that incident out of my mind. Charlotte getting hurt, just so to protect me. I can't do it. I can't forget that image. But I want to wake up. I want to wake up and see her beautiful face once more. So I do.

My eyes flickered open, blinking several times to adjust to the brightness of the room. How long have I been unconcious? I turned to my right then to my left, searching for a particular blonde-haired girl. It was like a routine, waking up in the morning, turning to find Charlotte lying on the bed beside me. But no, there's no one in the room except for my lonely self. Then the words struck me like a brick. Chifuyu-nee's very specific words...

Not breathing...

Man, if the girls in my class were to see me, they'd probably lose all hope on me. Tears were streaming down my cheeks. I was crying, like a little boy whose most precious toy had been stolen. I have to say, I was quite grateful for being the only person in the room as of that time. I wanted to be alone. Why? Because... Well, because...

The truth hit me hard in that instant, bringing me to a frenzy.

Charlotte's dead... She's dead. CHARLOTTE'S GONE. She died protecting me from something that I was supposed to protect her from.

I can't hold her in my arms anymore.

I can't see her smile anymore.

I can't hear her laughter anymore.

I can't be by her side anymore.

I can't... My tears were fiercely flowing in fast drops, as I banged my fist against the hard mattress underneath me. My knuckles were white. I almost forgot how to breath. I was just there... weeping like nobody's business, murmuring her name under my breath like a mad man.

I didn't even get to say goodbye. I didn't even get to say the words I've been meaning to say for a long, long time.

"Ichika!" her voice seemed to ring in my ear, like a bad, bad memory.

"Char..."

I was the worst person on Earth. I couldn't even protect the one I loved from a little girl! How stupid... How foolish of me... Right, Char? You're probably laughing at me right now? I'm the worst guy to be with. I broke my promise...

Promise.

I had promised her I would return to her side once the battle was over. My hands were trembling as I heard my own voice declaring that promise in my ears.

"I promise, Char... I'll definitely return back to your side,"

Those words... I failed to heed my own words. I buried my face in my hands in surrender. Before I knew it, I was screaming. Just screaming out loud, letting my voice reverberate throughout the entire room, letting the tears fall freely, letting my body rock back and fourth in agony. I was yearning so badly for her embrace, her warm tender embrace, which I could receive no longer.

In the midst of my hysterical screaming, I hadn't realised Chifuyu-nee had entered the room, face sullen with a frown approaching me in a rush when she saw my condition.

"Ichika... Ichika! ICHIKA CALM DOWN!" her voice escalated to that of anger and panic as she threw me a tight slap across the cheek.

My chest heaving, I stared at my one and only sister reproachfully. My breathing was ragged and I couldn't think properly at the moment. In just a second, her cold, hard stare turned to one of warmth and understanding.

"Ichika, please calm yourself down..." she spoke, almost in a whisper.

I looked away from my crimson-eyes sister, sorting out my mixed emotions. I could feel the sting of my left cheek, but that wasn't important. I placed my focus on the white bedsheets I had been grasping in my hands, inhaling slowly, exhaling calmly. Finally, when I managed to regain my composure, I looked at the tall older woman in front of me.

"Chifuyu-nee," I tried to speak, trying to appear okay so as to reassure her of her worries.

It came out in a hoarse frog-like croak. Sensing my obvious discomfort, the taller figure pulled me into her arms, holding me close.

"Don't be like this..."

"But..."

"Charlotte needs you to be strong for her as well."

I blinked twice. What? Forcefully pushing myself off my older sister, I grabbed the two of her hands gently.

"Charlotte... what happened?" I asked, staring into the deep red orbs of my sister's eyes, impatient for an answer.

"She lost a lot of blood. Her heart stopped beating..."

My heart fell upon hearing this.

"But, we managed to revive her before it was too late. She's in a special ward we formed in the academy. Having her in a hospital would only risk her of getting taken away so..."

I didn't bother to listen to the other half of the story. Despite the wounds on my arms and legs, I went out dashing, running to the left, hesitating, turning to the right, running further. I just kept running and running as fast as my legs could carry me until I saw a familiar shade of yellow hair flashing past me. Stopping in my tracks, I made my way into the room. The bed stood in the middle of the room, next to a row of windows bringing sunlight in. I saw her petite and slender figure resting peacefully atop the bed, tucked in with her hair sprawled around her head. I stared at her face for a long time, just standing, staring... Seeing the fall and rise of her chest signalling her breathing made me sigh with relief, even tears were forming in my eyes now. I lifted a hand to gently caress her cheeks.

Cold.

Her face was paler than below, lips no longer the cherry tint that I knew so well. All in all, she just looked tired. Several tubes were attached to her here and there but other than that, she wasn't moving. Just resting there... like an angel.

I sat on the chair that stood beside the bed for visitors, holding onto her hand firmly. I didn't want to let go. I just felt like staying next to the violet-eyed girl in front of me. Brushing the back of her hand past my lips, I rejoiced at the fact that she was still here... Charlotte was still here in front of me, living, breathing. Alive.

Reluctant at first, I leaned into her left ear, inhaling her sunshiny scent. I didn't care if she couldn't hear me. I wanted to tell her how I felt, even if it meant nothing. There need not be a witness, just me... and her. Taking a deep breath, I whispered,

"I love you Charlotte Dunois..."


Wow, done, done! I can't believe it, Im done! Bye people, love ya. REVIEW REVIEW REVIEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW~