His Dark, Kind Soul
Author's Note: Part 1 of 2. I originally intended the next two chapters to be published as one but I realized that would've been quite ineffective. This chapter will still easily flow into the next one so I hope you'll keep that in mind when Chapter 5 comes up.
There will be a lot of time shifts in this chapter so do take note of them. Let's hope it doesn't get too confusing. Have a good read!
Chapter 4: Homecoming
Present day, somewhere outside the Academy, Natsume Hyuuga at age thirteen
Natsume stood at his post waiting for the signal. The branch he was perched upon stretched across the road, an inconspicuous spot for an unlikely assassin. It was a cold night and the streetlight was out. He broke the bulb the moment he arrived nearly an hour ago. He checked his watch. It was almost time. He bent on one knee then crouched lower so that the leaves could conceal him.
"Remember Natsume, eleven o'clock at the ravine. The show will be spectacular!"
In the distance he heard a car whine, an unnatural sound. He knew that another one from his faction was responsible and that phase was executed perfectly for a lone vehicle was speeding to his mark. All guards had been disabled.
Leap. Execute. Vanish.
No trace. No evidence. Always a clean job: that was their way. Natsume felt his muscles tense as the car's headlights appeared at the bend. It was breaking the speed limit but that didn't deter him. He'd handled faster things before. The sedan was almost beneath him now. He gripped the branch, pulled down his mask, remembered his friends.
"Everyone's coming. Be sure you don't forget..."
Three… two… one!
An unexpected conflagration erupted in the middle of the road. The car swerved to avoid the blaze, nearly tipping as the driver wrestled the steering wheel to a sharp turn. Natsume jumped out and landed on the hood of the auto. The passengers reacted at once and he found himself staring down the barrel of three or four guns.
It was almost instinct now. Working fast, he released another flame and the inside of the car burned. The men scrambled out and the shooting began. He ducked then vaulted, shooting fire as he went and effectively disabling two of his targets. He stooped to the side of the car, spotted the cargo and grabbed it. Then he started to run just as they started firing frenetically behind him. He didn't look back, leaving the rest of the work to another Alice.
Natsume turned back to the tree that had been his hiding place. He picked up his pace then felt that familiar burning erupt inside his chest. He gritted his teeth. He was too close to the finish to give out now. Behind him other noises began. Then there were sirens, a cause for alarm. It was an unexpected element in the mission. He had to vanish. With an erratic step, he took a giant leap and reached out to grab a high branch. His fingers touched the rough wood just as his vision started to blur. The world swam and his grip slackened.
"You better show up!"
He felt himself fall. The earth rushed up and the impact shook his bones. Even then, he didn't let go of the cargo though he may never know what he had just risked his life to retrieve. Bright lights flashed on the road and so he clutched the box tighter then rolled to the bushes to take cover. He went perfectly still and he knew he'd have to remain that way until the coast was clear. It was a difficult position but, for that night at least, he simply didn't care.
"We'll be waiting for you."
The parcel, the mission or the fact that he may have sprained his ankle in that fall was inconsequential. It didn't matter because he had more pressing things in mind, like the promise he had been forced to make just this afternoon after a certain hyperactive female had pestered and cajoled him into agreeing. It was her voice he heard calling for him.
Constantly. Relentlessly.
And so Natsume lay there, unable to reveal himself and with his heart smarting with an all too familiar pain but in sheer irony all he could think about was a spirited, insistent girl who was waiting for him to come back.
Five years ago, Alice Academy Infirmary, Natsume Hyuuga at age eight
He heard their story in three parts. The first from Kunimitsu who was perhaps their best witness, the second from Mahiro who gushed freely about it and the last from Kira himself in a moment of sentimentality. The last part was told to him one morning when they were all weary from a mission and Kira's snow persistently descended from the gray skies.
It had been a particularly difficult mission. They were told to rescue the daughter of a state senator from kidnappers. The information provided to them had been grossly inadequate. For one, they weren't told that the people holding her hostage were also smugglers of guns and other weaponry. Two, they weren't expecting to retrieve her from the very warehouse where they stored their goods. The place had reeked of gunpowder and petroleum, a lethal combination for a pyrokinetic. Natsume would always remember that site to be the first block he had ever exploded.
During the operation a bullet had grazed Kunimitsu's arm and Kurt was wounded on the leg. Kira used his Alice to freeze the place over and contain the blast Natsume had set off and prevent it from spreading to a nearby harbor. When they left the place and returned the senator's daughter, the Alice Academy was still hard at work covering up the mess.
Back at school the team had gone to the infirmary to nurse their wounds and seethe about the mission. Kira, however, stayed only briefly and was out the door as soon as his hand was patched up. He carried with him a new bottle of tablets that matched the one handed to Natsume.
"Where's he going in such a hurry?" Natsume asked.
Kunimitsu raised an eyebrow. "You curious?"
"No."
Mahiro giggled. "Oh you sweet dear, you are! Go on and follow him then."
"No way."
"Why not?"
"He's cold today," Natsume mumbled.
"He's cold everyday," she pointed out.
He shook his head then moved to the window and spotted his guardian walking away from the building. "Today's different. Today it's a bitter frost."
And he meant it. For the past months he had grown accustomed to the Wolf's Alice. It was hard to tell at first but he was beginning to understand what Kira meant when he said elementals speak in a way other powers couldn't. Sometimes Kira's snow stung, its frost sharp and biting. Other times it fell fast, as energetic and alive as its Master. On some days it came out in chaos but had that distinct well-practiced rhythm. This last type he used frequently on missions.
But Natsume hated it worst when his snow was lonely and bleak. The snowflakes descended in a sorrowful scene. It was the one hardest to detect though he believed it to be the most sincere. And that was the Alice he recognized that morning.
"Am I that way too?" Natsume asked once Mahiro and Kurt had left the room. Kunimitsu was on guard duty and so he remained by the dwarf's side.
"Cold everyday?"
"No." Natsume turned away from the window. "Could you tell how I'm feeling by the way I use my Alice?"
Kunimitsu answered honestly. "We all can."
He turned away. "Such a weakness."
Kunimitsu paused then looked out to the window, knowing exactly where his friend was at the moment. "Do you remember what Mahiro told you about the Last Dance?"
"Yes."
"Good then, you'll understand." He laid a hand on Natsume's shoulder then stirred him to the door. "I'll walk with you part of the way. Kira wouldn't want me there but I suppose he'll forgive your presence. Come along Natsume."
"Where are we going?"
"I'm showing you the necessity of this weakness."
Seven years ago, Alice Academy, Natsume Hyuuga undiscovered
Marie Akagi came to the Academy two years after Kira did. They were a small class then, only numbering around twelve children. By the time she entered Kira was already one of the prized students of the Dangerous Ability Class and was infamous across year levels. He was a three-star Alice, the only one in his class at the time, but he was hardly the model student Natsume had met. He rarely hung out with his classmates and was usually asleep during lessons. When teachers asked for his deskwork, he gave them frostbite instead. Hardly anyone remembered but eight-year-old Kira had been a melancholy, stubborn and sometimes violent child.
Marie had arrived as an intelligent, self-assured young girl with little qualms about leaving her family for the sake of an Alice Academy education. She was an energetic tomboy with a brass and inflexible personality. At eight she was a competent pianist, could read and speak French fluently, and incongruously was also the Hockey League MVP for her hometown's Midget Division. Kira didn't hate her or anything. In fact, he barely acknowledged her existence.
The story goes that Marie used to get picked on for being the teachers' favorite. One day a group of boys were bullying her behind the gazebo, not realizing Kira was sleeping inside. He woke in great annoyance and instantly froze everyone within sight. When he came over to examine his handiwork he found Marie on the grass, staring dumbfounded at the ice figures surrounding her.
"Thanks," she mumbled, blinking up at him in wonder.
"I didn't do it for you," he said tersely then walked away, leaving his classmates trapped in ice. Marie came to her feet.
"I'll repay your kindness!" she called to him.
"I'm not counting."
After that Marie became one of his staunch supporters. She defended him to his utter embarrassment. She made class notes that he never really used. She partnered with him in projects then did all the work herself. Marie never seemed to grasp that he was in the Dangerous Ability class and therefore he couldn't care less about school. She stuck with him and his presence protected her. It was mutualism, or so they liked to think. Still, that wasn't what won Kira's friendship. For some time he considered her a nuisance but one afternoon changed all that.
Three weeks after he had inadvertently saved her from bullies, Kira was sitting alone in a classroom when he suddenly had one of his attacks. It was the consequence of the fourth form Alice and a particularly tough mission the night before. He clutched his chest, his heart in excruciating pain then he fell to the floor in near collapse. That was when she found him. Marie gaped at the state he was in and ran to help. He pushed her aside but she took his hand in hers in a resolute grip.
"Go away!" he coughed, gasping for breath.
"I'm here to help you."
"I don't need your help!"
"You bloody moron," she hissed then ignoring his angry protests she laid a hand on his chest and sent soothing warmth through his flesh. It coursed through his veins, spread through him in a welcome wave and soon his heart ceased to implode. He had never seen it used before.
A Healing Alice.
"Thank you."
After that they were one for one but both had long stopped counting. She could never fully heal him but then he could never completely protect her. They still found each other useful. It didn't matter that people looked down on her or ostracized him. They each had someone to rely on and for a while that was enough.
So if anyone asked how Marie Akagi broke through his defenses as a child, Kira's answer was simple. She made him stop hurting and they were best friends ever since.
By the time Kira and Marie reached middle school, they had gone past and survived their awkward years. Their bizarre friendship gave way to steady competition. With Marie's encouragement, Kira steadily became the admired student he was while she had garnered so many distinctions that she could no longer be made fun of. Plus Marie had reestablished her status as a hockey player and could probably body check most of the boys who had picked on her before.
When the two of them hit high school Kira was already the most sought-after guy in school and Marie earned her place as his co-class representative. Both of them had the highest honors in their grade but it was Kira who retained the number one spot. It was that situation when Kunimitsu's story to Natsume had taken place. The three of them were studying the day before their final exams. He was throwing questions while Kira and Marie tried to best each other. After a particularly difficult question, which Kira took effortlessly, Marie started gathering her things in an inexplicable mood.
"You're leaving already?" Kira asked in surprise. He checked his watch. "Hockey practice doesn't start for an hour."
"I'm studying in my room," Marie said shortly. She was about to leave when he grabbed her wrist to forestall her. Kunimitsu closed his book and looked at her too.
"Are you sore because I answered that last question?" Kira asked, perplexed then he tried to tease, "If you're so into Asian Civilization, you only had to say so."
"It's not that," she answered in a level tone. "Look, you're smart, you're brilliant. Everybody knows that. And in a week's time you're probably going to get top score again."
"That's never bothered you before."
"And it doesn't bother me now. I don't care if you're number one in class. I could be second to you my whole life and I'd still be proud of you."
"Then what's wrong?"
"You never go home." She hated it that her words came out almost accusing. "I haven't seen my family since I was eight. I want to visit them but for the longest time that privilege had belonged to you. Sometimes it frustrates me that you never take advantage of it."
Kira's eyebrows drew together. "You know I have no place to go."
"Yes, and so I also know that I'm being unfair to you." She looked ashamed. "I can't sit here and keep thinking that because you don't deserve it. So… I'm just going to go and cool my head before I say something I might regret."
Then she left them and Kira sat for the next hour mulling over her admission. Somehow, her words must have struck a chord, especially since they knew her family was on the other side of the world.
During their History exam Kira and Marie started hissing at each other. Narumi, a young teacher then, had glanced up from grading papers but it was so unlike the two of them to be caught cheating that he didn't immediately call their attention. They were near the end of the exam hour when Kira had stopped writing and leaned forward to talk to Marie who sat in front of him.
"Akagi… hey, Marie," Kira hissed at her. She ignored him so he started poking the back of her head with his pen. Twice. Thrice.
"What?" she hissed angrily finally leaning back to listen. Kunimitsu slid a glance at them briefly before turning back to his paper.
"Would you come back?"
"What are you talking about?"
"If they let you out to visit your parents," Kira spoke earnestly, "would you come back to the Academy?"
"What do you mean?" Marie hissed in annoyance. "Of course I'd come back."
"All right then," Kira said then abruptly he pushed back his chair and stood up.
"What are you doing?" she yelped.
Kira's hand flew to his face and he suddenly cried, "My eye! Oh my god, my eye!" Kunimitsu glanced up from his test paper, a grin playing on his lips. Kira's head lolled back then he swung around melodramatically, still pressing a hand to his eyes. The whole class looked up and gaped.
"What's wrong Samushiro?" Narumi asked in concern. "What's the matter with your eye?"
Kira stopped playacting for a second, thought it over then shifted his hand to his chest. "I mean… my heart! Dammit, my heart! It hurts so bad! It must be my Alice…" He coughed violently then leaned against his desk, heaving loudly as he did so.
"Marie! Do something!" somebody cried.
"There's nothing wrong with your heart," Marie told Kira dryly. "It's your head that's defective." Kira glared at her.
"I need to go to the clinic." He grabbed his unfinished test off the desk and shoved it at Narumi. "I need to go now."
Narumi regarded him sardonically then pursed his lips to keep from laughing. "Won't you accompany your friend, Ms. Akagi?"
"No!" Kira said at once then he suddenly grabbed poor Kunimitsu by the collar and dragged him to his feet. "Kogure will take me. Won't you?"
"Decidedly," Kunimitsu mumbled.
Narumi considered them for a while then smiled. "All right. You can go."
When the results came out, predictably Marie Akagi took top score and Kira Samushiro slid down to number three. They stood in front of the tack board long after she received several well wishes from their classmates. Kunimitsu was about to walk up to her to congratulate her as well when she spoke making him pause just around the corner.
"You're such a dork."
"It's what you wanted, right?" Kira grinned.
Her gaze flew to him. "You didn't have to be so theatrical about it."
"I thought I'd have some fun."
"Kunimitsu barely finished the exam."
"He placed second," Kira pointed out then frowned, "Damn, I miscalculated." Silence ensued again. His eyes traced the board while an irrational, unnamed fear started to grip his heart. And he could think of nothing that would cause it.
"I'm leaving this Friday. I— I thank you, Kira," Marie said haltingly then she turned to go.
Kira stood there with his fists clenched when suddenly the sentiment shooting through him came to light. Unable to stop himself, he called to her and this time the pain in his voice was genuine unlike the one he had used to get out of the exam room.
"I'll have your word Akagi."
She stopped and gazed at him quizzically but her best friend wouldn't look at her. At length, she smiled and nodded slowly. "I promise I'll be back."
Kira breathed again and from his hiding place Kunimitsu smiled.
Present day, somewhere outside the Academy, Natsume Hyuuga at age thirteen
Samushiro had called it a window: that thirty-minute break between getting lost and being found. It happened when something goes awry during a mission like an escape route blocked or if an unexpected enemy appeared and gave chase. In these moments it was every man for himself and the students would reconvene at a certain place on a pre-arranged hour. The window occurred rarely but if it did Kira once told him that a Dangerous Ability student would be faced with a choice. He could run and try to escape the Academy or, he could do what an intelligent Alice would, stay put and abandon the foolhardy temptation to flee.
Natsume had always opted to run. It was reckless because he was watched twice more closely than his peers. Each time his handler was able to bring him back to the school and he was punished severely for trying to get away. He hadn't taken advantage of the "window" for three years now. He hadn't felt the need to run from the Academy since Mikancame. After a long time, he thought of using it now; yet again for her sake.
When the authorities suddenly arrived, Natsume rolled away from his hiding place then ran. He sped away from the agreed meeting place, going as fast as his legs could carry him. Under one arm he carried the parcel that he had taken from the car that he set on fire, well aware that because he had it the Dangerous Ability class would be sent to hunt him down wherever he went. He could deal with that later. He was safe within the next half hour.
Natsume ran blindly through the dark all the while silencing his wits, which were warning him of the inanity of what he was about to do. He had never gone to her home before and it was sheer, dumb luck that this mission had brought him to the area. He didn't have to pull out the envelope in his jacket pocket to check the address. He had committed the hasty scrawl to memory, knowing that the information was vital for him to pull this off.
Knowing deep down that he had set off on this mission and had taken Mikan's letter while relying on pure chance that he would even have the opportunity to deliver it.
Seven years ago, Alice Academy, Natsume Hyuuga undiscovered
There were very telling changes in Kira when Marie left. He was restless and irritable. Nothing seemed to please him and his classmates had to constantly duck for cover when his temper suddenly flared up. She was only gone for two weeks but in that span Kira had prowled the halls in a despondent mood. At lunch he would needlessly check his watch every five minutes as though it would make the week go faster. He would make nonsensical references to the Hockey team or go visit the music room where Marie practiced her piano. At night he'd stay there to play his violin, usually focusing on maudlin pieces that struck the hearts of many who listened.
Only Kunimitsu was brave enough to say out loud that Kira missed his best friend terribly. But it wasn't like the Wolf denied it.
"You're acting like a lovesick moron," Kunimitsu told him once at the dining hall after Kira had snapped at an innocent Elementary student for laughing too loudly.
"Shut up."
"Do you want everyone to notice you're hopelessly in love with Marie?"
"Not hopelessly," Kira grumbled. Then he checked his watch again. "I can't remember the last time the week went by so slow."
"You and me, both," Kunimitsu said under his breath. Kira raised an eyebrow. "It hasn't been fun hanging out with the grumpy Wolf."
"Sorry."
"No problem. You're bound to be back to normal when she returns." Kira didn't answer. Kunimitsu grew reassuring. "She will return, you know. She's still got two years before graduation."
"But what if she doesn't?" Kira asked, without quite meeting his friend's gaze. "What if she decides to study at the Alice Academy in Europe? Be closer to home so to speak."
"You're being stupid. She wouldn't," Kunimitsu insisted.
"How do you know?"
"Because we're here," he said with certainty. "Now suck it in and pull yourself together. You're an embarrassment."
Soon the two weeks were up and they waited in anticipation for Marie Akagi to rejoin them. She would be carrying gifts from outside, maybe even letters and news from the families of some of their classmates. That afternoon they waited outside the Administrative building where she would emerge after reporting to the faculty. Practically everyone from their class had shown up and surely a welcome party would ensue.
"Are you ready?" Kunimitsu asked his friend with a grin.
"For what, exactly?"
"For your confession," he said, tongue in cheek. "I assume you'll waste no time telling Marie exactly how and why you were so miserable when she was gone."
Kira gritted his teeth. "Kunimitsu, when Marie gets here, everything that happened these past two weeks— didn't happen. Got it?"
"But—"
"Buried and gone," Kira said firmly. "Swear it on your life."
"You're being ridiculous," he insisted. "You have to tell her." The Wolf let out a low growl and so he backed off. Just in time the front doors opened and Marie stepped out with a bright smile on her face. The crowd cheered at once. In contrast, Kira's jaw went slack.
Kunimitsu smirked. Serves you right…
She'd only been gone for two weeks but the vacation did her a lot of good. They had always considered Marie uncommonly pretty but the girl that greeted them was downright stunning. She was wearing a stylish, urbane-cut coat that accented her feminine features. Her hair that was usually tied up fell loose about her shoulders in long, gentle waves. The time away gave her a revitalized look and her eyes sparkled as she searched the crowd for her two closest friends.
"Samushiro! Kogure!" she cried then broke through the crowd to launch herself into their arms. Kunimitsu caught her first and they hugged heartily. Then finally she presented herself to Kira who still hadn't moved. Her smile grew far warmer. "I'm back Kira."
Marie initiated the hug because he seemed incapable. It took him a minute but finally Kira wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and embraced her tightly. His shoulders relaxed when his best friend, his rival and heart, returned the hug with as much emotion.
"Welcome home, Marie."
Present day, somewhere outside the Academy, Natsume Hyuuga at age thirteen
Natsume ran down the badly paved street of the quiet rural town. It must have been one or two hours away from the urban city. There were hardly any lights on the road and so he had to grope his way between rocks and trees. Given the lateness of the hour it was no surprise that hardly anyone was on the road. There was a watchman at the village gate but he had already dozed off at his post. Apparently, he wasn't used to nighttime prowlers in the peaceful town. There were very few street signs. Some of them had fallen off or otherwise the street had never had the signpost. It was undoubtedly a simple town. The darkness, the lack of directions and the rough road all added to the challenge of finding Mikan's home.
Insane, he thought as he shifted the parcel to his other arm, I am completely insane. He could count the minutes in his head and he knew at least twenty had passed. The Academy would be after him soon and yet again he found himself questioning the task he had set out to do.
Mikan had been sad the past few days and when she was sad it was noticeable. She was quieter than usual and her smile lacked its usual cheer. Hotaru would know what was the matter, of course, and so would Yuu but neither of them had volunteered the information. And so he had waited for his chance to ask or for Mikan to confide, which would have been more ideal.
It happened three days ago when they were sitting together at the pavilion. The others had already gone on to class. He had lingered because Mikan had seemed to gather her things in a very slow and despondent manner.
"We're going to be late," he had said, trying to gentle his normally rough tone.
"Sorry," she muttered then suddenly she stopped fixing her things and slumped in the chair with a heavy sigh. He stared at her, biting back the words to ask what was wrong. Mikan glanced at him and said, "You can go ahead."
"I'll walk with you," he said shortly.
"It might take me a while."
"That's fine."
"Really Natsume, you should go—"
"What's the matter, dammit," he said, cutting her off. Mikan blinked at him then slowly a feeble smile flitted across her features. He glowered. "Spit it out."
"It's my grandfather's birthday on Friday," she told him. "It would be his third without me home. I always miss him and it's harder on these days."
"So write to him."
"I did," she pulled out an envelope and slid it to him. "Ms. Harada gave it back a few days ago. It didn't make the cut."
Natsume frowned. "So they're still watching you."
"I guess."
At length she stood up and scooped up her books. He came to his feet as well then before he could change his mind, he held out his hand. She shifted her stuff to him but he shook his head. "Not your books, idiot, give me the letter."
"Why?"
"I'll get it to him," he said. She looked surprised and more than a little doubtful. "My… Mixed Class… has ways."
"Would it be dangerous?"
"I can get it to him," he said firmly. "You have my word."
"Your word?" she repeated blankly. Then slowly she smiled, a far more intimate smile, and handed the letter over. "I don't need to have your word, Natsume."
He felt his cheeks heat up so he cleared his throat and turned away. "Come on, we're already late…"
And so here he was. This is what happens when impulse won over good judgment. Heart over intellect. Her bright smile over his sense of self-preservation.
A few minutes later the Black Cat finally found the residence he was looking for. He jumped over the makeshift fence and landed on the top. It was rickety and it shook. It didn't hold his weight and he found himself falling clumsily to the garden on the other side. He cursed then moved to his side, cushioning his fall as best as he could.
That makes two falls tonight, he thought. Rising to his feet he cut across the small backyard to the main house. The wooden floors creaked when he stepped upon it and he winced again. It was so difficult to move stealthily. The whole house seemed to typify Mikan's loud personality. He peered into a couple of rooms then came to the one at the end of the hall. He pulled the door slightly ajar and it creaked noisily, making him curse under his breath.
At once a hand clamped on the door and slid it fully open. Natsume lost his balance and fell into the room. He felt a cane descend upon him and he quickly rolled to his side. The stick banged against the wood and left a dark dent on the floor. Then it swung sideways. Natsume leapt out of the way and the staff missed him by scant inches. He instinctively crouched low then gave his attacker a menacing glare.
"Who are you?"
The room was brightly lit with four tall candles at each corner. There were no shadows to blend into, no furniture to hide behind. It was just him and an old man, who looked as though he'd lived a century but could still knock him cold with a single bash. The old man watched him curiously. Natsume laid the package he carried on the floor then straightened.
"I don't have much time. You don't need to know who I am. All you need to know is that I'm here on behalf of your granddaughter. I came to deliver her letter to you. Happy birthday, old man."
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