Chapter 2: Return of the Sun
Little Falcon:My self-imposed holiday is now officially over so here I am with a fresh update. Just like always: read and review okay?
Standard Disclaimer: I only own that idea that's all. If I did own this series I'll be the happiest person on earth.
"Na…Natsume?" his best friend's call barely made it to his ears as he entered the room to their secret 'meeting' against their common enemy. You are the first person I've met since I got back. I'm sure Hotaru will be really angry that I didn't see her first so please act like you don't know anything about my return yet. I'll make my appearance real soon, okay. Whether it was her melodic voice or the pleading look on her beautiful face, it was enough to make him agree, after another passionate lengthy kiss of course.
Somehow that dark aura that his best friend emits since she left vanished all of a sudden. Maybe it was just him or maybe something's changed but whatever it is he wanted to find out. For so long, he wanted Natsume to return to his gentle self just like years before when she was still around. Now that he has, he wanted to learn what it was so he can protect it and keep it near.
"Did he eat something bad, Ruka?" their shadow manipulating sempai, Tsubasa, stared openly at the absent minded fire caster. The room was beginning to be filled with several people who already have graduated from the academy only to return to plot against a common enemy, the former principal.
"HOTARUUUU!!!" everyone instantly went silent, not one moving as they heard a familiar female voice then it was followed by the loud shots of the inventor alice's idiot gun. Baka! Baka! Baka! Inwardly, he smiled as if seeing the almost sentimental scene in his mind. Everyone rushed out of the room to see the long lost Sakura Mikan pounced on by Imai Hotaru.
"You idiot! I know, you went to see him first… but I'm glad you're back," her arms tightened one last time as she mumbled those incoherent words against her chest, knowing her idiotic best friend wouldn't understand it. Unknown to her, Mikan did but she decided to keep quiet.
After caressing the bump on her head from the hard fall on the floor, Mikan smiled brightly at her best friend like she always does. "I'm home, Hotaru," her grin grew wider as her best friend released her and looked into her eyes.
"Welcome back, Mikan… *BAKA! BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!*" everyone sweat dropped, knowing how the shy alice inventor never liked to show her soft side. They've been with her long enough to tell that that was her way of conveying her feelings.
As she raised her eyes, it was only then did she realize the number of familiar faces smiling at her warmly. "Mikan!" out of nowhere, a pair of strong arms encircled her waist and lifted her from the floor like she was still that little girl years back. Even without looking, she knew that brotherly voice so well.
"Tsubasa-sempai!" even with everyone trying to physically 'get' to her, the shadow manipulator kept it all for himself.
Nis blood began to boil as his crimson eyes focused on those arms that were around her waist. Trying to keep his cool, Natsume crossed his arms in front of him and leaned on the door frame, watching the ruckus with a deadly glare.
His sky blue eyes traveled from the center of attention to his best friend. A smile quietly formed in his lips. In the end, it was always her who can lead him out of his darkness. "Ruka-pyon!" the blond young man with animal-pheromone alice waved enthusiastically.
All the turmoil calmed down almost all too quickly as a fragrant scent filled the air. From Tsubasa's arms, he took her like she weighed no more than a feather. Her smile never felt her pretty face as she was embraced by the older alice user.
His perfect blond hair was longer now but his gentle mesmerizing were as she remembered them to be. "Narumi-sensei," just like the first time they met, his alice had no effect on her and she was doing it unconsciously.
"Just how long are you planning on holding her?" even under the effect of Narumi's alice, his flames burst out of his shaking hand.
"Oh!" he hugged Mikan tighter, making the flames roar dangerously. But when he heard her ask to let go, Narumi did without hesitation. Contented with his reunion with his former student, he deactivated his alice with a flip of his gorgeous hair.
It turns out that a meeting was just called so that they can welcome Sakura Mikan back to the Academy. No one made any notion to disapprove.
While in the middle of the party, Narumi-sensei called the guest of honor outside the room. She obeyed automatically. "Mikan, I'm gonna have to delay you're return to regular classes a bit okay? A lot of new students don't know a thing about you and I think it would be better for you if they remained clueless so I need to talk to the old students to pretend that they don't know you," there was an apologetic look on his still handsome face that she can't refuse.
Understanding the situation more than anyone else, Mikan just nodded her head and smiled. A silent answer. But when has the ever-so-bubbly girl gone quiet, anyway? As expected, she immediately followed her pause by a quick question. "How are you going to talk to all of them?" her question was logical. The incident years ago was more than controversial.
"We have new allies now. One of them can speak mentally to a person. All he needed to do was see a picture of the person," the sensei boasted, enjoying the fascination of his former, would-be student.
*****
"Ne, Gin-san, what's your alice?" it had been a week already and still the girls and some guys as well kept pestering him about his power he refused to show. His mind reading classmate was out with a cold so he didn't help.
"Are all the people in this Academy this persistent?" he turned his purple eyes as his accidentally chosen partner, who answered him with a cold glare. Then the new student slash model turned to the kind animal lover for an answer to the same question.
Ruka merely looked at him blankly, not wanting to answer the beginning of his relentless asking. You're pretty lucky Natsume's been in a good mood ever since Sakura-san returned. If not, you'll probably be in the burn unit on your first day. It had been Ruka who acted more like a partner to Gin because Natsume being himself wouldn't even think of entertaining one of his queries.
"This is boring," swinging his feet down the desk, he ran his fingers through his silver locks and walked out of the classroom. I don't believe she's not here. Her manager specifically told me that she would be here. The only reason he wanted to familiarize himself with the academy was because he wanted to search for her, alone.
After hours of walking around, his feet finally stopped, not because he was tired. His eyebrow rose as he looked around the unfamiliar building. Did I take a wrong turn? Where the hell am I? Hearing a noise inside one of the nearby rooms, Gin carelessly scratched his head and sighed. This is embarrassing but I have no choice but to ask for directions. And since the long corridor is unusually empty, he entered the room without even knocking.
"Natsume, you're early…" Her chocolate brown eyes widened in shock to find a different face staring at her. "Ni…night, w…why are you here?" Mikan stuttered as she pointed her shaking finger.
"Why the hell are you here, pigtails?"
Little Falcon: Read and review onegai...