A/N: I don't own Alice Gakuen.

Eyes


(The same night, a few hours later)

"I can feel your eyes on me," Mikan whispered, her words murmuring against his naked chest.

"I'm trying to find you." Natsume replied, "It's dark."

Mikan had thought Natsume had drifted to sleep, but when he started stroking her hair a few moments ago, she understood otherwise. After all, she didn't want to succumb yet to sleep either: she wanted to live, feel and savour this moment. She needed to capture everything: feel and hear every breath, memorize Natsume's naked flesh against hers.

She moved her head on his arm that was stretched above her; as soon as she cushioned herself on his bicep, he curled his arm so that his hand cradled and head, as she slightly turned so that her body faced him.

In the dark, they searched for each other's eyes. Instead, Mikan's lips found his chin and brushed their way up to his. Softly, they kissed.

Some part of Mikan was scared to fall asleep. What if she fell asleep and this was all just a dream? Worse, what if she woke up, this wasn't a dream, but he was gone? She was too scared to even say it out loud, afraid of tempting fate. She just needed to be with him; stay awake, and experience him.

Mikan put her hand on Natsume's cheek, "There's so much I want to say to you… but I don't know where to begin."

He pulled back her hair from her face, tucking it all away. "Well, you could start by telling me your age."

Mikan smiled against his lips. "Does my age bother you that much?"

"I'm twenty-six, turning twenty-seven later this year." He supplied first encouragingly.

Mikan gave in to him, "I turned twenty-three earlier this year."

"Go on," he urged kindly.

"Go on? Where?"

"Nowhere. You're staying here with me. I meant tell me more. Begin anywhere. I'll listen."

She hesitated slightly before she just let her heart speak, "I… I was a very happy, excitable child. I was blindly optimistic, head-strong and cheerful. I always stood by what I believed in..." she then chuckled in memory, "when I was ten, my school nearly closed down but I forced my best friend to campaign with me: we went to the local council and demanded that they fund our school for the benefit of our community. And we won… the battles we fought back then were smaller, easier and for 'justice'… now, I don't even know what I believe in anymore – telling wrong from right is getting harder by the day." The way she held him, however, told Natsume that she believed in him.

Natsume murmured appreciatively as he pulled her closer against him, "You're too hard on yourself. You're still optimistic, head-strong and cheerful."

"Only for the sake of others."

"Don't you see? That's an act of true bravery. You hold yourself up in order to hold up others. Most people can't do that, Mikan. Everyday doctors and nurses save the lives of their soldiers. But you saved an enemy's life. You saved my life." She didn't say anything. "You're so strong and you don't even know it… but maybe that's why you're so good."

"You think too highly."

"No; on the contrary, I have a very low opinion of the world. But I think highly of you because you warrant praise. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. Your life saved mine."

"Then tell me about your life. Tell me all about this" she knocked twice against his chest, by his heart, "life that I saved."

"Well, I'm sorry to have to tell you but the life you saved is, unfortunately, a very boring one. Until now, that is." He exhaled contently against her forehead, kissed it, before he started, "I had a lonely childhood. I spent more time at my best friend, Luca's house than my own. Luca's mother was kind to my sister and me. But even so, I love my family very much. I'm thankful for everything. I didn't like school very much. It probably didn't help that I was a proud child and then an arrogant teenager. I looked down on others very quickly and very severely."

"Are you still friends with Luca?"

"Yes. He's my best friend. He saw past my conceit very easily, ever since we were kids. He knew that my indifference stemmed largely from shyness."

"You? Shy?" Mikan affectionately threw an arm around him naked torso to hug him. Her hand grazed his back, up and down, before she locked it safely in place. "I would say you're 'quiet, pensive', yes, but shy?" He moved against her slightly and she quietly moaned when she felt his skin rub against hers so intimately. "You aren't shy about the way you feel about me, nor did you shy away from your feelings before tonight. You're an honest man."

He thought briefly about things Mikan didn't know: specifically, his position in the army as a Major General and his role in her friend, Nonoko Ogasawara's detainment… he dispelled these thoughts quickly though; selfishly, he wanted Mikan all to himself. He didn't want to say anything that might compromise this – not when this was the happiest he had ever felt in his whole entire life. Not when the woman he dearly loved was naked in his arms, cocooned with him by a warm and snug duvet.

I'm sorry if my happiness is built on the deaths of others… but please, God, let me be happy tonight… forgive me, forgive me.

He was an honest man – perhaps – but only when he wanted to be.

"I suppose the war dispelled my shyness," he said, "you can't afford to be shy when you're at war. Time is valuable: the quicker decisions are made, the more lives are spared. There was no time to consider my own emotions or discomfort. Very soon, I became the perfect stoic soldier, following and giving orders automatically. But before that, my comfort zone didn't really extend beyond my family and Luca's family…" He then traced the swell of her breast, delighting in both the suppleness and the way she writhed in response, "… you know, you're the first girl I've ever done this with…"

"I gathered." Mikan kindly answered. How could she not guess; the way he looked at her body; his initial nervous exploration of her body; his confused fumblings; his curious but wonderstruck silences, and his very quick release all indicated to Mikan that he was just as inexperienced as she was.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, thinking too of his fast finish, "I'm sure next time I won't be as quick."

Mikan laughed now, and kissed him lovingly. "Don't apologise. You didn't fail me at all." He had, after all, compensated generously with his fingers and tongue. "The first time my friend lay with a man," Sumire, when she was seventeen, "she said it was very painful and very uncomfortable. She said she had no idea what to do with her hands, so she just lay there like a starfish." She brazenly laughed as she recalled the way Sumire described her first time, with raucous sniggers and squeals. "It wasn't like that with you at all."

With Natsume, it was truly something else: otherworldly, enchanting; transcending the ordinary into the extraordinary… feeling infinite, feeling powerful, feeling selfless, feeling complete. … She didn't want to say this all out loud, but by the way Natsume now caressed her face, as he kissed her neck tenderly, she understood that he felt exactly the same way. They didn't need to say it out loud for them just to know—it was palpable and obvious, just like how they were both here, alive, in her room together.

But Natsume felt he needed to say this out loud: "I want to marry you."

"One day." She promised.

"Do you want to marry me?" He already knew her answer, but thought it was polite to ask. Not to mention, he wanted to hear her say it.

"One day." She coyly avoided his wish, but then she gave in, "I want be with you too."

"Tell me all the things you want to do."

They spent the rest of the night fantasizing, loving each other in perfect bliss, murmuring more promises to each other, forgetting all about the war that raged on only a few miles away from their room.


Mikan woke up to tinkering sounds accompanied with frustrated grunts. Tired and slightly confused, she sat up in her futon, pulling the duvet close to her bare chest. Her room was lit up by the sunshine now—a soft, warm yellow light—and through bleary eyes she saw Natsume, cross-legged, partially dressed, sitting at the end of the futon fumbling with a chain.

"What are you doing?"

He turned his neck to look back at her and smiled. "Oh, you're up," She now saw he was fiddling with his (well, now her) red stone and a thin chain. "I'm trying to attach this to a chain so you can wear it around your neck."

As his back was mostly turned to her, she sidled her way over to him, still covering herself with the duvet, so to kiss the junction between his neck and shoulder as she peeked over to see his handiwork.

"Thank you for giving me your stone," she said against his bare skin, as she intently watched his fingers, "it's beautiful."

"It's yours, not mine. After all, I'm yours."

She smiled, warmed with happiness. "We don't have a tradition like this in Alicea." She remarked, "I suppose when two people get married, they seal their marriage in with ink and then the priest blesses the ink and creates a new signature for the newly weds. But this is a compulsory practice. I like how this," she pointed at the stone, "isn't. It makes it more special."

"It causes a lot of problems too. Luca received a stone from a girl when were sixteen. Although all the boys admired and congratulated Luca," (with boyish jealousy), "I could see how devastated he actually was. He didn't want to hurt the girl, but he had no intention of giving his stone to her either. Presenting your stone to someone is an irretrievable decision, one that has more implications than a marriage proposal. Whilst marriage can be terminated through divorce, you can never get your stone back. When you give a stone, you're essentially giving a part of yourself to another person but this doesn't mean that the recipient now has to give you their stone in return."

"A no-return policy." Mikan joked.

"Exactly so. But the recipient cannot refuse a stone even if they don't feel the same way."

"I can understand why your friend was devastated then. The girl's stone must have felt very heavy to him. Did no one ever give you their stone?"

"No. I told you, I was shy. Not to mention, it really rarely happens. Luca is the only person I know who has received one. Even Luna knew well enough not to give hers to me, despite our engagement, in our four days of acquaintance… there!" He had successfully clasped the stone securely to the chain. He turned to face her, "Come here, turn around."

She obliged, and pulled her hair to one said for better access.

He fastened it around her neck.

"It's beautiful. Thank you." Mikan touched it. "… I'm sad I don't have anything to give to you in return."

"This is Z custom, don't worry." Natsume said, admiring the red stone against her naked skin; the stone had never looked so perfect, it looked as if it had finally found its true home. Maybe the Stone Sellers were right—maybe, all those years ago when he picked out the stone, he picked it for Mikan, not for himself. "Your very existence is enough for me."

"You'll come back here tonight, won't you?" She meant her room.

"Yes."

After a few kisses, Mikan pulled her clothes on and tied her hair up. "Tsubasa said he would be visiting to deliver some goods. I need to prepare."

Soon, she left him in her room, bidding him to come down whenever he was ready.

He admired her room for a while, looking at the little details he had missed the night before in the dark. A few minutes later, after neatly making Mikan's futon, he stood up to leave to his room to get changed for the day.

What he didn't expect, however, was Anna a few steps away in the corridor. As soon as he slid Mikan's door open, she turned to look at him. The implications of him coming out of her room, early in the morning, his hair in disarray couldn't possibly be missed.

They stared wordlessly, wide-eyed at each other for a tense pause, before—

"Umenomiya-san—"

Her surprise elapsed; now, a serene and understanding smile graced her face. "I was just opening the windows in the corridor. It's such a beautiful day; the air is so fresh. I thought it would be nice." She continued to open the windows before she casually added, "Only good things can happen from your union. We live in a period of hate, dominated by the demons. It's nice to see love in these times, for they are a reminder of the gods. Flowers can grow in a wasteland."

When he didn't say anything, she continued, "I'm glad you're staying. I was upset when Mikan told me you were leaving us yesterday. Youichi will be thrilled too—I walked him home yesterday and he looked so sad. Mikan hardly ate last night."

He nodded. "I can't have you all be upset on my behalf."

"No, that would be cruel." Anna lightly replied. "You're like family now, Romi."

He smiled, but then it faltered slightly. I'm sorry for what I did to your cousin, your family… I'm sorry, forgive me, forgive me…


When Tsubasa delivered an assortment of vegetables and other produce to Mikan's, Natsume helped carry the goods into the kitchen.

"You're looking better." Tsubasa commented as he heaved the pumpkins in. "You healed?"

"More or less," Natsume answered, "nothing hurts anymore."

"That's good," Tsubasa grinned at him, happy to hear of a fellow Alicean's recovery, "will you be off soon, then?"

"… Actually, I was thinking about staying here."

"I mean to your family. You would be a fool to return to the army now. They'd execute you."

"I don't think I'll return to my family for a while. I'm planning to stay here."

"Oh?" Tsubasa glanced at him, surprised at this news. "Isn't your family worried about you?"

"Probably."

With furrowed eyebrows, Tsubasa asked, "Where's your family from again?"

"… Far away."

"You can tell me, you know," Tsubasa said. "I won't rat you out. Despite my appearance, I'm not like that. I'm a good guy. The good guy."

"I… I think it's best if no one knows. Just in case. Besides, it would be safer for me to stay away from my family for now."

To Natsume's worry, however, Tsubasa did not seem satisfied with his response. If anything, Tsubasa now looked suspicious. "Say," his voice was forcefully casual and light, "what division did you say you were stationed at, Romi?"

"I didn't say."

Tsubasa suspicious look did not waver. Natsume busied himself with the goods, determined not to look in Tsubasa's direction.

"And I'm taking a wild guess that you have no intention to divulge this information either?"

"Look," Natsume faced Tsubasa, deciding to face this head-on, "information like this matters during war. I would rather not compromise my own life or Mikan's life—after all, it's her house I'm staying at. The less you know, the better for all of us."

"'Mikan', huh? I didn't know you two were so friendly." Tsubasa, Natsume realized, was too smart for his own good. This was expected, he begrudgingly thought, for a dealer in the black market. He was completely different to the studious Subaru Imai; Tsubasa was street smart, shrewd and perceptive to the little human details, not human anatomy.

Completely ignorant to what was happening in the kitchen, Mikan cheerfully entered, "Tsubasa, Na—," her eyes widened, as she realized her blunder, "Na… Napkins are on the table!"

"Napkins?"

"Yes… you know, for when you decide to clean that mess you made by the sink."

"Oh, right." Tsubasa smiled. If he was still feeling suspicious, he was doing a good job at hiding it, Natsume thought. "Got it."

"Tsubasa, Romi," Mikan rectified, "when you're done, come to the teaching room. Anna has some tea to share!" with a smile, she left them.

"Women," Tsubasa joked, "always leaving the hard work for us, huh?"

Glad that Mikan's interruption distracted Tsubasa, Natsume was now determined to leave the kitchen as soon as possible. It was not wise to be alone with this astute man. It was too risky to lie to him—he was too smart for that; Natsume reasoned it would be best just to keep his mouth closed around him.

"But I can never say no to Anna's tea!" Tsubasa jested again, his voice friendly.

Yet when Natsume turned his back to Tsubasa, to organise the vegetables, he had the distinct feeling that Tsubasa was watching his every move, surveying his every breath—definitely not in a friendly manner.


A/N: Right! So, from this point forward shit is going to hit the fan.

Imagine this story is a hill. Right now, this chapter is the PEAK of the hill. The previous chapters all lead to this point, and now, we are about to descend downhill, straight down into chaos and hell… after all, their countries are at war…

ALSO, how is it that I have just found out about the Alice Gakuen spin-off that HRH Higuchi Tachibana wrote?! Where Natsume and Mikan appear all grown up?! Why did nobody tell me this! I feel so out of the loop... (if this is also news to you, look up Kageki no Kuni no Alice)