My first story. Hope you find it interesting. ;)

Ichigo Amano cracked one eye open after hearing the unmistakable sounds of knocking. She groaned and glanced at the alarm clock which blared 6:00 AM almost mockingly.

"Who would be awake and knocking at this ungodly hour?" Ichigo mumbled tiredly.

"What is it... Ichigo?" Vanilla asked, waking up from her spot next to Ichigo's pillow.

"I'm not sure, I thought I heard knocking. I'll just take a look. Stay here." Ichigo told her and crept downstairs.

But then halted midstep as the sound of her mom's voice drifted from the living room. It sounded almost… fearful?

She decided not to announce her presence yet and continued her way down, being extra careful of the creaking steps…

"My daughter's a what!?"

Ichigo stopped for the second time that morning. A what? She was a what? She slowly peeked through the doorway and saw her mom talking with a beautiful man with long blonde hair and pretty eyes. He looks almost feminine.

"Your daughter's an Alice ma'am." The man told her.

Alice? But her name's Ichigo, not Alice.

"-An Alice is a special ability present in chosen individuals. I guess you could call it a superpower~" The man continued, oblivious to her inner monologues.

A super power?! That's so cool! But wait, this might be a prank. Is it April Fools? Did they really have to hire that pretty man just to trick her?

"And you say Ichigo has this… Alice? Are you messing with me?!"

Ichigo saw the man's hands fly up in a surrender as her mom became extremely annoyed. "Oh no ma'am, I would never do that. What I say is true. Your daughter is really special."

There was a long silence after that and Ichigo waited with bated breath.

"Alright… I believe you.." Her mom said in a defeated tone. Ichigo guessed she probably had a staring contest with the man. She always could detect lies. "And what do you think is Ichigo's special ability?" She asked, purposely emphasizing the word 'special ability'.

"Of that, I do not know yet. But it's natural for people with Alices to not know about it themselves. Its part of the journey they will have in discovering them. It would be a very fun hands-on activity."

Uh-oh, he didn't just say that…

"You think of the kids as test subjects?!" Her mom screeched and Ichigo had to cover her ears. She couldn't imagine what that experience could be with the man who was directly in front of her mom's face.

"No! Of course not ma'am! I just merely stated that it will be a great hands-on activity. I mean, students learn much quicker if they do it themselves." The man said in a hurry in an attempt to appease her mom.

If there was one thing Ichigo knows so well about her mom, it was her huge temper.

Don't get her wrong, her mom's really sweet and kind most of the time, but if you annoy her there will be hell to pay.

"And what is the name of the school?" Her mom asked in a clipped tone.

"The school's name is Alice Academy." Judging from his expression, the man's plan of talking to her mom calmly about it did not go as he expected.

"She can't. She still has St. Marie and, last I checked, she's fine over there, making a lot of friends and those cakes she adores so much. There's no need for her to suddenly transfer because of some ability."

"But you have to. Or else, her undetermined Alice may go wild and cause great harm to you and your family. Alice Academy proves to be a safe ground for her to use her ability without getting afraid of hurting anyone else. If she has the cooking Alice, she would have no problem with missing out on making pastries."

Her mom became silent again, before sighing and saying the words Ichigo thought she would never say:

"How much?"

"Oh, there is no need to pay ma'am. In fact, we would pay you in exchange for letting your daughter into our school." The man smiled gently, obviously thinking that he could get her mom with the money.

Well, he's in for a big surprise.

A loud bang filled the room as Ichigo's mom started throwing insults and curses at the man. All the while slamming her hand repeatedly at the table.

"You. *bang!* Think. *bang!* I. *bang!* Would. *bang!* Send. *bang!* Away. *bang!* My. *bang!* Own. *bang!* Daughter. *bang!* In. *bang!* Exchange. *bang!* For. *bang!* Money?!"

"N-No ma'am! It's just a token of our gratitude for letting your child go and attend our school. No harm meant!" The man said. "Though there might be if you allow your child to stay here."

Ichigo stiffened and she heard her mom starting to accuse the man of threatening her. But she didn't hear it, the only thing revolving around her mind was she supposedly might harm someone, assuming she does have this Alice, and she didn't want that! What if her powers are harmful, and not just for cooking? Is there such a thing as a fire Alice? A killing Alice? What if she have one of those? She didn't want to accidentally kill someone!

Decision suddenly made, (she was surprised herself how quick she was to decide) and after determining that this is in fact, not a prank, (her mom couldn't throw a real heated argument unless it's really serious) she stepped out of her spot behind the door and entered the fray…

"Is it true that I will cause harm to others?"

"Eh?" The two arguing adults turned their heads to stare at her.

"Ichigo! Did you hear everything we said?" Her mom cried.

"Well," The man saw the cute girl who he realized in surprise looks a lot like his student, a girl named Mikan Sakura. He shook the thought out and nodded. "If you don't attend the school, then yes."

Whoa! He looks like Hanabusa-kun! Ichigo thought. She didn't see his face clearly from afar, so she's kinda shocked when she saw him. "If it will help me, then yes, I will attend it!"

"Ichigo!" Her mom exclaimed. "You don't know what you're saying! Alices are-!"

"So it's settled then!" The man ignored her mom's babbling. "Ichigo-chan, please pack your things and let's meet outside. Take your time!"

"Wait, NOW?!" Ichigo cried in shock. "You wouldn't even give me some time to tell my sister and dad?" Both were staying in a relative's house, she would hate to leave without them knowing!

"Well, there are other people waiting in the car and I know they wouldn't appreciate being kept waiting." The man said with a smile. "I'm sure your mother would pass on the message."

Ichigo frowned and glanced at her mom, who was watching the whole thing with wide eyes. "So when will I see my family again?" she asked concerned. "Is it like at St. Marie? You have dorms?"

"Well... yes. But I'm sorry to say that you will not see your family until you graduated from high school." The man said, making Ichigo freeze.

I can't see my family again? What kind of school is Alice Academy?

And just like that, it shattered her resolve to leave.

"No…" She muttered. "How about vacations? Christmas breaks? Even Birthdays?!"

"I'm sorry, but you are not allowed to leave the school at all. Except if you are an extremely special and intelligent student, then the Academy will allow you a week-long stay away from school a year."

She looked at her mom, who was now gazing sadly at her. Ichigo sighed, "Mom, if what the man said was true, if I stay here, I will be a danger to you all. I might even harm my friends when I start at St. Marie again. I'd rather go than do that."

"Ichigo…" Her mom whispered.

"I'm sorry mom." She then ran up the stairs.

"So what is it?" Vanilla asked as she watched Ichigo dash around the room packing things." "Why are you packing?"

"Be prepared Vanilla, we will go to a place." Ichigo said while she packs her things. "Can you hide in here for a while?" Ichigo gestured in her backpack.

"Okay, but only for a short time." Vanilla said as she flies towards the bag.

She's finally done with the last of her things and took one last glance at her room before she hurried downstairs.

"Ichigo please!" her mom cried, almost bumping into her on her way down. "Don't go!"

"I will be alright mom." Ichigo said while comforting her. "I've grown up a bit, right? I'm no longer that clumsy person who always rushes recklessly into things. I can take care of myself now." She gave her mom a bright smile.

"Even so, I will not see you again after many years! What would your father and sister think?"

"Mom... please.." Ichigo said in a begging state.

Her mom sighed and caressed her hair. "Just be careful sweetheart. Don't get into trouble, and always write letters!"

"I will. Expect it every week!" She smiled and hugged her.

"Don't worry ma'am, I will guide her." The man, who they don't know was watching the whole time, suddenly said.

"I won't forgive you if something happens to her!" Her mom fixed him with a glare that makes even her husband and Ichigo's dad cower in fear.

"Bye mom! I love you!" Ichigo said while waving her hand. "Please take care of yourselves! And tell Hanabusa-kun, Andou-kun and Kashino about this!"

"I will! I love you too Ichigo!"

Ichigo ran into the black car parked into the side of their house, waving all the while and a bright smile painting her face, though they both know it was fake. The man then followed her a short while later after thanking Ichigo's mom for understanding.

"Please be safe." Her mom murmured as she waved goodbye.