Hi there, welcome to the first chapter of Stockholm Syndrome! If you're wondering what that is, I would suggest Googling it. This is actually my third story, so i'm still fairly new to this. If you've read it and you don't like it, review it anyways so I know how I can improve.

I do not own Shugo Chara.

Stockholm Sydnrome

Chapter 1

Amu walked out of her school for the last time. Yes, the exact last time. She had just graduated high school and now that it was summer, she was free to do whatever she pleased. It felt good to be 18; a license, a boyfriend, a job, plenty of money, and now that school was over, plenty of time. She would visit the library more, go to lectures at universities, begin planning for college, visit coffee houses to discuss philosophical things with friends, and double the amount of time she spent with friends.

Amu thought that these things were what made adults more adult-like. She wanted to be grown up, but still have the responsibilities of a child. And finally, she was at the best time in her life, summer, after high school. Her life was perfect.

"Hey, Amu!" Kukai called cheerfully, his arms waving in the air trying to catch her attention. She let her backpack dangle on one shoulder and skipped over to him. "Well, Hinamori, what will you be doing over summer?"

"Kukai!" She squeaked, throwing her arms around him in a friendly manner. He hugged her back, but then pushed her away.

"What's with the hug, kid?" He chuckled, though happy to have the attention from her. She frowned that he had pushed her away, but did understand.

"Well, you came to visit me after school! You've been out of high school for a year now. How's college going?" She asked casually as they began walking towards his car. He drove an old 1997 corvette, and though it was old, it still looked very cool to Amu.

"It's good, I guess. It's not easy, and it's not cheap, even with my soccer scholarship. But they say I'm a promising athlete, so maybe that means I have a future. Here's hoping. So, what are your plans for college Amu?" He asked nonchalantly, wanting to shake off any college talk regarding him. The truth was, he wasn't doing very well in his classes that didn't involve sports. Amu's eyes sparkled for a moment, but then became very, very dull.

"So many things, Kukai. I love sports too, but I'm not as coordinated or athletic as you. I mean, with a little training, maybe, but other than that, I don't think I could really do anything sport-like in college. Then there's art… art has always been a passion of mine. I'm fairly good at it, and I'm great with words and photography and painting, but maybe that's not for me either. Who can build a career on art? Oh, right, my parents. But, still. Then there's cooking and cleaning. I could be a chef, or a house-keeper… but if I'm going to do something with cooking and cleaning, why not just be a stay-at-home-mom and raise a big family?" She rambled.

"I'm kind of regretting asking you now…" Kukai laughed. "But kid, you've got my support on whatever you want to do." He said happily, giving her a big thumbs up. Amu nodded and then realized they were in front of his car.

"Hey, is this a new paint-job?" said Amu, excited for the new color. It was a glossy red that really made the car pop.

"Yep! Glad you noticed! Hey, do you need a ride home?" He blushed a little bit, afraid that she might misunderstand. He knew she was in a very steady relationship with Tadase Hotori. They were relatively good friends, but Kukai was always afraid he would hurt Amu.

"No thanks. Tadase and I are going out to dinner and I need to get ready, so Rima is taking me to her house. I'm just waiting for her to appear…" she replied, looking through the crowds of overly excited teens, ready for their summer to begin. Finally Amu spotted Rima in the same way she had spotted Kukai. Rima ran over and hugged Kukai just as Amu had.

"Kukai!" She breathed, squeezing him tighter than Amu could have ever managed. "What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" She said, squeezing him a bit tighter after every word. Kukai collapsed on the ground, gasping for air.

"Rima, you must have grown like 10 feet!" He laughed, noticing how she was now the same size as Amu.

"I've grown about 2 inches since the last time you saw me. That's hardly 10 feet. Though, my hair is now 3 feet long." She muttered the last part. "And if anyone's changed, it's Amu. Look, her hair is now a bit darker, but still quite pink. And now it's way longer, halfway down her back! And she's tall too. And don't even get me STARTED on her boobs. I mean, come on, she's a C-cup and getting bigger! By the time she's out of college, she'll be a freaking D-cup!" Rima laughed, half making fun and half complimenting.

"RIMA!" Amu shouted, her face completely red with embarrassment

"It's the truth, though." She replied calmly. Or, calm in comparison to Amu. Kukai tried not to notice, but everything Rima said was true. Amu was becoming a beautiful young woman, and yes, her boobs were as big as Rima described. They were huge. Kukai shook his head, trying to get the image out of his mind. Amu was like his little sister; he didn't have feelings for her anymore.

"Well, this was fun." Kukai said conclusively. "I wanted to see you guys on your last day of school, but I see you have things to do, so I'll be on my way. But, you have to promise we'll hang out this summer, okay?" The girls agreed to meet up with him eventually and then headed back to Rima's house to get ready for the date with Tadase.

"Okay, this one?" Rima suggested, showing her friends a snazzy, one-shoulder red dress. They had arrived at Rima's house an hour earlier, but were just beginning to get ready for the date. Amu grimaced.

"That's a little bit much for a trip to the museum, don't you think?" replied Amu. Rima didn't like the dress being denied, but continued digging through her closet.

"Okay, this for SURE!" She sang, showing Amu a pair of tight-black short-shorts and a low-cut tank top.

"I don't want him to think I'm a slut!" Amu hissed, throwing the outfit into the trash. Rima didn't bother retrieving it; it really was a trampy outfit. "Don't you have anything more casual, but still sophisticated. And don't you dare pull out a pinstripe suit!" Rima thought for a moment and then threw herself into the pile of clothing that was her closet.

"Capris and a purple dress shirt?" Rima tried. Amu nodded, grabbed the outfit, and ran into the bathroom to change and do her make-up.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

"T-Tadase…" Amu whispered. Tadase was so close to her, they could have been kissing if she had just tilted her head.

"Amu, this is going to be the best date of our life. Agreed?" He murmured, twisting her hair in-between his fingers. She could have melted right there.

"Absolutely. Let's go inside, now." She said, pulling her boyfriend of a year and two months into the monstrous museum in Tokyo. First they went to the fossils, then to the 'different countries'. In Europe, Amu noticed a very strange looking man in the corner of the room. It appeared he was observing a very thought-provoking painting from Venice, Italy, but something about him was suspicious.

I'm probably just being prejudice because of his hair… Amu thought to herself. The man, who could hardly be much older than Amu herself, had medium length blue hair that danced across his face. He wore black sweats and a dark blue sweater that made him appear 10 times heavier than he probably was. He also had ridiculous rectangle shaped glasses that weren't even real! But, if the security guards didn't have a problem with him, Amu didn't see the reason for her to have one. Next, Amu and Tadase found themselves in an empty room. They were surrounded by displays of gems and priceless jewels of all sizes. Tadase looked at Amu longingly, fighting off his devils. But, being a boy, he gave in. He took a subtle step towards Amu, and then pressed his face right in front of hers.

"We're alone…" he whispered. Amu could feel his breath. He waited a few seconds and then kissed her gently, just to test that she was alright with it.

"Tadase…" she whispered back. "This isn't the place… there are security guards everywhere."

"Alright, I understand." He muttered, pulling away disappointedly.

"How about we come back here right before closing… when we're completely alone…" she said seductively. With that out of the way, and something to look forward to, they left to explore the rest of the three-story museum. Amu noticed the man with blue hair only one other time, and she didn't pay much attention to him. Tadase led her to displays of paintings, statues, famous literary works, inventions and culture from Japan thousands of years ago.

Finally the time came for the museum to close. A speaker announced that the Edo-Tokyo Museum would be closing for the day in 15 minutes. It was already more than three fourths empty as it was, and Amu could hear people leaving from the second floor. 'Lets go' her eyes seemed to say to Tadase. They walked to the room with all the jewels, hand in hand. Just as they were about to kiss though:

"My phone… sorry." Tadase said apologetically. He was planning to put it on vibrate, but he noticed the caller ID read "mom", so he left the room to go talk to her. Amu looked around the room to try to pass the time. A particular gem in the corner of the room caught her eye, so she went to look at it.

On the very bottom of the display case was a plaque, and it looked important, so Amu silently crouched down to read it. It was very hard to read, however, and took her a few minutes to decipher the words. When she next stood up, she saw the man with blue hair. He was standing next to the museum's most valuable artifact, a rare stone worth millions (in American currency).

He pulled a pocket-knife from his pocket and began cutting a square in the carpet, revealing a box with a tool in it that he used on the glass case covering the jewel. In seconds he was in the glass case and carefully pulled out the jewel. Amu barely had time to blink. With the gem in his hand, he turned around to dash out with a successful smile on his face when he noticed Amu. She stared at him, then the jewel, and then him again.

"Crap." He growled. He had not expected someone to be hiding. But he didn't think she was a security guard, she was just a girl in the wrong place at the wrong time. "And I really wanted to do this heist without killing anyone. It really soils the record, don't you think?" Amu took a step back, but behind her was only wall.

"I didn't see anything!" She tried, putting her arms in the air as if she were under arrest.

"You saw everything." The man spat, angry that she would try to fix the situation. He really was busted. "I saw you several times around the museum… didn't I? You were with that blond boy who I would have thought was gay if you weren't with him. You would be able to describe my every detail." He pondered over the idea, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag.

The man reached his hand in and pulled out a sort of powder, then stepped closer to Amu. "Tell me, young girl, does my hand smell like chloroform?" He asked, laughing at his own joke. Amu tried to escape, but she was in a corner and he was too fast. The thief grabbed her unconscious body, left her purse on the ground, and then went about getting her body out of the museum unnoticed. He decided on running as fast as possible (he was going to be seen by the security cameras, girl or not) and out the back door.