Such a long three months and this Piece is finally done. I want to tear out my hair.

Kidding.

Thank you to those who have been patiently waiting for me to update this story. Two long years and I still haven't finished with it.

Damn. I want to cry.

Anyway, let's stop this pointless rambling and just move on to the story.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice and its characters. Bourne Severity belongs to Ryuamakusa4eva.

-x-

Small Pieces of You

-x-

30th Piece: To Trust

This is not good.

Jacklyn's heart was beating fast, pushing hard against her rib cage, threatening to jump out of her chest anytime. The force on her back was getting harder each second as the distance between her and the ground shortened. The air pressure started to deafen her hearing and all she could took notice of was the loud shrilling whoosh of wind.

She forced her brain to work, despite the shock and fear she was feeling at that moment. She didn't have much time to grieve over the bad luck she had that day. That could be done after she was safe from this situation.

If she's still alive that was.

Goodness, she needed wings at that time.

Wings.

Jacklyn opened her eyes immediately, a gasp escaping her lips as the thought hit her like cold water. Why hadn't she thought of it before?

Grasping blindly around her neck and chest, Jacklyn bit the inside of her cheek, annoyed with the wild swaying of her hair that compelled her to close her eyes again. Her fingers searched frantically for the notebook Hirai gave her, and she couldn't stop getting even more panicked when the digits failed to catch the flying notebook.

"Yes!" the possessor of the drawing alice wheezed when the thing she had been searching for was finally in her hold. Opening one of her eyes, she quickly turned over the pages with only one intention in her head. She was, undoubtedly, frustrated when she didn't spot the picture she needed while the ground was getting nearer and nearer. Adding to her aggravation, the notebook slipped off her grasp out of her panic.

Damn it!

She shut her eyes instinctively when she was sure she couldn't make it. No one would be able to stay alive after jumping down from the fifth floor. It was unquestionably impossible, unless she was immortal.

This was the end.

Just when she thought she was waiting for Death to claim her, a high pressure of wind rammed her back, causing her to gasp loudly in surprise. Her eyes snapped open once again and she found herself floating in the air and descending slowly. No, it was more like the speed of the fall was slowing down.

"What the—" Jacklyn frantically looked around. Above, from the window she jumped out of, she could see the guard's head sticking out, his jaw slightly dropping, probably from the unusual sight she was performing. Heck, it wasn't even her doing. Looking down, she found she had been nearing the earth. A wave of relief surged inside her when her brain comprehended the fact that she wouldn't be seeing Death soon.

But the floating magic that had been casted upon her had to disappear all of a sudden when she was just only one floor height from the ground. The gravity pulled her down once more with force, and she couldn't help but releasing a terrified scream as she dropped. "THE HELL—!"

"Oof! Got you, Little Angel."

Jacklyn blinked twice, thrice, as she took in her surrounding and found out she was still breathing, hardly, and the fact that she was not in Death's arms, but the man who was her so-called tutor. "…Hi-Hirai-san?" she managed to stutter. A small tear slid down her cheek from the unvoiced relief. "W-why are you here?"

"Need to watch over a certain junior," he quipped. "The advantage of having wind alice."

Through the mask that covered a half of her face, Jacklyn saw his lips curl into a smile. He lowered his body a bit and put her down to her feet, one hand on her arm to balance her shaky stance while the other wiped the lone trail of tear from her cheek. "I would never let any danger come upon my dear apprentice," he said, his head rising to stare at the window she just jumped out of. The guard was still there, with a surprised look on his face. But as soon as he caught Hirai staring at him, he looked panicked and quickly drew his head from the windowpane, disappearing from her and Hirai's sight.

Jacklyn raised an eyebrow of wonder at the odd reaction the guard gave, but then shrugged it off as she thought it was just because he had gotten over his shock. The reason of why she had to jump out of there a few minutes ago suddenly crossed her head and, with an irritated face, she turned to Hirai and asked, "What was that about? You called me all of a sudden in the middle of the battle of life and death and told me that Natsume wasn't in this mission."

Hirai looked down, and all he did was just stare at her, which annoyed her even more. If it wasn't because of the damn mask on his face, she would have been able to know whether he felt guilty or otherwise. But after receiving no reply from him seconds later, Jacklyn rolled her eyes and scowled, convinced that the man wouldn't leak even a single reason of his failure.

Slowly, the corners of his lips lifted and his hand rose to her head ruffling her hair messy. "It's a mistake that I make sure will never happen again." He drew back his hand before Jacklyn could swat it away. "Besides, every mission always has its own threats waiting for you. You should have been more prepared for that."

"I understand that well," Jacklyn defended, her lower lip jutting out in frustration.

Hirai smiled at her sideways before turning and walking away, beckoning her to follow him. "Let's go. There's no use to be here any longer."

She gave a low hum and trotted after him, stealing one last glance at the building behind her. Her mind drifted to a certain boy left inside there, wondering if he was able to escape from the guards, and then she shook her head to drive the thought away and followed Hirai again.

Nevertheless, his words bugged her.

'Is it Black Cat who you came for?'

Her eyebrows furrowed.

How did he know? Who is he anyway?

-x-

The third period had just ended when Jacklyn successfully snuck back into the academy and blended in the crowd of hungry students going to the cafeteria. The accessories she wore for missions were safely kept in her bag, and she hoped nothing would happen causing those things to fall out. It's fine if people who saw it thought they're just things she bought from Central Town for fun. But if a certain person – like Natsume – spotted them, then she would have a hard time making up stories of why the odd accessories he seemed to recognize were in her possession.

Walking through the corridor, Jacklyn busied her hands by running them through her hair to neat them after remembering how hectic the situation she had been in the previous mission. She was pretty much relieved she saw no familiar face anywhere near her on the journey to her destination. Therefore, she didn't feel the need to make up excuses for her absence in the morning classes.

But she had to eventually.

Jacklyn sighed and couldn't hide the frown on her face when she was aware she had to lie again. It's not like she never told a lie before she entered the Alice Academy. She had done it, countless times, and all of them were white lies, she believed. But ever since the young boy pointed it out in front of her face and showed such hurt expression, she started to feel guilty for covering the truth.

No. She shouldn't be affected by that.

But damn, his word stabbed her hard.

"It's all messed up," she murmured, rubbing one hand over her face.

"Jacklyn…" A sudden tap on her shoulder made her jolt out of surprise, washing her deep thoughts away. Turning her head to the suspect beside her, she found Koko smiled at her hesitantly as he retracted his hand back to his side. "Sorry, did I surprise you?" he apologized.

Jacklyn heaved a sigh of relief and placed one hand on her chest trying to calm her fast beating heart. "It's all right," she laughed lightly. "I was thinking of something anyway."

"Hm…" Koko smiled and pointed to the corner not far from the spot they were standing. "Can we talk for a while?"

Nodding, Jacklyn followed Koko to the end of the corridor and stood near a window, before leaning her weight on her right leg and asked, "So, what's up?"

Upon hearing the question, Koko glanced away and started fidgeting uncomfortably. Jacklyn raised an eyebrow at this unusual sight and waited patiently to what he had to say. "Uhm…it's…" The boy groaned and then looked at her with an unreadable stare, causing Jacklyn to lift both eyebrows. "Jacklyn, I don't mean to accuse you for anything, but…do you…happen to hide something…?"

His question surprised the holder of the drawing alice, which could be seen from her widening eyes. "Wh-what makes you think so?" she hastily blurted out and almost winced at how quick she reacted to his query.

Koko didn't seem to realize it and moved on. "Honestly, I can't read your mind anymore," he spoke lowly, but loud enough for both of them to hear. "Your head is always empty, right now. It no longer projects what you're thinking to me ever since we met again after you're out of the hospital." Jacklyn furrowed her eyebrows. "After you saved Mikan from the fan girls," he added, apprehending her confused expression.

Jacklyn's face lit up as comprehension dawned upon her. How could she forget the day? It was the beginning of the current path she took, training under Hirai and being Natsume's stalker in every mission he was in. "…I never projected my thoughts to you," she diverted the topic. "You read them without my consent."

Koko made a nervous laugh. "I accidentally heard them."

Jacklyn rolled her eyes. "You'll get a headache if you can't control that alice of yours."

"The doctor had told me about it before."

"Then do something with it."

"But I hate to wear alice-controlling devices."

"Wearing what?" Jacklyn asked, one of her eyebrows raising in curiosity.

"Alice-controlling devices," Koko repeated. "They are items to suppress the power of your alice so you can use and control them without having to be afraid they will go wild. Usually they're in the shapes of daily accessories, such as rings, necklaces, chokers, earrings, armbands, bracelets, and many more."

"Do we need them?"

"Some people do. Some people have to," Koko confirmed. "You see, Natsume has non-identical earrings on both of his ears. They're his alice-controlling devices, just so his alice won't be out of control."

Jacklyn muttered a small 'oh' and then went silent. She realized she never clearly paid attention to Natsume, except for his outstanding crimson eyes and, according to her, nasty attitudes. She never knew the lad wore earrings, which were actually devices to control his fire alice. But then again, if he wore those things, did that mean his power was far more dangerous than she thought?

"Is Natsume's alice that dangerous?" she questioned uncertainly. Jacklyn didn't miss a frown that formed slightly across the mind reader's face when she looked up to him, though the frown was quickly being replaced by a plain expression when the related subject was conscious of the attention she gave toward him.

"Generally, fire is dangerous," Koko stated matter-of-factly. "Natsume's is no different. The controlling devices are to keep his power under control, meaning to prevent his alice from taking his life-span in large scale every time he uses it. They are to slower his death."

But he would die sooner or later, if he kept on using his alice, if the academy high-ups continued sending him into missions that required him to use the hazardous power.

"Your eyebrows are creasing."

Jacklyn blinked and her focus was once again back to Koko, who had a small smile on his face. Disappointed or sad, she couldn't interpret it.

"Maybe I was just overreacted," he said then, cackling to break the uncomfortable atmosphere. "Perhaps you also have nullification alice like Mikan, or barrier alice. I will say it's nullification though, since even Narumi sensei's alice also didn't work on you."

The black-haired girl pressed her lips together to repress a gasp from escaping her throat and drew a deep breath instead. So her worry all this time came out to be true. The teacher she was quite fond of actually used his pheromone alice on her, possibly trying to get the truth out of her after Koko reported he couldn't read her mind.

No, she didn't feel betrayed. Somehow, she knew the teacher would use his alice without her knowing. Though she appeared to be ignorant, deep down, she was aware of the suspicion she had gotten from the people around her. One day, she was sure, this secret she tried to keep would reveal by itself as time passed.

But not now.

"Perhaps," Jacklyn agreed with the dirty-blonde haired boy, managing a grin to show to cease his doubt. "I think I'll find out later about this new alice of mine, if it's for real."

Yes, not now.

The time when all the walls she built to hide the secret crumbled down would come in the end, but it definitely wouldn't be today. As of now, she might as well enjoy her peaceful time she could get, because she was sure it would be a ruckus if the teachers found out.

Koko returned her smile and scratched the back of his neck. "Ah, I feel a bit better after talking about this to you. It had been nagging me a lot. I was afraid I would get bald if it kept going on."

Jacklyn patted his shoulder and faked sympathy. "Geez, you could have talked to me soon than let it bother you. I would feel guilty if something bad happened to you just because of this thing," she tried to joke, but her chest constricted in some way, contradicting the words uttered from her very own mouth. "Anyway," she appended, "we will miss lunch if we're going to stay here longer."

"You're right." Koko grinned cheekily, and Jacklyn couldn't help feeling relief seeing he was back to his usual self again. "Let's go then. You won't want to be late since the next period is JinJin."

Jacklyn groaned.

-x-

Lunch.

It used to be the most thrilling times in his schedule, well, for the past two months. Now, looking at the extensive green field outside the class, he contemplated on how stupid he had been back then. Ever since the truth was lain out in front of him, he couldn't stop blaming himself for being so dense, so believing.

What was he? A four year old?

Youichi made a snort and pushed his chair back, making a loud creaking sound which drew the attentions from the remaining students in the class. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he stalked toward the door and rudely pushed it open. He stepped into the corridor and joined the passing students to the direction of the main hall.

Every student who made contact with his eyes quickly stepped out of his way, not wanting to get his wrath just because he was in a bad mood. How could they read him? It was because his eyes were a bit red from lack of sleeping.

And damn, all of it was caused by a certain girl he even barely talked to in the first place.

Running one hand through his gray hair, Youichi huffed in frustration and continued glaring at whoever came to his sight. He didn't understand why he had to be so worked up just because of the fake angel who had tricked him for two freaking months. Then again, there was also another thing that kept his eyes open last night. Long after he went back to his own room, lay on his bed, and contemplated on what had just happened that afternoon, he realized one thing that came out following the feeling of betrayal.

It was guilt.

He freaking felt guilty for shouting at her and running away, not even bothering to hear her explanation. But why would he be bothered about that? She was the one who wasn't being honest with him after all.

Stepping on the pavement outside the elementary building, Youichi closed his eyes and inhaled, welcoming the sun rays bathing his figure and the fresh air tickling his nose. It refreshed his mind somehow, dismissing everything that burdened him at that time even though just for a bit. He sighed and moved his feet, letting them lead him to a place he didn't expect to visit soon.

But there he was anyway, under the Sakura tree his so-called brother often hanged out at, the tree he diligently visited for the last two months, and the place where he found out the real identity of the fake angel.

"Damn you, treacherous feet," he grumbled under his breath and glared at his feet. "Why did you take me here anyway? Do you want me to dislocate you?" Noticing he was talking to no one, his feet on top of it, Youichi rolled his eyes and landed his forehead on the bark of the tree. "Great, now I'm being crazy."

"Youichi?"

The mentioned boy looked up and found a certain raven-haired lad walked toward his way. Straightening his figure, he gave the older male a tiny smile. "Nii-chan…"

Natsume noticed his cheerless smile. "What's wrong?"

Youichi shook his head. "No, nothing," he muttered and drew his gaze back to the base of the tree, as if he was expecting something there.

Being observant he was, the raven-haired lad perceived the different atmosphere Youichi was emitting and curiously followed the boy's gaze to the grass in front of the tree. Almost immediately, he was reminded of Youichi's words, which seemed to be a long time ago, about Miss Angel's promise to give the little boy a white feather at lunchtime. "Waiting for your feather?" he questioned.

Youichi grimaced and looked away. "No. There will be no more feathers from today on."

Natsume arched an eyebrow. "Why so?"

"She's nothing but a liar."

"Why are you so sure?"

"She…" Youichi paused and wriggled his fingers. "Just because."

"…Are you hiding something?"

The young boy pressed his lips together and refused to look at Natsume.

"Youichi…"

"It doesn't matter now, does it?" Youichi snapped and slumped down to the grass, his back against the bark of the tree. "From the beginning, it's all a mistake. I shouldn't have believed her, I shouldn't have been so excited about it, and I shouldn't have wasted my lunchtime running up here just to retrieve a single feather that would vanish the next day. I feel like a fool!"

Natsume stared down at the furious boy, wondering what had gotten into him. He had never seen this side of Youichi's before, angry at something the fire caster didn't know. Whatever the matter was, it must have hurt him that he looked so depressed.

Opting to be silent for a while, giving Youichi time to calm down his ragged breathing from ranting and impulsive rage, Natsume took a seat beside him and gazed far to the horizon, one knee up to support his arm. The quiet hum of breeze passed through his ears, urging him to close his eyes and just enjoy the peace of nature.

The stillness seemed to affect Youichi as well, as his breathing calmed down after a while and he, too, joined the older male staring at the green view before him.

"Ready to tell?"

The gray-haired boy sighed. "Do you remember about the angel I told you before?"

Natsume glanced at him from the corner of the eye. "What about her?"

"She's not a real angel," Youichi grumbled, his eyebrows bending down in irritation to be reminded of the reason of his unusual behavior.

"How do you know?"

"Things…happened."

The fire caster raised an eyebrow. "Right."

Youichi scowled and buried his head in his hands.

"It's all right. Just take your time," Natsume cheered him up while patting the younger boy's head brotherly.

Youichi stayed still, deep in thought. Reliving yesterday's event in his head again, he reflected on his reaction when he found out the angel's real identity. He noted he had been a bit overreacted, but he couldn't help feeling hurt in his chest when he realized he had been fooled all this time. No matter how many times he remembered the upsetting moment, the feelings of betrayal gave no less impact on him. It still pained him and never failed to arouse his fury.

Then there was the faint guilt, which he hated to acknowledge when he witnessed her vulnerable state after being found out. She tried to explain, but he didn't bother to hear it, not wanting to hear the excuse she had to defend herself to the point of duping him and everyone. He still didn't want to know her reason for hiding behind her angel mask, but there were times in between his hate in which he wondered why she had to do that.

Youichi growled. Oh no, he didn't sympathize with her just now, did he?

"Youichi."

"What?" he rumbled, not bothering to lift his head.

"That."

Only when the single word reached his ear did he lift his head, tickled by the curiosity in Natsume's deep voice. Above him, descending down to the spot he was sitting on was a white pigeon. With a gentle purr, the tame animal landed on his still left knee and took a few small jumps to his thigh. Its head tilted, as if it was wondering, and Youichi let his lips spread into a wide smile at that innocent gesture.

Bending forward, Youichi lifted his left hand. The bird flew from his knee and perched on his lower arm. Its beady eyes blinked, filled with innocence. "Where did you come from?" he asked and caressed the bird's small head with his forefinger, feeling somehow satisfied when the bird leaned into his touch.

"…This bird seems familiar," Natsume butted in, drawing Youichi's attention.

"Whose?"

The fire caster creased his eyebrows, trying to remember. He was sure he ever saw the bird somewhere, but the memory was fuzzy. Then again, maybe he was just imagining. Pigeon was a quite common kind of bird that could be seen everywhere, and he might just happen to see this one somewhere in his recollection. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Natsume shrugged. "Can't remember. Perhaps they are just similar. White pigeons are quite common anyway."

But still, there was something about the bird that nudged his interest. Something that made it different from other pigeons. Only, he couldn't spell out what it was. Natsume pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes, working his brain once again to find out what was bugging him.

The gray haired boy blinked upon seeing the older boy lost in his thought. He averted his gaze from Natsume to the bird and smiled when he saw it stare back at him, but, soon, his eyes caught something attached to the bird's right leg.

A small rolled paper.

Youichi reached for the paper and untied it from the pigeon's leg. He quickly unrolled the paper. His hands tensed when he studied the words scribbled in blue ink.

Never intend to fool you. Sorry.

Youichi bit his lip and turned his head away, the paper crumpled in his hand. Far to the west from the place he was sitting now, he could see the outline of the junior high school building; the place he hadn't visited since yesterday because he wasn't ready to meet her yet. He didn't know how he should act in front of her. It would be better if he could disregard her, but it would need a great effort.

He didn't have it.

Not yet.

-x-

"It's clear blue today."

"Hm."

"Do you think it will rain later?"

A shrug.

"Come on! Let's make a bet!"

A grumble. "No. It sounds stupid."

"You're no fun. Still having a small dose of teenage angst in your system?"

Jacklyn growled and turned to glare at her fretful companion. The serenity she got only a few minutes ago was completely gone with the wind blowing past the rooftop where she was now. "What are you doing here anyway?"

Standing beside her, Jack blinked innocently and tilted his head. His lips then curled into a perfect grin. "To accompany my lonely creator," he replied honestly and leaned his back on the railing.

"Really," Jacklyn muttered, unconvinced. "Why do I have an idea that you want to wind me up instead?"

Jack threw his head back and laughed heartily. "That's really a cruel assumption, Jacklyn."

"If you don't want me to assume like that, you will do it right by shutting your mouth up and just, urgh, be quiet."

"I do. When you talk."

"Not only when I talk," the black haired girl rumbled in frustration. "Right now, I really need some peace. I need to sort things out. I need to fix my head. And I definitely don't need a stupid creation that can't stop babbling even for a while beside me."

That's right. She had dashed to the rooftop right after finishing her lunch, hoping to spend a few minutes left of lunchtime in tranquility. She sent a pigeon to Youichi once she arrived at the place and, though a genuine pigeon generally needed to know the place to send a letter, she hoped this pigeon of hers could recognize Youichi so it could bring the apology letter directly to the boy. An indirect sorry was better than nothing.

But was that enough for him to forgive her?

Jacklyn shook her head and leaned her chin on the cool surface of the iron balustrade, a submissive sigh coming out from her later. She felt exhausted, fed up with the endless problem dropped upon her. Not to mention she had skipped three periods today just to do a wrong mission that almost cost her life.

"What's with the long face?" Jack ruffled her hair, drawing her attention back to him.

"Nothing," she murmured and closed her eyes. "I'm just a bit tired."

"Really?" Jack put on an unconvinced look and bent his head down to her level. "Where were you this morning, creator?"

Jacklyn's eyes snapped open in surprise, the fatigue she felt before dissolving at the same time. She focused her gaze on her creation and the way he stared back at her almost made her heart jump out of her ribcage. "I…forgot something and went back to the dormitory…?"

Jack raised one eyebrow. "Did you?"

She nodded slowly.

"Took me three periods to see you."

Jacklyn's whole body tense. He knew she was lying. She couldn't let him know. She had to cover it up with another lie. But what?

"I couldn't help it. I had a stomachache all of a sudden," she blurted out and turned away, refusing to let her expression betray her.

"You're not lying?"

Jacklyn gulped. Her heart was beating fast, yet aching at the same time. Her voice wanted to leak out the truth immediately to him, so she wouldn't feel even more burdened. But she had promised not to tell anyone.

It was a secret.

"No. Why would I?" she murmured. "Besides, you couldn't be expecting me to concentrate in the class while I was unwell, could you? It's better to treat it before it's too late."

There was no response from her companion for a while, which made her even more alerted. Please just believe it, she prayed inwardly. Her fingers clutched her skirt tautly as she waited for the expected answer.

However, Jack was all but silent.

Jacklyn risked a glance at him, in which she regretted later. Guilt struck her when she spotted unspoken grief in his smile. He still said nothing, but he moved his hand on top of her head and ruffled her hair gently.

"Jack—"

He cut her off with his charming grin and said, "I'm glad you're all right now."

It only worsened her remorse.

Pushing the guilt far into the back of her mind, Jacklyn turned her gaze to the green field under them and forced a small smile. "Yeah," was all she said before the silence came down upon them once more and the warm breeze blew away all of the remaining unsaid words between them.

Jacklyn moved her hand on top of her head and gripped his large one. She then squeezed it gently, trying to convey the words she wasn't able to voice out. Jack squeezed her hand in return instead of pulling back. At that moment, Jacklyn knew her words reached him thought it wasn't told.

She would tell him whenever she was ready, and he would wait patiently for it.

She just didn't know when.

She had walked the path too far.

Now, she didn't know how to go back.

-x-

"Jacklyn, is it true that Jack is your creation that came alive?" Mikan whispered to Jacklyn that night when they were having dinner.

Not expecting to hear the question come out of the brunette's mouth, Jacklyn froze and almost dropped her spoon. For a moment, her tongue was tied and words left her as she stared shockingly at Mikan, who looked at her in anticipation for an answer.

"How—"

"Jack told me himself," Mikan said, pushing another spoon full of rice into her mouth and chewing the food. "It has been a few days ago though. I wanted to confirm it to you at that time, but you looked extremely tired. I didn't want to disturb you."

"Ah…" Jacklyn gnawed at her teriyaki.

The brunette swallowed her food before speaking again, "You won't deny it?"

Jacklyn shook her head and smiled a bit. "He said the truth."

Mikan's mouth formed a big 'o' in admiration. "Your alice is that great?"

"No," Jacklyn denied and put down her bowl. "Actually, I also didn't expect such thing could happen, even until now. No creation of mine could last longer than twenty four hours. He's, like, a special case."

"You don't try doing it again?"

She gave the brunette a dismissive wave of her hand. "Jack told me not to. He said I could die if I try again, since I fainted after accidentally using my power on his picture. It seems like his case is also just a coincidence."

"Right." Mikan frowned. "Don't do it anymore then. I don't want something happen to you."

Jacklyn smiled. "I won't." She wouldn't do it, because she didn't have any reason to try it again, for now. She didn't even think to try it before because the thought never crossed her mind. There were many things occupied her head these days; too many they were she couldn't keep track of them anymore.

Looking around the rowdy cafeteria, Jacklyn just noticed something was missing ever since she entered the place. Usually she would be sitting down with Mikan and Hotaru, with Ruka and Natsume close to their table. But today, there were just she and Mikan eating together. Hotaru, Ruka, and Natsume were nowhere to be seen.

'Natsume isn't in the hospital anymore.'

That was what Hirai said when he told her to go on a mission this morning. She had thought the fire caster was really being sent into the mission, but it turned out that Hirai was misinformed.

How could that be? Hirai getting wrong information was a rare case. This was the first time it happened. Then again, where did Hirai get such information? Judging by the alice he had, he wasn't an ordinary people. That was for sure. He didn't look like he was one of the teachers in Alice Academy either.

Jacklyn wanted to ask, but she hesitated. A part of her always questioned about Hirai's background and demanded an answer to it, but another part of her held her from asking anything when she was face to face with the person himself, somehow convincing her it would be better if some things were left untold. But was that a good decision?

She heaved a heavy sigh and ruffled her hair. She had been asking herself about this since forever until her head hurt, and yet she refused to use the direct way to clear the problem she created on her own. If only she could be more honest and open, this should have been an easy thing to do.

Hirai-san, who are you?

It was that easy, wasn't it?

"Are you okay, Jacklyn?"

Jacklyn dragged her gaze back to Mikan and nodded. "Yeah. Just have some things in mind. Nothing serious though." She fell silent, stared at the empty seat beside the brunette and was reminded of her question about the three persons' whereabouts.

Natsume wasn't in the hospital anymore, but that didn't mean he wouldn't be somewhere else inside the Alice Academy. Besides, he wasn't the type of people who liked to be told what he should do and where he should go. Perhaps he was in his room. Ruka was his best friend, so he was probably with Natsume now. But Hotaru?

"Where is Hotaru?" she asked with pure curiosity.

Mikan shrugged. "I don't know. She said she had something to do this afternoon and disappeared just like that. I haven't seen her since then," she said, a frown etched on her face. "I wonder if I have done something wrong to her?"

"I don't think so," Jacklyn commented, taking a sip of her water. "Perhaps she really has something she needs to do."

The brunette pondered and inclined her head in agreement. "Yeah, you're right. Hotaru is always busy with her inventions."

Jacklyn gave Mikan a small smile and secretly glanced around the room once more. Her creation, Jack, was also nowhere to be seen. After what he had said to her this noon about not seeing her for hours, now he was the one who was peculiarly gone without any sign. Usually, he would bug her, especially since there were empty seats at the table she and Mikan occupied tonight.

Then again, why should she care? Wasn't it far better if she didn't have to hear him babbling unnecessary thing when she already had so many things in her head?

But something was throbbing in her chest. It wasn't painful, but it made her restless. Somehow, she wanted to see him right now, contrary to the feeling she felt this noon when he came disturbing her peace.

Where is that guy anyway?

The heat in her right wrist brought her back from her reverie. Looking down at the gem, she noticed it was shining, in the same way it did this morning. She excused herself and walked out of the cafeteria, then took a turn to the right until she arrived in front of the cleaning room. After making sure no one was wandering in the place, she opened the door and stepped in.

It was dark inside the room, but Jacklyn found it wasn't necessary to turn on the light. She lifted her right wrist near her lips and kissed the gem. A hologram screen immediately emerged in front of her, the dim light from the display illuminating her face.

"Hello, Little Angel," he greeted her with a smile as usual.

Jacklyn nodded in return and asked, "What's wrong?"

"I just want to inform you that our meeting tonight will be cancelled. Something urgent comes up and I need to settle it."

"Okay." Jacklyn quieted for a while. "Have you found out where Natsume is?"

Hirai chuckled. "You won't let go of that matter, will you?"

"Like heck I will," she grouched. "I was halfway to heaven because of that."

Hirai's laugh rang in the quiet room, too cheery to her like, which only made her feel grumpy even more. Deepening her frown, Jacklyn glanced away from the screen and muttered a few soft curses, not really caring whether the man could hear it or not.

"No, we haven't found out where he is," Hirai stated after he finished laughing. "It's strange though. Perhaps he's being kept somewhere that we can't reach. I'm sure he's still in the Alice Academy."

"Oh," Jacklyn murmured quietly. We, he had said. It meant he didn't work by himself. There was another companion of his who also gathered information about the mission Natsume was sent into. Did that mean he might be from an organization who worked to protect the alice users in their missions?

Now that she thought about it. She realized every man she had fought was wearing the same uniform. Black suit and wearing black glasses. She wondered if the buildings she had broken into were owned by the same unknown organization. Then there was also this one time when she and Natsume were captured on their way out. A red-haired guy said something about entering the AAO's base.

"Little Angel?"

"Hirai-san, what is AAO?" she intercepted. "I realized that in every mission Natsume was sent into, we always fought the guys with the same uniform. When I was captured once in their base, a guy with red hair mentioned something about sneaking into the AAO's base."

Hirai didn't say anything for a moment. He was on the screen, but Jacklyn couldn't tell whether his eyes were on her or not for his mask was on the way. However, she was sure the man knew something from the abrupt silence she got after the question was out of her lips.

"It stands for Anti Alice Organization," Hirai answered at last. "They, you could say, are the opponent of Alice Academy."

"Why the academy has to send their students to sneak into the AAO's quarters?"

"Getting disks, files, and some important data that might be useful to the academy. For the academy, the organization is an enemy they should be aware of. They wouldn't want to have one of their precious students being taken from them. Sometimes the academy sends the Dangerous Ability class students to get rid of a number of AAO's men just to assure their safety."

"What do AAO do that the academy has to do that?"

"AAO doesn't agree with the way academy manipulating the students with alices for their own advantages. Where do you think the money for the school's welfare came from? They're cooperating with huge companies, organizations, and even the government and send the students to work there in the future. No one ever complains to this since the students' future are also assured, and so are the academy's future."

The tone Hirai used when he talked surprised Jacklyn a little. It sounded cold and disdaining, almost as if there was an invisible hatred lied beneath those words. She wondered if Hirai actually hated the academy but couldn't do anything in front of the enormous power the academy had, which was why he chose to protect the students this way. Even so, this kind of thing wouldn't change anything, would it? It was just like making sure the students could come back safely from the mission and the same thing would repeat again the other time. If Hirai really wanted this situation to change, then wouldn't it have been better if he joined AAO and took down the academy?

Wait.

Why did she suddenly think Alice Academy was the bad man and the AAO was the good one? She even thought it was a better idea if Hirai went to the AAO's side and attacked the academy. Besides, a nurse ever told her something about Natsume being kidnapped by the AAO. Didn't that mean the AAO was the bad guy?

Jacklyn furrowed her eyebrows and pursed her lips. Her head was in a mess from all the thinking she had done. Who was right? Who was wrong? The answer was unclear all of a sudden, obscured by Hirai's statements just now. Somehow, she thought it was better if she never asked too much. It would be simpler if she knew she just needed to make sure Natsume was safe in every mission he did.

"Don't think about it too much," Hirai's voice managed to get Jacklyn to focus her eyes back to him. He smiled when he finally got her attention. "You just need to focus on your task. I will take care of the rest."

She nodded.

"Well then—"

"Hirai-san!" Jacklyn's voice betrayed her before she could stop it. When she realized what she just did, she quickly covered her mouth. But it was far too late.

"Yes?" Hirai inquired calmly.

Jacklyn glanced down silently, deep in her thought.

Hirai tilted his head in confusion. "Little Angel?"

When she looked up a few moments later, she stared at him with firm determination in her eyes. "I trust you."

He smiled again. It wasn't a secretive or teasing kind of smile, but a warm and reassuring one that made her feel at ease. "I know."

"Then…good night…"

"Good night to you too, Little Angel."

Only after the screen was gone Jacklyn allowed herself to exhale a relief sigh. She gazed at the bracelet quietly and touched it to the bridge of her nose. She didn't know if it's a good decision to believe Hirai, but, for now, that was what she felt. Perhaps she was just confused. Perhaps she just wanted to assure herself and stopped the bewilderment and doubt she felt, but that was what she wanted to convey to him.

She just hoped he didn't betray that trust.

-x-

"The diskettes and CDs contain nothing."

Bourne opened his eyes and looked up to the Dangerous Ability class teacher. Persona dumped the diskettes and CDs Bourne had brought back from this morning's mission on the table, a loud clanking noise resounding in the dark class room immediately.

Bourne eyed the disorganized CDs and diskettes in front of him without interest, and then stopped the music which was currently playing in his i-pod. "Pardon?"

Persona sighed and sat down across him. His left hand reached out for Bourne's right ear and unplugged the earphone before he repeated, "The diskettes and CDs contain nothing."

Bourne's eyebrows creased in bewilderment and annoyance. "Are you sure?"

"A hundred percent," Persona confirmed. "We've checked it a few times. No satisfying result."

Sighing, the blonde haired lad took off the other earphone from his left ear and shoved his i-pod into his pocket. "Why did you send me to the place again?"

"Because we got information that the files which have the list of the targeted students were kept there."

"You have never been misinformed before."

Persona shook his head. "I also don't understand, but…" He leaned his chin on his knuckle, staring at Bourne meaningfully. "This is just my opinion, but I think the AAO set it up to trick us."

"Which explained why the guards were only being placed at the entrance and the corridors," Bourne added. "They had planned to catch anyone who was being sent by the academy to get the bogus files."

Persona smiled. "As expected from you to be able to grasp what I meant."

Bourne brought one hand up to his chin, shifting into a thinking pose. His eyes were once again on the diskettes and CDs on the desk, while his thought flew back to the time when he did the mission this morning.

It wasn't hard for him to sneak into the building, since he got a good timing to break in when both guards at the entrance were distracted. The corridor also had lesser guards when he entered, but the security tightened the moment he retrieved the file and attempted to get out. It just had been his bad luck and carelessness to be found out when he was trying to get away from the room quietly, which resulted in unnecessary battles he had to settle.

And then, the black-haired girl had to butt in.

Natsume ever said that the girl always showed up in the mission he was in. Little Angel had never been in Bourne's mission even once ever since he did missions for the academy, at least until today when he had to replace Natsume in the mission. Could it really be just a coincidence that she appeared in the place?

'Sorry. Wrong person.'

No doubt. She must have come to the mission, thinking that the Black Cat would be sent there. She also wore Alice Academy uniform, which only strengthened the possibility that she might be Jacklyn. But where did she get such information from? No one should have known whatever mission they were sent into except for those who were involved in the Dangerous Ability class. If so, she was also tricked to come to the mission. More importantly, who was she working for? Persona had once confirmed that there was no one nicknamed Little Angel in the academy.

"Onii-san."

Persona looked up at the title Bourne usually addressed him with. "Yes?"

Bourne leaned forward, seriousness gleaming in his eyes. "Have you gotten any information about the girl named Jacklyn?"

"Not much. For a new student, she had been absent more than any other new student would be. She was also ever involved in a kidnapping incident in the Central Town. The kidnapper's victim was Mikan Sakura. Unfortunately, we couldn't catch the kidnapper. Thus, the incident ended with her being sent to the hospital, bloody and with a pair of wings on her back."

The blonde-haired lad bent an eyebrow in perplexity. "Wings?"

"Her alice enables her to make those wings."

"What's her alice?"

"Drawing alice," Persona said fluidly. "She can turn the things she draws to real things. I heard it can stand for twenty four hours."

Bourne whistled. "You know a lot."

"That gay teacher knows a lot."

"Anything else I should know about her?"

"She looks like she has this depressing atmosphere with her at times. Like an angsty student."

The blonde haired lad smiled and stood up from his chair. "Well then, I'll be going now. There would be no mission for a while, right?"

Persona nodded. "Due to this event, we will have to consider carefully about having the next mission. We don't want to send the best students and get them killed or suicide for something meaningless."

Bourne inclined his head in understanding and gathered his bag and i-pod. "Okay then. Give my regards to Black Cat. Say I congratulate him for getting a new ward."

The man in black chuckled. "Sure. If he's awake to listen."

"He is." The lad turned walked to one of the casement windows and opened it widely. "Night, Nii-san." He waved at Persona for the last time before jumping out from the second floor.

With the dark of night hiding his figure, Bourne landed safely on the ground and swiftly made his way back to the dormitory. He reached his destination soon, faster than any normal students. Pushing the mahogany door open, he exhaled lightly and shoved one of his hands in the pocket.

Bourne walked through the entrance hall and to the stair. Exhaustion was all he felt. Even though he had used his alice more than necessary and still could make it back safely to the academy without any scratch, it didn't mean the exertion didn't affect him at all. The only thing that suppressed his need to rest and kept him from sleeping was the instinct to survive inside him, and his rugged principle to finish whatever duty he carried on his shoulder.

There was also another matter that restrained him from getting a sleep though.

The dream he usually had wasn't good enough for him to stay in his slumber. There were a few nights he woke up on his bed, to the darkness of his room, sweating and panting. Each time he finally grasped that it was only a nightmare, he would find his hands trembling, unstoppable. Then a weak scent of blood would waft around him, filling his nostrils, and faint sounds of screaming would ring inside his ears loudly.

The incident had changed him so much, for the worst.

Never had he thought there was such monster living within him, scheming evil things while waiting in silence, and lashing out on everything it encountered once it gained control of him.

It made him fear of himself.

"Where were you?"

Bourne stopped on his track, his lips forming a small smile upon hearing the familiar female voice. "Aren't you supposed to be having dinner at this time?"

"That doesn't matter." Hotaru sighed and stared at him knowingly. "You didn't attend the class today."

"I didn't."

"Something happened?"

"Not really."

"Mission?"

Bourne leaned his back on the wall and shoved his other hand into his pocket. "Guess I can't hide it from you." He chuckled tiredly.

"Students aren't allowed to wander outside the dormitory at this kind of time," Hotaru stated matter-of-factly, "except for the Dangerous Ability class' students of course. And that usually only means one thing."

Mission.

"You ever told me that your stay here has something to do with the AAO," the inventor stated as she stood before him. "But, Severity, should the AAO problem in Alice Academy Japan involve you who's working for Alice Academy America? I believe Alice Academy Japan is able to handle the problem without having to get you here. They could have at least asked students like me to make a few inventions to defend themselves, or add capable students into the Dangerous Ability class. If all of the efforts are still futile, then they might have no choice but to ask for help from Alice Academy from other country as the last resort, like what you're doing now." She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "But until today, I never got the instruction from the academy to make anything, like what happened four years ago."

One of the corners of his lips raised. Bourne had known from the moment he visited Hotaru for a small reunion between friends, that he wouldn't be able to hide anything longer from her. Her senses were too sharp; it was reflected on her violet eyes that gazed at people stridently in silence. He already knew this since the first time he met her. It was an old memory when he was still in the Alice Academy Japan, when he hadn't recognized the other side of him. A memory from four years ago.

"Bourne, what are you hiding?"

He bowed his head and chortled, avoiding her eyes on purpose. Those eyes, if he looked at them now, who knew what would he say?

"Bourne…"

He kept on chuckling for no reason, while raking one hand through his spiky hair. It was either that, or he would say something that would gave out the secret he had been trying to conceal from her.

"Bourne!" Hotaru swung her palms hard on both of his cheeks and brought his face by force in front of her. "Are you insane or what?"

The unexpected hard slap brought Bourne's awareness back to the situation he was in. The mad, humorless chuckles finally died down in his throat and disappeared to nowhere once his eyes met her beautiful violet ones. Hers stared at him keenly, with a small hint of confusion and anxious swimming in them.

And he knew he was close to his limit. Dangerously close.

"Bour—"

He grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her to him a bit rough that Hotaru had to stifle a gasp of surprise. His arms quickly tightened around her petite form as he buried his head between her neck and shoulder. No words were uttered after that.

Hotaru sighed, having no idea what the lad was doing. Nevertheless, she chose not to ask, for now. Instead, she placed her hand on his head and buried her fingers in his hair, her other hand resting on his back.

From her view, it wasn't a romantic gesture. It was more of a comforting act between friends, and that was what she thought Bourne needed now.

But surely, it didn't look like that from other people's view who didn't know them well.

That included the pair of blue eyes which had been watching them in secret, the fire of jealousy burning in them.

-To be continued-