H-Hello, fellow readers! Uhm, as you may have seen, it's been a really long time since I ever updated this fanfiction. From November until now would be...amg, almost 7 months. /hides in shame forever/
I'm sure most of you guys were disappointed when I didn't update it any time sooner, but please keep in mind that I will never abandon this fanfiction! ; u ; Next time, I will put in the description about if it will go into a hiatus or not, so you guys will know. o u o;;
And wah, during my absence, there's been a lot of changes to this website, huh? Longer descriptions (amg, yes!), and you can even put images on your stories, wow~ xD That reminds me~ I'll be making another fan-art for this fanfiction, since it's been a long time ever since I updated it. Think of it as a comeback? /shot/ So yeah, if you're interested, please check out my deviantART! /shameless advertising, lol/ : .com
But anyway, without further ado, please enjoy this chapter! /Sigh, my writing hasn't improved at all. le sob/
Also, beware of extreme OOC-ness! /slapped
Disclaimer: (Lmao, I haven't done this in a long time) I do not own Pandora Hearts. It solely belongs to Mochizuki Jun. I only own this flimsy story and plot of mines, OTL.
~ True My Heart ~
Chapter 6 : Full of Unknown Troubles
"... Snowdrop? Dinah? Kitty! Where are you?"
Light, hurried footsteps clicked and clacked onto the polished, wooden surface of the school floor, each sound echoing across the empty halls. Pants of catching air were faintly heard, before her soft voice called out her kittens' names, only to be responded by silence that enshrouded the whole building.
"Geez..." she whimpered, "Where did they all go?" Emerald eyes scanned the classrooms as she quickly passed them, but she stopped her quick pace into a halt soon after to catch her breath.
She did a quick scan around the area to make sure any furry kittens were lingering around, and they happened to stray on the clock hanging on the wall. "Oh no... It's getting late! I really need to hurry before I get locked in or something...!" With that, she quickly got back on track, her pace increasing more and more as she felt her anxiety increasing.
Just when she was passing the Home Economics Room, she bumped into someone tall. "Ah! I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, automatically bowing down in apology without even knowing who she bumped into.
"Oh? Is that you, Ada Vessalius? Why, it's lovely to see you~!"
Upon hearing her name being called and a very familiar voice, Ada looked up, curious.
Vincent Nightray stood there in his fabulous glory, a pleased smile on his face. Ada smiled at him, greeting, "Yes, Mr. Nightray. It's nice to see you too." Despite that, she couldn't help but notice the scissors that he held happily in the air beside his shoulders, looking dreadfully shiny for some reason.
"No need to be so formal, Ada~ There's nobody here. By the way, what are you doing here, so late after school has already ended?" Vincent asked, his multi-colored eyes staring at her in mere curiosity.
"A-Ah, no, I can't do that, Mr. Nightray! We're still in school, you know," Ada objected, her emerald eyes glancing here and there. "And uhm... I'm looking for my kittens. They seem to have roamed around, and I can't find them..."
"Oh my, really?" Vincent gasped, before he added, "Well, would you mind for a little bit of company as I help you in your search?"
Ada's eyes made contact with his in surprise. "Oh, no! I-I wouldn't mind at all! Bu-But...I really don't want to bother you, Mr. Nightray."
Vincent just chuckled, his hand flicking his blonde hair over his shoulders in a somewhat fabulous hair-flip. "You're not bothering me at all, Ada. Besides, I was the one who asked. Surely, you don't mind, right?" Ada just nodded, causing Vincent to beam, his scissors clipping together cheerfully. "Lovely! Now, shall we go, Ada?"
Ada could never forget that glint in his beautiful multi-colored eyes.
.:truemyheart:.
"So...tell me, boy. How long are you going to follow me?"
Oz just blinked his eyes in a somewhat innocent way. "What, is it a crime to walk in the same direction as you?" he asked in a pure tone, his lips forming a pout.
Alice cringed at her teacher's appearance, her lavender eyes taking in his face. " It is when you're a teacher who loves to flirt with his students," she said. 'And it's a crime when you're 18 and you're a teacher with a baby-face.'
With a few steps closer to her, his hands were clasping hers in front of him, pulling them two to a stop. "Arisu~" he began, "... Can I come over to your house?" He gave her a face that would make any girl squeal and faint. His eyes were wide and shining, his hair in that messy style of his that framed his chubby cheeks. His long blonde eyelashes flittered, his lips pulled into a pout once again.
'... Oh dear Abyss, I'm ashamed to be a girl. Anybody would take him away to their own house, instead of me.'
"No, Oz. Stop it or I'll slap that disgusting look off of your face," Alice threatened, her eyes narrowing into a glare before she snatched her hands away from his and began to stomp down the street, her long brown locks swishing behind her.
"W-Wait, Alice!" he called out, quickly catching up with her. "Why can't I?"
Alice sighed loudly, her breath forced through clenched teeth. "Because 1.) You're my teacher. 2.) Because of that, rumors will arise if they see us together. 3.) Because of that, you'll get fired, and I'll get expelled from school. That enough reasons for you?"
"What about if I was just coming over as your childhood friend, instead of a teacher?"
That almost made Alice stop in her tracks and think about it again. A moment of silence ensued them, causing Oz to swallow in anticipation.
That is, until Alice's voice broke it. "Sorry. Maybe another time." And with that, she walked away, her long brown locks swishing behind her.
Oz could have imagined it, but he was sure that her strong voice that had always sounded so determined and strong-built...wavered for a slight second.
.:truemyheart:.
'Damn. Damn. Damn it all!'
Her feet hit the ground hard, and Alice almost stumbled from the tall height she jumped from her second story apartment stairs. Clumsily snatching and yanking her messenger bag onto her shoulder from the ground, she immediately bolted towards the main road, only taking the risk of looking back once.
Thugs wearing black suits were on her tail, screaming profanities and forcing their chunky bodies to run after her.
Well, they weren't really thugs. Filthy, rich, fat gang members that hunt down people with debt, to be exact.
Oh, wait, you're probably wondering what was happening before this, right? Here's a little recap.
After Alice had left Oz standing there, she had headed straight home to her apartment, taking the long way home, just in case he was following her. Immediately changing into her regular clothing which consisted of a long, white blouse, a red jacket, black skirt, and fuzzy black socks, she plopped onto her chair in her kitchen and rested her cheek on the dining table.
"Ugh, I'm hungry..." she groaned, knowing that she had eaten everything out of her refrigerator and cabinet last night, which really wasn't much at all. "I should've gone to the grocery store earlier." '...Stupid Oz. Stupid me.' Closing her eyes, she gave out a sigh, deciding that she would take a nap. 'Just thirty more minutes, and I'll head to work.'
Not even five minutes later, a yell came from her front door, causing Alice to jump straight up from surprise. "... You brat, I know you're in there! Open the damn door!" the yell came again, accompanied by fists banging on the door.
'... Oh, hell no.'
Alice frantically jumped from her chair, almost causing it to topple backwards. Quickly running towards her room, she snatched her messenger bag from it's place on her desk, before she ran to her front door-and no, she wasn't going to answer it. She wasn't that dumb. Snatching a pair of her shoes and sliding them on, she almost cringed at the racket those guys were making.
Banging on the door didn't seem enough, so now they were practically throwing their body weight against it, trying to break it down. And before that happened, Alice needed to get out of here. Fast.
First off, the front door was a complete no to escape through, cause who knows how many fat men were out there, dying to get their hands on her. So where else can you get out of an apartment?
Bingo~! The window.
Unlatching the lock on the living room window, Alice heaved the heavy glass frame up, almost all the way to the top to have enough room to squeeze through, and well, the window wasn't that big.
Just one foot on the window sill, Alice was about to jump off when she heard a loud crash by the front door.
"What the hell are you doing, you brat? You had better not jump from that window!" the gang screamed at her, already stumbling after her.
'Pfft, like I'd listen to what you guys say.' "Good-bye, suckers~! she chimed. And with that, Alice braced herself and jumped out of her window.
Oh Abyss, she felt like she was jumping off the roof of a building. Only smaller.
.:truemyheart:.
"... Hey, you little brat! Stop where you are-!" The non-stop screaming and stomping footsteps of those gang members filled her ears, causing Alice's adreline and heartbeat to quicken and make her run as fast as she could.
Well, maybe too fast to even control your movements.
In a split second, Alice was thrown to the ground, her whole body making contact with the rough concrete. At first, she thought that one of the gang members had gotten her, but after she realized that there wasn't any heavy weight on top of her, she found out that it was the pothole in the road that caused her to fall. The gang was far behind her, probably becoming tired by running so much, but they were still coming towards her.
And she needed to get away fast if she didn't want to get caught by them.
Alice tried to move her limbs, but she forced herself to bite down on her lip hard, preventing a cry of pain to erupt from her. She soon felt the overwhelming pain embedded all over her body, especially her elbows and knees, where a stabbing sensation came from the joints. Damn, she must have scraped it when she fell. Swallowing down hard to not make any sounds, the taste of strong iron was left on her tongue. Great. Just great.
Even though the loud sound of her heart beart was pounding in her ears, she could also hear the footsteps that continued to become louder and closer.
She was in some really deep trouble now.
Before she could even move, her head spun, a headache beginning to form, making her rest her head where it was earlier.
The only thing she saw was the sight of brown boots standing in front of her, and the glint of a familiar stopwatch swaying from a belt-hoop, before she blacked out.
.:truemyheart:.
"...Alice, you're my precious niece, and I'll never forget you. So please, can you forgive me for everything I've done?" A hand enclosed over Alice's cheeks, his thumb smoothing over the stream of tears, wiping it away.
Frail, little Alice cried out, sharply stepping away from his reach. His expression turned into surprise, his eyes showing a look of despair. "I-I can't...!" she sobbed, putting her hands over her face, her entire body shaking from her crying. "...I can't, Glen...
... Because you betrayed me. Don't you understand that?"
Glen's eyes widened, completely taken aback. "Alice...?"
"You killed my mother, your own sister. You're beginning to fall into the miserable life of debt, our possesions are being taken away, and what do you do?"Alice's eyes hardened, her maroon eyes glaring deep into his. "You throw it all onto me and run away." A cold smirk lifted her lips, and she gave out a giggle. "You pitiful man."
'W-Wait...' Alice gasped and shook her head, terrified at her own words. ' Th-That's not what I wanted to say-! What-?'
Glen's expression hardened, and his hands grabbed her arms tightly, almost causing pain and causing her to snap to attention. "... That's right, Alice. You're completely right," he said. "I'm a selfish man who killed his own sister for the name of the house. I'm a pitiful man who lost everything, leaving you behind while you're dealing with all of these complications that you might not understand yet."
"But you know what?" His face contorted in a soft, caring look, and Alice's lavender eyes looked into his tearful ones. He reached his head up and planted a small kiss on her forehead before he said it:
"... I love you, no matter what, as my precious little niece."
That was the last she ever saw of him, with his words forever embedded in her memory.
.:truemyheart:.
The feeling of a wet cloth on her skin made Alice relax comfortably, allowing her to enjoy the gentle touches of coolness. Well, that is, until it touched her elbow.
"O-Ow...!" she hissed loudly when she came to, her senses coming back to her and an unbearable feeling of pain shooting through her elbows and knees.
"Oh, Alice!" She heard someone heave out a great sigh of relief, and a hand touched her shoulder lightly. "Thank goodness you're awake..."
"Wait- Who...?" Alice opened her lavender eyes, but her vision became unfocused when a slight migrane pierced her head when she lifted her it to focus on the person in front of her.
'...Oh my Abyss.'
"You all right?" he asked her worriedly, his emerald eyes searching her face for any reaction.
'Oz? M-My savior...?'
Comprehending on the obvious question he asked, Alice scowled. "Does it look like I'm okay?" she growled, attempting to push herself up into a sitting position, her teeth gritting hard at the growing pain in her elbows, but she was pushed back down.
"Don't, Alice. You need to rest," Oz said firmly, not letting her move from her place on the bed.
'Wait... Bed?'
She snapped to attention, her torso lifting up in response, and she widly searched the place she was in, only to recieve a stinging pain through her entire body and a push back down onto the comfortable bed once again.
"Chill, Alice! You're in my room. I brought you to my house," Oz informed her. When Alice stared at him weirdly, he quickly added, "I didn't do anything to you while you were out, okay?"
"No," Alice said, feeling a slight flush of embarrassment, but she shook it away. "How'd you find me? And did you see any gangs coming after me?"
Oz leaned back in his chair beside the bed, tossing the dirtied cloth in a bucket right next to him. "Oh, that," he said. "You were lucky I was around the area, or you would've been beaten to a pulp. And geez, what the heck happened to you? When I ran over, you were like this. You tripped or something?"
Alice coughed, attempting to hide her embarrassment. "A-Anyway, what happened to the gang?" she asked, changing the subject.
"Oh, don't worry about them. I kicked their asses and they ran away," Oz replied haughtily, looking quite proud of himself. Alice just stared at him like he had grown two heads. "What?"
"Y-You? A wimpy teacher like you beat them up?" she stuttered out, not believing what he just said.
Oz pouted. "Is that a bad thing? And hey, I'm not a wimp, you know that, Alice."
Alice simply lifted her leg closest to him and kicked him in the stomach, causing Oz to groan and rub the area she kicked him at.
"What the hell, Ali-"
"Are you stupid?" Alice shouted angrily, her eyes glaring unbelievably at him. "You beat them up? Do you know what'll happen if Uncle Oscar hears about this?" With a little bit of difficulty, she lifted her torso and jabbed Oz in the chest. "You're going to get fired, because you beat up some thugs! Plus, they're going to go after you, and worse, sue you! And it'll be all of my fault!" She bit her lip. "How could you do that?" She was screaming now, her hand grabbing a handful of his white blouse and her other hand pounding against his chest.
"... Alice... -Alice, Alice...!" Oz shouted, his hands roughly grasping her wrists and pulling them away from him, causing the brunette to silence immediately and look at him in the eyes, tears of anger threatening to fall from her glistening eyes. "It's not gonna be your fault! I was the one who decided to butt in and help you! If they're going to come after me and sue me, they can do that!"
His grip on her wrists softened and he grasped her hands gently. Alice could've sworn that her heart skipped a beat when he pulled her into a warm embrace. "... As long as my precious Alice is safe, I'm willing to do whatever I can," he said softly.
She almost broke down at those words coming from her childhood friend, but she bit her lip harder and kept her feelings in. She decided to wrap her arms awkwardly around him and burrow her head onto his shoulder, hiding her face from him.
Even though it was the first time she had ever been hugged by a guy, she knew that she was getting completely out of character. Giving him a squeeze and breathing in deeply, she pushed herself away from him, breaking their skinship.
Oz realized what he was doing and he flushed in embarrassment, a red tint on his cheeks. Alice was in the same predicament, but since she didn't want him to see, she immediately got out of bed, ignoring the stinging pain on her joints.
"... I-I'm gonna go take a shower, if you don't mind. Besides, I seriously need it," Alice quickly said, "Show me where it is."
Oz snapped to attention and stood up also. Leading her towards the bathroom, he couldn't help but ask, "You sure you're gonna be all right washing yourself with those nasty wounds you have?" Alice just glared at him.A smirk then lifted his lips. "If you don't mind, I can help you-"
Alice flushed and kicked his leg, only recieving a shoot of pain through her own. "Forget about it, you pervert," she hissed, before turning to the mirror. "Oh, Abyss, I look like crap." She really did. With her long brown locks tangled and matted to her head, dirt and dried blood covering most of her body, and her clothing ripped, torn, and ruined, she looked like a homeless person.
Oz couldn't help but chuckle at that, earning another kick to the leg. "Ouch. Well, I'll just go and grab a pair of spare clothes for you to wear, all right? Help yourself to the bathroom." He then started to back out, leaving her in the bathroom all by herself.
With a sigh, Alice began to strip off her soiled clothes, wincing at the slight pain and sight of them. Not giving a crap about the now-useless clothes, she left them on the counter, noting to herself to throw it away later on.
Stepping in the shower and turning on the nozzles, she waited for the hot water to come before beginning to wash the blood and grime off of her body. Watching the blood and dirt fall through the drain, she realized how filthy she was. 'And I was laying on his bed too!' Covering her face with her hands in shame, she shook her head, clearing her head of any thoughts before she continued to wash her body.
And let's just say that it was a very painful experience, dealing with the soap and warm water stinging repeatedly at her wounds.
Finally finished, she got of the shower, grabbing the towel on the counter near her. Seeing the new set of clothes also, she quickly dried herself and slipped on her undergarments (which were thankfully clean and okay) and his clothes, which was a white blouse and sporty shorts that were a size too big for her, but it was better than nothing.
Rubbing the towel against her long, damp hair (which required her to have a non-stop stinging pain in her elbows), she left the humid bathroom and into the cool area of Oz's house. Shivering at the cool air touching her slightly wet skin, she decided to wander around. This was her first time at his house, anyway.
However, her exploration time was short when she entered the living room, where Oz was sitting there on the couch, the TV showing some anime on. She opted to sitting a distance away from him on the same couch, since it was the only one they had in the room, her hands continuing to towel her hair.
"Ah, you're finished?" Oz asked, turning to look at her, only to have his breath taken away at the sight of her. Freshly washed and clean, Alice just simply nodded. "W-Well, I think we should start tending to those wounds then." He patted the spot next to him. "Scoot closer to me."
She obliged, but when she spotted the first-aid kit full of alcoholic sprays and other medical essentials, she immediately scooted away. 'Oh no. No no no no.' "Ah! So, uh, what're you watching?" she asked, hoping to stall time.
Oz picked up the bottle of alcohol spray and some gauzes. "Oh, it's a pretty old anime. Pandora Hearts, I think it was called."
"Oh, really? Well, it looks interesting," Alice said, keeping her eyes focused on the television.
"Yeah, maybe that'll keep you distracted while I tend your wounds," Oz said, turning his head to look at her. He then proceeded to scoot closer to her, a smile creeping onto his face.
"A-Ah, nevermind! Do you have a hair dryer? It'll be faster to dry my hair," she quickly said, standing up and looking around, acting as if she was looking for it. "I might catch a cold, too."
"Hmmm, I'll get it for you later after I'm done, okay?" Oz grabbed her arm, pulling her back down onto the couch.
"W-Wait," she said, glaring at Oz, who was grinning. Scooting away from him, she was aghast when she realized that she was on the edge of the couch. He, however, continued to inch closer to her, the bottle of alcohol still in his hands. "D-Don't you dare come near me, Oz! You know I hate that alcohol spray!"
"Deal with it, Alice~ You know that you're not gonna get away with this~" Oz chimed, an evil glint now showing in his eyes. "If you won't allow me to tend your injuries, you're going to get an infection, you know~ And you don't want that happening, do you?"
'Damn it.' Alice almost felt like giving up, but she tried her last attempt to persuade him. "P-Please, Oz~?" she whimpered, batting her wide, puppy-like eyes at him.
Oz almost choked at the sight of her acting so earnestly. "...Alice..."
"Yes~?" she chimed, desperately trying to put on her best cute act.
"Come here!" he shouted, grabbing for her. Alice's first instinct was to get the hell out of there, but due to her injuries, she was a second too slow and was abruptly pinned to the ground.
"Ow, watch it-!" She was going to yell at him, but when she looked up and realized their positions, a huge blush began to crawl onto her face.
Oz was sprawled over her, his face pressed against her flat stomach, his arms wrapped around her hips, and need-less to say, it looked so wrong.
Just then, the sound of the front door opening and footsteps coming in caused the two to freak out, their blood running cold. Oz was about to get off of Alice before a familiar soft voice stopped him in place.
"... U-Uhm... Big brother...?"
.:truemyheart:.
"Geez, Brother, I thought you were molesting one of your students!" Ada said, frowning.
That caused said brother and Alice to choke on their own breath and blush in embarrassment for being seen in such a situation.
"You should've told me earlier that Alice was hurt, because I would have gone straight home to help you," the blonde girl said, "Next time, call me whenever you bring someone home or something, all right?" Oz nodded, and Alice couldn't help but wonder who was the older one here.
Ada gave out a sigh and stood up before grabbing the first-aid kit by the couch. Alice blanched at what she was going to do. 'Oh hell no, not her too-'
Before she could make a run for it, Ada shouted, "Big brother, hold her down!" And in a matter of seconds, Alice was helplessly pinned onto the couch, Oz locking her in a grip so that she wouldn't run away.
All she could do was flail her legs, scream, and stare at the menacing glint Ada had in her eyes.
Let's just say that she fainted half-way through the process, when an overwhelming amount of alcoholic spray was stinging her wounds so badly that she couldn't bear it anymore.
When she had woken up, it was midnight, and Alice groaned when she felt the gauzes wrapped around her elbows and knees. At least the worst was over for now.
She then realized that she was in a different room and nobody was with her, so she assumed that she must be in the guest room or something. Still feeling sleepy, she snuggled against the fluffy comforter and pillows, before giving out a sigh of content, fluttering her eyes closed.
Before she fell into a deep slumber once again, she whispered quietly to no one in particular:
"... Thank you."
And that's all for now! ; u ;)/
This story finally has a plot, doesn't it? xD Because of that: I'll be updating this fanfiction probably every so weeks, but since I'm finally on summer break, expect more frequent updates, haha! And I'll be keeping my word! u
And also, I'll be changing the summary, since it sounds pretty...crappy. /shotdead
So uh... Even though I shouldn't say this, I would love it if you review and give me a bit of your opinions on the story so far!
Thank you so much for reading! I love you all!