Author's Note:
I'm so sorry about not updating for so long. I was so caught up in watching the anime La Corda D'Oro. It's so awesome! Tsukimori Len is so awesome –squeal- ! I think there's going to be a second season of the anime. I can't wait! It'll be nice if Gakuen Alice could have a season two as well… Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter. I actually had fun writing it. For those who guessed right, congratulations. The potion is a potion that fakes a person's death. I would never kill Natsume off! I'm not that evil…or am I? Hehe…! Anyway, enough talk and onto the chapter! Don't forget to review.
-X-
Chapter Eleven
-Her Punishment-
-X-
Ruka was worried. Natsume was not here in class. The blonde knew that he didn't have any missions today, so why is he not present? Normally this wouldn't be a subject to worry about but during these last few weeks, the raven haired lad hadn't skipped a single class. It might be because he didn't want to get caught by Persona, but Ruka had a strange feeling that it had something to do with the new student.
No, not new, Ruka mused. It has been almost a month since Mikan had joined their class. She was able to make many friends even without trying. The blonde haired lad could tell that there's more to the auburn haired girl than what meets the eye.
Speaking of which, he couldn't see her either.
'Anna-chan,' he called out to the pink haired girl that was walking past him.
Anna turned to him with question shone in her baby blue eyes.
'What is it, Ruka-kun?' she asked confused.
As far as she knew, Ruka was not someone who preferred to socialize with others. The only people she'd seen him talking to before was Natsume, Youichi and Hotaru; for the latter, only on special occasions.
'Have you seen Sakura or Natsume?'
Anna's eyebrow rose. She could understand why he would want to know the whereabouts of Natsume, but Mikan as well?
'No…I haven't,' she said slowly.
The animal lover nodded and went silent. Narumi went in the classroom and began his lesson.
For some odd reason, Ruka had felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach with worry.
He had a feeling that something bad was going to happen.
-X-
Natsume groaned as he sat up from his bed. His hand instinctively flew up to his head as a surging pain travelled through his brain. What happened last night? Natsume couldn't really recall anything.
Suddenly, images of the girl from last night flashed in his mind.
Who was that girl? He questioned in his mind and he slowly got up from his bed. Why was she in here?
His fingers touched his lips gently as he recalled how warm her lips had felt upon his. Natsume licked his lips. They tasted like sweet strawberries.
He staggered towards the bathroom and took a good look at himself in the mirror. Natsume wasn't sure if the person staring right back at him was even himself anymore. His skin was far too pale, almost to the point where he looked like a vampire and there were even slight bags under his eyes.
Not to mention, the pounding headache, he thought annoyed as he clutched his head in pain.
After finishing up in the bathroom, Natsume headed towards the door. He knew that Ruka would be worried about him if he didn't show up in class and he didn't want that.
Locking the door behind him, Natsume headed towards class. Much to his relief, the aching pain in his head slowly started to fade.
No one was in the hallways and he knew that class had already started. Without even knocking, Natsume pushed open the door of the classroom, feeling everyone's gaze drifting towards him. He gave them all a glare and they looked away in panic.
'How good of you to join us, Natsume-kun,' Narumi said, grinning at the raven haired boy.
Natsume muttered something under his breath that couldn't be heard and walked towards his seat.
'Natsume, where were you?' Ruka asked, half worried and half relieved.
Natsume snorted. 'You worry too much,' he muttered, instead of answering his question. But Ruka knows that he would be fine.
As time flew past, it seemed as if Natsume was, for once, interested in Narumi lesson. But Ruka knew his friend better than anyone else. Although his eyes were staring straight at the blonde haired teacher, he could see that Natsume was deep in thought. It might have been the trick of the light, but Ruka thought that he saw Natsume's tongue whip out of his mouth and licked his bottom lip.
His eyes widened when the crimson eyed boy repeated his action once again. Never once has he ever seen him act like this.
What is Natsume thinking?!
Ruka made a note at the back of his mind to ask Kokoroyomi later about Natsume's strange behaviour.
Looking back at the raven haired boy, the blonde's jaw almost fell. Natsume had on his face a smile?!
Ruka rubbed his grey-blue eyes in disbelief. When he looked back, Natsume's smile was gone and was replaced with his usual frown.
The animal lover's eye twitched slightly. Something is definitely wrong with either Natsume or himself, most likely the latter because Ruka knows that Natsume would never smile for any reason whatsoever.
So what had possessed him to do so?
He sighed; there was definitely something wrong with him and not Natsume.
-X-
Natsume felt annoyed. Ruka was giving him weird looks throughout the entire class. What was wrong with him, he wondered. Perhaps it wasn't a really good idea to attend class today. He cringed slightly when a sudden pain travelled through his head.
Great, the headache's back...how wonderful, his thoughts were dripping with sarcasm.
The bell finally rang for next period, much to his delight. The faster he gets out of here the quicker he'll be away from his annoying classmates, since next class for him is a Dangerous Ability class meeting.
That also means more missions, he thought annoyed.
Natsume positively despised doing missions for the academy.
He got up from his seat, ignoring Ruka and his pounding headache. The raven haired boy gritted his teeth, suddenly feeling really weak on his knees. Before he could take another step, his feet gave out and he went tumbling down towards the floor.
'Natsume!' came Ruka's frantic cry as he ran towards his friend.
But it was too late; his body had already hit the ground and darkness already surrounded him.
-X-
'We're here,' Reo stated, as he got out of the limo.
Mikan pulled her hood down and stepped out of the limo slowly, taking in the view of the secret base. In front of her was a huge mountain with a large rushing waterfall. It seems pretty much like a normal place in the middle of the forest but if you look into the waterfall, you would be able to see the entrance of the Anti-Alice Organization's secret base. It seemed like the perfect hiding place because hardly anyone visits this remote area.
'Let's go,' the brown haired man said, walking forward.
Mikan followed behind him silently. Once they were face to face with the waterfall, Reo got out a small remote and pressed a red button. Slowly, the waterfall began to part open to reveal the pathway.
They both walked in through the cave entrance and kept walking until they reached a silver door with a panel on the side. Reo pressed a few buttons on the panel and the door immediately slid open.
Mikan shielded herself from the sudden brightness. When she opened her eyes she could see AAO agents all around the place. But the water fountain in the centre of the room was what caught the auburn haired girl's attention.
Why do they even have a water fountain inside a cave anyway? She wondered countless of times.
A woman wearing a mask over her eyes walked up to them. From what Mikan could see, the woman had shoulder length auburn hair like hers.
'Kurai-san would like to have a word with you,' she directed the question at Reo.
Although she wasn't talking to her, Mikan could feel the eyes of the woman penetrating through her body.
Who is she? Mikan thought, looking right back the woman, who suddenly turned away.
'He would like to have a word with the girl after as well,' she spoke softly, walking away from the two.
Reo nodded and turned to Mikan, who was staring at the retreating back of the lady. Somehow, the nullifier felt as if she had seen that woman before.
A sudden pain shot through her head, making her stop.
I'm thinking way too much, she muttered in her head.
'Well, you heard Yuka-senpai. Let's go,' Reo said, grabbing her arm and pulled her towards a fleet of stairs.
Mikan glared at him and pulled her arm back roughly, but inwardly she was still thinking about the mysterious woman that has her so worked up a few minutes ago.
So, her name is Yuka, huh? She mused, finding the similarities between their names. Yuka's name means citrus while Mikan's name tangerine. Both are fruit. What a coincidence…
But why did Reo call her senpai?
Reo suddenly stopped walking, making Mikan bump into his back.
'Why'd you stop?' she asked annoyed.
'We're here.'
Mikan looked up to see a large oak door in front of them.
It was Kurai's office.
'You wait out here,' he told her and pushed open the doors.
Mikan shrugged and took a sat down on one of the unoccupied seats near by.
She waited…
…and waited…
…and waited.
The auburn haired girl could feel herself growing tired as she tapped her feet with impatiently.
'What's taking them so long?' she asked herself as she stifled a yawn.
Finally after thirty minutes, the door finally swung open and Reo and a scientist came out, both looking tired.
'Go in,' Reo said, walking away from her along with the scientist.
Mikan got up from her seat and walked towards the door cautiously, feeling dread forming at the pits of her stomach. She knew that this was going to turn out ugly.
Walking into the large room, Mikan noticed that the curtains were all pulled and Kurai was sitting on his office chair, sipping slowly on his coffee.
'Close the door,' he stated.
Mikan nodded and did as told. She knew perfectly well that she shouldn't mess with Kurai. The last time she did, it wasn't really good experience. She winced inwardly at the thought.
'Take a seat,' he said, gesturing toward the red couch, situated in the middle of the room.
The auburn haired girl sat down slowly. Kurai took one last sip of his coffee before setting it down on the desk. He opened his eyes and gave Mikan a cold hard stare.
Mikan shivered at that. His sapphire blue eyes seemed so beautiful, but she could see that within those eyes were filled with hate, evil and coldness.
'I heard from Reo that he assigned his mission to you,' it was more of a statement than a question.
But still, Mikan nodded.
His eyes narrowed. 'Might I remind you what the mission was,' he said coldly.
Mikan remained silent.
'Assassinate Hyuuga Natsume, the Black Cat,' he hissed out. 'Did you manage to fulfil that mission?'
The nullifier knew that she was stepping on a landmine but still answered his question.
'Yes, I did. Hyuuga Natsume is already dead,' she lied through her teeth.
Kurai's hand slammed down on his desk hard, making her wince. Although his facial expressions remained calm and emotionless, she could tell from the look in his eyes that he was seething with anger.
'Really, then how do you explain this?!' he nearly shouted, throwing at her a small bottle.
Mikan caught the bottle in her hand and her eyes widened once she looked at the contents.
It was a sample of her potion.
'I-I don't know what this is,' she stuttered out.
For once in her life, Sakura Mikan felt truly afraid.
When she looked up, Kurai was gone. She stood up cautiously, ready to make a run for the door, when all of a sudden someone grabbed onto her wrist and shoved her against the wall.
Mikan hissed in pain with her head connected with the hard wall. She opened her eyes only to find sapphire blue orbs staring back at her, or more like glaring right back at her. She wanted to look away but for some reason couldn't.
'K-Kurai-sama, let me go,' she stuttered, inwardly smacking herself at how pathetic she sounded.
Kurai didn't release her. Instead, he tightened his grip on her wrist and pressed himself against her, trapping her between him and the wall.
The auburn haired girl cringed when pain shot through her left wrist. That's right, that was the hand that Natsume almost burned, she thought bitterly.
'How dare you lie to me,' Kurai's breath fanned lightly against her face as he spoke those words with a slight seductive tone.
Mikan could feel herself shiver slightly. Never once in her life has she ever seen Kurai act like this towards her.
It was frightening.
The black haired man's mouth moved slowly towards her ear. Mikan almost yelped in alarm when he gave her earlobe a small bite.
'K-Kurai-sama?'
'Now, pay the price,' he whispered seductively into her ear.
His lips brushed across her cheek, leaving ghost kisses along the way.
W-wha-! Mikan didn't have time to register what happened next because as soon as those words escaped his mouth, he immediately connected his lips with hers.
Her eyes widened uncontrollably. Kurai was kissing her!
She shut her eyes and tried to shove him away from her body, but his grip on her wrist was just too strong.
She felt his something wet brush against her lips and tightened them immediately, but couldn't prevent the painful gasp from escaping when he bit down on her bottom lip hard.
Mikan's lips parted open and Kurai immediately took this as a chance and shoved his tongue into her mouth.
He tasted like bitter coffee.
Mikan felt tears gathering at the corner of her eyes. Never once has she ever experience something this horrible.
Natsume… She didn't know why his name suddenly came to her mind.
Her body stilled as silent tears start to slide down her face.
Kurai's tongue explored every inch of her mouth and Mikan didn't fight back. She knew that it was useless, even if she tired.
Suddenly, she felt one of his hands loosen and drift downwards and touched her thigh.
That's when she snapped.
Mikan opened her eyes and bit as hard as she could on his tongue, making his hiss in pain and back away from the seething girl.
Mikan gave Kurai a nasty glare as she wiped her lips hastily, trying to get rid of his awful taste. What surprised her was that instead of glaring at her like she thought he would, instead Kurai gave her a smirk and licked his lips.
'That was…fun,' he said; the smirk still attached to his face.
Mikan had it.
She turned around and stormed out of his office with an angry aura radiating off her.
The doors slammed shut, leaving Kurai alone in the room. He licked his lips one last time.
'Hm…strawberries, huh?'
-X-
Mikan gritted her teeth angrily as she walked through the hallways of the secret base. She glared at every single person that dared to look her in the eye. How dare he?! That devil!
She wanted to go back there and give him a good black eye right now. But even in her angry state, she knew that she would stand no chance against him.
But still, how dare he do that to her! Even though he was only twenty it was still wrong. Mikan had wanted to share her first kiss with the one she loved, not with a crazy maniac like Kurai!
'But you already had your first kiss,' a voice at the back of her mind reminded her.
She froze in her tracks and touched her lips carefully. Oh, yeah. She already gave away her first kiss…to Hyuuga Natsume.
Strangely enough, she didn't feel so angry anymore after that thought. Why? She may never know the answer. But for now, she needed some sleep.
Mikan walked into her room and collapsed onto the bed. She let out a tired sigh. Tomorrow she would have to face the devil again and she would need to have all the energy she needs if she wants to get her revenge on him.
She pulled the blanket over her head and turned off the light.
Finally, she let sleep overcome her mind.
-X-
Author's Note:
Who hates Kurai? Say I! LOL! I actually had fun writing the part where he had forcefully kissed her. But don't worry; this is not a Mikan X Kurai fic. It's purely Natsume X Mikan. But the NatsuMikan moments won't be present in the next chapter, 'cause I want to focus on the plot for a bit and then get back to the mushy stuff. Does this chapter seem a bit short to you? If so, then I'm sorry about that. Hopefully the next one would be longer. Oh and by the way, I changed my penname from xXSeiren-HimeXx to Eternal Butterfly. I like the sound of Eternal Butterfly better. That's all for now! Twenty more reviews please and once again no flames. See you in the next chapter!
-X-
The Pretty List:
HarunaNiwa073
lovin'my'music
Tsuki no Akebono
niceladysakura
Tear Droplet
Sweetmint-Ruu
Ichigo325
FallenRaindrops
luvnstuff101
Shugocharagirl
Chocolateoverdose
Saikono-san
MoonliteShadow101
Xlovely-dovey-originalX
hanistkim
Kai Hyuuga
OxxStill DollxxO
Kar-Kar93
xSapphirexRosesxFanx
xXxHyuuga-MikanxXx
Hana-chan
CherryBlossomGirl
natsumikan4eva
Emmoria
Still Doll Princess
WordlessDreams
chris3169512
Alwaysbtheir
Arianna Marilyn
Sparklillian
OMG! That took forever to type out! Thanks for reviewing! If I missed your name and you reviewed on the last chapter please tell me so I can add your name in.
-X-
-Setsuna