woooh! after spending the better half of my week having to go in and out of the hospital and take medication several times a day- never mind the sleepless nights full of pain and discomfort- i finally figured i should post the next chapter so that you wouldnt have to wait two more weeks(where i will have no access to the computer). but then something horrible happened. MY INTERNET STOPPED WORKING! can you believe it? if it hadnt finally started working again, you'd be waiting two more weeks for this chapter. consider yourself lucky. and i figure i should mention, seeing as how many of my reviews mentioned it, i should make this clear: i havent decided on a pairing(if there even will be one)for this story. for all you know, this'll turn into a tsubasaxnatsume fic. so dont read this expecting something. now, on with the story! enjoy, and please review!

Italic is a FLASHBACK! do not get confused!

Disclaimer: please refer back to the last chapter if you would like to read about how I don't own Gakuen Alice all over again.

Unlikely Friends

Chapter 1

"Your tie is crooked. Fix it," Hotaru stated from across the room, where she was standing in front of a mirror trying to get a flower shaped clip to stay in her hair.

"I'm not even wearing a tie," Natsume replied, leaning against the door of Hotaru's room in a black suit and looking impatient. A black necktie was clutched in his hand lazily, rather than around the neck if his crimson shirt, where it should have been and had been not too long ago.

Hotaru sent an icy glare in Natsume's direction, "Then put it on and then straighten it out," she got up and walked over to him, "I refuse to go to the ball with someone who looks as sloppy as you do right now."

"Well, its not like I want to go with you in the first place," Natsume replied with an icy glare of his own, tossing his tie at the girl in a long purple gown that was standing before him.

"Well, neither of us have a choice, now do we," Hotaru wrapped the necktie around Natsume's neck, ignoring his protest, and began retying it before continuing, "Or have you forgotten why we're going together in the first place?"

"No, I haven't forgotten."

"As I'm sure you already noticed, Mikan hasn't been very popular with her idiot boyfriend lately," Natsume nodded curiously, "Well, their activity and stupid pranks has all but completely stopped. I started getting suspicious, wondering if they were up to something, so I installed some spy bugs all over the school."

"So you heard something," Natsume stated more than asked.

"Yes. By pure chance, I overheard their plan- a plan that involves Ruka."

"Ruka?"

"It would seem they plan on taking advantage of their relationship, and using it against them. From what I heard, they're going to get Mikan and Ruka alone and then use look-alikes to try and to betray their trust and split them apart," Hotaru turned away in a manner that suggested it was difficult for her to talk about, "Usually its just fangirls playing stupid pranks and trying to threaten Mikan. I have always been able to intervene and stop whatever they had been planning before anything even happens. This time, it's different."

"Different? How?"

"I've been trying to find and destroy the threat at its source, but I somehow have been unable to locate it. I only know where they plan to take action," Hotaru turned to Natsume fully, a serious expression on her face, "But, unfortunately, I cant do this alone."

Natsume gave a confused glance.

"They plan to pull off their operation during the Ball. The thing is, it's a couples only ball. Since warning Mikan and Ruka would only make the situation worse, being the kind of people that would blindly rebel rather that think, I decided I would take a different approach-"

"Going to the dance yourself," Natsume nodded, "But to do that, you'd need someone to go with. It would definitely be a plus if that person could help you without holding you back. Makes sense."

"Exactly. I need someone with experience that I could rely on and has similar goals to mine- someone who has been similarly working in the shadows to keep those two idiots obliviously happy," Hotaru crossed her legs and took on a very business-like appearance, "So, will you do it?"

"There," Hotaru said as she finished straightening Natsume's tie, "Don't take it off again."

"Can we go now?" Natsume asked, opening the door.

"As soon as I get my purse," Hotaru picked up a small purple bag that undoubtedly had any number of lethal gadgets crammed inside off her bed, and the two aggravated, but well dressed, teens headed down the hall toward the dreaded dance together.

"Hey, Ruka, have you noticed that Hotaru and Natsume have been acting weird lately?" Mikan asked as the couple stood against the wall togetherhand in hand on the edge of the dance floor.

Ruka thought about it for a moment, then replied, "Now that you mention it, I think you're right. I haven't seen much of either of them lately, and when I have, they've always been together. I wonder what those two are up to."

"You don't think they're dating, do you?" Mikan and Ruka stayed silent for a moment before bursting out into fits out laughter.

"Hahahaha-n-haha-no way!" Ruka exclaimed trough his laughter, "Those two? Not possible!"

"Haha! Y-yea, you're right," Mikan breathed trough giggles, wiping a tear from her eye, "There's no way th- oh my God! Is that who I think it is?!"

Ruka turned toward the dance floor in the direction Mikan was looking and chocked. "Natsume?!" he exclaimed in shock.

"Natsume?" Mikan looked confused and shocked, "Where? I was talking about Hota- EEEEEEH?! Hotaru is dancing with Natsume?!"

Ruka's eyes went wide as he got a better look at Natsume's dance partner and saw the all too familiar, yet entirely unexpected, dark haired girl.

Mikan and Ruka turned toward each other, "There's just no way, right…?"

Apparently, Mikan and Ruka hadn't been as discrete inn their staring as they had thought, however, because Natsume and Hotaru chose that moment to turn and notice the shocked stares of their best friends. All four froze like deer caught in headlights.

"Ho-Hotaru! You didn't tell me you were coming," Mikan greeted awkwardly.

"That's because I didn't want you to know," Hotaru shot back, frustrated.

There was a moment of silence before Ruka turned to Natsume, "So, what are you doing here, Natsume?"

"Until you two so rudely but in, I was busy dancing and trying to make the best out of this lousy ball while wondering why the hell I was here In the first place. Or couldn't you tell?"

"Um…ok. So, you two came together?" Mikan asked. The two raven haired teens didn't reply.

"Right. Well, how about you two tell us how long this has been going on?" ruka asked.

"And why didn't you tell us?" Mikan added. Natsume and Hotaru froze.

"What the hell are you two talking about?" Natsume asked, his shoulders tense. He could only hope his suspicions were wrong.

"Mikan and Ruka blinked, glanced at each other, then turned back to Hotaru and Natsume, "You two are going out, right?"

Natsume looked like he was about to say something when Hotaru grabbed his hand. He turned to her in slight surprise before his shoulders sagged, "I guess there's no denying it, then."

"No, there isn't," Hotaru replied.

Ruka glanced at his best friend's hand intertwined with the blackmail queen's in bewilderment for a moment before attempting to strike up a conversation again, "So, how long have you two been together?"

"A month and a half," Hotaru replied instantly. Natsume snorted and she shot a glare at him.

Mikan grabbed Hotaru around the waist and gave a teary-eyed pout, "Hotaru~! Why didn't you tell me?"

Hotaru took out her trusted bakagun and shot Mikan in the side of the head, sending her flying across the floor, "Don't touch me, idiot. I didn't tell you because you didn't need to know."

Ruka went to go help the crying Mikan off the floor and tried to sooth her as she wailed complaints about her best friend. When she had finally calmed down, the couple turned to Hotaru only to notice the boy that had been beside her previously was no longer with her.

"Where's Natsume?" Ruka questioned.

"Went to go get me a drink," Hotaru replied easily.

"Ok," Mikan put on a bright, mischievous smile, "So tell me, Hotaru, just what the heck do you see in Natsume?" Hotaru glared.

20 minutes, a one-sided conversation, and a good 30 more shots from Hotaru's bakagun later, Natsume returned. His hair was messy, his shirt was halfway unbuttoned, his left cheek and torso were covered in pieces on chocolate cake and icing, and his tie was nowhere to be seen.

"So…Where are the drinks?" Mikan asked, scared of what might happen if she asked what was really going through her head.

"Drinks?" Natsume turned to Hotaru questioningly.

"Hotaru turned toward him as well, "Go get me some punch, idiot."

"Right," Natsume turned and started walking in the direction of the punch bowl, "Be right back." Mikan snorted in disbelief, and Ruka just continued to stare.

----to be continued----

woooh! total crap, i know. really random and crazy unexpected. dont expect too much plot here. i totaly left off the ending there, too. oh well. tell me what you think. i love reviews, and will try to reply when i can. so review! bye