Ending and Beginning

Chapter 3 - Forever my heart will be with you

The class was very noisy. Each has their respective conversations.

Then a blond teacher with amethyst eyes barged into the classroom.

"Good morning! My dear lovely students!" Narumi greeted

The students ignored him.

Mikan was staring at the scenery outside the window.

Natsume has his feet on the table and sleeping with a manga covering his face.

Hotaru was busy with the blueprints of her latest invention.

Ruka who was sitting beside Hotaru was petting his bunny.

Narumi faked a cough. "Everyone! There will be a singing contest to be held next week. A participant in each class is needed. So who wants to be our representative?"

The class was silent for a moment. Then almost all the girls were screaming and raising their hands. Almost. Except Hotaru and Mikan.

"Okay, so many of you want to join. Why won't we just have an audition and whoever has the best voice will enter." Narumi said.

The students approved.

"Then we will start now." He cheerfully said.

Koko was having a headache because he couldn't stop hearing the minds of the girls.

Mikan noticed this because he was sitting in front of her. She sighed. "Koko, take this." She said giving him an alice stone.

"What's this?" he asked, enduring the pain.

"Use that in order to stop your headache. It's a nullifying alice stone."

"Thank you so much." He said. He was really thankful because the fucking noisy thoughts made him feel like his head is going to burst.

Natsume watched them. "You have a nullifying alice?" he asked Mikan.

She nodded. "I'm a multi-alice user."

"Hn."

Their attention went to the singing girl in front. Her voice was that of a frog. The next girl was totally tone deaf. The next has a very high voice that made the students wince. Anna was next. So far, she has the most normal voice. Then it was Nonoko's turn. Her voice was peaceful. Next was Permy, she too has a good voice. All of the girls finished except for Mikan and Hotaru.

"Uhmm, Mikan-chan and Hotaru-chan will you sing?" Narumi asked.

Hotaru pointed her Baka Gun to Narumi. "I won't. But that Baka over there might." She said pointing to Mikan.

All eyes turned to Mikan.

"I don't sing anymore, Hotaru." She said as she went out of the class.

The class was silent. It was just a simple statement but they saw her expression. Sadness was the very exact word.

Hotaru stood. "Don't follow me, Ruka." She said and followed Mikan.

She saw Mikan sitting at a sakura tree. She went towards her.

Mikan looked at her.

"Why?" Hotaru asked.

"Why what?" Mikan asked back.

Hotaru sighed and sat beside her. "What happened in America?"

Mikan expected Hotaru to ask this. "Let's go to my room."

Hotaru nodded. She understood that Mikan wants her privacy. She held hands with her. Mikan transported them into her bedroom.

When they sat, Hotaru looked at Mikan waiting for an answer.

She sighed. "When you went to Japan, Natsuki, Aoi, Akira and I remained. We didn't go with other people. It was always just us. Then we started doing missions. I was partnered with Natsuki and eventually we became a couple. I would sometimes give Natsuki alice stones that I have stolen. I think one of those is the premonition alice." Her tears began to fall.

Hotaru comforted her and waited for her to continue.

When she calmed down, she took a deep breath. "Do you know ZERO?"

Hotaru shook her head.

"She's one of the AAO agents and one of the best. We would sometimes fight with her. When this sometimes became always, we were sent in groups. But always, whenever we fought with her, our team always gets the highest damage. It was always like that until Natsuki and I are the only ones who weren't wounded. We were asked to rest so we went to our usual sakura tree. It was the only sakura tree there. Then he asked me what I'll do when he died. At first I thought that he was just joking but I answered him truthfully. I felt something was wrong but I just brushed off the feeling. Then we went to our mission that night. As usual ZERO was there. We had a very hard time in fighting her. Then more and more AAO agents came. Natsuki said that he'll be okay and I should go first but after that he wasn't able to come back. The building exploded." Now Mikan cried.

Hotaru hugged her.

"Why was I the only one who lived? We were partners. I should've never left him. He knew that's why we had that kind of conversation. I never had a chance to say goodbye. I never had the chance to see his body again."

Hotaru stroked her best friend's head. "It wasn't your fault."

"We both made a song. A song that was like an oath but he was the only one who fulfilled the oath."

"Oath?"

Mikan nodded.

"Will you let me hear it?"

Mikan nodded. She wiped her tears and took a deep breath. She began to sing.
"I will never let you fall,
I'll stand up for you forever
I'll be there for you through it all
Even if saving you sends me to heaven." She sighed. "He really loved my voice. Now, I only want to sing in front of him and to the ones I love."

Hotaru looked at Mikan. "Seeing you like this, do you think he'll be happy? He knows how much you love singing."

"Sorry. But I've made up my mind. I'll take my revenge." She stood. "Thanks for listening, Hotaru." She jumped outside the window. She landed gracefully on the ground.

Hotaru sighed. "You're really stupid, Mikan."

Mikan was walking in the northern woods. "Don't hide now Persona-sensei, Natsume Hyuuga."

Two men appeared before her.

She cursed herself for letting her guard down. She was now so sure that they've heard her conversation with Hotaru.

Persona chuckled. "Don't worry. I'm not the type to blabber ones past to another."

Mikan nodded and glared at Natsume.

"Hn." He answered.

"I take that as a 'yes I won't say it to another'." She said. "What do you want Persona-sensei?"

"I want to introduce to you your partner, Kuro Neko." He looked at Natsume. "This is Shinigami. The two of you, get along with each other." Then he vanished.

"Don't get in my way." Natsume said

"That's my line." Mikan looked at him then looked at the sky. "He'll be my only partner." She whispered.

Natsume heard her and clenched his hands. He just looked at her as she walked away.

"Forever my heart will be with you." She murmured to the wind.