Finally got a new chapter written up! Sorry for not updating in such a long time, hope you guys like this chapter!
"Mikan," He mumbled, his voice soft yet strong, rick like chocolate; sweet and bitter at the same time. "You're going to die, and I'm going to be the one to kill you."
Something was not right. It wasn't abnormal that Mikan would fall out of bed, but her voice...Hotaru furrowed her brows as she stopped in her tracks.
"Hotaru?" Sumire, Anna and Nono asked, sensing the girl no longer follow them. "What's wrong?"
"I—" She turned on her heels. "It's Mikan."
It was dark.
Mikan lay on a cold floor, blindfolded. Her hands and legs were tied together tightly when she tried to move them.
"Koko?" Her soft voice echoed in the room. An empty shack?
"Koko." She repeated, voice louder this time. Light footsteps were heard as a person slowly approached her.
"In the end," a foreign voice broke the silence, voice icy as it fell from his lips. "Even the most trained assassins fail because of pitiful feelings." A cold hand grasped her arm tightly until she yelped, lifting her off the ground.
"Tsukaite no Kōri." The man called and another pair of footsteps were heard. "I have decided to give you another chance." Roughly, he pulled on Mikan's hair, earning a pained cry.
A ghost of a smile graced his dark lips.
"You are my best trained assassin, you have come far with me." His grip tightened mercilessly on the girl. "Kill her now, and I will give what you want most: freedom."
"Koko?" Mikan whispered, a question, and she was answered.
"I will kill her." That awfully familiar voice broke out, and Mikan's throat went as dry as sandpaper.
"Good." A smirk was heard in the man's voice as it flowed like silk.
"But," Koko added fiercely. "I want to talk to her a little in private first."
The man's grip loosened slightly as he hesitated, but released her hair nonetheless and walked towards (what Mikan thinks is) the door but not before whispering in Koko's ear menacingly, "Don't let me down again."
The heavy door banged shut and there was silence.
"Hotaru!" The three girls called as they ran towards Mikan's room (again). The said girl paid them no mind as she continued running at full speed, not once slowing down.
Finally reaching her room door, Hotaru took a deep breath before twisting the doorknob. Locked.
Growling in frustration, she rummaged through her pocket as Sumire, Anna and Nono caught up with her. Finding what she wanted, she quickly attached the lock-opener onto the keyhole.
A light 'click' was heard after a few seconds as the door unlocked. Slamming open the door, the four girls rushed into a completely empty room.
"He beat us." She murmured under her breath as she cursed.
"Sakura." Koko hissed.
"Koko?" Mikan whispered as she tried to tell how far away he was; his voice seemed a little distant, as if he wasn't standing in front of her, and was ice-cold.
"You deserve to die." He spat as Mikan tried to move towards him. "You should be long dead, Sakura."
"Koko," she called desperately. "Where are you?"
"You look disgusting." He continued, completely ignoring her. "Just look at you."
"Why are you doing this?" Mikan asked again, heart cracking little by little as she listened to his voice: hateful, angry, broken.
"You know perfectly well. Don't act innocent, Sakura. It's your fault I'm like this now." He sneered. "Look what you've done to me."
"I'm sorry." Her voice cracked as tears threatened to fall. "I didn't mean for that to happen."
"You're sorry?" He laughed hollowly. "Oh no, I don't deserve your sorry."
"Koko please," her voice shook violently as she tried to find him. "Don't do this. Don't do this to yourself."
"'Sorry' isn't enough." He growled. "You think you can fix everything with just a 'sorry?'"
"No," she cried. "But I really am sorry, Koko."
"I don't care." He snapped. "I'm doing us both a favor by killing you."
"Koko!" Mikan screamed as she tried so desperately to get him to think straight again.
"It's no use," he laughed a bitter laugh as it echoed off the walls of the room. "I'm going to kill you, Mikan Sakura."
The temperature suddenly dropped as a strong wind blew, and by instinct, Mikan knew he had summoned his sword. She tried to push herself further away from him, but it was futile.
She gulped.
She was going to die.
It was still barely morning, so Sumire, Anna and Nono were a little puzzled as to why they left the girls' dormitories. Mikan was missing, and they were worried about her too, but right now, they just couldn't seem to understand what Hotaru was doing and where she was going. They just aimlessly followed.
They became even more confused when Hotaru took a sharp turn and headed towards the boys' dormitories.
The three girls stuck close to Hotaru, as it was still pretty dark, and the hallways seemed endless.
"Hyuuga." They bumped into Hotaru as she suddenly stopped, her sole attention on the shadow in front of the four.
"Imai." The familiar voice replied with equal formality.
"Mikan's missing," she told him, her voice a slight, just a slight bit higher than usual. "Do you know where she is?"
It was an odd question. He was not in the girls' dormitories, he couldn't possibly know. Sumire, Anna and Nono glanced at each other questionably from behind the violet-haired girl.
"I do," came the answer, much to their surprise. "I just got an anonymous call."
"Is it reliable?" Hotaru seemed reluctant and wary at the information. Natsume shrugged.
"Worth a shot." He went silent for a moment before he glanced out the window to their right, fiddling with a pocketknife attached to his belt, as well as a gun. "Though it's odd that anyone would know her location. If the old DA class wanted to kill someone, no one would ever know about it. They made sure of it."
Hotaru let out a light snort.
"If my guess is correct," everyone seemed to hold their breath as they waited for her to continue. "Your call should be from Koko, aka Tsukaite no Kōri."
The sword was cold, deadly cold, as it lay against her skin. Her soft, delicate skin started to burn, slowly turning red and then purple under the touch.
She was scared.
Terrified.
But he did not care.
"What's with that face, Sakura?" He taunted, pressing the blade against her neck a little stronger. "You look pitiful."
"I'm scared, Koko." She bit her lip. "It's cold."
"Good." Was his only answer as she heard shuffling, and he was crouching in front of her. He pressed the blade into her a little harder until beads of blood rose from the wound.
She winced.
"Does it hurt?" He breathed, voice filled with amusement. "Such a unique expression you have." He slipped her chin between his thumb and index finger, forcing her to face him roughly.
"Can you take off my blindfold?" She asked quietly. "I already know it's you anyways."
There was a moment of silence—hesitation—before his voice echoed out firmly.
"No." The blade was removed from her neck, as blood trickled down, staining her clothes. She mewled as it was pressed against her breast, right above her heart.
"Should I just kill you now?" He pressed harder, as she cried in pain. "Or should I torture you a little more?" He let out a dark chuckle.
Mikan was starting to shake. From fear or from the cold, she wasn't so sure. Most likely a mix of both.
She could not see anything, her senses were reaching their peeks as her heart hammered loudly against her chest. All of a sudden, the ice against her chest was removed, as well as the hand holding her chin. She slumped against the cold floor, head feeling dizzy as she felt her pulse against her temples.
A door banged open, footsteps were heard, and the world dissolved around her.
What happened to their past? Why is Mikan sorry and why is Koko blaming her? Why did he inform Natsume of their location? Stay tuned for the next chapter!
R&R Please!