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Mikan's POV
It was indeed a quiet morning in our office. A bit awkward, you might say.
Suddenly, I had the urge to go to the window. Something was pulling me there. The glass windows felt cool on my fingertips. I felt very content that morning… Although I shouldn't be.
I saw it.
It was a wounded small gray bird created out of an Alice. It was hopping on a tree branch like a newborn baby chick. It hopped on the rough bark 4 times before letting itself land in the pond below.
Plop.
It turned to the North wearily then the East. Tiredly, it looked up into the sky and with its last ounce of energy, the bird flew an inch above the water before teleporting. I saw a blur of blood.
But then I saw it. His dying message.
By then, I didn't realize that Natsume was next to me. His red eyes widened, and I could tell that he figured it out, too.
"Mikan. I'll go ahead. Tell Naru…" He disappeared and I nodded to Hotaru, who nodded back before I disappeared.
I turned my earring.
"Narumi-sensei! Natsume and I know where he is! His first attack shouldn't be so strong, but reinforce the barrier!"
"Got it."
I arrived in my destination. Natsume was looking around and had his blood-curling eyes fixed on a specific spot.
"Agetios" I mumbled with my eyes closed.
The space where Natsume was glaring at revealed a gray-cat masked boy, about the same age as us.
"Not bad." The person sneered, "Surprised you knew where I was hiding..."
Natsume glared at him again.
"A little bird apparently came and told us." I told him coldly.
"Hm…" He lifted an eyebrow. "Oh, what did he say?"
"Gray. Cat. 4.0. Longitude. Latitude. Shouyojurin." I replied. Alert! Shouyojurin means Evergreen Forest.
Natsume turned to a nearby evergreen tree and pointed a finger at it. A small flame grew at the tip of his finger, and the cat-boy shakily disappeared. The real one appeared leaning against the fir tree. He opened his eyes to reveal a teal eye. His other eye was a mixture of olive-green and chocolate-brown.
"That was a test…" He reached up to his earring. Natsume and I did the same thing with our left earring. However, the second I touched the sapphire jewel, a mask appeared before me. I dropped to my knees. From what I could see, the real gray-cat mask appeared on the gray-blond boy.
Natsume had his cat-mask on, too.
Darn that Persona, I told Natsume using telepathy.
You just noticed that He told me.
The enemy had fell down on his knees too. Apparently, he couldn't control the mask very well, neither. Out of us three, only Natsume was still standing. But on the other hand, he had his mask since back in Elementary School Division.
"You're restraint, too." I said to the cat-masked person.
"You think I wear this mask for decoration?" He attempted to get up, but was shocked back down. "I am the legendary Gray Cat. In other words—"
The cat-boy fell down, and a small girl teleported on top of him. She had a half a mask on, and she had a jagged cape on, but I knew it was her.
"--- the Haiiro Neko." She finished for him. She placed her hands on his back and teleported.
"Na..Na…Natsume…" I stammered while looking at the place where she used to stand.
"It's her." He nodded.
"But… Nobaru is dead, isn't she?"