Title: Don't Bother Me

Author's Note: First off, this is an AU story. I like the Ikuto/Amu pairing, but I thought I'd try my hand at Ikuto/OC for something different. Yes, I will try to include fanservice, but only when it is NECESSARY to the plot. My main goal is to create an in-character story. Frankly, I will be following the storyline of the manga rather than the anime, because I feel even the official anime screws up Ikuto by pandering to too much fanservice and filler plot lines. Nonetheless, I do give due credit to Ikuto's very talented voice actor for making Ikuto quite enjoyable to listen to. ;) Anyway, if you'd like a good example of what I base my OC off of, read the manga Dengeki Daisy. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and if you want more, please review, and feel free to include any constructive criticism.

Chapter 1

"Thanks for coming along with me, Kukai. I can always use an extra pair of hands for getting groceries to make dinner."

"No problem, Sayaka, as long as you uphold your end of the bargain by sharing that dinner with me tonight," my best friend, Souma Kukai, cheerily answered almost immediately. His green eyes sparkled amiably over at me, and he ran a hand a through his spiky brown hair. He'd arrived to assist me in my shopping venture straight from soccer practice, still dressed in his team uniform, to help me out at the convenience store located nearest to my apartment.

"That's Sayaka-sempai to you," I couldn't resist teasing him. "I'm one year older than you in school, remember? In fact, I'm in middle school now, and you're still stuck in elementary school."

Kukai shrugged. "I've only got a short amount of time before I graduate and join you at the same school again." He let his eyes wander across the roomy store before taking the scrap of paper in my hands and tearing it in half, suggesting, "We'll split the shopping list to speed things up. I'll meet you at the register, okay?"

"Fine, fine. Leave me alone to suffer in misery." I dramatically placed the back of my hand on my head, acting faint.

"Sayaka, the damsel-in-distress look doesn't work for you. I'd lose the act if I were you." I glared at the back of Kukai's head as he merrily strolled away upon insulting me so casually, then I set out to collect my portion of the shopping list.

Suddenly, something caught my eye. A tiny, purple-haired person – if it could even be called that – floated by. However, that part wasn't the weirdest of my hallucination. No, the creature had to be even more of an example of the bizarre by wearing a black punk outfit with a large white cross on the front of his shirt and sporting purple cat ears, a tail, and little paws for both hands and feet.

"W-what is that?" I thought aloud, causing someone to glance curiously in my direction. I pointed at the little cat-thing.

"You don't see it?" I asked, starting to feel like an idiot. The woman shook her head and raised an eyebrow.

Am I going crazy? I asked myself inwardly. Naw, it can't be real. I glanced back down again, realizing the little cat-thing had locked eyes with me.

"Y-you can see me, nya?!"

"Eh?! You can talk?"

More people stared at me, and I began to feel a little out of place. I quickly grabbed the little cat-thing, pulling him around a corner. I shut my eyes, hoping he'd be gone when I opened them again, but alas, no such luck...

"What are you?" I whispered, panicking.

"A Guardian Character, nya."

"A what?"

"A Guardian Character," he repeated, dropping the 'nya' and emphasizing the syllables more clearly.

"Which is…?" I prompted, staring to get irritated.

"How come you can see me and not know what I am, nya?"

"How should I know?!" I nearly hissed, mumbling as an afterthought, "Maybe the same reason you can speak, but not answer a direct question."

The little cat tilted his head, examining me quizzically with his piercing yellow eyes.

"Well, what's your name?" I finally inquired, exasperated by his silence.

"Yoru, nya," he supplied, smiling mischievously. He pointed to a bag of dried sardines on a shelf nearby. "If you buy me these sardines, I'll tell you about Guardian Characters, nya."

I considered Yoru's proposal for an instant, cursing my naturally inquisitive nature, then sighed and nodded. Grabbing the bag and adding it to the shopping basket filled with my own things, I headed towards the clerk, glancing around furtively in order to make sure Kukai didn't spot me leaving. I didn't dare involve the level-headed Kukai in this situation. He'd for certain think I'd been throughly knocked off my rocker.

We walked out a few minutes later, and I automatically handed Yoru his food.

"So…?" I urged.

"So, what, nya? I got my sardines, I don't have to do anything for you, nya!" he sneered, flying off.

"Wha-! Get back here! Yoru!" I shouted and ran after him.

After I'd chased him down two streets and into an alley, I stopped when he paused to smirk with satisfaction at the fact that I'd bothered to follow him at all. Panting, burdened down with two heavily-laden shopping bags, I glared at him, and tried to salvage the loss of my dignity in this failed pursuit by also smirking, albeit it being marred by my heavy breathing.

"Sure you can fly over those buildings before I catch you?"

"Yep, nya!" Yoru widened his grin, which infuriated me to the point of my deciding to give up.

"Oh, fine! Take the stupid sardines! You don't have to tell me anything about Guardian Characters."

When I whirled around to storm off back to the store, I unexpectedly met the stoic gaze of a teenage boy who stood in front of me. Dark blue hair, midnight-colored eyes, lithe, agile frame… and a black formfitting uniform that resembled the one worn by guys at a high school my older brother had graduated from. I blinked at him, wondering at his abrupt presence. Inwardly, I kicked myself, hoping I hadn't looked too much like an idiot, screaming at an empty space…

"What did you do this time, Yoru?" the boy questioned, taking his intense, assessing eyes off me. Great, now I had a fellow Guardian Character seeing lunatic on the scene.

"N-nothing, Ikuto, nya!" Yoru defended himself, vainly attempting to hide the bag behind his body, forgetting its large size.

What happened next seemed almost comical in light of the ridiculous circumstances: Ikuto studied Yoru for a moment, walked past me, flicked him lightly on the face, and finished off the exchange between this odd pair by tearing the sardines away from Yoru. Slowly, Ikuto approached me with what I could only describe as a catlike grace. Instead of returning the sardines as I'd expected him to do, he leaned in and seized a lock of my black hair next to my ear, sniffing it. I involuntarily stepped back a little.

"You don't smell like you've had a Character birth…" he murmured thoughtfully, his face still uncomfortably close to mine.

"I don't smell like what?" I demanded, really weirded out by this high school guy who was willing to get up so close and personal with a seventh-grader. "What is it with you two and this Guardian Characters concept anyway?"

Much to my relief, I heard Kukai call my name from behind me. Nevertheless, the harsh way he uttered my name sort of freaked me out, as if my best friend knew how much of a potential danger this Ikuto might be. I spun around and was instantly assaulted with the astonishment etched plainly on Kukai's face as he stood in the entrance to the alley, shopping bag in hand, although Ikuto's carefully modulated voice compelled me to turn my head back in his direction.

"Looks like we have company," he remarked rather slyly, smirking and sliding the bag of sardines into one of my shopping bags. "Come on, Yoru. We have work elsewhere."

"Okay, nya."

"Later, Sayaka," Ikuto directed at me, his smirk deepening further and further into Cheshirelike pervertedness. "You have interesting friends. I'm sure they'd be able to help you with understanding about Guardian Characters."

To my amazement, blue cat ears and a tail materialized out of thin air on Ikuto. He jumped nimbly atop one of the surrounding buildings, disappearing from view, Yoru faithfully trailing him like a stray cat who'd been fed by a kind stranger would do.

"How are his moves even possible?" I exclaimed, far too engrossed in the moment to wonder about Ikuto's parting hint. Kukai, though, took the initiative before I did.

"Sayaka, we need to talk," Kukai announced in an uncharacteristically calm, serious tone that caused an unpleasant feeling to settle into the pit of my stomach.