Hello! Please, please, please review! It's so encouraging to read them!

I don't own Shugo Chara!

X

"Yuuki! "

"Dear! You need to be more careful with your belongings. Now, if you don't want Tadase to get mad, why don't you run along and clean it up? I'm going to go make some dinner." Yuuki strode away, a smirk on her face.

Amu fought back the tears that rushed to her eyes and dropped to the floor, looking for the pearls desperately. She gathered them in her palms and carried put them back into the box and sat back in the couch, rubbing her face wearily.

X

The next day, Amu biked her way into the large mansion that Ikuto lived in. It was a modernized home that was clothed in Japan's latest technology. The first walls of the first floor were made of glass and she could make out a sofa and a large TV, but the rest of the walls were closed off by black curtains. She couldn't help but gasp as she gazed up at the roof, where she could make out a parasol, and awkwardly approached the door. She knocked timidly, still awed.

The door swung open to reveal Ikuto dressed in a cotton shirt and jeans.

"Come in. We have three hours to work."

"O-okay." Amu gingerly placed her bike next to the door and started to walk in, only to trip over the door frame and into Ikuto's arms. When she realized where she was, she flushed a bright red and jumped backwards, only to tumble down the staircase.

"I-I-"

"Sh!" Ikuto held a long finger to his lips and gazed around the large field. He swore he had just heard a click. A small rustle sounded from near Amu and he ran and parted the bushes triumphantly to be greeted by a small rabbit. It's nose twitched and stared at him for a while before it hopped away nonchalantly.

"W-what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just thought I heard something. Let's go in." Ikuto offered her a hand and she accepted it carefully. Amu trailed behind him as he began to take long strides into his house. "Well I brainstormed some ideas last night, and I thought about the theme of the story." They walked into the house and Ikuto shut the door firmly, locking it, still wary of the rustles and clicks he had heard. Ikuto sat down onto the sofa and Amu followed suite, placing her small bag onto the space next to her.

"I brainstormed too. It could be a story about abuse, something that's all too common nowadays."

"Mmm, that's not a bad idea. Do you want to write the first chapter?"

"Sure. So what's the basic plotline going to be? I was thinking about a seemingly normal girl who gets abused at home…"

"Going for realism? Alright. But, how is it going to end? Like one of those fairytales or one of those 'and everyone died' endings?"

Ikuto was startled when Amu turned to him, her golden eyes burning into his own.

"I don't know. We'll have to find out." Her words slightly disturbed him and the sincerity of her eyes left goose bumps on his skin.

"Okay. I guess we'll see what you come up with first." Ikuto and Amu began to create basic plotlines and possible scenarios. Each one seemed to lead to a dark, sinister ending and Ikuto frowned at that. He proposed another one with a similar beginning but something that led to a happier ending.
"That's not realistic. I don't think that would happen in real life." Ikuto glanced over at her and sighed, resting his chin on his palms.

"Amu, not everything in life makes sense. Sometimes there are miracles. Maybe this character has a miracle too. Besides, the teacher would probably give us a better grade. You know she's a sucker for romantic stuff." Amu shrugged before stretching, leaning back into the sofa and took a quick look out the dark window.

"Oh! I-I have to go. Bye!" She gathered her belongings and grabbed her coat before running out the door. Before he could bid her goodbye, she was already out of sight, her bike gone.

Ikuto raised his eyebrows before returning to the table to gather his own things when he realized that she had left her bag there. He checked his watch and decided his stomach was a more important matter. He'd drive by her house on his way to visit Utau.

Ikuto opened the cupboard and took out a package of spaghetti and began to boil the water. As the water boil he grabbed the bag and decided to put it by the entrance so he wouldn't forget. He heard a small thud as he hung it near the door, and he looked down.

A small white box lay on the white carpets and curious, he picked it up. He debated not opening it but he found himself opening the box. Inside were small, round pearls the size of his pinky nail. The string that was used to connect them was coiled at the bottom.

Ikuto picked up a pearl and rolled it between his fingers. It would be easy to fix.

X

Amu pedaled furiously, checking her watch every once in a while. She was supposed to be making dinner that night; at this rate, she would be late and Yuuki would scream at her.

Fortunately, there were no cars and she was able to get back home quickly. Unfortunately, she was five minutes late.

Amu doubted that Yuuki would yell at her over such a minor problem; she could always make up the time, right?

She washed her hands quickly and set a large pot of water over the stove. Amu quickly began to wash a few vegetables and cut them quickly. As she cut, she underestimated the distance between her finger and the knife, causing the knife to slightly cut through her skin.

"Crap!" Amu rushed to the sink and washed the cut and glanced at the time. She hastily wrapped a band aid around it and returned to the cutting board.

Amu dumped the vegetables in and added some seasoning at the same time. The rice was cooking, the side dishes were waiting in the fridge. Amu grabbed a slab of meat and began to slice carefully, ignoring the pain from her finger. She had roughly thirty minutes left. She deposited the meat into the pot and began to run around, setting down the side dishes.

"Amu?" the girl turned around and saw Yuuki coming towards her.

"Yes?"

"Can you make me a salad? A pretty one."

"B-but, I'm running out of time!" She had to scoop the rice and then the soup would be done soon after.

"Oh dear, you can't do anything can you? I guess I'll just tell Tadase that you aren't a suitable wife... Besides, I found a much prettier, competant girl. Her name is Saaya. I wonder if he'd-"

"I-I'll do it soon! Don't worry!" Amu rushed to the refrigerator and pulled out lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, and other vegetables.

"You better be ready in fifteen minutes~" Yuuki pranced away, humming a merry song. Amu began to cut the onions. She felt hot tears pricking her eyes and she wiped them away with the back of her hand hurridly.

"Stupid onions," she muttered as more tears spilled down her cheeks and onto the apron.

Amu checked the time and realized she had five minutes to scoop the rice and set the soup. She grabbed three bowls and rapidly began to pat rice in, wiping her eyes before Tadase came down and saw her. She thrust the food onto the table but froze when she heard a clucking behind her.

"Still not done?" Yuuki stood with Tadase, her arms crossed over her chest. She sat down with a heave. "My son's a busy person, Amu. If you can't even prepare dinner quickly, you better worry because there are so many better women out there."

"I-I'm almost done!" Amu grabbed three bowls and poured some soup into them, trying to ignore the stares she received. She brought them to the table and sat down.

"Amu. You're not good enough for my son-"

"Mom! Stop it! She's perfect for me! It's okay if she's a little late!"

"Tadase! Shush! Your mother is talking. This is for your wellbeing dear, so you quiet down." Tadase looked at Amu apologetically and began to eat silently. "Amu, look at you! Such an ugly, weird hair color, short, ugly face, you can't do anything. Meanwhile, Tadase is handsome, tall, works diligently, is always succesful! Who do you think is getting the short end of the stick?"
"...Tadase..," Amu fought the tears back once more.

"Exactly. Now that's why I'm-"

"Mom! Stop! Let's just eat." He grasped Amu's hand tightly and she winced, pulling her hand away. "What's wrong?"

"U-um nothing." Tadase shrugged slightly and returned to eating. Amu cradled her injured finger in her hand, trying to chase the pain away.

"I-I'm going out for a bit, I need a little bit of air." She excused herself and made her way outside into the chilly night. The tears that she had fought back began to reveal themselves and she leaned back into the gates of the house and sank down.

Amu let herself relax and felt hot tears pour onto her knees incessantly. She hated Yuuki. But she loved Tadase too much to leave.

Amu heard an awkward cough in front of her and she hastily wiped away the remaining moisture before standing up.

"Um... I came here to return your bag, you left it at my place... Are you okay?" Ikuto stood in front of her with her bag dangling from his arm, frowning at her.

"Y-yeah. Thanks!" she managed a small smile and took the bag from him gratefully. He pulled out a familiar white box from his pocket and handed it to her.

"I happened to see that your necklace was broken... I was bored so I fixed it." Amu gasped and received the box.

"T-thank you... It was really important to me."

"No problem. Did something happen to your finger?"

Amu glanced down and quickly hid her hand behind her dress.

"It's just a small cut. I'm fine." Ikuto rolled his eyes and pulled her wrist and gently prodded the finger.

"O-ow..."

"I thought so." He went to his car and came back to Amu with white gauze in hand. "For emergencies." He gently unwrapped the loose band aid and wrapped it with the gauze tigthtly before taping it at the end. Ikuto patted it gently and released her. "Well, I'm off!"

Amu watched his back as he walked away toward his car and she waved at him shyly. "Thank you," she whispered again before turning back and heading back into her own home.

X

Ikuto's mind wandered to Amu as he drove to Utau. He wasn't one to be nosy but she seemed to be pretty distressed, considering she had the famed, rich Hotori Tadase as a boyfriend. He shrugged and went directly to the hospital.

When he got to Utau's room, he stood outside and took deep breaths.

One of Ikuto's greatest fears were that he would walk inside to find Utau dead and gone from him forever. He pulled the knob gently and peeked in, smiling when he saw Utau gazing out the window with a bouquet of flowers in hand.

"Ikuto!" Utau's eyes widened in surprise when she saw him.

"Yes, it is I."

"I'm so glad you're here! I thought you weren't coming today."

"No, I'd never miss a day with you. I was just working on a project with a classmate." Utau held up her flowers proudly and lifted it to his face.
"Fresh, new flowers from Kukai! They seriously help me feel better." She lowered them back to her face and smelled them. "They're so relaxing."

Ikuto was about to open his mouth to speak when he heard a knock on the door. He turned around to see a suited man with a briefcase in hand.

"This is for you, Ikuto." He handed him the case and bowed once before leaving the room.

"Hey, Utau. I'm going to leave the room to see what this is, okay?" She nodded happily and hummed while sniffing her flowers.

Ikuto left the room and walked into the deserted waiting hall. He opened the briefcase and took out the manila folder that was waiting for him. It would contain some basic information about who he would kill.

Ikuto readied his heart for any shock that would come and opened the folders slowly. But no amount of readying could stop him from dropping the folder in shock.

Hinamori Amu's soulful, honey eyes stared back at him from the fallen papers.

X

A/N: Please, please, please review! ^^~ It's probably really tiring to hear it, but it really is such an encouraging thing for me and it helps me to write faster~
I'm aiming for 15 reviews! The more reviews, the faster the updates!(hopefully)
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