Happy Reading!

Rush

By Tsuki's Angel

~Chapter 9~

-Surprises, Surprises-

Weeks had gone by. Mikan still didn't know if Luca and Hotaru and the rest of their class got away safely. She could only hope. Natsume remained by her side throughout the entire thing. It was what comforted her. Without him, she was afraid she would have gone insane.

Mikan watched Natsume's chest steadily go up and down. His head lay peacefully on her lap. She had volunteered to take the first watch. Natsume really needed his sleep. He literally wouldn't let Mikan out of his sight, even though she was completely capable of taking care of herself. Mikan ran her fingers through his hair absentmindedly while staring into space.

At the moment, they were in Mr. Bear's cabin. It was pretty safe to be there. They could never be fully protected from the bombs unless they were off academy ground, which wasn't going to happen. Mikan had to rest for at least a day. She had been fighting nonstop for weeks. Her back hurt, her legs were beyond sore, and her feet hurt so badly. She needed to rest for a little while. She was in no condition to fight, and she knew that.

She felt as though the life was being drained out of her.

But Natsume didn't need to know that. She tried her hardest to keep on a smiling face for him when they weren't battling AAO agents, which wasn't often. Right now, she could afford to put on a pained expression because no matter how much she tried to deny it, she overexerted herself.

. . .

Somewhere deep in Tokyo far away from the academy, Hotaru was angrily tapping her foot against the floor of an enormous, expensive mansion. She and the other alice refugees were currently living in it. It was definitely paradise compared to Gakuen Alice. The house was actually her grandparents' and parents' old home before they moved to Mikan's town. She stared into the roaring fire that was built in the mantle, her arms crossed, and one hand under her chin.

"Hotaru," Luca said lovingly. He only called her by her first name when she needed comforting. Right now, that's what she needed. "Are you okay?" No reply. Luca stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She still remained cold and motionless. "They won't give up without a fight."

"I know."

"Then why are you so worried?"

"We left two moronic imbeciles that are hopelessly in love in the middle of an Alice War."

"Right," Luca said, pretending to be ignorant. "Forgot about that."

Hotaru rolled her eyes, "You know everyone currently living in my home is in debt to me. I expect payment."

Luca chuckled, "Oh, we know."

"The food isn't free either," she said. "It takes a lot of it to feed all these people."

"It's a good thing we're alices," Luca said. "Some of us can actually make food."

"Hm," she said. "What a lucky turnout."

"Lucky indeed," Luca said, thinking about Mikan and Natsume's fate.

"I suppose it's no use dwelling over them," Hotaru said. "I shouldn't be feeling regret."

"So you feel it too?"

"I never intended for them to fight on their own," she said blankly. "Mikan can be so stupidly spontaneous. You never see these things coming with her."

"I was actually thinking of staying with Natsume before he closed the machine on us," Luca said. "But I don't know how I would be of any use."

"You'd be completely useless," Hotaru said bluntly. "You'd just slow us down, so there would be no reason for you to be there."

Luca smiled. He knew that was her way of telling him that she didn't want him to be in the war. No matter how coldly she said it, it still made him feel warm. He held her tighter, and Hotaru allowed herself to lean her head back. They were going to be here for a while.

. . .

Natsume stirred awake. He found himself on the cold ground, but with Mr. Bear's old blanket and pillow. He was covered in sweat and breathing heavily. He sat up and ran a hand through his hair. The nightmare he just woke up from was the worst of them yet. He frantically looked around for what he was searching for. But there was no Mikan. That's what worried him. He got up. She had to be around here somewhere. And he had to admit, he didn't think he could handle it if she left him for a third time.

"Hey, Polka-Dots," Natsume called, trying to mask the tremor in his voice. "Where are you?"

"Out here!"

Natsume let out a breath that he didn't know he had held. He grabbed his coat—he stole it from an abandoned shop in Central Town—and walked outside to see Mikan chopping a piece of wood clean in half with an axe. He stopped her long enough to steal a kiss before letting her go on with her business.

"We need to go to Central Town."

"I know," Mikan replied. They were running low on food. "I'm just making sure we have wood ready if we come back." She looked at him up and down. "Are you okay? You look a little pale."

Natsume ignored her question. He was not going to tell her about the nightmares. "How much longer do you think this thing's going to last?"

She was momentarily distracted. "It depends on how long it takes to kill them off," Mikan said blankly.

"You make it sound so vulgar," Natsume joked.

Mikan remained expressionless. "It's because it is. Killing their agents—I've been at it for years. I should be used to it by now, right?"

Natsume's expression changed into that of confusion. "What's wrong?"

"It feels so wrong," Mikan said. "I hate being in this war, but I know, somehow, it's my place right now."

"At least you're defending what you believe in," he replied.

Mikan sighed and lodged the axe into a piece of wood, leaving it there. "That's one thing that's keeping me going."

"And the other things?"

Mikan smiled at him. "You should know what they are by now."

Natsume took his hand in hers. Even though she wore a pair of leather gloves, her hand was freezing. He honestly didn't know how she wasn't frozen yet, being out here for so long. It would be even worse if she was wearing those shorts. Of course, a couple weeks ago, he convinced her it would be better if she found herself a pair of pants. She agreed, but she still found it to be wrong because it was her uniform. And Isabella didn't have the choice of warmer clothing. She felt bad, but she had to admit—it was much better.

Natsume pulled her along with her as he started walking. "Let's get going."

Mikan's hand tightened its grip on his. She followed him after picking up her backpack, all the while thinking. Where was Narumi? Was he safe? What about Persona and Victoria? Why haven't they attacked them yet? All of these questions just worried Mikan extraneously. As Mikan stared down at her scuffed leather boots, she became increasingly aware of extra footprints. She knew they weren't Natsume's, unless he had sprouted another pair of legs.

Mikan's breath hitched as she furiously dragged him back.

"Whoa—what the?"

"Shh!" Mikan hushed. "Up the tree. And hurry."

Mikan ran back the short distance they walked. She quickly covered up their footprints in the snow when she ran back.

Natsume looked at her curiously. "What's going on, Polka?"

"Natsume!" she whispered harshly. "Not now!"

Natsume begrudgingly complied with her wishes. He expertly climbed the tree—he's only been doing it half his life. Mikan followed close behind. They sat on a sturdy branch, well hidden from view. Mikan was couched close to the trunk. She took a knife from her belt and stabbed it into the tree. She held the knife close to her ear, listening for any vibrations that footsteps would cause.

"Where'd you learn the trick?" Natsume was mildly impressed.

"When I was hiding from assassins," she said quickly. "Now hush."

Mikan listened intently. She heard a very slight buzzing. It got a bit louder and she knew someone was heading in their direction. She took her knife out and stuck it back in her belt. She waited. That's when she heard them.

"Hey." A deep, burly voice said. "I don't think anyone is down here."

"This is where she told us to come," said a female voice. She sounded mature and menacing. "There has to be some sign that they were there."

"All I found was wood," he replied. "Go check yourself."

The woman sighed, exasperated. "No need. If there's really nothing there, then we should get going." The snow crunched beneath her feet. "She's going to be furious. We had to find that girl at any cost. And on top of that, that blonde man escaped last night."

The man loudly shuddered. "I don't like being around him. He kissed the guard and knocked him out. That's not right."

"Damn straight," Natsume muttered in agreement under his breath.

Mikan covered his mouth with her hand.

Laughter. "It was funny. Human Pheromone. What a useless alice."

"Useless unless you use it to escape," the man mumbled.

"All right, all right," the woman said. "Let's go. If we're no use here, we might as well scout out alices in Central Town."

The sound of retreating footsteps did not settle Mikan's heart. Narumi escaped? And who were they looking for? She really hoped it wasn't her. But it had to be her, since she and Natsume were the only ones to visit Mr. Bear's cabin. And on top of that they were scouting alices to kill. Mikan's head swirled.

"So, Naru's on the run," Natsume mused.

Mikan settled back against the trunk. "That's good. I'm relieved. Hopefully, he'll get out of the academy as soon as possible."

"Somehow, I don't find that likely."

"And why not?"

"He'd find some way to fight," he scoffed. "He's truly an idiot. Like you."

Mikan frowned, "Remind me again why I put up with you?"

Natsume didn't even get a chance to reply because Mikan had jumped out of the tree and landed gracefully at the bottom. Natsume followed suit.

"We should get to Central Town," he said. "Whatever reason their scouting for isn't good."

. . .

"Help!"

Mikan's ears perked up. "Natsume, wait here." Mikan dashed around a corner to find another student refugee, trying to find his way out of the academy. Mikan pulled out her gun and shot the agent down.

Conditions in Central Town were so much worse. Buildings were left abandoned. The usual happy aura is gone, replaced by a dreary, grey atmosphere. They would occasionally come across a body. Sometimes they knew the person. It was even worse that way. It really got to them when they found a child crying in a shop, hiding from agents. Snow fell everywhere, but it wasn't white. It was black and muddy.

Mikan hurried her way over to the boy. "It's okay. Everything's going to be okay." She held him close. She didn't know him too well; only saw him once or twice in the hallway. He was their age. He was shaking. "You need to get out of here. The academy gates are too guarded, so I'm going to transport you to the nearest train station I know. From there, get as far away as you can."

He nodded. "O-okay."

Mikan took his hand and concentrated. She imagined the train station she saw on the way to Gakuen Alice all those years ago. The boy was engulfed in a white glow, and within seconds, he disappeared. Mikan stood up and stared at the spot where he once stood. She kicked the agent's body over to the side.

"You really need to stop teleporting everyone you see."

His voice was soft, caring. Mikan knew he was worried about her health. She just shook her head and rubbed the back of her neck. "They need help. There's no other way."

He walked up behind her and gently massaged her shoulders. "You know that it's not good for your body. Don't overexert yourself."

"I know, I know," Mikan sighed. She let Natsume massage small circles into her shoulders. It felt good. "But this is a war. We have to sacrifice things. It just ends up working that way."

Natsume stopped. He backed up and started walking. He wasn't going to argue with her. They needed to continue to look around for agents. Kill them off whenever they could. "Coming?"

Mikan expression contorted to that of sadness. "Yeah…"

Natsume and Mikan spent the rest of their time in town hunting around corners and catching agents by surprise. It was the easiest element they could incorporate with the risk of using their alices. Central Town was now chock full of AAO agents, and they were lucky if they found a spot that they could rest in for five minutes. The winter air bit their skin, and they were badly in need of healing.

Suddenly, they heard something above them. Simultaneously, they both looked up and their eyes widened. There was a huge black helicopter. And out of it, it rained small black dots. Bombs.

The next thing Mikan knew was that she was being yanked and forced to run in a direction far away from the helicopter. Natsume was pulling her. He wouldn't let her use her alice. She stumbled very clumsily. It wasn't like her. She was almost near panic. How were they going to get out of this? Mikan stopped her stumbling and tried to run better.

The first bomb hit the ground and sent debris everywhere. Vaguely, Mikan noticed that the bombs weren't ordinary bombs. They were obviously enhanced with alices. And if they were enhanced with alices, it meant that she could nullify their attack. She worked quickly, and, while running, she spread a shield around Natsume. She felt so weak—she didn't even know if she could cover herself. But she managed to get her upper body covered in the shield, and she knew that none of her vital organs would be struck.

Mikan eventually caught pace with Natsume. He led her through alleys and around buildings until they reached what used to be a book store. The shop was deserted now. It was on the south side of town, far enough away from the bombing which was mostly happening in the center and north. Mikan breathed heavily and sunk to the ground, letting her shield down. Her feet hurt like hell. She took off the backpack she had and sighed as her shoulders experienced relief.

Natsume took precautionary measures. He locked the front door and closed the shutters, making sure nobody could see inside. He moved a waist-high bookcase in front of the door, just in case. Mikan made her way to a nearby couch, which was part of the reading area—somewhere where one can read in peace. Sitting down on a chair took a load off her swollen feet. It felt nice. She closed her eyes and leaned back. She felt Natsume sit down beside her.

"Go to sleep. I'll wake you."

Mikan's eyelids drooped. The thought didn't settle well with her. "I don't want to."

Natsume frowned. "You're tired." Mikan was almost asleep. He smirked as he kissed each of her eyelids closed. "Goodnight."

Mikan didn't object as sleep captured her. Natsume gently laid her down across the couch, making sure that she was comfortable. Barely any light was shown in the shop, so he found a candle and lit it. It was dim, but it was going to have to do. He set it down on the side table that was settled between two couches. He then wandered to the back of the bookstore, giving her some space. He knew that her throat was bothering her, even though she didn't say a word.

. . .

Mikan slowly opened her eyes. Her eyelids felt heavy, like there was some kind of glue bonding them together. As soon as she woke up, she realized that she was starving. She dragged herself to the backpack she brought with her to find something to eat. The supplies she packed weeks ago were completely diminished, and they were currently living off of whatever food they could rummage from town. All they had in their backpack was stale bread from the bakery and a bottle of old water. Mikan left the bread for Natsume and drank water.

"Hey, why are you awake?"

Mikan turned her head warily to see Natsume leaning on the counter. "I'm actually really thirsty."

"I can see that." He moved to crouch down next to her. "When was the last time you ate?"

"This morning," she lied immediately.

"Liar," he said. "Eat."

Mikan almost pouted at how easily he caught her bluff. "You take half. We don't have much, and I doubt we'll find food soon."

"I ate while you were asleep," Natsume replied simply, sitting on the floor with his legs stretched in front of him and leaning his head back on the couch behind him. He closed his eyes.

Mikan looked at him and at the piece of bread uncertainly. "Promise?"

"Promise what?"

"That you already ate."

He opened one eye, and then closed it again. "Yeah."

Liar, Mikan thought. She ripped it in half and gave him a piece. "Take it."

Natsume sighed. "I told you to just eat it, alright?"

"But I'll feel bad, so just take it like a man."

"I am a man."

"Not unless you eat this piece of bread," Mikan said, too seriously. She crawled up on his legs so that she was straddling him. She lifted his head and forced him to look at her.

"Mikan…?" Natsume's voice was barely a whisper.

"If you don't eat it, then I'll feed it to you," she said hoarsely, partly because of the necklace, partly because of the feeling bubbling up inside her.

Mikan knew the effect she was having on him, and she loved it. Natsume was captured in her spell. She had him reeling with her touch alone. She absentmindedly played with his hair with one hand, and with the other, she ran a hand down his shoulder. He shivered. Mikan smiled and placed both of her hands behind his neck after taking a chunk of bread between her teeth. She pulled him in close. She made sure he knew where she was heading with this.

"You won't get a kiss unless you eat," Mikan said through her clenched teeth.

Natsume took the chunk of bread into his mouth, brushing his lips across hers in the process. He chewed and swallowed. As soon as he did, Mikan pressed a chaste kiss against his lips. It was much too quick for his liking, so he took his hand and placed it on her neck, pulling her in again. Mikan smiled against his lips. She pulled back, ripped another chunk off and once again, fed him. Natsume was obliging without a fight.

Mikan found that Natsume wore the smallest scowl on his face whenever she pulled away from a kiss. It was actually quite adorable. He could be so simpleminded sometimes. Mikan was about to take a bite of bread for herself when it was ripped out of her hands. Natsume held the piece in his hand and ripped off a small piece with his teeth.

"What are you doing?" Her voice was a harsh whisper. Her lids were drooping.

"Same thing you are," he replied. "Now do you want to kiss me or what?"

Mikan ate the small piece. Natsume grinned devilishly. Mikan rightfully claimed her kiss and right afterwards she fed him the last of the bread. Natsume found the entire ordeal completely unfair. He ended up eating most of it when he knew she was hungry. He felt absolutely horrid. That's why when she tried to kiss him again, he didn't let her.

Mikan blinked. "What's wrong?"

"I need to find you some food."

Her eyes hardened. "You don't need to do anything. It's disastrous out there. Even I won't go out."

"Does that mean I shouldn't?"

"It means you won't," Mikan clarified.

"We won't last long in here if I don't," Natsume pressed.

"Don't go out now," Mikan said after a pause. "We can go out later, when things are more settled."

Natsume didn't want to upset her further. "Fine, but you stay behind me."

"Hmm," Mikan said, enveloping his head in her arms. "Whatever you want…"

And once again, their lips met.

. . .

"Don't you think we should be helping out with this war?"

Hotaru and Luca looked up at the figure standing in their doorway. It was Sumire. She had her arms crossed, and a very distraught expression crossed her face.

Hotaru pursed her lips. "I'm actually sending out weapons to the alices fighting in the war."

"And we just sit here and do nothing?" Sumire growled. "I feel freaking useless. Mikan and Natsume are out there—"

"Mikan and Hyuuga are trained dangerous ability students," Hotaru interrupted. "We are obviously not. Judging by the way the academy looked when we left, I'd say we wouldn't even last a day."

"So we're just going to sit here while they're fighting for us? Why can't we help them? Why can't we—"

"There's no argument over this, Perms," Hotaru said blandly. "What can we really do? I know for a fact that you've never been trained before. Neither have I or Luca. So what use are we out in the battlefield? Do you think we can magically gain knowledge of killing? It's not easy. And the risk is too high. We're better off helping from a distance."

Sumire couldn't look her in the eye when she asked, "But…what if they die?"

Hotaru's eyes hardened. "If they died, do you really think we had a chance?"

"She's your best friend…"

"She's yours too."

"She's not as close to me as she is to you," Sumire countered.

Hotaru wasn't fazed. "But she's still your friend nonetheless."

Sumire couldn't argue with that.

. . .

A man and a woman stood outside the academy wall in disguise. They spoke in harsh whispers to each other, hoping that they did not catch the attention of anyone around them. The woman had her hair up in a ponytail. The man motioned her to follow him. They scaled the wall and hopped over.

The sight that beheld them shocked them to the very core. They didn't expect to see this much destruction in such little time. After all, they were former alices that used to go to this school. The woman stared at the charred buildings.

"This is…" she started.

"Damn," the man cursed. "It isn't nearly as bad as what the alice messenger told us."

"You're right," the woman replied, swallowing. "It's much, much worse."

The man shook his head. "We're here on a mission."

"Right. Where do you think we should start?" the woman asked.

"I think Central Town would be our best bet," he replied.

"That place is being raided by bombs. Are you sure?"

"It's either that or the forests," he said. "And who knows what we'll find there."

"Not Mr. Bear," the woman laughed. "Kaname took him away long ago."

"I remember that," the man said, laughing along with her. He took her hand in his. "Now, to find our little Mikan and that brat Natsume…"

"Tsubasa, you're as cold to him as ever," the woman said, tightening their hold. "Can't say I blame you, though."

"Misaki, can you believe she came back after we graduated?" Tsubasa asked. "And after leaving so suddenly…"

"Can you blame her?" she asked. "She was always pretty spontaneous."

Tsubasa's eyes clearly softened. "True. But I missed her, y'know?"

"Not as much as Natsume," she contradicted. "He was a mess."

"He set me on fire," he clarified. "Stupid kid."

Misaki rolled her eyes. "Let's just find them."

"Okay," Tsubasa said. "But stay close. I don't want you blown to pieces."

"That's reassuring…" Misaki smirked.

"Just be careful," Tsubasa warned. "This is gonna get ugly."

. . .

Natsume held Mikan tightly in his lap. She leaned her head on his shoulder and played with his shirt. Natsume rubbed her arm. They had been silent for a long time, keeping their thoughts to themselves, and occasionally hearing bombs hit in the far distance. Mikan jumped every time she heard one.

Natsume fingered Mikan's necklace. Mikan tried not to wince, but it was hard not to. She gently pushed Natsume's hand away and asked, "What are you doing?"

Natsume stared at her necklace, then at her. Her eyes were deep hazel. "I could take that off."

"I thought we went over this?" Mikan sighed. "I don't know what could happen to you—"

"Will you stop worrying about me?" he growled.

"You didn't let me finish," Mikan said. "As I was saying, I don't know what could happen to you, nor do I know what could happen to me. It's not a good idea."

"Then how're you ever going to get that off?" he asked. "What if Victoria and that idiot Persona die in this bloody war?"

"They won't die," Mikan said darkly. "They're both used to having people die for them."

Natsume glowered at her at first, but his gaze softened. "And what if that thing came off and nothing happened to either of us?"

"That's highly unlikely," Mikan said. "And I'm willing to go as far as saying that it's impossible."

"Nothing's impossible," he whispered. "And didn't you say that you believe in the impossible?"

Mikan bit her lip. "Yes, I did."

Natsume leaned closer. "So can we try?"

Mikan knew what he was trying to do. She avoided looking in his eyes at all costs. She looked down, instead. "No. That's a risk I'm not willing to take."

Natsume took her chin in his hand and forced her to look at him. "Please?"

Mikan was looking into his deep maroon eyes. It wasn't like him to beg. "W-why do you want to take it off so badly?"

Natsume paused, and then answered, "Because I don't want you to be in pain when you're near me."

Mikan sighed, looking away again. "I don't know…"

Natsume pulled her gaze back to his. "Please?"

Mikan took a deep breath. "I'm…scared."

"What are you afraid of?"

Mikan blinked. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm willing to take the risk," he stated.

Mikan looked at him for a long time. "Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Mikan swallowed thickly. "Okay." Her voice was so small.

"Hey," Natsume said. "Don't be afraid."

Mikan merely nodded. Natsume gently kissed her forehead and pushed her off his lap. Mikan sat with her legs under her. She held her little hands to her chest, clutched into fists. Her face visibly drained of any color. She was so very afraid. Not only for Natsume but for herself. Natsume's hands traveled to her neck, getting ready to remove the necklace. He looked at her for the okay. Once again, she nodded.

Natsume reached behind her neck and looked for a clasp or something that held the necklace on her. Mikan felt the hairs on her neck rising. A shiver ran down her spine, and suddenly, she felt paralyzed. She shut her eyes tightly. Natsume found the clasp, and gently, ever so gently, he undid it.

Immediately, the entire room was engulfed in a white light brighter than burning magnesium. It temporarily blinded the both of them. Mikan felt something course through her body. She didn't know what it was; it just felt a lot like fire. It might just have been the shock Persona told her about. She didn't know. Her limbs felt like gelatin, and she fell backwards with a light thud. Her eyes drooped closed.

For some reason, Mikan had a strong feeling that she should be dead, but she wasn't. Something was keeping her going. She felt it in the pit of her stomach. Briefly, she saw pictures flash through her mind. It was a little boy. He was the spitting image of Natsume. The same maroon eyes, the gorgeous black hair. He was beautiful. It must have been Natsume when he was little. Little Natsume was telling her to keep going. So she focused on her breathing and did so.

Just as soon as it came, the light left and a dark, murky purple light was left in its place. After a minute, Natsume was back to normal, but Mikan was lying limp on the floor. Natsume panicked. It was when she briefly opened her eyes that he knew she wasn't dead.

"Finish what you started," she said hoarsely.

Natsume swallowed and lifted her up with an arm at the middle of her back. She was almost lifeless if it wasn't for her slow, melodic breathing. He fingered the necklace. It had some sort of magnetic attraction to her. He peeled it off a little and found that little shocks of lightning appeared where he tried to take it off, trying to keep the necklace on her.

"Mikan," Natsume said.

"Hm?" she managed to say.

"Set up a nullification barrier," he said. "Now."

In a weak attempt, Mikan tried. It didn't work. "I-I...can't do it."

"Try," he said, taking her hand. "You've got to try."

"O…kay," she rasped.

Mikan opened her eyes briefly and looked at Natsume's face. She gave it everything she had and put up a barrier. It was weak but it was something. As fast as he could, Natsume ripped off the necklace, knowing that if he took it off slowly, Mikan may not be able to hold up the barrier.

The necklace burned to ashes immediately in a purple fire. Mikan writhed in his arms and let out a piercing scream. Her back arched, and she could have sworn she saw her life flash before her eyes. She saw the faces of her friends, grandpa, and Natsume. But mainly, she saw the face of little Natsume. He looked like he was in pain. No, Mikan thought. Don't make that face. I'm here. I'm alive. Mikan remembered that she made a promise to herself to get out of this academy alive. She made an effort to open her eyes.

Natsume held her tightly. Her hand was still in his, and she squeezed it, letting him know that she was going to be okay. It was going to be okay.

. . .

Mikan woke up hours later. Her head was pounding. That was absolutely no surprise to her though. She spent a minute or two taking in her surroundings. She lifted her hand in front of her face and moved her fingers. I'm alive, she thought. I'm alive. She worked on getting her body up. Just as she was about to sit up, a pair of strong arms lifted her up.

"Natsume, is there any water left?" she asked in a scratchy voice.

"Here you go," she heard a voice say. It wasn't Natsume, but it was definitely familiar.

Mikan whipped her head around, causing her to wobble a little, and caught an eyeful of a tall man with dark hair. "T-Tsubasa!"

He grinned. "The one and only, Shorty."

Mikan looked behind him to find Misaki standing next to Natsume. She grinned and waved. "Misaki!" Mikan's heart was beating really fast. "W-what are you guys doing—"

Mikan began to cough. She doubled over. Natsume was immediately by her side. He took the bottle of water from Tsubasa and held it to her mouth. Mikan sipped at it, swallowed, and coughed a little more. Natsume scoot her over and sat down next to her.

"Don't overdo it," he said, rubbing her back. He held up a small paper bag. "Here. Eat."

After she caught up with her breathing, Mikan stared at the bag in her hands. She stared at Natsume with wide eyes. "You went outside without me?"

Natsume groaned. "Don't get worked up about that now. Just eat."

Mikan couldn't believe her ears. "Are you…are you trying to get yourself killed!"

"I was fine, Polka. I can take care of myself. Now eat, for God's sake."

"How many fatalities were there?"

"Don't worry about it," Natsume said, sighing. "Listen, if you want me to feed you, you can just ask."

Mikan ignored his last comment. "How many were there, Natsume?" She put on her no-nonsense voice.

Natsume's eyes darkened. "Four."

"How many were agents?"

"Three."

"Who died?"

"A woman who was fighting against them. I don't know who she was."

Mikan seemed to be tense. She gripped the bag tighter. "Did you eat already?"

Natsume rolled his eyes. "Yeah." He jerked a thumb back at Tsubasa and Misaki, who were completely forgotten during their conversation. "I met these two losers on the way here."

Tsubasa fumed. "You're lucky that I didn't let that agent murder you on the spot!"

Mikan's eyes widened. "See! You could have died!" He eyes welled up with moisture. "You say that you can't live without me, but you have to take into account that it's the same for me!"

Natsume glared at Tsubasa. "Thanks a lot."

Tsubasa crossed his arms over his chest. "Anytime."

Misaki decided to intervene. "Some hours ago, we saw the very bright light flash into the sky. We had no idea what it was—thought it was some kind of bomb or weapon. But when we met up with hothead over here, he told us that it was you. So, here we are."

Natsume blinked. "Hothead—"

Mikan interrupted his tirade. "Are you two okay? Why are you here?"

"We're fine," Tsubasa said, waving off that question. "We're here because we wanted to help with the war. Also, there was hope that we'd be able to see you again. Natsume filled us in on what went on when you left." Mikan stared at him awkwardly. He shook his head. "You're seriously insane."

"So I've heard," Mikan mumbled. "Well, at least I'm alive."

Misaki blinked. "Yup. Seriously insane."

. . .

After eating the food that Natsume brought for her, Mikan headed to the restroom, which was a small single stall room in the back of the shop. Mikan passed by a calendar on the way to the restroom. Out of curiosity, she decided to check the date to see how long they had been at war.

"Hm," Mikan hummed to herself. "March 24…"

Whoa, Mikan thought, time really does fly by. She tried to remember the last time she saw Ivan and Isabella. They met up not too long ago, but it was only to exchange information on the numbers and fronts. But there was something Mikan was forgetting. It was at the tip of her tongue. When she realized exactly what date it was, she gasped and backed up, hitting the wall behind her in the narrow hallway. She knocked over a vase, sending a loud crash throughout the small shop.

"Oi, Polka," Natsume's voice indicated that he was coming. He rounded the corner and saw her pale face. "Hey, what's up? Ando and Harada are sleeping. You need to keep it down."

Mikan didn't care about that at the moment. She stared at the calendar blankly as she fell to the floor on her knees. She covered her eyes with her hands.

"Hey, are you okay?" Natsume crouched down beside her and rubbed her back. "Are you hurt?"

Mikan shook her head slowly. She felt salty tears flow incessantly down her cheeks to her chin. "I'm…okay," she choked out.

Natsume's eyes widened and he glared at her. "It sure as hell doesn't look like it."

Mikan shook her head again, hiding her face even more with her hands. Her hair put a curtain between her and Natsume. "Oh my God…"

"Tell me what's wrong, Polka," Natsume demanded.

"It's March 24," Mikan sobbed. "It's March 24."

"What?" Natsume was baffled. "Are you trying to indicate that I missed White Day or something? Look, I didn't know you really cared about that crap, but if you really want something—"

Mikan was whispering days to herself, counting how many had gone by. "It's been ten days…"

"I know," he replied. "When's it again? March 14? Shit, I'm sorry—"

"Natsume, I couldn't give less of a damn about White Day," Mikan said with her head snapping to face him.

Natsume blinked. "Then what's got you all messed up?"

Mikan took a deep breath. She placed a hand on her belly. "Natsume, I believe that in about eight months, you're going to be a father."