EXODUS

Chapter Three: Surprises

Mikan had a champion sulk on her face while Natsume walked in front of her, looking like he didn't have a care in the world. He wasn't actually bursting into a song at the moment, but though his face was still as expressionless as before, his usual scowl was nowhere to be seen. For the general populace that had no idea that Natsume actually did have other expressions, this was as close to bursting into a song that Natsume could possibly be.

This apparent exchange of moods obviously captured a lot of attention and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what caused it. Ruka peeked at Mikan from over his shoulder and received the pout of the century. He glanced at Hotaru, but Hotaru was busy mumbling something under her breath, which usually bode ill for someone. Usually him.

Finally realizing the predicament, especially when his fan clubs inched closer to him, Natsume quickly lowered his brows into a scowl, but since it lacked the ominous aura, and the killing glint in his eyes was practically nonexistent, with determined steps, the mob inched closer. But before the pair of handsome boys found themselves mauled, something miraculous happen, something extraordinary unusual. All movement stopped and all eyes shifted to Mikan.

She growled, yes, ladies and gentleman, she growled, low in her throat. Threateningly, eyebrows slashed to a V, eyes narrowed to slits, her lips for once were devoid of a smile; instead they were pressed into a tight, stubborn straight line.

Natsume, Ruka and Hotaru blinked at the sight, so did the fan girls. It wasn't just because it was unusual, different, unexpected, and strange. It was also because it was just too…cute. Attempting to look like a lion, she looked like a kitten, hissing and clawing, trying to bluff her way out.

Natsume bit his tongue. Don't laugh. Don't laugh. Must. Not. Laugh.

Hotaru was furiously getting pictures.

It was Ruka who broke first. He snorted, and then looked away, his shoulders shaking, struggling not to laugh. Unfortunately, he turned towards Natsume, who was also trying to hold back laughter. Their eyes met and Natsume gasped out a breath, but then caught himself. Fully aware of the danger that they were in of totally and completely losing their cool, disinterest, and unapproachable image in front of their fans, they made a run for it, taking cover over the flashing blitz of Hotaru's camera.

Things weren't so different when they've reached class. Anna and Nonoko giggled, Mochu smirked, and Kitsuneme chortled while Koko just laughed out loud. Natsume suspected that the mind reader was laughing because of something else. You could never be sure with Koko. Sumire, ever the blunt one, lifted her eyebrows when she glanced at Mikan then did a double take. "What's wrong with her?"

Ruka gave a wobbly smile. "Man, Natsume. What did you do this time? She's really pissed."

Natsume lifted the manga off his face. "Why do you think I have something with to do with that?"

"Because you look like you're in a good mood, and who else can make Mikan angry either than you?" Hotaru answered with her toneless voice, though there was a flicker of amusement in her eyes. "Besides, Koko said so."

Koko blinked innocent eyes at him, his disgustingly smiley face devoid of any guilt or anxiety.

Natsume shrugged, leaned back, and then plopped the manga on his face.

---

It was a testament on how famous Mikan's bright and cheery demeanor was when Natsume found himself surrounded by teachers, students, and people he hardly knew, asking him, rather, more like accusing him as being the culprit that caused Mikan's bad mood. As a result, hisgood mood dwindled to a stop and a sore, harassed, vindictive mood replaced it. "Oh, for Kami's sake. If one more stupid idiot steps up to me only to ask about the baka, I'm going to burn someone. Where is that baka anyway?"

Ruka chuckled. "Probably with Hotaru at her lab." Then an evil smile appeared on his sweet face. "Or maybe she went for some TLC from her favorite senpai."

Before Natsume could explode at the very thought of Mikan wrapping herself around Andou, Mochu showed up beside them. "She's with Hotaru at Misaki-sensei's Garden. Said she wanted to test her artificial sun invention."

Natsume cursed under his breath as he turned around and stomped towards the garden. His bad mood was not just because of the dirty looks he was getting due to Mikan. He couldn't care less about that. It was because from the minute she showed up, sulking, she hadn't said as much as a word to him. Not even a stupid insult.

He needed this fixed, dammit.

He didn't even know why she was so pissed at him. What he did last night wasn't any worse than what he usually did, so what the hell was wrong with her?

Probably just some female crap.

"Natsume."

"What?" He glared at Ruka, who grabbed his hand and pulled him to a run. "Hey, what's the big-" he gaped when Ruka shushed him.

"Something's wrong. The animals are quiet."

Training and instinct catapulted Natsume to action. He ran faster when he heard tense voices and saw the crowd as he turned a corner.

His heart stopped when he finally saw what the fuss was all about.

The huge ancient tree had always been there for as long as the students could remember. It had been a silent witness to the academy's history for ages. Numerous students had studied, slept, played, fought, fell in love, broke up, laughed, and cried under it. But no one had ever seen it behave like this before.

Narumi-sensei's violet eyes were anxious and afraid as he ran towards his best friend, Misaki. For once, his trademark flirty smile was not evident. "Misaki, what the hell is going on?"

Misaki-sensei shook his head, confused and baffled. "I don't know. I have no idea why it's behaving like this."

A seventeen-year-old Tsubasa Andou and his best friend Misaki joined them. "Never mind why," he shouted at them, his voice was tight with tension. "Just make it let her go!"

Natsume felt his hands shake when he saw Mikan dangling high above the ground, tied up by the many green tendrils and roots, fighting to free herself. He snapped himself awake when Ruka pulled him through the crowd towards the two teachers.

Ruka looked to the side when Hotaru joined them. "We were just walking from the green house when the tree suddenly came alive. She pushed me away, but she got caught." Her voice was flat, but Ruka saw the flinch in her violet eyes.

The three of them stopped on their tracks and looked up when they heard Mikan stifle a scream, their blood freezing at the sound of pain that came out of her.

Natsume flexed his fingers, his face fierce, his eyes never leaving Mikan's face. Maybe because they sensed his determination, or his dark aura, the crowd parted easily before him.

"Natsume-kun, Ruka-kun, Hotaru." Sumire joined them from their left, followed by Mochu, Yuu, Koko, Kitsuneme, and several of their classmates.

"…considering its size, we can't do much about it without hurting her. The tree is not one of mine, so I don't know any of his weaknesses. It doesn't appear to have any toxins and it's usually harmless. If we cut it or hurt it in anyway, I'm afraid it will turn against Sakura. Unless we find a way to hurt it enough to let her go, we could aim for the tendrils that are holding her, but that's impossible to do without hurting her in some way."

"What about fire?"

Narumi-sensei, Misaki-sensei, Tsubasa, and Misaki turned to find an intense looking Natsume behind them along with almost all of B class. They formed a half circle in front of the crowd, separating the bystanders from the people who were actually doing something.

"You can control your fire from hurting her, but I don't think it will even put a scratch on it…." Natsume tried to focus on Misaki-sensei's words and tried to ignore the whimpering sounds from Mikan as the tendrils glided against her skin and squeezed her body. Even from where he was standing, he could see that red marks had started to appear on her skin.

Ruka glanced at Hotaru, who was standing silent and still like she was frozen, her face impossibly pale. Hesitantly, he reached for her hand and realized that she was shaking and her fingers were as cold as ice. When Hotaru lifted her eyes towards his, he tightened his hold on her hand. "Don't worry, Natsume will save her."

He didn't really expect her to say anything, but was pleasantly surprised when she gripped his hand and nodded. She returned her eyes to Mikan. "Hyuuga will save her."

Hotaru, Ruka, and Natsume flinched when they saw Mikan bite her lip and a tear slide on her cheek.

"…but maybe if you can make the heat intense enough and focus..."

Natsume snapped. "We don't have time for this." He turned towards Koko, who looked surprised. "Do you understand?"

Koko zipped through Natsume's mind, nodded, and as Natsume walked closer to the tree, he relayed Natsume's orders to the others.

"Mochu, as soon as the tree releases Mikan, you use your Alice to get her down slowly." Koko turned towards Hotaru while Mochu stepped closer to the tree, but far away from Natsume. "Hotaru, we need one of your fastest vehicles to bring her to the hospital. Ruka, get one of your animals to the principals and to the hospital, and tell them to get ready for an emergency patient."

"On it." Ruka and Hotaru ran out of the crowd. He took out his whistle while Hotaru was holding a small mechanism that she took out of her pocket.

Koko turned to the others, his face was still pleasant, but there was a dangerous glint in his eyes. "We're going to be crowd control, but keep your eyes on me 'cause I'll be giving out orders from Natsume. No matter what happens, no one is to bother Natsume. And I mean no one."

Natsume glanced at his classmates, noted that they were all in place, their eyes filled with purpose, and then finally lifted his eyes towards Mikan, forcing a smirk on his lips. "Youjo, how is it that you're always getting us into trouble? And I thought I was supposed to be the trouble maker."

Another tear slid on her cheek, but she returned the smirk. "It's a talent."

Natsume fisted his hands at his side and the crowd could see the invisible waves that came out of it. They sensed the rising heat and all at once, they fell silent.

When flames suddenly erupted and covered Natsume's hands like a red glove with a loud roar, everybody immediately stepped back at the intense pressure pushing against him. Misaki tugged on Tsubasa's jacket, glancing at Natsume nervously. "Do you think this is wise?"

"Don't worry. Natsume's an arrogant brat, but he'll cut off his hand before he hurts Mikan-chan." But he flinched when Natsume's flame grew larger.

Everybody was starting to sweat.

Narumi sensei was filled with anxiety. "Natsume, wait." He took a step forward, but was pushed back firmly. The blond gaped when he saw that it was Yuu, the gentle, patient, class president, and all around perfect student.

"Don't worry, sensei." The comforting smile on his cute round face was obviously fake. The sun was glinting on his round glasses so that he looked like a blind, psychotic, cherubic angel. "Just stand there quietly and let Natsume handle it. We don't want you to get hurt, ne?"

"A...aa." Narumi and Misaki-sensei sweat dropped.

Among the roar of the fire, they could hear Natsume's low, deep voice. "You ready, Youjo?"

Mikan nodded, and then winced. The skin of her neck was raw and Natsume's heart clutched. "Trust me?"

Amber eyes met crimson.

Without hesitation, Mikan answered, "Yes."

Natsume lifted his burning hands in a straight line in front of him. "Close your eyes."

As soon as Mikan did as she was told, Natsume released a long, endless stream of fire that aimed straight towards Mikan and engulfed her body in angry tongues of fire.

Screams and horrified exclamations tore out from the crowd.

Tsubasa pulled Misaki backwards. "No, it's okay. Look." He pointed to Mikan. The force of the fire, swept her hair back, but her face was calm and not showing any signs of pain. "What the…"

"Mikan is protected by her Alice. She lets out her power to spread evenly on herself; it's strong enough to protect her against the fire, but weak enough that it doesn't nullify Natsume's fire," Ruka explained to the upper-class couple. "It's like a force field. That way, she can still protect herself without wasting too much energy and she doesn't disturb our Alice's, so we can use it whenever it's needed. It was Natsume's idea. They've been practicing it for some time now."

"Look." Somebody whispered and they turned back towards the scene. Slowly, but surely, they could see the tendrils around Mikan loosen and detangle themselves from her body. Inch by inch, Mikan started to ease down, helped by Mochu when the tendrils let go of her entirely.

Natsume closed his fist, cutting off his power. Smoke hissed from the singed tendrils and in the shade, sparks of fire fluttered down like glowing snow, decorating the dark as Mikan slowly hovered down.

Natsume stepped closer to her and watched as she slowly opened her eyes. When she saw him, she opened her arms and reached out. It wasn't until he felt her arms circling around his shoulders, the warmth of her body sliding against his, and felt her ragged breath on the crook of his neck that he finally felt his heart began to beat again. He closed his eyes against the overwhelming fear of losing her and took comfort in gently placing his hands on her back to hold her in place. It took three tries, but he was finally able to open his mouth. "Does this mean you're not mad at me anymore?"

Mikan lifted her head. Her face looked tired and pale, her amber eyes wet with tears, her hair a tangled mess, and her uniform was soiled with dust, dirt and soot and every inch of uncovered skin was covered with bloody grazes, welts, cuts and scratches. Lips trembling, she blinked at him. "I'm sorry Natsume-kun. I shouldn't have gotten mad at you." Her face was the very picture of apologetic contrition, but Natsume saw the sly twinkle in her eyes before she shifted her eyes down. "Even though you deserved it."

His heart was still stuttering and his hands were still trembling from the thought of 'what ifs,' but he felt his lips twitch and he scowled at her. "Stubborn brat."

Surrendering to the demands of her weak body, she closed her eyes and sighed. "Pervert."

Natsume snorted and shook his head. He shifted his hold and lifted her gently in his arms, mindful of her numerous wounds, then raised his eyes from her face when Tsubasa and Misaki stood in front of him.

"Mikan-chan. Are you alright? Natsume, give her over-Itai." Tsubasa jerked back his hand from Mikan's arm.

Natsume smirked. "Ah, forgot about that. Better not touch her. It's the fire, you know. Hot." He walked around them ignoring Tsubasa's narrowing eyes and mutterings of pain as he sucked on his burnt fingers. The crowd made way for Natsume and after the impressive display of power, who wouldn't? His classmates were following behind her.

"Natsume." Ruka ran towards him, following him was Subaru Imai and co. "Hyuuga, what's the meaning of this?"

"How the hell should I know? That's your job. Mine is cleaning up the mess." Natsume nodded, answering the silent question in Ruka's blue eyes about Mikan's condition. Ruka rubbed his face, then grimaced when he saw the wounds on Mikan's skin. "All I know is somebody screwed up and I want to know who."

Heads swiveled when a sharp screech filled the air and saw Hotaru driving a sleek, shining silver convertible. She screeched to a stop, inches from their feet, raised her ultra cool sun glasses, then looked at them. "Hop in."

Ruka had barely settled his butt on the white leather of the passenger seat when Hotaru stepped on the gas pedal. They zoomed away like the devil was on their tail, which was probably true because when Ruka looked over his shoulder, he was treated to a rare scene where Subaru Imai, vice principal/Hotaru's brother, who was just as cold and just as impassive as she was, screaming his head off, waving his hands around like a madman. Ruka gaped at him. "What the heck is his problem?"

He looked at Natsume, who was wearing a peculiar expression as he looked around the car. "Uh, Imai?"

Hotaru met Natsume's red ruby eyes through the rear view mirror. "Yes, Hyuuga?" It was the sweet and helpful tone that told him the truth of his suspicions. Finally able to breathe again because Mikan was safe in his arms, Natsume couldn't hold back the chuckle. Ruka's blue eyes shifted back and forth between Hotaru and Natsume and a thought occurred to him. "No. Is this? You mean...this car is…" Ruka glanced at Hotaru's expressionless face to Natsume's amused one and groaned. "We are so going to get into trouble."